The Perfect Solitaire

“I’ll add her to the list of the current staff to do checks on. Anybody else?”

“Not that I can think of.” Zoe shouldered her bag and walked to the door. “Ben, we have to keep this confidential because if my sister gets wind that we had a thing, well, my family gets nosy.”

“They won’t hear about us from me. You and I will have a code if you’re in trouble. I’ll be the doctor calling with your test results. You’ll tell me it’s a bad time to talk. If there’s one bad guy, say the baby is kicking a lot today. Two bad guys, the twins. Three, the triplets. Do you understand, Zoe?”

She nodded. “Is all this necessary?”

Ben spread his hands. “You never know what you’re going to need to know.”

The door opened, and the male receptionist that initially greeted her poked his head inside. “Excuse me, Ben, Ms. McKnight? The police were on the phone for you, but we got disconnected.”

“Why?”

“I had your sister first, but she hung up to talk to them. She said your cell phone dialed the store and she could hear your meeting. She was trying to call and tell you that your store just got robbed. When she couldn’t reach you, she called the police. Then they called us.”

Panicked, Zoe jumped up. “She has to cancel them. There can’t be a report.”

Zoe pushed the button on her Treo handheld for the store, but nobody answered. She dialed Faye’s cell but got no answer. “I’ve got to stop her. I told her to go home and help my father, but no. She had to help me.” She grabbed her portfolio and started for the door.

“I’m going with you.” They hurried up front and the receptionist handed Ben his jacket, taking the folder from Ben’s hand.

“You can’t.” Zoe trotted toward the exit. “Nobody is supposed to know about you.”

“Are you arguing already?”

“No. I’m not. No.” She took a deep breath. “Can you guarantee me that you’re going to get these bloodsucking scumbags?” Zoe dug into her purse for her car keys. “Promise, or I’m buying a bigger clip for my .45.”

Ben offered his hand to Zoe as they headed out of the building. “I promise. But you go in first and let me make my own entrance. I need to see things from my own perspective.”

“I’ll see you there.”

Chapter 4

Zoe entered the upscale mall at the lower-level south entrance, passing through the food court. The blending of Thai, Chinese and fast food odors usually made her hungry but today roiled her stomach. The casual lunch crowd formed jagged lines. She decided to take the escalator rather than the stairs so that she could quickly assess.

She’d chosen the second-floor corner for her boutique because she’d wanted to be able to say park at the south entrance, come through the food court, and we’re at the top of the escalator. People would be able to find her easily. The strategy had worked well. Sales had quadrupled since she’d opened three years ago and like she’d told Rob, tripled over the last months.

Zoe’s unique designs had brought a renewed sense of excitement to a business that was now saturated with trolley-cart vendors that sold inferior products at lower prices. Today’s incident wasn’t helping as customers were turned away by two cops who stood outside the doorway.

Bold onlookers still craned to see inside, but there wasn’t anything going on. Nobody was in custody and Zoe’s heart sank. That would have made her day.

Ireland, one of Zoe’s managers, was irritated, gesturing in big sweeping motions as she talked, and when the officer seemed to ask her to settle down, her neck went back, and she gave him a piece of her mind.

As Zoe walked toward the store, she noticed that none of the cases were broken, and while she was thankful, fury burned her. How had they gotten her this time?

Zoe turned, and Ben was behind her. “I thought you were going to stay incognito,” she said, startled to see him. The reassurance she felt was hard to hide. She’d reached out and gripped his arm and was about to pull her hand back when he touched her hand in a reassuring way. “I’d planned to, but I changed my mind.”

“Why? We had an agreement.”

“Hugh’s on his way to do the camera work and I want to hear everything you hear, Zoe. I don’t want you to have to relay anything to me. I’m going to try to work within your two-week time frame, so let me do my job.”

Zoe had a brief flashback to the moment when Ben picked her up in his arms and she had the best orgasm of her life. She’d been weightless and there had been nothing to support her but him. She’d had to put all of her trust in him. “Trust me,” he said.

“I’ll do my best.” She approached the uniformed officers. “This is my store. I’m Zoe McKnight, the owner. I’d like to go in.”

“You got ID?”

Irritated, Zoe withstood the visual inspection of herself and her ID, her patience slipping toward anger that the cop wouldn’t let her in until Ireland acknowledged her. The statuesque blonde stalked over. “What the hell do you have her standing here for? She owns the damned place!”

Ben walked in and moved unobtrusively to the side while the cop corralled Zoe and Ireland in the center of the store.

“We were scared,” Ireland said, “but I kicked ass and got the jewelry back.”

Zoe shook her off. “You did what?”

“I chased down the tall guy and got the jewelry back. Initially, there were three of them. The tall guy asked me to model the tiara, plus see some other pieces. No sooner had I unlocked the case and put it on than we were flooded with twenty men, all dressed alike. They were loud, crowding and rushing me and everyone else.”

“You chased who? And where did you chase them?” the police officer asked.

Ireland looked at the three of them. “The tall man I told you about,” she said to the cop, “I chased him down the escalator to the outside parking lot. I nailed him with my shoe. Got him in the back of the head.”

“We’ll need that,” the cop told her, glancing at her feet.

“You think I’d be wearing it if it were evidence? These are my back-up shoes,” she said of the sparkly black kitten heels. She pulled out a clear plastic bag with the other pair of two-inch heels. He took the bag as evidence.

“These are the shoes I had on when I ran him down. I caught up to him and was screaming my head off. He may have seen all these football-player types heading toward the mall entrance and thought he didn’t want to explain to them why he was dragging a woman around. I wouldn’t let go and he dragged me for a few seconds.” She showed them her leg that was still flaky with Georgia clay.

The cop closed his notebook. “I’ve got this already. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be leaving.”

Ireland’s blond hair swung from side to side. “There’s nothing more.”

“Thank you. When can I get a copy?” Zoe asked.

“Twenty-four hours,” the cop said, and walked out the store. Zoe pulled the gate back down and returned to Ireland and Ben. There were still interested onlookers outside, but she hadn’t decided whether she was going to reopen today or not. She needed to hear what happened and then talk to Ben.

“Zoe, I know your policy on chasing crooks, but he stole the necklace from the O’Sullivan collection, and I wasn’t going to lose one of those pieces.”

“You crazy girl,” Zoe admonished. “Are you okay? Do you need to go to the hospital?”

“For what? Tussling with a man?” She looked Zoe straight in the eye. “I had worse fights when I was a kid.”

“Those pieces are insured, as is everything in this store,” Zoe told her, shaking her head. Her heart was pounding. “Ireland, I should suspend you. You could have been killed. What if they’d had guns? How would I have explained that to your family?”

“Mr. O’Sullivan made those pieces for his wife and he adds a piece to his collection every year. I wasn’t going to lose them to some two-bit hustler. I didn’t feel like he was a killer. I know it sounds silly. I just didn’t feel in imminent danger.”

Ben touched Zoe’s arm. “I think she’s gotten your point.” He extended his hand and they shook. “Ben Hood, I work with Zoe. I’d like to know if you remember anything more about the man who asked to see the tiara?”

“Remember the remake of the movie The Thomas Crown Affair with Pierce Brosnan? Remember the part with the bowler hats? These guys were all dressed in jeans, white T-shirts, and sneakers. When they left, each put on a Yankees baseball cap. Kind of like they’re yanking our chain. When they walked in here, I got a weird feeling.”

“Can you put it into words?” Zoe asked.

“There was one guy who asked a lot of questions about the tiara. How many diamonds, the weight, etcetera. He wanted to know if he could have his jeweler do his own tests to authenticate the stones.”

“You said no?” Ben asked.

Ireland folded her arms over her chest. “That’s right. He told me his name was Rodrigo Martinez and I told him it was an insult to bring his expert into our store without talking to you first. He flirted, but I told him if he didn’t like my answer he could take it up with you.”

“Where was Faye?” Zoe noticed the two mall security guards head down the mall.

“We were supposed to be working this same side of jewelry cases, while Debrena had the left side and Charletta had the right. But there were so many men in the store, I didn’t notice that Faye was gone until it was too late.”

“Faye was gone where?” Zoe demanded. She’d expressly told Faye to help Ireland. It was as if the criminals had used her to facilitate their robbery.

Ireland’s cheeks turned pink with anger. “Faye had stepped outside the store and was leaning on the front window like a high-school sophomore talking to one of the men. I called her a couple times and even signaled Debrena to get her, but she never looked up.”

“Ireland, are you telling me Faye couldn’t hear you? There’s only fifteen feet of space between here and the door.”

“That’s right. The noise level was so loud, I could hardly hear myself think. I walked over to Faye’s station, saw the open case and the O’Sullivan jewels missing and I thought I was going to be sick to my stomach. I closed the case and secured the tiara.”

“Okay, Ireland. Were you able to provide the officers with a detailed description of the man?”

She nodded.

“Why do you really think Faye stepped outside?” Ben asked Ireland.

“Faye is selfish, and she’s jealous of Zoe. She’s trying to sabotage her sister’s success. Zoe, perhaps you don’t see it, but that’s the truth.”

Hearing the words she’d thought all her life was worse than suspecting them. But she’d always tried to make nice with Faye for the sake of their family. Her mother insisted they put up a front of unity to the world and handle their differences behind closed doors. Only those uncomfortable issues had never been resolved.

“Did she leave the case open intentionally?” Zoe barely managed to get the words out.

“I don’t believe in coincidences,” Ireland said definitively. “She’s been in back the whole time and hasn’t come out to see how things are going or to express her sorrow. Yet Debrena’s stuck her head out that door fifteen times. You’re Faye’s sister and this is your store. With that kind of sister, you don’t need enemies.”

“Where’s the tiara now?” Ben asked.

Ireland drew back, her expression closed for the first time.

“Please, Ireland, you can trust Ben. I trust him.” Zoe’s heart skipped a beat at the true statement. “I want to know, too. Where is it?”

“In the floor.”

Zoe didn’t move. Nor did Ireland.

Ben glanced between them. “Ladies, I can’t help you if you don’t tell me everything.”

Zoe understood the jeopardy of full disclosure. She now had to put her words into practice.

“Ben, when I first designed my store, I thought it would be good to have an extra measure of safety. I designed a floor safe. The problem is that you have to be at the right position behind the counter to drop merchandise into it, and it isn’t cost effective. I only built one. In this store.”

“Zoe,” Ireland cut in, “I promise it was the right time. The tiara is worth forty thousand dollars. He didn’t want to turn over his driver’s license, though, as collateral. That’s why he couldn’t touch it.”

Ben nodded. “Smart decision.”

“Where was everyone?” Zoe asked.

“At their stations. Mr. Martinez was so intent on the tiara, I couldn’t not serve him. I just found it odd that a discerning man like him wasn’t disturbed by the noise level and manner of the other men. Unless he wasn’t that discerning.”

“That’s a good observation. What else?” Ben asked.

“He asked pointed questions. The noise level increased and he leaned close to me, frustrated that I wouldn’t allow him free access to the tiara. He muttered, so I leaned in. When I straightened, no more than ten seconds later, Faye was outside and the store was full of twenty men dressed alike.

“I called to Faye, signaled Debrena, but she couldn’t get Faye’s attention. I was still wearing the tiara, but he reached for it and actually got hold if it. I saw that Faye’s case was open and the jewels gone. I yanked the tiara from his grasp and activated the safe and the alarm.”

“What did Martinez do?” Ben asked.

“He protested. The men in the store got louder. I saw the man who had the O’Sullivan jewels. Suddenly, all the men left going in different directions. I took off after the man with the jewelry.”

“Show me the safe and where you were standing,” Ben said.

Ireland took him to the floor safe. Both she and Zoe entered their security codes and the doors opened. The tiara sat on its head in three feet of velvet. Zoe donned gloves to lift it out. She examined it. “It’s perfect. No harm done.”

Ireland’s sigh was audible.

“Why did it take both of you to get it out?”

“It’s designed as a last effort to save whatever is in your hands or the most valuable merchandise in the store. I didn’t want a criminal to be able to bring me back to the store and think they could take everything. If Ireland needed to open it herself, she could activate the doors after twenty-four hours.”

“Were you involved with the robbery?” Ben asked Ireland.

“Me?” she exclaimed. “No! Zoe knows I’m devoted to this store and I’d never do anything to hurt her. I wouldn’t steal from her.”

“In light of the circumstances, you did the right thing. Thank you for protecting the store, Ireland. But everything here can be replaced. Please don’t put your life in danger again,” Zoe said.

Ben’s warning look said he wanted to handle the interrogation, but Zoe had to weigh in. Everything in her said Ireland was telling the truth.

“We need better security, Zoe, that’s obvious. Nobody else is getting hit. I talk to the other managers on a daily basis.”

“I know. That’s why Ben is here. Big changes are in the works.”

“Are we going to open today?” Ireland wanted to know.

“Yes,” Ben said. “I’ve got some guys coming over to refit this store with different sensors for the cases. I’d like you to be here as an advisor, Ireland. Can you stand by? You’d be compensated, of course.”

A grateful expression crossed her face. “I appreciate that. As long as you find out who’s ruining my paycheck, I won’t chase bad guys anymore.”

“You’ve got my word on that. I’m trying to keep a low profile,” Ben told her.

“Fine with me. I just work here. But you will want to talk to Faye separately from Charletta and Debrena. She’s got issues with Zoe and you don’t want the other girls hearing. If you choose to keep her on, I don’t want her working my shift ever again,” she said, and walked through the stockroom door.

Ben held Zoe’s arm, stopping her. “I don’t believe Ireland’s involved, but if what she said is true, this is a personal attack against you.”

“I feel the same way. Do you think my sister’s involved?” The words hurt worse coming out than when she’d just thought them.

“It sounds like it. Can you deal with having your sister questioned and possibly arrested?”

Chapter 5

The other ladies had been questioned and released and Zoe stood facing her sister in the stockroom.

“Why would I want to sabotage Zoe’s business? For your information, I believe she’s wasting her money hiring you, and if I had any say, you’d be fired.”

Faye hurled the words at Ben. To him, she sounded like a woman who had something to hide.

Watching Faye closely, Ben figured that Zoe had been the reasonable child and Faye the drama queen. They’d been there three hours and the other staff members were gone, their statements supporting Ireland’s.

“You’re being passive-aggressive again.” Faye bit into her sister like a barracuda. “Why don’t you just come out and call me a thief?”

“Are you?” He didn’t care for Faye the way Zoe did. If she was behind the thefts, this would be the fastest ten thousand dollars Hood I.N.V. had ever earned, and the shortest opportunity he’d ever get at a second chance.

“I’d be stealing from myself if I did. I gave you five thousand dollars to start this business.”

“You loaned me the money, and I paid you back thirty days after I opened the doors, Faye.”

“So you’re the big-shot owner, now. I knew this would go to your head,” Faye retorted.

“I didn’t say that, Faye. We just got robbed. Someone could have been seriously hurt.”

“Including me. Nobody asked if I was all right.”

Her false indignation was laughable. “Do you need a ride to the hospital?” Ben offered to entertain her nonsense for a moment. “It’s only five minutes away. In fact, if it’s critical we don’t even have to wait for an ambulance, I can drive you there myself.”

“I said I could have been hurt. All you’re worried about is your precious jewelry.” She’d directed the last comment to Zoe, shifting away from Ben’s scrutiny. Zoe started to speak, but Ben held up his hand. “Where do you work, Faye?”

“First Bank of Greenville in South Carolina. Why?”

“How long have you been there?”

“Twelve years.”

“Vice president?” Ben asked.

“Assistant vice president,” she sniffed, her chin elevated.

“Ever heard of Rodrigo Martinez?”

“No.”

“Not in all your years with the bank? Wow, I wish I had your memory.”

“I can’t recall meeting anyone with that name. I may have. Those are two common names. I mean, I don’t know.” She backpedaled, looking as unsure as she sounded.

“That’s odd.” Ben knew he had her.

“What’s so odd about me not knowing every Martinez in the south?” She tried to laugh but couldn’t pull it off so she folded her hands, wiped them together and refolded them.

“I bet once I complete my investigation Rodrigo Martinez will be from Greenville, South Carolina, just like you. I’ll bet when I pull the video on this incident, his expression will probably show that he’s surprised to see you when he walked in the store. Wasn’t he?”

“No. I mean, I might have said hello. I greeted everyone. We want people to feel at home at Zoe’s.”

“Oh, please,” Zoe groaned.

“I’ve worked in this store before, and Zoe can Oh, please if she wants to, but I stayed today as a favor to her.”

“That’s right, Ben.” Zoe rose from her chair and Ben and Faye watched her. “Faye didn’t want to be here. You wanted to come with me, but I told you no, twice. I insisted you stay here and help Ireland.”

Ben kept his focus on Faye. “You didn’t want to be anywhere close to the robbery you planned. So when the crowd got thick, you slipped outside. Nobody could connect you to the theft. You were here, but you weren’t.”

“I didn’t steal anything!”

“You left the case open, didn’t you?” Ben felt her confession coming.

“No.”

“You sure? The video will show you leaving the doors open, looking left then right, sliding them open a little more and then slipping out the door. Your friend preoccupied Ireland so that one of the look-alikes could stick his arm in and grab what he wanted. All the time, Ireland is calling you. You heard her, didn’t you? How do you think a judge will interpret your role in this little heist?”

“I didn’t do anything. I was outside,” she said desperately. “A man was interested in me.”

“What was his name?”

“Uh. Um…Ricky.”

“Martin?” Ben offered.

“What?” Faye blinked rapidly. “Yes. No! I don’t know his last name.”

“That’s the first thing a woman finds out about a man, right, Zoe? His name? Where he works? What’s his phone number, Faye? His e-mail? Let’s call him now and set up your first date. Who is he, Faye?”

“I don’t have to answer you.”

“Oh, my God. You really stole from me!” Zoe screamed at her sister.

Tears ran from Faye’s eyes. “Are you going to let this happen? I’m your blood.”

“And that gives you the right?” Zoe snapped.

“It’s just jewelry. I’m your sister! Family is supposed to mean more to you than…stuff.”

“Why’d you do it?” Zoe asked.

“The divorce is costing me everything. You wouldn’t miss the money from a few necklaces—you have insurance—but this could help me get back on my feet. All you had to do was file a claim and they would have paid you back.”

Ben had seen selfishness before, but never like this and never so blatantly between sisters.

“You’ve always been selfish,” Zoe told her. “Jealous. You’re so lazy. That’s why you wanted to go with me today. All you had to do was ask to borrow the money and I’d have loaned it to you.”

Faye slapped the desk. “Borrow? I’m assistant vice president of the Greenville Bank. I live in a three hundred fifty thousand dollar house, and I eat tuna out of a can and sleep on an air mattress! I’ve had to sell everything. I’m not borrowing anything from you, do you hear me? This is the least you can do with your high-and-mighty self. I don’t need anybody’s help. Fine. Help me, then. Let me walk out of here.”

Ben wondered what Zoe was going to do. Faye was clearly trying to take advantage of Zoe who seemed to be intently studying her folded hands.

“Faye, it’s too bad your life is a mess, but you don’t get to decide you’re going to fix it at my expense. Ben, I never thought I’d be saying this, but, call the police in here and have them arrest my sister.”

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