“There’s a problem with the hotel,” Winston began to explain.
“The hotel,” Gloria repeated, almost with loathing. “Didn’t I tell you to get rid of that old relic years ago? Why he hung on to it I’ll never know,” she said, addressing her words to Jackson. “The man’s just too sentimental for his own good. I swear he has a heart like a bowl of mush sometimes. You’d never guess that he’s considered to be such a shrewd businessman by his competitors.” Mrs. Aurora sighed. “If they’d only seen him the way I have.”
“Gloria, these detectives are not here to listen to matters concerning our private lives,” he said sternly.
“Neither are you, apparently. Why didn’t you sell that hotel before now?” his wife demanded.
Not wanting to get in the middle of a family dispute, Jackson picked up on Mrs. Aurora’s question. “Why did you pick now to sell it, sir?”
“Because, Detective,” Winston replied, “despite the fact that I did want to hold on to it because it had been my grandfather’s pride and joy, I felt that it was time to allow the city to continue growing. Coupled with that,” he added, slanting a glance toward his wife, “I received an offer I couldn’t refuse.”
Chapter 4
“Do you know the name of the person who made this offer?” Jackson asked.
Gloria Aurora scowled. Her frown had the ability to transform an attractive face almost into a mask, one that even her husband had been known to be wary of.
“Winnie, don’t you think you should have a lawyer present before you answer any more of these people’s questions?” Mrs. Aurora’s tone was civil, but it was more of a demand than a question.
It was obvious that the woman was more than a little surprised when her husband held his ground, not against the police detectives, but against her suggestion.
“There’s no need for lawyers, Gloria,” Winston replied amicably. “There’s no wrongdoing here.” Chuckling, the family patriarch turned to address the two detectives. “You’ll have to forgive my wife. I’m afraid she’s not very trusting.”
Gloria’s eyes were as close to blazing as Brianna had ever seen. “And you’re too trusting, Winston,” the woman snapped.
Brianna exchanged glances with her partner. Was there just trouble in paradise, or did the man’s wife know something? Something she wanted hidden?
“Mr. Aurora,” Jackson said a bit more forcefully, “who made you the offer?”
“The city,” Winston replied mildly, appearing unfazed by his wife’s anger.
This felt as if they were tiptoeing through a minefield, Brianna thought. “Anyone in particular from the city?”
“For the answer to that, I’m afraid that you will have to speak to my lawyer,” Winston told them.
“Finally!” his wife cried triumphantly with a toss of her ever so carefully coiffed hair.
It was obvious that Winston Aurora was not about to let his wife have the last word. “I hated the idea of selling the property, so I turned everything over to Thomas Cahill, senior lawyer at Cahill, Adams and Sons. Call the firm, tell him I sent you. He can give you all the details behind the sale. Now,” he said in a tone indicating that he assumed the subject was closed, “is there anything else?”
“Not at the moment, sir, but we’ll let you know if there is,” Brianna told the man pleasantly. Her gaze swept over both parties. “Thank you for your time, Mr. and Mrs. Aurora.”
“I hope this is the end of your interrogation.” Gloria Aurora’s tone was cold enough to freeze large cuts of beef.
“If not,” Brianna responded politely, not about to be intimidated, “we’ll be in touch.”
“With our lawyer!” Gloria called after them as they left the library.
“Well, that proves it,” Jackson said as they made their way out of the mansion under the head of security’s watchful eye.
“Proves what?” Brianna asked.
They went down the half dozen stairs from the front door to the circular driveway. “That money doesn’t buy happiness.”
Brianna shrugged. “He seemed all right.”
Jackson glanced in her direction. “I was referring to Mrs. Aurora. Every time that woman opened her mouth to talk, I had the impression that she was sucking on a lemon. A really sour lemon,” he underscored. “Almost made me feel sorry for her husband.”
“Almost?” Brianna questioned as she got into the car.
Jackson laughed shortly. “Hard to feel sorry for a man who could buy the whole state before noon if he wanted to.”
Jackson sounded as if he was sinking farther into a mood, so she tried to kid him out of it. In her opinion, he was an excellent detective, but he was really difficult to get close to. Even after being partnered with him three times, she was still trying to find the chink in his armor.
“Ah, but as you just pointed out,” she told him, “money can’t buy happiness.”
“Yeah, but it can buy a lot of other things,” Jackson replied as he started the car.
Was he going anywhere with this, or just complaining in general, Brianna wondered. “What are you getting at? What other things?”
“Like other people’s silence.” He began to drive toward the main road. “What do you want to bet that we’re not going to get any worthwhile information out of Aurora’s lawyer—or anyone else connected with this sale or the demolition, for that matter?”
Jackson sounded as if he believed a major conspiracy was going on. “Hey, the owner of the construction company was the one who called the police,” Brianna reminded him.
That didn’t change his opinion. “That was a spontaneous reaction,” he said. “Besides, some of his crew saw those bodies. And that was then. It doesn’t take all that long to talk to the involved parties and get them to see things differently, change their stories for a price, that sort of thing.”
“Don’t you think you’re getting a little carried away here?” Brianna asked him. “We’re talking about the Aurora family, not a drug cartel or crime syndicate.”
Jackson glanced at her, and she couldn’t quite read his expression. “We’ll see.”
“Why do you
