Bones of a Feather - Carolyn Haines [90]
“You fail to see that you’ve lied about a stolen necklace and committed a stunning fraud.” My voice rose, though I fought to keep it under control. “Why? Why would you do such a thing? You don’t need the money.”
“To the contrary.” She gestured toward a sofa. “Monica and I are broke. It’s as simple as that.”
“But…” I looked around. “This place is worth a fortune. You could sell Briarcliff or the necklace and move to Europe. You could enjoy the rest of your lives and you’d never have had to do an illegal act.”
“Sell Briarcliff?” She laughed, and for a moment she mirrored her sister’s more aggressive behavior. “Maybe you don’t believe in ghosts, but I do. Barthelme would be after us like a hellhound. We are Briarcliff. It’s part of us. Our family is buried here, and it is Monica’s and my responsibility to keep it in the family.”
“But you’re the last. You didn’t know about Barclay. What did it matter about Briarcliff or any other Levert holding?” She ducked to hide her expression, and I realized I’d swallowed yet another lie. “Did you know about Barclay? You did, didn’t you?”
“The year Monica disappeared for such a long stretch, I suspected. She was always independent, but she came and went. Suddenly she was just gone. But Briarcliff isn’t for Barclay.”
She walked to the front windows. “I wanted Jerome to have it. Monica was opposed, but I said I wouldn’t help with the insurance scam unless she promised that if we died before Jerome, he could have the estate.”
She turned around slowly. She was backlit, but I could see her expression. “Jerome has worked this property his entire life. He loves it. He deserves to live here until he dies. I wanted that for him, and if we’d lost the estate for taxes, it would be taken from him. Now even he’s gone, disgusted with me and what I was willing to do to save our home.”
“You ripped off an insurance company for four million dollars.” It was simply audacious.
“Yes, and we would have the money and the necklace, had Monica not been kidnapped. We’d planned to say we dug up one of the graves and found another of the Levert necklaces.” She couldn’t conceal the hint of a smile. “You have to admit, it was sheer brilliance. Monica and I staged the vandalism of the family cemetery, the holes dug, the whole ploy.”
“Jerome helped you, didn’t he?”
“He was opposed, but he loves me. I convinced him it was a harmless prank, something to annoy Helena Banks Gorenflo and her ilk. So he did it. When he found out the truth, he left.”
She acted as if she sincerely cared whether I believed in Jerome’s innocence. I didn’t trust a thing she said now. The sisters practiced deception with uncanny ability. The Barthelme apple hadn’t fallen far from the tree. “Give me the necklace.”
She hesitated. “You’ll jeopardize Monica’s life if you do this.”
“Really? Why should I believe that? The kidnapping could be another con.”
“I have the insurance money in hand. If Monica were not a hostage, we’d simply leave town. Our plan was for her to have plastic surgery. She always wanted to be a blonde.” Her attempt at humor fell flat. “We’d pay taxes on Briarcliff from Europe. Jerome could live here undisturbed.”
“It wouldn’t be that easy.” Living a life in exile sounded romantic, but it wasn’t.
“If we can save Monica and retain the insurance money, I’ll return it. You have my word.” She conveyed cool, unflinching determination. She could have sold me high ground in the Florida Everglades. “Once burned, twice shy.” My aunt Loulane had a saying for every situation.
“After tonight, we all go to the police.”
“Agreed. On two conditions. Monica is back safe and sound. Once she’s safe, I’ll call the police, but not Chief Randall. That’s the second condition. I don’t trust him. He was lurking around outside the bank this morning. He’s been following me in town. I don