Page 99 of Day Break

Would he sell the house? George had hinted that he wanted Lane to live there. But Lane lived in the city and had his townhouse. He’d mentioned that he loved visiting the island but that didn’t mean he could move there. After all, his job and life were in Seattle.

I didn’t know exactly what he did at the law firm, but I doubted there was enough demand for lawyers on the island that he could move here full time.

The truth was slowly sinking in. Soon, I’d have to find a new job and somewhere else to live.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

“The dawn is a wild, fair woman, with sunrise in her hair; look where she stands, with pleading hands, to lure me there.”

- Robert Loveman

Lane

I had shifted all my case files for the week so that I could handle my grandfather’s estate, so I wasn’t expected back in the city for a while. As an added bonus, I now had enough time to teach Chloe how to drive.

We enrolled her in a driving course at the local high school that started in a few weeks. To get ready, every day we went out on the back roads, and I taught her what I could.

She was a quick learner. Her only issue was fear. Whenever she saw a car heading towards us, she pulled off onto the side of the road. I figured the more she drove, the more relaxed she’d get.

We spent an hour each day weaving through the back streets of the island.

I’d received a call from the detective with an update on my grandfather’s case.

During that call, I was shocked to find out that there was a missing person file on Rod Clarkson. His girlfriend claimed that he’d gone missing the same night of my grandfather’s murder. She’d found his truck in the garage with a pool of blood under the hood.

The police were looking into the possibility that the two cases were connected since they had been seen entering the bank together hours before my grandfather’s death.

That in itself was odd, as Grandpa had just been released from the hospital the day before.

The detective was still trying to confirm alibis for four of my family members.

Since I’d kicked everyone out of my grandfather’s place the day before, everyone said they had returned to the city until Monday.

My uncle Robert had claimed he was at home with my aunt Reba. However, it was confirmed that my aunt was at a book club meeting with more than a dozen of her friends.

My uncle Donnie had said he was home alone, but during the interview, my aunt Kate told the detective Donnie had gone out and hadn’t gotten home until after ten thirty. The timing was right for him to have driven back from the island.

Phillip and Derrick were each other’s alibies, and they claimed they had been hanging out together in a bar in downtown Seattle. Unfortunately, the bar they claimed they’d been hanging out at had been closed that night due to a rodent infestation.

Anyone of them could have been responsible. The least likely person, in my mind, was my uncle Robert. He was, after all, a current member of Congress. Even if my grandfather had refused to back him in his next run, I doubt that my uncle would kill him for it. It just didn’t add up.

As for Donnie, I had some questions. He was the second lowest on my list. It was more likely the man was having an affair, and that’s why he had been away from home. Plus, there just wasn’t any reason for him to kill my grandfather. Donnie was a man boy. He liked his video games, and he ate like a teenager. He didn’t give a shit about the finer things in life and certainly didn’t want anything from George that he couldn’t just take from his very busy wife.

So could my cousins have killed him. My gut response was hell yeah. They had a dozen reasons each. But would they stoop to killing? That question I didn’t know the answer to.

I wanted to think they wouldn’t, but the fact was, they used to torture the hell out of me when we were kids.

The one thing that didn’t make sense to me was them working together on anything. They were constantly at each other’s throats and couldn’t even work together on tying a knot.

Did they often hang out at bars together? Yes. Of that I had no doubt. And they were just dumb enough to mix up the bar names. That I could easily see them doing.

After I’d gotten off the call with the detective, I got Lee on the phone. “Did you receive any contests to my grandfather’s will?” I asked him.

“Several of them. Each of your uncles and your aunt, along with both your cousins. They are also suing you and Chloe Dawn.”

“For?” I asked, rubbing my forehead. I’d spent the entire morning on the phone or looking at my computer screen. What I needed was a long walk on the beach with Byron and Chloe. Instead, I knew I’d be stuck in the study for a few more hours.

“Executor displayed favoritism toward estate beneficiaries. I’m sure this is in regard to Chloe Dawn’s insertion into your grandfather’s estate,” Lee answered. “They want it on record that they believe you manipulated your grandfather into changing his will.” Lee sighed heavily. “Which is bullshit,” he added with a chuckle. “I’ve been working with your grandfather for the past twenty years. Not once have your two cousins been included in his will. Actually, when he first came to me, his first goal was to exclude both Derrick and Phillip from ever seeing a dime of his.”