The Edge

“I made it my business to know. And I had firsthand knowledge of part of it.”

“Right. You let someone encourage you not to do your job.”

“I’m not proud of that. But I was just starting out and these were people I looked up to. I was afraid not to do as I was asked.”

“And of course Senator Silkwell is in no position to defend himself against these accusations,” he replied.

She took the poker and nudged some embers until they flamed up. “I’m not surprised you don’t believe me. No one wants to think a war hero, a great man, could do bad things. But if I am telling the truth, does that qualify as a motive for murder, to your thinking?”

“You also mentioned Earl and Bertie Palmer?”

“Bertie spent a lot of time with Alex after she was attacked.”

“So?”

“Bertie and Earl both knew about the affair.”

“Bertie started spending time with Alex after she was attacked fifteen years ago. But Bertie was killed a few weeks ago, and Earl just days ago,” pointed out Devine. “So why wait that long? And Curt Silkwell couldn’t have been involved in either of their deaths. He’s been in a hospital for a long time.”

“But Clare hasn’t, has she? And I understand she married a very wealthy man. A man who might be able to hire certain people to do a certain job.”

“You’re very well informed.”

“I find that’s far better than being ignorant,” she retorted.

“But I’m not sure how much sense it all makes. Why would Clare, after all these years, care about an affair of her husband’s from nearly thirty years ago coming out? Particularly if he had other such trysts and now she’s remarried and put all that behind her?”

“Curt being Annie’s biological father may not be the only secret the Silkwells are covering up.”

“What else?”

She retook her seat while Devine continued to stand. “People around here have long wondered where Dak got the capital to invest in all these local businesses.”

Devine leaned against the mantel, his mind racing ahead.

Dak’s smuggling might come out after all. “You have any theories?” he asked.

“Bertie was over at Jocelyn Point a lot over the years. What if she stumbled onto his source of capital?”

“So Dak ran her over? And then killed Earl in case she had told him?”

“I’m not saying it’s true, but you have to admit, it’s a plausible theory.”

“So who shot Jenny? And then Dak? The polymer casing links them. If it was in retaliation somehow for him killing Bertie and Earl, how does Jenny tie in?”

Devine had an advantage here. He knew about the satellite images that Jenny had found showing that the Palmers had seen what Devine believed to be a cop car racing past right before they found Alex. But for that, Guillaume’s line of reasoning would be far more compelling.

“I guess it’s your job to find that out,” she replied curtly.

“Assuming there is a connection.”

“Do you

have a theory tying them all together?”

Devine had known that query was coming and it confirmed for him what this whole dinner invitation was partly about. The first part had been shifting potential guilt onto the Silkwells. And the second?

A fishing expedition. Ironic in a coastal town that makes its living off lobster. And eels.

“I’ve got lots of theories, but I need proof.”

“Like you said before, I’m listening. And I can give you my expert opinion.”

I bet you can, and then you’ll run off and tell your uncle, wherever he’s hiding, which might be right here.

The front door opened and closed and Fred Bing walked in, his hair and coat wet.

She looked at him. “Why didn’t you pull into the garage, Fred?”

“My damn remote didn’t work again.” He looked at Devine. “Hey, sorry I’m late for dinner. I hope you two went ahead and ate.”

“No, we waited for you,” said Guillaume. “And I’ve been having an interesting discussion with Mr. Devine.”

Fred took a long sniff. “Well, your beef stew is calling me.”

They all went in to eat.

Guillaume only had eyes for Devine. And for his part, he was surreptitiously watching her every step of the way at the same time he was on the lookout for the hulking Benjamin Bing to jump out with a gun.

Chapter 75

The stew was excellent, and Devine watched in some amusement as Bing sopped up every drop of it with his bread before pushing back from the table. The tall man was as thin as a rail but had eaten three helpings.

The burial business must burn lots of calories.

But then he recalled that the man was also an outdoor enthusiast.

Guillaume rose and started clearing dishes, brushing off both men’s offers to help. “You two just sit here and chat. I’ll make some coffee.” She disappeared into the kitchen.

A couple of minutes of silence ensued. Bing finished his water and wiped his mouth with his napkin before running his own amused gaze around the dining room table that could easily have sat twenty.