Don't Say a Word - Barbara Freethy [142]
Roland shook his head. "No, that wasn't me. I saw Julia at the radio station, yes. I spoke to her in Russian. I wanted to see if she understood. She got scared and ran. But I didn't break into her apartment. That was Brady. I saw him and another man enter her building one day. I wasn't sure if it was him. It had been many years since I'd seen him."
Alex didn't know what to believe. "I chased you through the park. You tried to grab Julia's bag."
"No, that wasn't me. I don't run fast. If you chased me, you would have caught me."
Alex had to admit the man was big and a little slow, which was why he'd been able to pin him against the wall.
"I saw the photograph of Elena in the LA newspaper," Roland continued. "I read the story, and my wife said I must go to San Francisco and see if it is really her."
The fact that Roland correctly identified the girl in the photo as Elena made Alex believe he was telling the truth. He slowly released him, but stayed close.
"So why didn't you just introduce yourself?"
Roland's tongue darted out, sweeping his bottom lip in nervousness. "I realized the girl in San Francisco is Yulia. When I saw others watching her, I became afraid. I didn't know who killed Sergei for sure. Could be secret police, could be friend, could be anyone. I think they come back now to kill Yulia. Or to get what they hadn't gotten before. I decide it is best to wait and watch."
Alex stared at Roland. "Get what?"
"Natalia had several precious stones from a century ago. She and Sergei told me they would use them to start a new life. And they would send for me when they could. When they died, I didn't know what happened to the jewels, until I saw the picture of Elena. If she was alive, perhaps she had the jewels, too."
The treasure, Alex thought. He finally knew what it was. "Wait. Why do you think Brady killed Sergei and Natalia? How could he get the treasure if they were dead?"
"Sergei was worried about betrayal," Roland said heavily. "He told me he had made elaborate plans for the defection to work. Brady must have thought he had the jewels or that he could get them once Natalia and Sergei were dead." He paused, his eyes sad. "They were so careful, but they still trusted the wrong man."
"And Brady let everyone think that the Russians had done in their own people," Alex said slowly, as the pieces of the puzzle came together. "Very clever. So where are the jewels?"
"I believe they were hidden in the frame of a picture."
Alex's heart sped up. The Russian icon. "Dammit. We have to find Brady."
"I've been following him since yesterday," Roland said. "He went to a house this morning. It's not far from here."
"Let's go." Alex ran for Elena's car. Fortunately, he still had the keys in his pocket.
"We should hurry," Roland said. "Once Brady has the stones, he'll have no reason to keep Elena or Yulia alive."
Alex's heart jumped into overdrive. He gunned the motor and tore out of the parking lot, following Roland's directions to the highway and praying he wouldn't be too late. "Maybe Brady doesn't know the jewels are in the icon," he said hopefully.
Roland didn't answer him. Alex shot him a questioning look. Roland met his gaze, then shrugged. "He knows." There was something in that fatalistic shrug that disturbed Alex. "Tell me something, Roland. Did you come here to save the girls or to get the jewels?" "Perhaps the girls give me small token of gratitude." Alex was disappointed, but also relieved to get an honest answer for a change. "I won't let you hurt Julia or Elena," he warned. "I don't want to hurt them. They are family." "Rich family now," Alex commented. He didn't know if he trusted Roland or not, but he'd deal with him later. First he had to find Julia before Brady