In Like Flynn (Molly Murphy Mysteries, #4)

“And the kidnapper was already dead,” Daniel reminded me.

“Yes, but I've been asking some questions—don't look at me like that, I've been very discreet—and I don't think Bertie Morell had the brains or the character to mastermind such an audacious crime.”

“You think he was just the pawn who carried out the deed?”

“Yes, that’s what I think, if he did it at all. I didfindone of the child’s favorite toys in the attic of the cottage behind the house. So it seems possible that the child was held there for a while, al-though I can't see how Morell could have brought him there without being seen. And you know what else I have been thinking…”

Daniel put a hand on my shoulder. “Don't try to sit up. Lie back and don't talk too much. I don't want you overexerting yourself.”

“But I have to tell you everything I know,” I said. “When will I get another chance? It may be important.”

Daniel sighed. “All right. I've never been able to shut you up yet. I don't suppose 111 be able to now.”

I looked up at him and I can't tell you how wonderful it felt to know that he was here beside me. As a lady detective, I still had serious characterflaws.I wrenched my mind away from personal feelings and back to business. “If there was a mastermind behind the kidnapping, and that mastermind wasn't the Black Hand, then there are several possibilities,” I said. “My number one choice would be the secretary, Desmond O'Mara. He is well educated and brainy yet he has chosen to stay here when he surely could do better for himself. Smart and penniless. That’s a dangerous combi-nation, wouldn't you say? And I saw him leaving the house and heading for the cliff path the afternoon before Margie McAlister’s body was found, and he was away all night, showing up innocently the next morning.”

“Desmond O'Mara,” Daniel echoed. “I'll check into him then. Go on. Who else?”

“One of the gardeners, called Adam. He was a close pal of Bertie Morell and he has a good reason to get revenge against the Flynns. Bamey Flynn tricked his father out of his ice lease on the river. Why would Adam choose to work for the man who ruined his family if he has no ulterior motive? And then there’s Roland.”

“Roland? Another gardener?”

“No, the next-door neighbor. Roland Van Gelder. The Van Gelder family have been enemies of the Flynns ever since Roland’s father ran for the same office as Barney Flynn.”

“Oh, I'm well acquainted with the Van Gelders. Old money.”

“Not any more,” I said. “They claim they get along better with the Flynns now, but I'm not so sure. And Roland had a strong motive in needing money. He has expensive tastes but the family fortune has dwindled.”

“Anyone else?” Daniel grinned. “I must say you do a thorough job, don't you? Any more dark secrets that you have uncovered?”

“No, only I overheard Joseph Rimes and Bamey talking once about some scandal that could harm them if it came out.”

“Joseph Rimes?”

“He’s Barney’s political adviser. I don't like him much. Bombastic and blustering.”

Daniel nodded. “I really suspect that some political or business scandal may be at the heart of this murder, rather than the kidnapping itself. I can't tell you how thoroughly the police investigated every aspect of that abduction. We had pressure from the President himself, you know. But we came up with nothing.”

“Was Bertie Morell married?” I asked.

“Yes, he was. Why do you ask?”

“Because I saw a woman puttingflowerson his grave.”

“Interesting, but I shouldn't think it was his wife. She was a much older woman and they separated years ago. Couldn't stand the sight of each other, so one gathered. I thought she moved to Chicago or somewhere out West. I did meet her once at a hearing—a large dragon of a woman with a mustache. She must have had money. There’s no other reason he'd have married her.”

Then this definitely wasn't his wife,” I said. “She was slim and young and there was a child.”

“Interesting.” Daniel nodded. “Morell had no children, or none that we know of. Another of his former conquests, who still retained a soft spot in her heart for him, maybe. Women tend to do these things, don't they?”

“Do what?”

“Retain a soft spot in their hearts for the man they once loved.”

“Some women, maybe.” Even in my weakened state I was not admitting anything to Daniel.

Daniel grinned. “There are probably quite a few of his former conquests dotted around. He had an eye for the ladies, so I understand.”

“I wonder if she'd know anything,” I said. I was feeling so much better already that I propped myself up on my elbow. “We could—”

Daniel put his handfirmlyon my thigh. 'You are not doing anything more. You're only going to drink and eat what everybody else is eating and drinking until I come and fetch you.”