Read Online Permanent Sunset by C. Michele Dorsey - Free Book Online

insisted on. Sabrina had never sat in the late afternoon sun in the great room of Bella Vista. She rarely sat in any of the Ten Villas, always preoccupied with details related to their guests’ arrivals and departures. Now she could appreciate the design of thehouse, the subtlety of the deep-mahogany-trimmed walls coupled with couches and chairs covered with contrasting shades of green plant prints that gave the impression you were sitting in the cool of a garden, even as the last of the tropical sun beat down through the skylights. Sitting in a chair opposite Paul Blanchard, she realized they hadn’t been formally introduced.
    “Mr. Blanchard, I know this is a little late, but I’m Sabrina Salter. We were never actually introduced. I only met the family.”
    “Oh, but I am family. Jack and I are first cousins,” Paul said, after taking a slug of Scotch half the size of the tumbler.
    “Our mothers were sisters,” Jack said, sounding like the drink was doing its magic.
    This, Sabrina realized, was an opportunity for her to learn more about the Keating family and, more importantly, Elena. If it were true that Elena had been murdered, it would mean Sabrina had the misfortune of finding two homicide victims within several months, which not only would be bad for business but also might make her a target in the media. She needed to learn more about the people in Elena’s life so she could fit the pieces together and figure out how and why she was killed. She had learned from her experience when Carter Johnson was murdered that tiny pieces of information join together to form a mosaic that would eventually lead to the killer.
    The sun was fading and would soon begin to set, which would probably remind Sean about the weddingthat should be taking place. Sabrina needed to engage the family in conversation quickly before he became emotional again. Neil was so slick at getting information out of people that they never realized they were divulging what they thought were their well-kept secrets. Henry was a little less adroit, but his directness had a charm of its own. Sabrina didn’t think she had the social skills to seduce information from these people, who had far more poise than she could ever hope for. But she plunged in any way.
    “Sean, I really haven’t had a chance to say how sorry I am about what happened to Elena. This must be awful for you. I only met her a few times, so I don’t really know what she was like,” Sabrina said, feeling guilty for her disingenuousness. She could see Kate glancing at Sean to monitor his reaction. Sometimes it helped people to talk about lost ones.
    “Smartest woman I ever met. But she’s the one who taught me that brains are not enough. You have to have vision, too. That’s what I needed help with. Hell, before her, I was just trying to find prime locations where Keating Construction could build parking garages with as many spaces as could fit. They had about as much charm as stacked plastic ice cube trays. Elena asked tough questions. Did I want parking garages to be my legacy? I never even thought about having a legacy until her.”
    “There’s nothing wrong with building parking garages, Sean. People need places to park their cars, right,Jack?” Paul said, emptying his tumbler and heading over to the bar to help himself to a refill.
    “Yes, we’ve made a damn good living building garages. But Elena did bring some fresh thinking to the company, including recognizing the tax advantages of moving our headquarters from San Francisco to St. Thomas,” Jack said.
    “She was brilliant. She went to Babson undergraduate and Harvard Business School for her MBA. Here I was, barely able to get out of Golden Gate University with an undergraduate degree. I couldn’t believe she was interested in me. We were so lucky when she decided to join the company,” Sean said. Sabrina took his empty glass with hers and headed to the bar for refills.
    “I think she was the lucky one,”