“Is that when you decided to kill her?” Cameron asked, his voice simmering.
Sebastian sighed. “For the thousandth time — I
That caught Candy by surprise. “What do you mean?”
“Just what I said — I wasn’t even around this nutty town. I was in Bangor.”
“I don’t believe you,” Cameron said.
“You have to, because it’s the truth. I can prove it.”
“What were you doing in Bangor?” Maggie asked.
Sebastian gave her a tired smile. “Untie me and I’ll show you.”
Maggie shook her head. “No way, mister. That ain’t happening until you tell us everything.”
“I’ve already told you everything,” Sebastian said with a deep sigh. “Sapphire was blackmailing me, yes. But I had nothing to do with her death. Look, this is all a huge misunderstanding. Untie me now and I won’t press charges — we’ll just let the whole thing go.”
“What were you doing up in Bangor?” Maggie repeated.
Finally Sebastian relented. “If you must know, I was seeing a lady friend — an admirer of mine. And before you say you don’t believe me again, check the dresser in the bedroom.” He nodded up the stairs. “On the top of the dresser you’ll find all the receipts, for everything.”
Maggie shot Candy a look, and Candy nodded. She moved quickly, across the room and up the narrow stairs to the second floor. She was gone for a few moments, as everyone waited anxiously. Finally she bounded back down the stairs, holding several small receipts in her hand. “Let him go,” she said softly. “He’s telling the truth.”
Thirty-Four
Bones cracked in protest as Sebastian J. Quinn rose uneasily, rubbing at his sore arms and shoulders and knees, which had stiffened during the time he had been kept prisoner in the chair. Candy had found a knife in a kitchen drawer and cut him loose, causing not a small amount of pain and discomfort as she and Maggie had pulled the duct tape off him. But he sat patiently during the process, wincing only occasionally, and now remained standing near the chair as Candy moved to the dining room table, where she had laid out all the receipts in a neat line.
“This is the hotel receipt — and here’s the date.”
“Monday,” Maggie noticed, with a glance at Sebastian, “just like he said.”
“He could have checked in and then driven back to my mom’s house,” Cameron observed.
Candy nodded. “He could have — it’s not that long of a drive — but he didn’t.” She pointed to the next receipt. “This one’s for dinner, that same night. Check the time on the receipt — nine forty-five. You figure an hour or so for dinner — that means they sat down at around eight thirty.”
“We had an eight-fifteen reservation,” Sebastian confirmed, “and drinks at the bar before that.”
Maggie’s eyes widened when she noticed the total amount of the check. She whistled. “Three hundred thirty- five dollars. Must have been some dinner.”
“Two bottles of wine — and expensive wine at that,” Candy said, pointing to the receipt with her pinky.
“It was a special occasion,” Sebastian explained, sounding annoyed at the scrutiny.
Maggie studied him with newfound interest. “She must be one lucky lady. Anyone I know?”
Sebastian squared his shoulders and clasped his hands behind him. “An old admirer, as I said. I cannot reveal her name, of course. I’ve given her my assurances of complete discretion.”
“She’s probably married,” Maggie muttered under her breath to Candy.
“Looks like they hit a club after that,” Candy said, pointing to a third receipt.
“Kicking up the light fantastic?” Maggie asked of Sebastian.
“Something like that.”
“And he’s got an alibi for later that night too,” Candy continued, pointing to the hotel receipt again. “See here — they ordered room service at twelve thirty. Expensive too.”
“Champagne, if you must know.” Sebastian sniffed.
“Wined and dined her, huh?” Maggie said with a sly smile.
“And they ordered room service again, for breakfast at eight A.M.,” Candy pointed out. “Looks like they spent the night together.”
Sebastian cleared his throat, trying his hardest to maintain his dignity. “As I’ve said, I have promised the utmost in discretion, and I hope I can count on the same from you. I’ve shown these receipts to you only as a last resort, as evidence that I wasn’t in town on the night Ms. Vine was killed. But they are not for public knowledge. Besides yourselves, no one else knows of this... rendezvous... other than the police, of course.”
“The police have questioned you?” Candy asked in surprise.
“Naturally. I believe they questioned everyone connected with the pageant. They assured me it was just a part of a routine investigation. They were completely satisfied as to my innocence in this unfortunate matter. I hope you are the same.” He paused, looking at each of them in turn. “I believe I’ve kept to my word and proved that what I’ve said is true. I may be a scoundrel... perhaps even a thief. But I am not a murderer.” He rubbed at his wrists. “That should put an end to this matter, once and for all. Now... will you be requiring anything else of me, or may I enjoy what remains of this unmemorable evening in some sort of relative peace, with what small bit of honor and dignity is left to me?”
Cameron glowered at him, some part of him still refusing to believe, but Candy knew they had pushed their luck — and Sebastian’s patience — as far as they dared. She gathered the receipts together and handed them back to Sebastian. “I think we’ve taken enough of your time.”
“Indeed you have. It has been... interesting, to be sure. At least you came to the right decision,” Sebastian said, taking the receipts. “So we have an agreement?”
Candy glanced at Maggie and Cameron, then nodded. “We’ll keep quiet about all this, if you agree not to press charges against Cameron.”
“You have my word as a gentleman,” Sebastian said with a slight bow.
But Cameron shook his head. “This isn’t right. What about my dad’s poetry? None of this changes the fact that you stole his writings and published them as your own.”
Candy and Maggie looked warily at Sebastian, who pursed his lips together. “Hmm. You’re right. But my guess is that everything will work itself out in your favor soon enough, young man. You’ll be getting an inheritance, you know.”
That caught Cameron unaware. He was silent a moment as confusion edged into his anger. “What?”
“Your mother’s house, of course. She’ll have left it to you, since you’re her only kin. You should have heard from her attorney by now. Have you been contacted by a lawyer?”
“He’s right!” Maggie said excitedly, turning to Cameron. “Have you received any phone calls this week? Or letters?”
Cameron’s face twisted in thought as he shook his head. “I... I don’t know. I haven’t been home much. I guess I haven’t paid much attention to that sort of thing.”
“Of course not,” Sebastian said knowingly. “You’ve had a lot on your mind. But my guess is there’s a letter waiting for you, or a phone message, if you check when you get home. The reading of the will should take place any day now.”
“The will?”
“Oh yes, I’m certain your mother had a will. And if I know her, she’s left you not only the house but a sizeable bank account. Rest assured, most of that is your father’s money. What your mother took from me, from residuals from your father’s work, she put into the house, and probably socked the rest of it away. So you see, it’s all coming back to you after all.”
Cameron’s expression brightened. “It is?”
“Oh yes.” Sebastian raised a finger in sudden realization. “Oh, and I have something else for you.” He turned and disappeared up the stairs, returning a few moments later with a large manila envelope, stuffed full. He walked
