A Purse to Die For (27 page)

Tony skidded to a stop in the parking lot, shot out of the car. Even if he wasn
'
t gathering clues, they popped out at him from under the snow and slush of the parking lot. Tire tracks. Nearly obliterated by snowfall. One vehicle. It had come and gone in a spray of mud.

Footprints led up to the main building ahead. Two sets. Gina
'
s. And Carla
'
s, her cast making an over-sized impression. Further print trails spread out from the log cabin.

His architectural
expertise abandoned, Tony was
straight cop now. Or not. Gina was inside. Tracer told him.

He threw open the door.
"
Gina!
"

No answer.

"
Gina!
"
Becki called with him.

Their voices rang through the empty space.

Tony looked everywhere.

"
Tony,
"
Becki said.

He whirled around to face her.
"
What?
"

"
Her purse.
"
She pointed.

There it sat, abandoned on one of the wood tables in the middle of the room.

"
She
'
s not here,
"
he said, his heart thundering in his ears.

Chapter 44

Gina saw them—Tony and Becki—coming through the snow. They were nearly here, nearly to her.
Oh, thank God.
They lifted her, hugged her, kissed her. The warmth, the glorious warmth. She could fold herself into it, lose herself in it. But she had something to do first.

"
Thank God,
"
she mumbled.
"
Give me your cellphone.
"

"
What did she say?
"
Tony asked Becki.

"
Something about a cellphone. Gina, darling, you don
'
t need it now. We
'
re here.
"

"
Give it to me.
"
Gina grabbed on to Becki
'
s sleeve.
"
Please.
"

"
She must be dazed by the cold.
"

"
I
'
m not dazed, Becki. You don
'
t understand. I know who—
"

Tony huffed.
"
Give her the damned cellphone, Becki.
"

Gina grabbed it and tried to turn it on, but her fingers wouldn
'
t work. She nearly screamed in frustration. She shoved it back at Becki.
"
You dial. I can
'
t.
"

Becki stared at her, but started pushing the numbers that Gina recited.

As soon as she was done, Gina grabbed the phone. In a flash, her face transformed and her voice became silk.
"
Tina, darling. It
'
s Gina. Yes, I
'
m still up here
,
and it
'
s freezing cold. Look, I
'
m in a hurry—thanks, darling. Now listen…
"

She glanced at Tony and rolled her eyes.
"
Tina, remember poor Hilary Best? We talked about her last week. Well, you know her sister, Andrea?
"
Pause.
"
Uh-huh? What do you know about—she did? She tried to—and they wouldn
'
t? That
'
s what I wanted to know. Look, I
'
ll call you as soon as I
'
m back in town. Lunch?
"
Another pause.
"
Thanks, darling.
"

She tried to click the phone off, but her thumb wouldn
'
t work. Tony took it gently from her and ended the call. She stood shivering, but there was a big smile on her face.

Tony raised a brow.
"
What was that all about?
"

"
I know who the killer is. And it isn
'
t Carla.
"

The Audi was headed south at a furious pace. The others had been warned to turn around and head back. Gina was coming home.

"
It was when I was wandering. I had to think of something to keep myself awake
,
and I went back over the crime. The first crime. It all comes back to that. What happened? Hilary Best died. Who would want her dead? Carla maybe, if it were true Hilary was having an affair with Reggie. And maybe Reggie, if things had gone sour with the affair. But we missed a whole point. A whole avenue of discussion.
"

Gina
'
s voice was still a bit shaky, but the confidence was there.

"
Who would want Hilary dead? Was there anyone else who could gain from Hilary
'
s death? Was there—for instance—any money at stake? Did someone inherit?
"

Gina heard Tony curse. She smiled.

"
Actually, a lot of money. Hilary had come through an expensive divorce. She owned a swank condo and a cottage in Muskoka that had to be worth millions. And she had no children or husband or parents left alive. Just a sister.
"
A sister who hated her,
Gina remembered.

She glanced at Becki, who kept one arm around her, warming her still.

"
It
'
s as I thought. Tina says Andrea tried to return several pricey items to Holt
'
s last week. They wouldn
'
t take them back because they were last season and some of the things had the tags missing—obviously worn. Andrea threw a hissy fit and stalked out. I think her husband was part of that development company that just went under
.
What
'
s the name?
"

"
Denman
'
s.
"

"
That
'
s it. Andrea needed money fast. I
'
ll bet she was going to bail from the husband before the courts took everything. She probably followed Hilary up here and argued with her.
"

Becki
'
s voice was rich and comforting.
"
But would anyone really kill their own sister just for money?
"

Tony laughed.
"
Is there any better reason?

Gina frowned. Her mind was working efficiently now, pulling out memories.
Andrea? Andrew…the names…so similar.

"
Oh, I think there
'
s something more behind it. I can
'
t be sure, but I heard a rumour once…Something about an unwanted pregnancy, long ago…
"

Dumont stared. Killers came in all packages, it was true. But he couldn
'
t believe the cool demeanour of the woman in front of him, the woman who had brutally murdered her own sister.

"
So. You inherit.
"

Andrea blew out smoke.
"
Probably. I can
'
t be sure, she might still have her ex in the will, but I doubt it. And I don
'
t think she would have put Reggie in yet. So it
'
s probably left to me.
"

Dumont paused. She said it so calmly, as if it didn
'
t matter.

"
You killed her not knowing if you would inherit?
"
This didn
'
t seem logical to him. Wouldn
'
t you check first?

Andrea snapped her gaze to Dumont. She carefully butted the cigarette on the tin ashtray.

"
You think I did this for money?
"
Her eyes flashed.

Was it anger? Dumont couldn
'
t tell.
"
Why else?
"

Andrea shook her head.
"
You don
'
t get anything, do you? Just stumbling around trying to find clues and you don
'
t understand the least of what motivates us. I guess we do seem different to you.
"

Now Dumont was angry.
Enough of the damned class differences.
It made his blood boil, how this woman thought she was better than everyone else…but she was talking again. He better listen.

"
It was about Andrew. Don
'
t you get it? I found out Hilary was dating Andrew, was having an
affair
with Andrew. How could she?
"

Finally Dumont was getting it.
"
And you wanted Andrew for yourself?
"

Andrea
'
s eyes went wide.
"
Don
'
t be absurd. It was disgusting. Her own nephew. And she laughed when I told her. Laughed like it was something funny. And I saw the baseball bat
,
and I had to stop her disgusting laugh. I had to right then and there.
"

Dumont couldn
'
t quite grasp—

"
Don
'
t you get it? Andrew is my son.
"

Chapter 45

"
One more thing I don
'
t understand. How did you even know Ian?
"

Rob was perplexed. It was the last piece of the puzzle he couldn
'
t put together. They were at the precinct now, eyeing each other across a dull grey table. Andrea seemed cool, resigned. She had come without a fight…she had merely sighed, looked at Dumont and quipped something about always wanting to try handcuffs.

Now Andrea nodded.
"
Simple, really. He has this design show on cable—you
'
ve seen it?
"

Dumont shook his head.

"
He
'
s really quite good. Was.
"
She reached for another cigarette, tapping it out of the pack.
"
I called the studio to get his name. He did over my house two years ago. Very mid-century modern with a Euro edge, you know?
"

Dumont didn
'
t.

She flicked the lighter. A flame burst vermilion. She put it to the cigarette and inhaled.

"
So you met—
"

Andrea looked over.
"
Soon after we finished the project, I was lunching with Hilary at the Bloor Street Diner, and who walks over but Ian, with Andrew in tow. You could have knocked me over with a feather when Ian introduced us. Of course, I knew who he was. Andrew, that is. I knew the family who adopted him, knew the name. It was all done privately through the doctor I had at the time.
"

She took a puff and looked off into space.

Could it really be that simple?
Dumont felt like cursing.

"
Hilary must have snagged Andrew
'
s phone number right then and there. She always was a bloody cow, sniffing after young blood. I didn
'
t find out about it until two weeks ago when I went to the cottage in Muskoka to look for an old photo album Mom had. It really isn
'
t important. And there was Andrew. My Andrew. At our old cottage waiting for Hilary. I could have screamed.
"

She sniffed and turned back.
"
He doesn
'
t know he
'
s my son, you see. Nobody knew. So what could I do?
"

Dumont could see it all now. Andrea following Hilary to Langdon Hills. Starting a confrontation in the back behind the garage, by the forest, away from prying eyes. Losing her temper…

"
I
'
m sorry about Ian. He saw me leave the parking lot of that crummy motel
.
He knew Hilary was my sister. He put two and two together and figured I had been there at the scene. And, of course, he knew my phone number. We agreed to meet later for lunch in town so I could explain, but—
"
She paused.

"
You found him on the deck first,
"
Dumont said.

She nodded then frowned.
"
I don
'
t think he even knew about Andrew. About my connection or about Hilary. I feel bad about Ian. Too bad he was such a cat.
"

Curiosity killed the cat. Dumont got that one.

"
The gun?
"

Andrea shrugged. Then she smiled.
"
You can buy anything in Toronto if you know the right people.
"

"
Karl, I
'
m coming home right after the funeral,
"
Becki said over the phone.
Did her voice convey how excited and relieved she was?

"
Great news. Loneliest couple weeks of my life.
"

"
Hey, don
'
t pile it on too thick.
"

"
Huh?
"

"
I know a man needs time on his own now and again. Doesn
'
t need to be joined at the hip to his wife.
"

"
You telling me our honeymoon phase is over?
"

"
We could start a new one,
"
she suggested, brightening.
"
Gina and Tony sure seem headed in that direction. And it looks like a whole lot of fun to me.
"

"
You know how they always talk about the astronomical divorce rate?
"

"
Oh.
"
Her heart spasmed. Gone too long,
after all.
"
Sure.
"

"
Fifty
percent or something like that?
"

"
Right,
"
she acknowledged.
"
Bad.
"

"
But the other fifty
percent of marriages succeed. An
d don
'
t need to be resuscitated. That
'
s
ours.
"

Phew.
"
Sweet! Hope things work out the same for Gina and Tony. You
'
ll be interested to know Gina
'
s a fabulous amateur sleuth. Not to mention
the way she looks. And dresses. What happened is
I g
ot food poisoning
and had it
figured
wrong.
"

"
That surprises me the way you
'
ve been s
olving mysteries
in Black Currant Bay.
"

"
Well, Carla was just trying t
o protect her family. But Gina? I
t
'
s like she has a nose for more than jus
t the weather. She must sense a…climate,
or something.
"

"
Hmmm. You make a great team.
"

"
I suppose Rob Dumont would have got it eventually. Not a bad guy. Not really. What happened was Gina distracted him.
"

"
What? Threw him off, did she? So she could close the case herself?
"

"
Don
'
t be ridiculous. It
'
s obvious he has a crush on her, and it probably affected his powers of deduction. But he
'
s got everything wrapped up solid now. Both Andrea and Reggie are in custody.
"

"
And Carla and Nellie?
"

"
They
'
ll be fine. Carla found her mojo.
"

"
Mojo?
"

"
That
'
s the word they use, isn
'
t it?
"

"
Who?
"

"
Young people.
"

"
You mean young
er
people.
"

"
Not-middle-aged people. The up-and-coming generation. Like Gina and Tony.
"

"
Ahh, the successful couple.
"

"
Well…Rob
'
s still waiting in the wings. Tony better mind his p
'
s and q
'
s.
"

"
It
'
s still hard to believe all this had nothing to do with the will.
"

Gina sat sipping espresso beside Tony on the comfy mocha sofa in her uptown condo. Throw cushions surrounded her on both sides while light poured in from the floor-to-ceiling windows. It was pure heaven to be back in the city after Ian
'
s funeral and away from the rest of the family.
Much as she loved them. Better add that.

Tony shrugged.
"
Not everything is about money. Don
'
t let the husband
'
s court case fool you. These people have money stashed away in all sorts of foreign accounts. Andrea has lots of it, believe me. Not that she
'
ll be able to use it for a long time.
"

Gina frowned.
"
So it was all about image? How silly. Who would care that Andrea had an illegitimate baby long ago?
"

Tony shook his head.
"
It wasn
'
t about that. I think it was about Hilary taking something that belonged to Andrea. The son she never got to know. And here was Hilary, stamping her brand on him in an admittedly creepy way. Andrea went a little nuts. And poor Ian got in the way.
"

She fell into deep thought.
Poor, dear Ian, never quite fitting in. Craving the applause that came with being a television celebrity…always seeking acceptance. They wouldn
'
t forget him. No, they wouldn
'
t.

And then she had a sudden idea.

"
Perhaps we could establish a scholarship in Ian
'
s name.
"

Tony sat up abruptly.
"
What an excellent idea, Squirt. We could use the money that should have gone to him. I
'
ll contact the college he went to and see about setting it up.
"

Gina found she could smile now. It was a fitting memorial.
"
Ian would like that.
"

They sat in companionable silence. The condo was tiny
,
and it seemed full with Tony in it…maybe too full. It really was meant for one person. Maybe she should think about upgrading to a two-bedroom now that she had the money. Maybe—

She sipped again from the nearly empty cup.
"
It will be strange to have money
.
I mean, real money. What are you planning to do with yours?
"

Tony put his espresso cup down on the glass coffee table and turned to her.

"
I
'
ve been drawing up plans for a house. Something just outside the city, for the two of us.
"

Gina blushed.
"
The two of us?
"

"
Well, I
'
m allowing for four. And a dog. But it could always be expanded if you want more than two kids. One thing I
'
ve allowed for…it will have plenty of closets.
"

She laughed.
"
You
'
ll never stop teasing me about being a fashionista.
"

"
Hell, no,
"
he said.
"
I still can
'
t get over you beating the cops to the punch with that purse clue. Who would have thought the identity of a victim would spin on the pedigree of her purse?
"

"
That
'
s the appeal of haute couture,
"
she said.
"
Things are unique. Like the houses you design.
"

"
Well done,
"
he admitted.
"
You
'
ve deftly turned me into one of you.
"

Gina turned to face him full-on. It was now or never—the question that would determine both their futures. She had to ask.

"
Tony, tell me truthfully. You
'
re really going to be able to leave your other work and settle down as a real architect?
"

Tony grinned and reached for her.
"
I
'
ve always been a real architect. And there
'
s nothing more I want than to settle down with you.
"