“It is. I admit it.” I set down my coffee cup. “I hate to be such an idiot, but I know I won’t be able to wear it again. And it was so beautiful and you were so thoughtful to bring it home for me and I really love it. But after seeing Tish lying there in the parking lot, with her head bleeding from that vicious attack, I can’t . . .” I shook my head. “I know I could take the coat to the dry cleaners and it would probably be as good as new, but I’m not sure I can wear it again.”
I shut my eyes tightly, so tired of listening to myself whine. “Oh, just ignore me, please. This isn’t about the coat. I’m just so worried about Tish.”
Derek squeezed my hand a bit tighter. “The coat was damaged in the commission of a violent crime. Tish was attacked precisely because she was wearing your coat. It makes me ill to think it could have been you out there in the rain. I refuse to let you wear it again.”
“Well, when you put it like that.”
He smiled with resolve. “That’s exactly how I’d put it. Now, we can ask Tish if she wants to keep the coat. I can’t imagine she will, but you never know. If she doesn’t want it, we’ll give it to the homeless shelter.”
“All right,” I said, somewhat mollified.
His smile widened. “Someone who needs it will have a warm coat. And I will have the pleasure of taking you to London and we’ll make new memories together—while also getting you a new coat.”
A little lump of emotion got caught in my throat. I jumped up from my chair and wrapped my arms around him. “You are the best thing in my world.”
He rubbed my back. “And you’re the best thing in my world.”
“What a happy coincidence,” I whispered.
“Come here, thing,” he said, and pulled me onto his lap. We both smiled contentedly and sat snuggled up to each other for a few more minutes. It was a good start to the day.
? ? ?
As Derek drove the car out of our garage, he brought up the subject of The Secret Garden. “I keep circling back to that children’s book. I know it’s worth a lot of money, but I can’t see those two brothers killing to get it back.”
“We’ve both seen people kill for less,” I reasoned.
“But this time the players are two extremely violent criminals. Psychopathic thugs. They’re not your typical book lovers, to say the least. So why do they want this book? Why are they so willing to kill to get it?”
“I don’t know. And it’s not like they’ll get away with it,” I added. “The cops already know who they are. So even if they do manage to steal the book, they’ll spend the rest of their lives in prison.”
Derek glanced in his rearview mirror before changing lanes. “Let’s play with the theory that they’re not just after any old valuable book, but they’re determined to track down this specific one. So there must be something about this book, in particular, that makes it beyond valuable to them.”
“Yes, exactly. And I’ve been trying to come up with some possible motivations.” I glanced over at him. “If you’ll indulge me?”
He flashed a lopsided smile at me. “Please proceed.”
“Okay.” I readjusted myself in the seat so I was sitting facing him. “One scenario I came up with is that Grizzly was the one who originally stole the book. And don’t ask me where he found it. I haven’t worked that out yet. Anyway, let’s say Lug Nut inadvertently threw the book in with a bunch of stuff for a garage sale. When Grizzly found out, he threatened to kill Lug Nut if he didn’t get it back.”
“Not bad,” Derek said, nodding in accord. “That gives him a very strong motive. Namely, fear. He recognizes that his older brother wouldn’t hesitate to kill him, so he’s willing to kill someone else.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised to find out they’ve been beating each other up since they were kids.”
“Or worse,” Derek said. “Perhaps their father was abusive.”
“Ugh.” I shuddered at the thought, though even if it was true, it didn’t give them the right to continue the cycle of violence. “Okay, another theory is that maybe they have a mother or a sister who always loved the book. Maybe Lug Nut wasn’t paying attention the day he sold the book to Vera, and now he needs it back because his sister is dying of, I don’t know, consumption. Or something.” I wrinkled my nose. “That scenario’s a little weak.”
Derek chuckled. “It’s a bit less plausible. But it makes sense in that they need this specific book as opposed to any old rare, expensive book.”
I took another shot at it. “What if someone hired them to get the book back?”
“Who would hire them?”
“Someone mean who doesn’t care if anyone gets hurt. I’m just offering possibilities.”
“All right.” Derek considered it. “But whoever it is, why would that person condone their killing someone?”
“Because it’s a valuable book?” I said lamely, out of answers. “I don’t know why anyone in their right mind would give the brothers permission to kill in order to get the book.”
He nodded thoughtfully as he turned right on Sixteenth Street. “I assume the book is still in the safe.”
“Yes. I was keeping it there until I got paid by Vera. Now I’m not sure what to do with it.”
“Perhaps she has relatives who would inherit it.”