Skeleton's Key (Delta Crossroads Trilogy, Book 2) (35 page)

“I’m going to bed,” Jaymee said. “Please remember this is an old house, and just because my room is on the other side doesn’t mean I won’t hear your nocturnal activities. Goodnight.”

“Night,” Dani said. The words were barely out of her mouth before Cage wrapped her in his arms and kissed her fiercely. She melted against him. “We have to be good.”

He kissed her forehead and then tucked her head underneath his chin, pulling her close. “So if I can’t go put a hurting on Ben Moore, what am I supposed to do? Sit around and wait for Gina to stop letting Landers sway her?”

“Maybe.” Dani spoke into the soft skin of his neck. “Or you can hang out with me tomorrow.”

“And do what?”

She wiggled away to look up at him once more. “I’ve got a plan.”

*     *     *

“This time, let
me do the talking,” Dani said as Cage parked near the Historical Foundation.

“And why is that?”

“Because you’re on my turf, and I can appeal to Lee as a protector of history. And because I said so.”

“Bossy Yankee.”

For the first time since stepping off the plane in Jackson, the heat didn’t bother Dani. It was just simply part of the fabric of her new life, along with the tall man walking next to her, his hand resting protectively on the small of her back. As though it had always been there.

Heather wasn’t at her post, and Dani figured that as a new employee, she had every right to head straight to Lee’s office. He knelt in front of a filing cabinet, muttering unintelligibly.

Dani knocked on the open door, and Lee jumped to his feet. He dusted off the knees of his pants. “Dani.” Lee looked surprised and more than a little flustered to see them. “I didn’t expect to see you today.” His eyes drifted to Cage. “Or you.”

“Rumor mill saying I was arrested?”

“Not exactly.” He moved to his desk. “What can I do for you?”

Dani didn’t accept the seat he offered her. She no longer had time for pleasantries. “I’m here for the truth, Lee.”

“I’m sorry?”

“You know what’s going on. Cage is a serious suspect in these murders. We’ve got to find Ironwood’s cache.”

His mouth tightened into a fierce scowl. “I told you–”

“And you lied.”

Lee’s lips snapped shut. He glanced from Dani to Cage. “What are you two getting at?”

“The keys, Lee. I know you know where they are,” Dani said. “You’ve always known.”

“Excuse me?”

She smacked her hands against the top of the wooden chair. “Enough. I don’t have time for your pretend surprise. You were lying the other day when I asked you about those keys. Now either you tell me why and where they are, or I will go straight to the police station and tell Gina I think you’re the one who’s been sneaking into Ironwood.”

“Dani.” Cage pulled her arm. “You said you were going to appeal to him as a protector of history. Not threaten.”

She shrugged him off. “I’m serious, Lee. I’ll tell Captain Barnes how you cursed Robertson for breaking in and exactly what you said about Ben Moore. The only thing that’s kept you out of the hot seat is that Cage is an easier target. But you’ve got just as much reason to be a suspect.”

Lee paled until the veins in his cheeks stood out. “Do I need to remind you that I am your new employer?”

“Not at all. But apparently I need to remind you that you’re a good man. An honest man.”

He flinched. “You are mistaken.”

“About what? The keys or the honesty?” Dani counted to ten and tried to soften her approach. “I don’t think you killed those men. But I’m going to keep Cage out of jail, and you’re not telling us everything.”

“You’d really tell the police you suspected me?”

“I swear I will.”

He sagged back into his chair. His pallor shifted to gray, stretching across his downturned lips. Sadness dulled his eyes. “I had the keys. For nearly thirty years, I kept those keys safe.”

Coldness swept over Dani. She throttled her rising temper. “How many keys?”

“All of them.” Lee’s voice was monotone. “When the church bought Ironwood out of foreclosure, they were given a full set of keys to the house. One for every interior and exterior entrance.” He hunched over the desk, hands clasped tightly.

“And you didn’t catalogue them?”

Lee’s head drooped farther. “I was trying to do the right thing. There were members of the church board who wanted to look for the hidden cache, and if they’d had the keys, they would have no doubt torn the house apart, hoping one of those keys worked. And this was before the house had gone into real disrepair. I set about securing the necessary rooms, doing everything I could to preserve the authenticity of the place.”

He glanced out the window. “It was my hope that one day, I might be able to buy the house and restore it.”

“What did you do with the keys?” Cage asked. “And what about a skeleton key? Did you ever see one?”

“There were two different skeleton keys with the set, but none of them was a master key.” Lee clasped and unclasped his hands, thumbs circling one another in a fast, rolling pattern. “I never really believed that existed until Dani received that letter. As for the keys, I kept them here, locked in the safe along with some of the more delicate historical items.”

Lee reached under his desk and pulled out a portable safe. “I searched that house from top to bottom, looking for the supposed cache. I figured if I did find anything valuable, I’d be able to use it to restore Ironwood. At least use it for the right thing. But I never found a single shred of evidence. Finally, I gave up.”

“And where are the keys now?” Dani asked.

He sank farther into his chair. “Stolen. About a year and a half ago.”

“You have no idea who could have taken them?” The theft of the keys sounded awfully convenient to Dani.

A tiny voice in the back of her mind nudged her.
You probably would have done the same thing to protect the house.

“I have a lot of ideas,” Lee said. “We were undergoing renovations at the time. People were in and out. These safes are hard to crack, but it can be done.”

“Did they take anything other than the keys?” Cage asked.

“No, and there were other valuable items in the safe.”

“So they knew exactly what they were stealing,” Cage said. “Who all knew you had the keys?”

Lee tapped his fingers against the safe, lips pursed. “Very few people.”

“Who?” Cage demanded.

“Heather.” He looked out the window, mouth drawn into a tight grimace. “Grace.”

“Grace?” Dani nearly shouted. A clear picture was emerging from the cloudy mosaic. “As in Grace Moore?”

“We’re friends. She knows more about this town than anyone, and I like to visit. We’ve talked about Ironwood numerous times. I told her about the keys, about looking.” He looked at Cage. “This was before Ben stole the Semple farm out from under us.”

“Ben Moore’s got a deal with Norton Investments for Ironwood,” Dani said. “They buy the house, he gets a big cut of the profits from the new resort.”

Lee sagged farther into his chair. “Good Lord.”

“Was Ben in the historical foundation during the time the keys were stolen?”

“I don’t remember,” Lee said. “It’s possible. He came to town a lot more often before the Semple sale.”

Dani reached for Lee’s office phone. “You need to call Gina right now and tell her everything. With the information she already has on him, Ben Moore’s got to be an official suspect.”

They left ten
minutes later, leaving Lee to wallow in his remorse. Gina had been angry at him for not coming forward and told Lee to expect a visit today.

“So Ben steals the keys and starts searching Ironwood himself.” Dani snapped her seatbelt into place while Cage merged into traffic. “He always believed the cache was there. And if he knew Norton was interested, he’d want to find everything he could before they bought and bulldozed. Then he runs into Robertson and his partner.”

“And kills them because they’re competition?” Cage said. “Something’s not adding up.”

“Maybe they found the treasure and refused to give it to Ben. So he snaps.”

“That means he went to Ironwood with them,” Cage said. “And it looks like they were killed there.”

“So Robertson and his buddy were Ben’s guides,” Dani said. “After all, if they’re professional scavengers, they’re a lot better at this than Ben is. So they find the cache, and maybe it’s worth more than any of them thought. Things go down.”

“But one of the men died of natural causes,” Cage reminded her.

“Unless toxicology proves differently.” She shook her head. “I don’t understand. All along you’ve been thinking Ben is the guy. Doesn’t this back that theory up?”

“This isn’t really evidence,” Cage said. “None of it will hold up in court.”

“You think Gina will do anything with it? She can’t possibly push it aside.”

“Unless she’s determined that I did it, no. But there’s one thing you haven’t thought of.”

“What?”

“I’ve been in the historical foundation plenty of times. That’s where the meetings were when we were trying to save the Semple farm. Gina could just as easily say I stole the keys.”

Dani’s spirits sank. She didn’t speak the rest of the short drive back to Magnolia House. Cage rested his hand on her knee, rubbing his thumb in gentle circles.

How could he be so calm? Her insides were a tangled mass of nerves, and the idea of sitting around and waiting made her want to scream obscenities. Yet Cage remained on a quiet, even keel, as though being framed for murder was a normal occurrence.

He walked her inside Magnolia House. The place was silent. Jaymee was still asleep.

“Listen, try not to worry.” Cage teased her mouth with his. “This is something, and it will give Gina somewhere else to look other than up my ass.”

“I hope. Do you really have to leave?”

“I promised Dad I’d help him clean out the storage shed a week ago, and I’ve put it off as long as I can. You can come with me.”

Her heart might have actually skipped a beat. Meeting the parents. She’d love to. But not today.

An idea called to her, and she was never one to ignore an impulse.

She stood on tiptoes for another kiss. “I should stay here, go over those blueprints. I know I’ve missed something.”

“Suit yourself.” Cage grazed his lips against her forehead, his hands lingering on her hips. “I’ll call later to check in.” He headed back outside, waving as he pulled away.

She waited until his car turned the corner and then went back into the front hall, grabbed her purse, and headed out the door.

Time to talk to Ben Moore.

H
azy sunlight streamed
through the cracks in the fat, gray clouds over Oak Lynn as Dani parked in the circular drive. She knew she was breaking her promise to Cage, but she couldn’t sit around and do nothing. That wasn’t her nature, and it never would be.

But she needed to be smart about this. Ben might be dangerous. Hopefully his mother was around to act as a protective buffer.

Courage gathered, she jogged up the steps and knocked.

Maybe Ben wasn’t home. Maybe he’d gone back to Jackson. Maybe…

The heavy oak door swung open. She pasted what she hoped was a pleasant look on her face.

“Dani. It’s good to see you.” Ben’s bright smile didn’t reach his eyes. “Come in, please.”

“Thank you.” She stepped inside the house, immediately noticing the eerie silence. “Where is everyone?”

“Most of the guests have checked out,” Ben said. “And Mom is in town, shopping. Just you and me.”

Unease rolled through her, but it was too late to turn back now. “I’ve come to talk to you anyway.”

His smile grew, but his eyes remained cold. Calculating. “Come on in to the living room.”

“I’d rather stay here.”

“Is something wrong?” He tapped his fingers against his forehead. “Cage. You’re upset about his arrest.”

“He wasn’t arrested. Questioned. And the matter settled.”

Ben’s chin rose, his smile thin. “I’m glad to hear that.”

“Are you?”

“Dani, is there something you want to say to me?”

“Actually, there is. I’m not one for beating around the bush–call it my Northern bluntness.”

“Please, whatever you have to say, I’m all ears.”

“Then listen carefully.” She squared her shoulders, angled her head back, and looked him in the eye. “I know about your plans with Norton Investments for Ironwood. Let me clear things up for you right now. I’m not selling.”

“You misunderstand.”

She held up her hand. “Don’t patronize me. You came down here thinking you could sweet talk me into selling for cheap. But I don’t think that’s all you’ve been doing with my house.”

“I don’t follow.” His unsteady voice betrayed him.

“You’ve always believed in the Ironwood cache. But you’re greedy. I don’t think you’d want to share it with Norton. So when they were originally going to buy, you came down here and started digging. Then you ran into Martin Robertson and his partner.”

Ben jerked. “I don’t know that name.”

“They were scavenging Ironwood just like you. And I think you
do
know his name. I think you brought Martin with you as an expert. He’d probably gone scavenging in plenty of old, abandoned homes. And you were running short on time.”