A Killer's Watch (15 page)

“One way to find out,” Graham said beneath his breath.
Reaching the door, he plastered on a smile, and swung it wide.

The casually dressed man did not appear to be expecting
them, Jeri sensed his surprise as he took in their stance.

“May I help you?” he inquired, politely.

“Yes, we’re here for a meeting with Graham Grant. He’s
expecting us. Jeri Forbes, and Monique Pellier,” Jeri explained, waiting for
the man to move aside and invite them in.

“I’m Graham Grant, but I’m unaware of any meeting. What is
this regarding?” Graham knew instantly that the two women must be the ones who
came before, the ones with the FBI. His stomach clenched into a knot, but he
maintained his composure.

“Hello, Mr. Grant. Our office made an appointment yesterday,
with someone named Thomas,” Jeri read from the note pad she carried. “We’re
assisting the FBI with the search for two missing girls. Could we come in?”

“Thomas no longer works for us, and he never mentioned any
meeting. What makes you think I can help you?” Graham smiled to soften the
words, but he did not move to let them inside.

“We don’t know that you can, Sir,” Jeri returned his smile.
“But we have to eliminate certain people, and properties, that we searched
yesterday.”

“Your mother was kind enough to let us search the basement,
but we have a few questions to ask you, if you don’t mind,” Monique spoke up
for the first time.

“If this is a bad time, we can come back later,” Jeri
offered, but she didn’t move. Every instinct she possessed was on alert. Graham
Grant shot to the top of her list of suspects, based solely on something she
could not define.

“Don’t be ridiculous, please come in.” Graham stepped aside,
finally, and swept his arm graciously, allowing them to enter. “I have no idea
how I can help you, but I’m certainly willing to try.”

“Thank you,” Jeri nodded, keeping her smile in place. “We’ll
try not to take up too much of your time.”

“I’m afraid I am a bit pressed,” Graham frowned, slightly.
“We’ve had some excitement this morning. You are not the first officers to
visit us today.”

“Oh?” Jeri left it at that, waiting for Graham to explain.

“Yes, it seems that our trusted butler, Thomas, the man with
whom you made the appointment, left us in the middle of the night. He took many
of mother’s jewels, along with various silver trinkets from around the house.
The police were here taking a report.”

“I’m so sorry,” Monique said, sincerely. “Was that the man
who answered the door yesterday?”

“To be sure,” Graham answered. “But please, let’s join
Mother in the parlor. I’m certain she’s wondering who is paying us a visit.”
Indicating the direction of the parlor, Graham waited until the ladies moved
through, before following.

“Good Morning, Mrs. Grant. It’s nice to see you again,”
Monique went straight to the elderly woman. Taking her hand, she nodded to
Jeri. “This is my boss, Jeri Forbes. We’re so sorry to hear about your
troubles.”

“Thank you, my dear,” Belinda affected the persona of a
distressed woman, perfectly willing to milk the experience. “It’s been a trying
day, to say the least. How kind of the FBI to take such an interest in our
little drama. Won’t you have a seat?”

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Grant, but we’re not here about the theft,”
Jeri smiled at the woman as she moved to the sofa. “We actually have a meeting
to speak with your son, about the missing girls. But if we can help you in any
way, we’ll be happy to do so.” Jeri’s smile stretched to include Graham, who
had come to stand beside his mother’s chair.

“Oh, my, the missing girls?” Belinda reached for Graham’s
hand. “But what could my Graham possibly know about that?”

“It’s a formality, really,” Jeri assured her. “We need to
exclude Mr. Grant, the same as we are excluding other homeowners in the area.
I’m so sorry for the inconvenience, especially on such a difficult day.” Jeri
leaned forward, her face the picture of sympathy. “Our questions for Mr. Grant
can wait, if you’d like to tell us about Thomas, was it? And the theft.”

“Oh, thank you. It was just awful, I tell you,” Belinda
needed no further encouragement to retell the tale. “Thomas has been with us
for years, and he simply disappeared, overnight. He took my favorite pieces of
jewelry, too. It was as if he knew how to hurt me the most.” Belinda took a
breath, preparing to go in depth about the missing items.

“Now, Mother, let’s not waste the FBI’s time with our
troubles. I’m sure these ladies have more important things to do than look for
Thomas.” Though lightly scolding, Graham’s tone also held kindness for his
mother’s distress. He was the picture of a caring son.

“But, Graham, they offered to help,” Belinda glanced up at
him, then stopped.

“We can get the details from the police report,” Jeri jumped
in. “That way, you don’t have to relive something so traumatizing. We’ll do our
best to help the police locate your missing items.”

“Thank you.” Belinda nodded, feeling somewhat cheated of the
limelight.

“You said you had some questions for me?” Graham stood
casually by his mother, one hand on her shoulder.

“Yes, just a few. Would you like to go someplace more
private?” Jeri asked.

“No, thank you. I have no secrets from Mother. Please, ask
away.”

“Graham, we haven’t even offered the ladies some
refreshment. Please ask Sally to bring a tray,” Belinda patted his hand as she
spoke.

“No, thank you, Mrs. Grant. That’s very kind of you, but we
can’t stay. We have several more appointments this morning,” Jeri apologized.
“And I believe Mr. Grant has another meeting. We’ll just get these questions
out of the way, then be off.” Jeri became more sure of Graham Grant’s guilt as
she watched him interact with his mother. His kind, caring attitude did not
match the coldness she read in his eyes.

“If you’re sure.” Belinda nodded, regally.

“Yes, Ma’am,” Jeri smiled again, then made a show of
flipping pages in her notepad, as if searching for questions.

“Here we are,” she looked up briefly to see Graham hide his
impatience behind a quick smile. “Mr. Grant, could you tell us where you were
on Tuesday evening?”

“Yes, of course. I went over the household accounts with
Thomas, then retired to my room, early,” Graham answered smoothly, grateful
that Thomas was not here to dispute his word.

Jeri nodded, as if accepting his alibi, without question.

“And yesterday afternoon? Where were you then?” she asked.

“I was here, all afternoon, working, up until I joined
Mother for dinner.”

Belinda frowned, but said nothing. She specifically
remembered that Graham had not joined her for lunch, as he had a meeting in
town.

Jeri and Monique noticed Mrs. Grant’s expression, but made
no comment.

“Thank you. Mr. Grant, is there another cellar, or storm
shelter, on the property, besides the basement beneath this house?”

“No,” Graham answered a little too quickly, while squeezing
his mother’s shoulder. “If you’d like to search the basement again, be my
guest.”

Belinda went so far as to open her mouth to speak, but the
firm pressure from Graham’s hand kept her silent. He must have a good reason
for not telling the FBI about the old cellar.

“That won’t be necessary,” Jeri smiled, standing. “We’ve
taken up enough of your time. Thank you both for allowing us this visit.” She
included Graham in her smile, then turned her attention to his mother. “Mrs.
Grant, I hope that your precious belongings are returned. It’s very
disheartening when someone you trust betrays you. I’m sorry you had to go
through that.”

“Thank you, Ms. Forbes. I so appreciate your looking into
the matter.”

“Of course.”

“I’ll see you both out.” Graham’s smile was not as stiff as
before. The fact that they did not wish to search the basement again boosted
his confidence.

Jeri and Monique followed him to the door, waiting as he
opened it. Before stepping through, Jeri paused, as if with an afterthought.

“Mr. Grant, do you know anyone in Clevestone?” Jeri watched
his eyes carefully.

“Clevestone?” He appeared to think about it. “Why, no, I
can’t say that I do. Why?” Graham’s heart began beating so hard, he had
difficulty not reacting.

“Someone has been dumping bodies there, but I neglected to
ask you about it earlier. Thank you for your time,” Jeri stepped through the
door. She wondered if Graham Grant felt the sweat that instantly popped out on
his brow.

“Well, then, I can assure you that I have no ties to Clevestone.”
Graham managed to pull himself together, after the surprise of her question.
They obviously didn’t suspect him. Why else would they be leaving? “Oh, ladies,
please don’t trouble yourselves with details of the theft. Thank you for
indulging my mother, but you shouldn’t be bothered with such a petty crime.”

“It’s no trouble, Mr. Grant. We’re happy to help such
upstanding citizens as your mother, and yourself,” Jeri smiled at him warmly. “If
we find anything, we’ll let you know.”

“Thank you,” Graham nodded, closing the door as soon as they
reached the steps. His heart was still beating much too fast, but the relief he
felt outweighed the nerves. Certain that he was in the clear, he took several
deep breaths, before rejoining his mother.

“Graham, why on earth didn’t you tell those nice ladies
about the old cellar?” Belinda asked as soon as he entered the parlor.

“Because, Mother, I don’t want the feds, or anyone else,
snooping around our property. You know that grandfather ran a lucrative liquor
business during prohibition. I didn’t want them finding anything that would
incriminate us, or give the IRS reason to audit our fortune.”

“Seriously Son, that was eighty-plus years ago,” Belinda
scoffed. “No one cares about any of that today.”

“Don’t be so sure, Mother. It’s better safe, than sorry.”
Graham poured himself a
S
cotch, though it was
not quite noon.

“I suppose,” Belinda eyed him with speculation. “And why did
you tell them that you were here all afternoon, yesterday. I distinctly
remember that you had lunch in town.”

“They didn’t ask about lunch, and I returned shortly before
two. You were resting, I believe. I spoke with Thomas, then retired to the
study, where I worked for the rest of the day, just as I told the ladies.”
Graham downed the
S
cotch, then poured another.
“Can I get you a drink, Mother? I know that it’s not yet noon, but it feels
like this day has gone on forever.”

“No thank you, Son. I took a nerve pill a little while ago.
If you don’t mind, I think I’d like to lie down for a bit.”

“Of course, Mother. Would you like me to help you up the
stairs?”

“Thank you, but I can manage. I’m sure you have business to
attend. Have Marie bring up a tray in an hour, would you?”

“Yes, Mother.”

~~~

“Leave the drive and pull over about a block away. Make sure
to keep us in sight of the house,” Jeri texted Ethan as she spoke to Monique.

“You think that’s him, right?” Monique followed
instructions, parking on a side road, but keeping the end of the Grant’s
driveway in full view. “That’s why you cut the interview so short, yes?”

“Yes. I asked Ethan to make this flyover the next on the
list. He’s obviously not keeping the girl in the house, so he must have a
separate building, or cellar. Let’s hope that it’s on the grounds.”

“And if it isn’t, we follow him,” Monique reached in the
backseat for her pack. Finding the binoculars took only a moment, she was very
well organized.

“Exactly. I tried not to spook him, which is another reason
I cut the interview so short. The last thing we want is for him to kill both
girls because he thinks we’re onto him.”

“He seemed pretty arrogant, up until you asked him about
Clevestone. I though he was going to faint, right then and there.”

“His reaction was telling, but he recovered quickly.” Jeri
picked up her phone. “Ethan should be here within thirty minutes.”

“If he finds a cellar, or something, is that enough for a
search warrant, being that Grant lied about having another structure on the
property?”

“We’ll make it enough,” Jeri answered, checking her tablet.
“Anna sent over a few more images. Hopefully, we won’t need to go that route.”

“What do you make of Thomas the butler departing so
suddenly, and taking the family jewels with him?”

“Who knows? It could be a coincidence, or Thomas could have
gotten suspicious, after your visit yesterday. Maybe he got too close.”

“You think Grant killed him?”

“It’s possible.” Jeri continued to scan the images.

“Isn’t it also possible that Thomas is our killer? Maybe he
was the one we spooked, so he took off.”

“It’s possible, but the man we just met fits the profile,
almost to a tee. Not to mention that my gut tingled, as soon as I met him.”

“Ethan told me about your gut feelings.”

“Oh, yeah? What did he tell you?”

“To trust them, so I will.”

“Thanks,” Jeri grinned sideways at Monique. “Did you notice
how Mother Grant reacted when we asked about a separate cellar on the property?
She was about to spill the beans, I’m sure of it.”

“Yes, I saw Grant’s reaction, too. He didn’t even flinch.”

“He’s an accomplished liar, no surprise there.” Jeri focused
on one image in particular. “Check this out, this woman’s age regression looks
very similar to Diana Post.”

“You’re right, she does. We should add her to the list. What
does that make, four?”

“Yes.”

“It’s a short list, if we do have to interview them.”

“True, and we might, if for no other reason to pinpoint
Grant’s connection to Clevestone. It will make for a much tighter case, if we
can tie him to someone there.”