with the investigation into Samuel’s death?”
“So far, the police are calling it suicide. The forensics team didn’t find any unusual prints or trace evidence to suggest that Samuel was murdered.”
Nick wasn’t so sure. “It doesn’t seem right.”
“I’ve got to agree withyou.” The wind went out of him. Rod visibly shrank as he sat in the chair opposite the desk. “Your uncle and I had plenty of scuffles, but I always liked the feisty old guy. He didn’t seem like somebody who’d kill himself. Or leave a note saying he was sorry.”
Nick looked over toward Kelly. She stood in front of his bookcase with her head tilted sideways to read the titles. Her position remindedhim of how excited she’d been when she saw Julia’s library. She bent at the waist and picked up something on the floor.
Coming toward his desk, she held up a chunk of pyrite. “What’s this?”
“It’s fool’s gold.” That’s what had been missing from his desk. He placed the rock beside the photo of his kids and moved on to the next order of business. “What have you found out about Trask?”
“Who?”
“The fake private investigator who approached Kelly.”
“O’Shea is taking care of that.” Rod took his cell phone from his pocket. “I’ll call him for a progress report.”
Kelly touched the sleeve of Nick’s jacket to get his attention. “If it’d help, I can sit down with a sketch artist.”
“I think they do composite sketches on computer now.”
“I’ll do whatever I can,and then I need to leave. I can call Serena to pick me up.”
He still had concerns about her safety. “Trask could be part of a bigger problem. It might be good for you to stay somewhere else.”
“Of course, I will,” she immediately agreed. “If there’s any chance of danger, I don’t want Serena’s family involved. But I don’t want to cause a lot of extra trouble, either. Do you think there’sa threat?”
“I hope not.”
Rod snapped his cell phone closed and leaned back in his chair. “O’Shea is on his way up here.”
Still worried about Kelly, Nick moved on to the next issue to discuss with Rod. “When we drove up to the building, I saw a television news truck parked at the curb.”
“The Spencer family is news. Everybody from the governor on down knew your uncle.” Rod lacedhis fingers over his belly. “I called in security. They’re keeping the media out of the building and watching your sister-in-law’s house. By the way, you might want to have a little chitchat with Lauren. She’s pretty upset, and being pregnant doesn’t help.”
Nick wasn’t surprised by the media attention. His family was a big deal in Colorado. Reporters and photographers had covered his wedding,the birth of his kids and his divorce. Most recently, he’d been featured in a magazine article about the state’s most eligible bachelors.
Craig O’Shea rushed into Nick’s office. With his shaggy red hair, jeans and baggy sweater, he looked more like a hip snowboarder than a hard-nosed private investigator. He claimed that his casual appearance was a disguise. People didn’t mind talking tohim. They opened up and gave him information.
He closed the door. Clearly excited, he turned to them and announced, “I’ve got new evidence.”
“Hold on there,” Rod said. “First we want to hear about Trask.”
“Really?” He walked two paces toward the desk and then went back to the door. “This evidence changes everything.”
“It’ll keep. First, Trask.”
“Okay, sure, I can giveyou that info real quick. I couldn’t find anything on Y. E. Trask. I mean nothing at all, zero, zip, nada . He’s not listed with any professional organizations, and nobody else has ever heard of him.” He’d been talking so fast that his words overlapped. He paused to take a breath. “The good news is that I checked in criminal records, and he’s not in that database. The bad news is that I couldn’teven find a driver’s
“So far, the police are calling it suicide. The forensics team didn’t find any unusual prints or trace evidence to suggest that Samuel was murdered.”
Nick wasn’t so sure. “It doesn’t seem right.”
“I’ve got to agree withyou.” The wind went out of him. Rod visibly shrank as he sat in the chair opposite the desk. “Your uncle and I had plenty of scuffles, but I always liked the feisty old guy. He didn’t seem like somebody who’d kill himself. Or leave a note saying he was sorry.”
Nick looked over toward Kelly. She stood in front of his bookcase with her head tilted sideways to read the titles. Her position remindedhim of how excited she’d been when she saw Julia’s library. She bent at the waist and picked up something on the floor.
Coming toward his desk, she held up a chunk of pyrite. “What’s this?”
“It’s fool’s gold.” That’s what had been missing from his desk. He placed the rock beside the photo of his kids and moved on to the next order of business. “What have you found out about Trask?”
“Who?”
“The fake private investigator who approached Kelly.”
“O’Shea is taking care of that.” Rod took his cell phone from his pocket. “I’ll call him for a progress report.”
Kelly touched the sleeve of Nick’s jacket to get his attention. “If it’d help, I can sit down with a sketch artist.”
“I think they do composite sketches on computer now.”
“I’ll do whatever I can,and then I need to leave. I can call Serena to pick me up.”
He still had concerns about her safety. “Trask could be part of a bigger problem. It might be good for you to stay somewhere else.”
“Of course, I will,” she immediately agreed. “If there’s any chance of danger, I don’t want Serena’s family involved. But I don’t want to cause a lot of extra trouble, either. Do you think there’sa threat?”
“I hope not.”
Rod snapped his cell phone closed and leaned back in his chair. “O’Shea is on his way up here.”
Still worried about Kelly, Nick moved on to the next issue to discuss with Rod. “When we drove up to the building, I saw a television news truck parked at the curb.”
“The Spencer family is news. Everybody from the governor on down knew your uncle.” Rod lacedhis fingers over his belly. “I called in security. They’re keeping the media out of the building and watching your sister-in-law’s house. By the way, you might want to have a little chitchat with Lauren. She’s pretty upset, and being pregnant doesn’t help.”
Nick wasn’t surprised by the media attention. His family was a big deal in Colorado. Reporters and photographers had covered his wedding,the birth of his kids and his divorce. Most recently, he’d been featured in a magazine article about the state’s most eligible bachelors.
Craig O’Shea rushed into Nick’s office. With his shaggy red hair, jeans and baggy sweater, he looked more like a hip snowboarder than a hard-nosed private investigator. He claimed that his casual appearance was a disguise. People didn’t mind talking tohim. They opened up and gave him information.
He closed the door. Clearly excited, he turned to them and announced, “I’ve got new evidence.”
“Hold on there,” Rod said. “First we want to hear about Trask.”
“Really?” He walked two paces toward the desk and then went back to the door. “This evidence changes everything.”
“It’ll keep. First, Trask.”
“Okay, sure, I can giveyou that info real quick. I couldn’t find anything on Y. E. Trask. I mean nothing at all, zero, zip, nada . He’s not listed with any professional organizations, and nobody else has ever heard of him.” He’d been talking so fast that his words overlapped. He paused to take a breath. “The good news is that I checked in criminal records, and he’s not in that database. The bad news is that I couldn’teven find a driver’s
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