Missing Heiress (A Jackie Harlan Mystery Book 2) Read online

  Teresa smiled and headed off to find a movie.

  In the family room, the rows and rows of movies were neatly arranged alphabetically, probably accomplished by one of the former maids. Finding the one she had in mind was easy. Although there were old televisions in other rooms, this was the only room that contained a big screen TV and a DVD player.

  Laura brought her bottle with her, set it on an end table, and sat in her favorite chair. “I adore the way movies take me away from my dull life…if only for a time.”

  “You could go out more,” Teresa said, as she loaded the DVD in the player. “I saw several invitations cancelled in your social calendar.”

  “Oh those. I assure you, none of those could be called exciting. Daddy used to let me ride his horses from time to time, but I haven’t been in ages. Do you ride?”

  “I have never learned.”

  “That’s a pity. I’m sure someone could teach you if you care to learn.”

  “Perhaps someday. I don’t take a fancy to animals much. We had a dog once in the…at school, but he ran away.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. I love all sorts of animals. I should get a dog or a cat. Mathew hates them. I should get one just to irritate him…perhaps I will.”

  “He seems irritated enough already.”

  Laura laughed. “He did, didn’t he? Poor darling suffers such delusions of grandeur; I sometimes pity him. He sees himself running my father’s businesses, but he has yet to even work in one. Mathew is always saying how he would do this and do that, to make improvements. That’s what he said in the beginning, anyway. Perhaps he has given up that pipedream by now. I know very little about what he dreams of these days.”

  There was a touch of sadness in Laura’s voice, so Teresa picked up the remote. “I have seen this one, but I’ll start it for you while I go get a soda.”

  “Very well dear. Hurry back.”

  *

  Maggie was curious. If Bronco8881 didn’t travel much, then chances were, he lived in Denver, and maybe even had a job not far from the fountain. For months, Maggie worked just two blocks over and one block down from the fountain.

  Nicole had been on a rampage all morning, just as she always was after she fired a manager and had to pick up the slack. She was even dressed for the occasion in black knee-high boots that were much too hot for summer, a short black skirt, and of course, a black blouse that was too revealing. Nicole stomped around, talked too loud, issued orders, and disrupted everyone’s workflow. Therefore, when it was time for lunch, Maggie was more than happy to have someplace to go.

  Wearing jeans, a t-shirt and tennis shoes, walking the three blocks didn’t take long at all. The plaza was a peaceful place where shoppers could sit on benches and enjoy the fountain. On one side was a very expensive hotel with boutiques, a bookstore, and several novelty shops on the street level. Opposite the hotel was the impressive Gladstone Building, complete with gold lettering above the doors and a uniformed doorman.

  She was only a few feet from the fountain when she spotted him in front of the Gladstone Building talking to another man. Worried he might notice her, she went to the boutique, pretended to be looking in the window, and instead, watched him in the reflection. He was even more handsome in person than in his picture.

  She took a chance and turned to look at him again. He was wearing what appeared to be a very expensive business suit. Maybe he did have enough money to pay for tickets on a cruise ship. She watched him shake hands with the man, walk into the Gladstone Building, and disappear.

  It was only then she realized what was in the boutique window. It was a beautiful summer gown in just the right color. Maggie opened the door and went in. A moment later, the saleswoman took the dress off of the mannequin so Maggie could try it on.

  *

  By noon, Carl was still stroking his beard with one hand, and using his mouse to scroll slowly down the computer page with the other. “She didn’t have a chance in that car.” He printed two copies of the crash photo the Connellys’ attorney presented in court, and handed one to Michael. “The police report says the car rolled three times before it hit the bottom of the ravine.” He dug in his briefcase for a small magnifying glass.

  “Her face is pretty messed up,” said Michael. “Compared to the age progression picture, I really can’t be sure if it is or it isn’t Georgia.”

  “Wouldn’t you say the hairlines are different, though?” Carl asked.

  Michael lifted his glasses, rubbed his tired eyes for a moment, and then looked at the picture again. “Maybe…maybe a little. It’s too hard to tell.”

  “What does the PI’s report say?” Jackie asked.

  “Nothing Austin didn’t tell us,” Carl answered. He moved his magnifying glass slowly down the right-hand side of the photo. “There it is – the purse.”

  “I see it,” Michael said.

  “Any other purses at the crash site?” Jackie asked.

  “I’m still looking,” Carl answered. “Nope, I don’t see anything. Of course, we can’t see in the car, but the police would have reported it, if more identification was found.”

  “Good point,” said Michael.

  “It couldn’t have been very hard for a PI to find this information. A phone call to Scotland Yard would have worked well enough, especially since Mathew knew where to look. I wonder how much the Connellys paid their PI.” Carl asked.

  Michael rolled his eyes. “Mathew probably charged it to Nick.”

  Jackie laughed, “You’re probably right. Michael, haven’t you hacked into the boarding school records yet?”

  “Jackie, it’s a very sophisticated computer system…an expensive one that hasn’t been on the market for very long,” Michael answered. “I’m surprised a boarding school can afford it.”

  “I wonder what a boarding school charges for hiding a child,” Carl mumbled.

  Michael yawned, and reached for his cold cup of coffee. “We’re about to find out, hopefully.” He took a sip and nearly spit it out. “Yuck, time for a fresh pot.”

  *

  When she got back to work, Maggie was so excited; she couldn’t wait for her afternoon break. As soon as Jim walked past, she followed him upstairs. “I think I’m in love.”

  “Really? With who? Not one of these clowns, I hope,” he said, walking into the break room and sitting at a table. This time, Nicole and Susan sat in the corner of the room having what appeared to be an intense conversation. As soon as Maggie and Jim came in, Nicole and Susan got up and left.

  Maggie ignored them both. “No, with my chat friend.”

  “The axe-murderer? Please, Maggie, you can do far better than that.”

  “Wait until you hear this. He sent me a picture and guess where he was standing? Right in front of the plaza fountain.”

  “He’s here in Denver? That’s more serious than I thought.”

  “I went at noon to see if I could spot him and he was there.”

  “Haven’t I told you about guys like that? You can’t trust the ones you meet online.”

  “I know, but they don’t normally wear expensive suits.”

  Jim got up and walked to the vending machine. “Some do. Don’t you watch the news? How many times has a doctor or lawyer bumped off his wife?”

  “How many?”

  He chose coffee with cream, and carried it back to the table. “Oh, I forgot, you haven’t lived here all your life. The answer is plenty, and all of them wear expensive suits. Did he give you a name?”

  “No, just the picture.”

  Jim’s look of disapproval was unmistakable, but he softened his voice a little. “So, is he handsome?”

  Maggie’s eyes brightened. “He is divine.”

  Jim shook his head. “Handsome men kill too. Take my advice and keep it online. It’s safer that way.”

  “Yes, but…”

  “Maggie, promise me you’ll be careful. You gotta check guys out before you date them, it’s the only way. My wife didn’t and loo
k what she got?”

  Maggie giggled. “She got lucky.”

  Jim blew on it and then carefully sipped his hot coffee. “You wouldn’t mind telling her that occasionally, would you?”

  “Not at all. When do I get to see her again?”

  “We’re taking the kids to the zoo Sunday. Wanna come?”

  “I would love to.”

  “You’re on.” Jim picked up a magazine someone left on the table and started to turn the pages. “Are you going back to that fountain?”

  “I might. I’m curious. I want to see if he meets any women, if he talks funny or if he buys porn.”

  “Porn? How would you know that?”

  “There’s a bookstore across the street from where I saw him, and maybe he’ll go there. You can tell a lot about people by what they buy.”

  “I suppose you can, but I’m going with you next time.”

  “Okay, tomorrow at noon.”

  “It’s a date.”

  Maggie dug in her pocket for a breath mint, unrolled one, and popped it in her mouth. “What do you think Susan and Nicole were talking about?”

  “Something they didn’t want us to hear, that’s for sure.”

  “Neither of them looked very happy. You think Susan is smart enough to turn down the manager’s job?”

  “I hope so…for our sakes.”

  CHAPTER 5

  By the time she got back to her desk, Nicole was waiting and Maggie’s heart sank. “Hello, you,” she said, trying to remain her normal happy self.

  Nicole’s attitude was clearly the opposite. “I need you to do a project for me.”

  “Okay, what?”

  “I’m going to send you a link to some spreadsheets. I want you to check all the figures and make sure they’re right.”

  “Will do.”

  Nicole’s expression was even more intense when she said, “Set all your other work aside, this is important.”

  “Okay.”

  At last, she walked away and when she did, a relieved Maggie sunk into her chair. It was no fun being constantly terrified of losing a job.

  *

  Nearly six hours after Jackie’s PI team broke for lunch, she asked Carl, “No Nanny yet?”

  “If I could, I would, but I just can’t, Jackie. I’ve tried every online trick we have. There is no phone or address listing for Adelaide Bertrand, no A. Bertrand, and not even an AWOL Bertrand.”

  “She’s not in any of the hospitals either,” said Michael.

  “Keep looking,” said Jackie. The evening sun was positioned just right to cast its bright light through the windows, so she got up to close the blinds in the dining room.

  Michael watched her walk back to her spot at the table. “And, while we are working our butts off, what are you doing?”

  “I finished with the trial notes. It’s just a lot of stuff about why the Connellys deserve the money, nothing more on the dead girl?”

  “Dead girl, and a big dead end,” Michael muttered. “No Georgia Marie James living anywhere in the US or the UK either. Man, when some people get lost, they really get lost.”

  “That means the theory of there being two Georgias won’t hold up,” said Jackie, as she retook her seat. “Have you tried Ireland?”

  Michael was getting frustrated. “Why would she go to Ireland? Why not Australia or New Zealand?”

  “Okay, concentrate the search there too.”

  Carl rolled his eyes and checked his second laptop to see if the automatic search had turned up anything new on the 24,934 possible matches. “Maybe our Miss Bertrand went back to France.”

  “Maybe the nanny found Georgia and they both went back to France,” Michael mocked.

  “If she didn’t come to the US, Georgia would have headed for an English speaking country,” said Jackie.

  Carl rubbed the back of his neck. “True.”

  Michael puffed his cheeks. “Trouble is, there are a lot more countries in the world that teach English as a second language now.”

  “I’m going to look at the credit card statements again to see if Mathew did anything unusual around the time Georgia turned six. He must have paid for her tuition somehow.”

  “He wouldn’t have paid for it with Nick’s credit card, but buying and returning jewelry might have given him the cash,” said Michael.

  “That’s what I’m thinking. I bet he has a bank account in the UK somewhere,” said Carl.

  “If he didn’t close it after Georgia got out of school,” said Jackie. “I wonder how he thought he could keep her quiet after she graduated.”

  “A car wreck would have kept her quiet,” Michael scoffed.

  Carl got up and went to the kitchen to make a fresh pot of coffee. “Or he made sure she couldn’t find out who her parents are, and isn’t worried about her turning up.”

  “I sure hope that’s what happened,” Jackie said. “It’s better than being dead. The thought of the Connelly getting all that money turns my stomach.”

  “You’re probably just hungry?” said Michael. “We having dinner or not?”

  Jackie put a hand on her hip. “Did you break an arm, Michael? Have you forgotten how to call room service?”

  “You’re right,” he said. He got up and walked to the courtesy phone on a table in the living room. “What’ll you have, ladies and gents?”

  “Pizza,” Jackie said, “two thick slices loaded with everything.”

  “A girl after my own heart,” said Michael.

  Carl poked his head out of the kitchen and raised his hand. “I’ll have the same with a boat load of root beer. I’m sick of coffee.”

  “Here’s something odd,” said Jackie staring at her computer. “Mathew picks up a prescription every month.”

  “In which country?”

  “This one. He comes home around the time Laura’s twenty-thousand dollars comes due, and picks up the prescription at the same time.”

  “I hate that man,” said Carl, returning to the table.

  In the living room, Michael finished giving room service their order, and went back to the table as well. “I say we put a GPS chip in his arm, so we know where he is. He is one sneaky dude.”

  “In his arm?” Carl asked.

  Michael grinned, “Well, I doubt he would willingly wear an ankle bracelet.”

  “How do you propose we do that?” Jackie asked.

  “He plays handball at the country club, right?” Michael asked. “Maybe Austin could get Carl in.”

  “If Mathew is in town,” said Jackie. She picked up her cellphone, found Austin’s number in her speed dial and put the phone on speaker.

  “Jackie, any news?” Austin asked.

  “Not yet. Do you know where Mathew is?”

  “Still at home I suppose, unless he took the first flight out last night. Oh wait, I just got another email from his lawyer. Mathew is suing the estate again, so he must still be in town.”

  “Suing for what?” Michael asked.

  “Whatever he can think of. I get a new lawsuit from him at least once a month.”

  “If you find out where he is,” said Jackie, “will you let us know?”

  “The moment I know.”

  “By the way, Carl would like to visit the country club the Connellys belong to. Can you get him in?”

  “No problem, I am a member too. It’s the Fillmore Country Club and I’ll let them know he is my guest.”

  “Thanks.” Jackie hung up and turned to Carl. “Go. Maybe you can catch him there this afternoon.”

  Carl dug something out of his briefcase, and stood up. “On my way, Boss.”

  *

  At a little past nine o’clock in the evening, Jackie got up from the dining room table and stretched. “Why don’t we take a break and watch the reading of the will?”

  “Good idea, let me get the coffee going again,” said Michael. He went to the kitchen, started yet another pot, and then plopped down on the sofa beside Carl.

  “Ready,” she asked.
>
  The video flickered to life on the big screen TV and showed Austin sitting at his desk. “This is Austin Steel and we are about to read Nicholas Gladstone’s Last Will and Testament. With me are…”

  “Just get on with it,” a man’s voice demanded in the background.

  “Enter Mathew Connelly,” Michael guessed, even before Austin switched the camera view to the Connellys.

  “Very well.” Austin got up and walked around to the front of his desk. He leaned his back against it and folded his arms. “All of Nick’s estate goes to Georgia Marie James.”

  “What?” Mathew shouted, rising up out of his chair.

  “Stop the tape,” said Carl, scooting up to sit on the edge of his seat. “Rewind and watch Laura.”

  Jackie did as he requested.

  “…Nick’s estate goes to Georgia Marie James.”

  “Play it again,” said Michael. “I can’t quite make out what Laura said.”

  Jackie started it from the beginning again. “Who,” said Carl, slapping his knee. “Laura is asking ‘who?’ Play it again, Jackie.”

  She played it twice more before Michael agreed. “Well I’ll be darned, Laura doesn’t recognize the name.”

  “Austin said we would be fascinated.” Jackie backed the video up, and played it one more time. “Think she’s faking it?”

  “Doesn’t look like it to me,” said Carl.

  “Me either,” said Michael, “but I wonder how drunk she was when this was taped.”

  “I’ll ask Austin, he will know. Let’s keep going, shall we?” Jackie let the video continue.

  Mathew’s fists were clenched and his face was red with anger. “What nonsense is this?”

  “It is not nonsense. She is your daughter.”

  “She is not our daughter, we don’t have any children,” Mathew insisted.

  “Jackie, stop the tape again,” said Michael. “Look at Laura. She’s got her head down as though she is deep in thought. What do you make of that?”

  “Without knowing her, it’s hard to say. She could be trying to hide her emotions or…” Jackie started.

  “Or thinking about that next drink,” Carl suggested.

  “She looks a little pleased to me,” said Michael. “I wish she would look up.”