Total pages in book: 56
Estimated words: 51995 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 260(@200wpm)___ 208(@250wpm)___ 173(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 51995 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 260(@200wpm)___ 208(@250wpm)___ 173(@300wpm)
“Then I’ll be playing the part of Conrad, the groundskeeper’s boss. And you’re right. Many will recognize me. I want them to.”
The aggravation upgraded to relish. “I can’t wait to see you in the costume I plan to prepare for you.”
Her form of vengeance delighted him as much as everything else about her. Make it easy on her, however? No. “The groundskeeper’s boss doesn’t require a costume.”
“He’s getting one anyway,” she said, the relish downgrading to disappointment. “I’m putting a rush on this tour. Scheduling it for this weekend. You probably have plans—”
“I’ll be there,” he interjected. Go ahead. Try to stop me. See what happens.
A slight shiver cascaded over her. “Fine. Come as a paying guest. You’ll not be getting a discount, so don’t ask. Actually, your ticket has an out-of-town processing fee. Add a hundred dollars to it.”
The take that tone of her voice sparked all kinds of warmth inside him. “Tell me who you expect to show up,” he said.
He knew the second talk of the case lured her from her pique. Eager, she told him, “Emma Miller is my number one despite the supposed alibi you mentioned. Before the murder, she found out Dr. Hots was sleeping with other women. Dr. Garcia caught her crying.”
Clever, clever Jane.
“Of course, he tops my list as well. So does Caroline Whittington and everyone else at the clinic. And also their significant others.”
He appreciated a woman who covered every base. After a little checking, he’d learned Whittington’s father had indeed died of cancer. But like Jane, Conrad still wasn’t ruling out the physician assistant. Someone had to fund Whittington’s research. What would be better than gold?
“Yes, but who’s second on your list?” he teased.
She took him seriously, saying, “Abigail Waynes-Kirkland.”
“Why her?” Did Jane know something he didn’t?
“Three reasons. At the wake, she seemed bitter about his affairs. She cased the Gold Fever! exhibit, and she was close enough to the doctor to refer to him as Mark.”
“Which is suspicious to you why?” he asked, digging deeper.
“She’s the only one who uses such familiarity. It could mean they had an affair.” Her eyes glazed, as if she’d gotten lost in her thoughts. Then she shook her head. A conversational reboot? “Have you heard of the Order of Seven?”
Reboot indeed. Thankfully, they’d circled back to the gold. “It may have come up in a meeting,” he hedged.
“Well, allow me to captivate your imagination with what I know about it.”
Finally!
“I did some digging,” she said. “The Order of Seven was a secret society formed during the gold rush. An urban legend usually shared among teenagers. At the exhibit, Abigail studied one paper exclusively. A page referencing the Order. Here, I’ll text you the photos I took of her and the page when I visited the museum against your wishes. It has the same base symbol that was spray painted all over town.”
She lacked any semblance of shame as she fiddled with her phone. He huffed a breath when his cell phone vibrated, swiped up the device, and scanned the images she’d texted him. And she’d gotten excellent shots too?
Life wasn’t fair.
Best not to encourage her. “Why am I just now seeing these photos?” he groused.
“I didn’t know if the lead would pan out,” she replied, far from intimidated. “Brilliant pun intended.”
He preferred her previous method. Contact him the moment she suspected someone of something. “I want a copy of any documents you have.”
“Sure. Because you requested so sweetly,” she told him with a dry tone. “Abigail knew about the new gold supposedly stashed in my cemetery. Oh, and the same Order of Seven symbol is carved into the caskets of Rhonda Burgundy and Silas Ladling.” Jane inched to the edge of her seat. “Silas Ladling’s son was rumored to be a member of the Order. But he took a devastating financial hit when our mines petered out just as gold was discovered in California. In a matter of weeks, Aurelian Hills lost half its population. Businesses were suddenly without paying customers.”
“And you think, what? That the Order is active again, the members searching for hidden gold?” One of the theories being entertained at GBH.
“Not necessarily. But Dr. Hotchkins did dabble in treasure hunting. You said so yourself. What if he had a partner who found something—outside my land, of course—who didn’t want to share?” Pensive, she said, “To be honest, my gut is telling me a scorned lover did the deed.”
“Almost eighty percent of killers are male,” he said to discourage her from launching a new investigation. “That favors the gold angle.” But only when considering the average number of male versus female hunters and only by a small percentage.
“Wow.” She shook her head, as if disappointed in him. But oh how her eyes sparkled. “A woman is as capable and likely of committing a murder as a man, Conrad. We’re just better at hiding it,” she bragged.