Mine Until Dawn (15 page)

Vince shook his head. He knew he had to be honest with Baron. “No. I’ve been commissioned by their rightful owners to find it.”

Baron’s eyebrows shot up. “The Descartes family?”

Vince nodded. “A branch of it. Jacques Descartes, the son of Jean-Baptiste Descartes gave the statue to his wife, a member of my family sometime in nineteen-ten, and it’s been in my family ever since.” The marriage didn’t last a year, but the statue stayed. “A few weeks ago, my father held a dinner party at his house. The guest included some very prominent businessmen and women, political leaders, and powerful financiers in this state. During the course of the evening, he brought out the statue and showed it around, but by the end of the evening, the statue was gone. I received a call from my aunt to help find it.”

For a beat, Baron studied him. “I’m curious about something. Do you have proof of ownership?”

Vince grimaced.
 
Jade had asked him the same question. “My father does.”

When Baron continued to study him, Vince returned his look without wavering.

“Judge Abe Dixon is your father, isn’t he?” Baron said.

Vince wasn’t surprised by the question. He suspected Baron knew a lot more than he was letting on. “Yes.”

“Is my sister involved in this mess?”

Vince didn’t flinch at the question. He could neither lie and say no nor mention the burglary. That was Jade’s story to share, not his. “Not in the way that you mean.”

“Quit hedging, Knight.”

“She knows about the statue, if that’s what you’re asking,” Vince answered evasively. “Listen, what is it that you aren’t telling me? I’m been running around in circles, trying to stay a step ahead of whoever is after that statue. If you know anything else that can help me, spit it out, man.”

Baron grunted, obviously not appreciating his edginess. “I’m concerned about my sister, Knight, because whoever you’re dealing with is very ruthless.”

“How do you know that?” Unless he knew about Cohen already.

“Your father’s condition for starters. Don’t you think they’re responsible?”

Vince sat back and rubbed the back of his head. After a brief moment, he nodded. “What else do you know?”

“I know that whoever has it hasn’t tried to sell it. That’s the good news. The bad news is,” Baron leaned forward, “your father had a copy of the statue made before it disappeared. It was a darn good replica, too. Difficult to tell apart from the original unless you’re an expert.”

 
“How do you know about it?”

Baron shrugged. “The forger is a friend of mine.”

This was getting better and better. Maybe the forger might explain how the fake statue found its way to Cohen’s gallery. Vince leaned forward. “Can I talk to him?”

“Sorry, Knight, impossible.”

“Why not?” Vince snapped.

“He has disappeared.”

***

Vince was entering the main floor from upstairs when Jade arrived back downstairs. “That was fast.” She studied his grim expression. “Was he helpful?”

“Very.” He took her arm. “Let’s get out of here. I need to stop by the nearest Rent-A-Car to pick up something.”

She looked over his shoulder and caught her brother’s gaze. “Give me a second while I say goodbye to Baron.” She went to where Baron stood near Maya’s desk and saw the concerned expression on her brother’s face.

“Okay Baron, what happened?” she said, concern making her chest tight.

He leaned against Maya’s desk and scowled at her. “I know you hate it when we interfere in your life, sis, and you’ll probably get pissed with me over this, but this time I’m justified. Don’t get involved with him.” He jerked his head toward Vince. “He’s nothing but trouble.”

What had Vince told him? “I appreciate your concerns, but I can take care of myself.”

He didn’t look convinced. “Are you still heading to the beach house?”

“Yeah.”

“Good.” His relief was palpable. “Is Faith coming?”

“In a day or two.” The lie rolled off her lips with way too much ease, which was bothersome in itself. Her cousin had a meeting with a financier bank-rolling her spring collection and had no intention of taking a vacation. If Baron knew that, he might just drop by at the beach house to check on her. The very last thing she needed.

“I’ve got to go, Baron.” She rubbed his arm affectionately and stepped back. “Oh, have you heard from Mom yet?”

“No. That’s the second time you’ve asked about her this week. What’s going on?”

“I need to talk to her about something. If you hear from her, tell her to call me.” When her brother frowned, Jade waved and turned toward the door. “I’ll call you later.”

She joined Vince and the two of them left the gallery, but she was conscious of her brother’s gaze on them. Baron was no fool. He would connect the dots and know her mother was involved in Vince’s missing statue. He might also check with Faith about vacationing at the beach, which would be catastrophic if she didn’t ask her cousin to fib for her. Her stomach churned with tension and guilt. She was way outside her comfort zone with the lies and being wanted for murder, and all because of a man she barely met and who continued to keep things from her. Not anymore.

They barely left the gallery’s parking lot when she shifted to face Vince. His expression was unreadable, but the way he gripped the steering told its tale. He was seething behind that calm exterior. Having seen how cool he could be under extremely nerve-wrecking situations, she couldn’t help but worry.

“So? What did Baron have to say?” She made sure her tone of voice was light.

“The judge is the one who ordered a copy of the statue made.”

“Oh.” She hadn’t expected such a direct answer. “Why? Did Baron say how he found out about it?”

“The forger was a friend of his. As to why, I have a theory.”

Her eyes widened. “What?”

He completely ignored her questions. “A couple of days after the judge’s accident, someone broke into the forger’s studio and trashed it. My bet is it was Hudson and his illustrious boss, the conniving bastard.”

Knowing how ruthless Hudson and his boss were, she hoped her brother’s friend was okay. “Maybe you need to talk to the guy, Vince. I mean the forger. The judge might have told him why he needed a copy made.”

Vince gave a cynical snicker. “The judge is a law unto himself, Jade. He’s never explained his actions to anyone.” The bite in his tone surprised her. “Besides, your brother said his friend has disappeared. As soon as he saw what they’d done to his studio and read about the judge’s accident, he skipped town. Even your brother doesn’t know where he’s holed up.”

Jade shot Vince an anxious look. Any mention of his dad only made him more upset, but she had to know what was going on. “What else did Baron tell you?”

Something cold settled in her tummy as Vince talked about the finder’s fee for the figurine and the book her brother had showed him.

“It’s possible the person after the statue was the one behind the heist in Costa Rica,” he added. “With the judge in a coma, it’s impossible to know who I’m dealing with.”

An idea popped in her head as she mentally went over everything that happened yesterday. “Why not put Hudson under surveillance? He could lead you to his boss.”

He dismissed the idea with a shake of his head. “I used them as bargaining chips last night. Your cousin probably has them in his custody even as we speak.”

She’d work on her cousin later. Right now they needed to straighten out a few things.

“Pull over at that gas station.” She pointed at a Seven-Eleven a half-a-block from where they were.

“Why? We’re only a couple of blocks from the Rent-A-Car.”

“I know, but we need to talk and I want your full attention.” She was through with politeness and the gentle approach.

He scowled but still pulled up and switched off the engine. He turned to face her, placed one arm on the steering wheel and the other along the top of her seat. “What’s this about?”

“You,” she said firmly. “The way you dole out information like it were some precious commodity. You pulled me into this investigation, Vince, yet you keep waltzing,” she made imaginary squiggles in the air with her finger, “around issues that I think are important.”

His eyes narrowed. “Where’s this coming from? What issues?”

“Your father for instance. You blew me off this morning, sidetracked me every time I brought up his name once we left your apartment. I need answers, Vince.”

He sat back, running his hands over his head. “Jade, now is not the time for that crap. I’m in a shitty mood.”

She blinked and trained defiant eyes to his. “You know what? So am I. And it’s not crap. I’ve known your father for years, yet I never heard about you. No one knew you existed.”

“I knew,” he snapped in a deadly voice.

Jade’s hand crept up to press on her chest, her heart constricting at the pain she glimpsed in his eyes. She reached across the car’s interior to touch him with her other hand, but he jerked away. She dropped her hand and swallowed, raking her brain for something to say.

“You know what this is about?”

Jade felt terrible for pushing him for answers, but she couldn’t back down now. “Honesty.”

“No, this is about you and how you like order. Need order. Everything and everyone in its place. No uncertainties. No surprises. Always in control. The privileges of someone from your background.” Jade wasn’t sure what he read in her expression because she wasn’t exactly sure what she was feeling. Shock because a few of his barbs hit home, anger that he dared to turn tables on her.

His voice lost its edge and became neutral as he continued. “The chaos of Cohen’s murder, the break-in, the way you feel about me unbalance you. I understand that, but that doesn’t mean—”

“Hey.”

“That I have to share every detail of my life, past and pres—”

“Hey,” she yelled again, pissed at his calm voice and the way he was manipulating the conversation. “This is not about me, okay? Do…not…make…this…about…me. Just because you have unresolved issues from your past—”

“We all have unresolved issues, Jade.”

Taken back, she gawked at him. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You haven’t mentioned your ex-husband or the fact that you were once married.”

How…? Her brother, of course. “I didn’t because…because it isn’t pertinent to this investigation.” Besides, it was none of his business.

“Isn’t it pertinent to us? To why you want me, but keep fighting it.”

He thought he knew all the answers, did he? “Listen, you…you….”
 
She stopped and growled her frustration. He was right. It just irked her when someone pulled a fast one on her and made her feel bad. “You’re so stubborn it makes me want to scream. I’ve known you for a few days, Vince, which we’ve spent dealing with
your
psycho enemies. Hardly the conditions to throw in a by-the-way-I-was-once-married-to-a-jackass. It’s a period of my life I’m not proud of.”

“Because for once you weren’t in control?”

She didn’t want to hear his two-cent theory on what made her tick. She released a frustrated sigh. Why was she trying to force him to open up? She was the one getting all hot and bothered while he remained so cool.

“You know what? Forget it. Trying to talk to you is like banging my head against a brick wall. Useless. I’m driving you…yes, I am,” she added defiantly when he opened his mouth. “I’ll take you to the car-rental place, then go my merry way.” She unbuckled her seat belt.

“Jade—”

“Don’t even try to sweet-talk me out of it.” She stepped out of the car, slammed the door and paused to catch her breath.
Why do I always go gung-ho over jerks?
She’d thought Vince was different.

She glared at the roof of the car, wishing she could vaporize the car with him inside. Maybe then she wouldn’t be this angry and confused. A sigh escaped her. She didn’t want him gone from her life; she just wanted everything to be normal again. The way they were yesterday morning or last week. Predictable? With her in control? Now she was thinking like him.

She was conscious of cars zipping by in the nearby street. The nearby tall buildings loomed over them, forming a silhouette across the blue California skies. A woman in a minivan pulled alongside the gas pump, eyed her curiously, then entered the mini mart. Jade could see the woman peer at her through the glass walls instead of shopping. She ignored her.

Was she really a control freak? She didn’t think so. She marched around the car, the staccato beat of her heart reminding her to calm down. The deep breaths she took didn’t help her any. Just before she reached the door, it opened and Vince stepped out of the car.

His remorseful expression made her feet falter and her anger quickly dissipated. She stopped and braced her self against the body of the car, uncertain on how to proceed.

“Why are we fighting, babe.” His voice was soft and genuinely puzzled.

Because I’m scared.
She bit her lip and stopped the words from spilling out. It was the truth. She was scared of her growing feelings for him, of trusting another man with her heart, and of being hurt again. The one time she lost control, she ended up in a marriage from hell. Her thoughts brought a rush of panic.