‘See what I mean? Every one of these robberies took place in a town where they were and within no less than two months of a performance. That can’t be coincidence. Can it?’
Emma Baxter sat in Mary’s chair, staring at the Grady Pyrotechnics website. She kept looking from the calendar of events on their site to the list of stores robbed. It showed the location and the date of each break-in. Everyone but one was within two months of a Grady Pyrotechnics show. That one was within three months.
‘The Gradys should update their schedule more often. This list of past performances goes back over two years.’
Mary nodded. ‘I imagine they want people to know how many they do or maybe so they can get references or something. The list of current bookings doesn’t seem too heavy.’
Emma scrolled the calendar sideways to look at the dates blocked off. ‘This goes up to the end of this year. They don’t seem to be booked much. I wonder why. They put on a great show.’
‘Maybe they don’t need to.’
Emma’s face had changed from interested to anxious. She ran her finger down the list of stores once again, compared the dates of the robberies with the dates the Gradys had been in that particular town and groaned. ‘John was sure about the magnetic signs? Those aren’t paintings on the Gradys’ paneled van?’
‘He’s positive. He knows the man who did them.’
She looked almost sick. ‘Then, Mary, we have a problem.’
Mary knew that but she began to wonder if they had another one she didn’t know about. ‘I know we do. Do you know where Dan went? I think we need to talk to him, don’t you?’
‘I don’t know where they went and he’s not answering his cell. We need to do something. Mary, Tommy is on his way to the Grady ranch right now. Heath Grady asked him to come out. He wanted to talk about the We Buy Gold shop.’
‘Tommy went? Why?’ Anxiety started to build. This didn’t sound one bit good.
‘He wanted to know if his father owned any of the shop or was just an employee. Jerry always acted as if he owned it and Tommy wanted to know where he and his mother stood. Heath sent Gabe to get him, saying they’d work it all out. I’d like to know what he means by that but I don’t think it’s anything good.’
‘You think Tommy might be in danger?’ Mary struggled with that. Why would Heath and Gabe want to hurt Tommy? He didn’t have any more idea than they did what was going on. In fact, he didn’t have as much.
Emma began slowly, as if she were trying to work out something in her mind. ‘If Heath and Gabe really have been robbing those stores, and it sure looks likely, then they were the ones adding the stolen jewelry to the legitimate pieces. They had to falsify the records in some way, adding it to the inventory checked by the police department. I don’t know how they did it but Heath knows Tommy has access to his father’s bank account and to all the records in the jewelry store. If he thinks Tommy may come across something that can incriminate him …’
‘Or he may try to offer Tommy the same deal he offered his father, whatever that was. If Tommy turns him down …’
‘Not good either way. Let me try Tommy’s cell. See where he is and try to warn him.’
‘How are you going to do that with Heath and Gabe right there?’
‘No idea, but I’ll try.’
Mary watched while Emma tried to contact Tommy.
‘He’s not picking up.’ Her worried expression intensified.
‘Call Dan,’ Mary instructed. It seemed to be the thing she always thought to do in an emergency. She wasn’t sure this was one but she was sure they needed to talk to him.
Only Dan wasn’t answering either.
She was so absorbed in wondering what to do next that she didn’t notice someone had come in her back door until Morgan stood in the doorway, wagging his tail in greeting. Ranger was on his feet and so was Millie.
‘What’s Ranger doing here?’ Ellen appeared behind Morgan, a smile on her face that died stillborn. She looked from Mary to Emma, then back. ‘What’s wrong?’
‘We can’t find Dan.’
‘He and Wilson went someplace. Not sure where. Why? You both look stricken. What’s happened?’
‘We’re not sure, but Tommy has gone out to the Grady place and we’re worried about him.’
‘Why would you … Oh, oh. What have you found out?’
‘It may be nothing …’ Mary broke off as Emma took over.
‘It’s definitely something. It won’t stand up in court, at least not yet, but it’s more than enough to take a hard second look at the Grady brothers and, if we’re right, more than enough to be worried about Tommy.’
Ellen sat on the edge of the day bed in what was now Mary’s office, her face a few shades paler than when she walked in. ‘Tell me.’
They did. They showed her what Mary had found on the computer, the dates of the robberies compared to the visits the Gradys had made to the same towns, the magnetic signs and the fact they owned the We Buy Gold shop and had access to the inventory that went to the smelter.
‘It isn’t concrete proof,’ Emma said, ‘but it’s enough to start looking at these guys a lot harder.’
‘There’s no time to look harder. Tommy is out there right now and we don’t know why or what might happen. Dan’s still not answering his cell?’
Emma shook her head. ‘I left him a message. Told him to call me right away. Agnes doesn’t know where they’ve gone either.’
‘How about one of the other policemen? Weren’t there some other special forces down here?’ Ellen sounded more cautious than alarmed.
Not so Emma. ‘I am the police. The only one left and I’ve made up my mind. I’m going after him.’
Mary sucked in her breath and Ellen let out a gasp. ‘You can’t do that.’
‘Why not? I’m a sworn officer of the law and I feel a citizen might be in danger. It’s my duty to do something.’
Mary and Ellen looked at each other. Put like that …
‘You don’t have a car.’ Mary gulped a little as she spoke. Emma couldn’t go alone and, from the look on her face, she was going, one way or another. ‘You don’t know where you’re going either. I’ll drive. They won’t dare do anything if I’m there.’
‘No. I don’t think it’s safe and I can’t protect you and Tommy. I’ll take Ranger and … maybe I can get a Santa Louisa police car.’
‘Santa Louisa doesn’t have that many cars and they’re almost all black and whites.’ Ellen looked at Mary with an almost helpless expression.
The set of Emma’s jaw said she was going.
‘Taking Ranger is a great idea but you still don’t know where that ranch is. I do. I was on that ranch many times during the time we had it for sale. I’ll go get Tommy.’
‘No, you won’t. Not only am I a police officer, that creep Gabe invited me out to the ranch. I’ll just tell them I accepted his invitation and, while I’m there, I might as well give Tommy a lift back to town.’
Mary snorted. ‘They’ll believe that one, all right. No. We’ll all go. They can’t shoot us all and Tommy. We’ll leave a message for Dan, tell him where we are, and then when we get back we’ll give him all our information and see what he wants to do.’ She turned to Emma. ‘Do you have a badge and all that if we need it?’
Emma grinned. ‘I have a badge, a small spray can of mace and a gun.’
Ellen swirled around to look her up and down. ‘You have a gun? Where?’
Emma had on a pair of baggy khaki shorts, running shoes and an oversized T-shirt with UCLA Bruins and the bruin bear, the university mascot, emblazoned across the front. She barely seemed to move when a gun appeared in her hand. She grinned at the astonishment on both Mary and Ellen’s faces. It disappeared again under her shirt. ‘Women get special holsters and training in how to get to our guns fast. Let’s just hope I don’t need to use it.’
It was a hope Mary fervently shared. ‘Ellen, call Dan and leave that message. I’m going to feel like an absolute fool if we get out there and find they’ve finished a nice friendly meeting and Gabe is on his way back to town with Tommy.’
‘Maybe so but, for the first time in my life, I’d be delighted to feel like a fool.’ Emma snapped the leash on Ranger.
Mary managed to get Millie’s snapped on her harness then picked up her cell and slipped it into her purse.
‘Morgan’s leash is in the car.’ Ellen watched her aunt and shook her head. ‘Are you sure you want to take Millie?’
Mary reddened slightly but kept her voice neutral. ‘Ranger and Morgan are going and I’m not going without her.’ She half expected Ellen to suggest they both stay home and was ready to challenge that.
Ellen shrugged and led the way to her car.