A few days later, Belinda was in her dining room having breakfast with her parents, who’d come to stay with them after Belinda’s near-death experience, along with Kyle and Bennett. Bennett had been there every minute he could, which gave her parents a chance to get to know him. It didn’t hurt that they were grateful he’d rescued her. It seemed like whatever reservations they still had dissolved after that. Victoria had made her and her mother cry, and even Colleen had dropped by, looking like herself again, just to see how she was doing. Belinda still wasn’t sure how she felt about their new evolving relationship.
She had to admit she was still just grateful to be alive. It hadn’t hit her until later how close to kissing the world good-bye she’d been, but she had been seconds from death. Adrian Leon had successfully killed three other people. She was almost his fourth.
After breakfast, Belinda and Bennett met up with Jonas on the Ocean Walk to get the rest of the story about Adrian Leon. Jonas was in casual clothes–shorts and a polo shirt. Belinda had to say that the whole J. Crew look really worked for him, and it worked within Portside. She was glad she’d steered him in that direction. For herself, she was grateful for body concealer. She needed it with the bruises left on her neck from the rope.
“Leon confessed?” Bennett said. The two of them were a little more formally dressed than Jonas, but they technically had a work-type meeting to go to after this. Bennett wasn’t sure they should yet, but Belinda insisted.
In hindsight, Adrian Leon as the killer made perfect sense to Belinda. He was in a perfect position to sell forged art, and he definitely had the strength to kill Kevin, Angie, and Dinah. He knew Dinah, and she had bid on the vase, which Belinda originally saw in Leon’s office. And his office had stunk of bleach that day.
“He told us Kevin Pratt came to him to get his opinion on the painting’s worth.” Jonas leaned back on the short stone wall as they talked in a wider section of the walk where you could afford to stop. Leon was arrested for attempting to murder her, but Belinda was worried he’d get away with the others since Kevin’s murder weapon was compromised. “Of course, Leon knew it was a fake, so he told Kevin a colleague would look into it while he figured out what to do. I guess he was torn between selling it or lying and getting rid of it. Either way, he was foiled when Kevin came back to say he met someone who knew Simone, so he wanted the painting back to get her opinion.”
“Ah,” Belinda said. “So then Leon was really trapped.”
“Yep. He lied and told Kevin the painting wasn’t there, but Kevin got suspicious and demanded Leon return the painting or he’d call the police. Leon panicked and when Kevin turned around, he grabbed the vase and…” Jonas shrugged. “He stuffed Kevin in his office closet until he figured out what to do with him. Leon thought about calling the police, or so he says, and say it was an accident, because he wasn’t positive Kevin was dead at first. But that would open up other inquiries, which he wasn’t prepared to deal with.”
Belinda figured that’s why the offices smelled like cleaning products. Leon was trying to clean up whatever blood there was, and probably wipe down evidence that Kevin had been there.
Jonas continued. “So Leon threw Pratt’s body in his trunk late that night and hauled him onto his boat and dumped the painting with Kevin, thinking Kevin would just go missing and the painting would disappear forever. We have footage on Leon’s own surveillance system of him hauling the body out of his office and putting it in his trunk and tossing the vase in the Dumpster. Leon overlooked the cameras in his attempt to cover his tracks.
“Anyway, Leon got really worried knowing Kevin had told someone else about the painting. Kevin didn’t tell him who, so it took a little while for Leon to figure out it was Angie Chen. He actually overheard you talking about Angie to Dinah.” Jonas nodded at Belinda. “Leon saw Angie’s name on Kevin’s phone, and after he heard you, he put it together that Kevin must have told Angie. And, well, that was that. Unfortunately, I doubt Angie knew Kevin had left the painting with Leon.”
“Did Dinah know?” Belinda said, feeling guilty now for basically calling out Angie. Not that she meant to, and at the time, she’d suspected Angie of forging the painting and possibly killing Kevin.
“Not at first.” Jonas folded his arms. “But Leon had used the vase from that auction you went to to kill Kevin, and he needed Dinah to bid and get the other one in the pair to avoid a lot of questions about why the mate was missing. In the end, that meant telling her what happened. Not that it helped him.” Jonas winked.
Belinda turned her face into the wind, inhaling the salt air. “Why did he kill Dinah? Just to cover up everything?”
“Well, they’d been partners in the art forgery business for years and never had any problems. They met when Dinah was still in college, and when her career stalled, she agreed to work with him. But she got nervous, especially once Angie was dead and her daughter was under suspicion. He was afraid she was about to tell all. Then there was you.”
“Me?”
“Yes, you. Though it’s partially my fault. When I showed him the photo of the forged Simone, it clicked why you were poking around, asking after that painting, and he got worried. Dinah was jittery, so he decided the best course was to get rid of her and destroy all the evidence. But then on his way home from the auction house, he happened to see you walking down the street, and he got even more nervous, wondering what you really knew. So he followed you, jimmied Bennett’s car door, and waited in the backseat.”
“Planning to kill us both?”
Jonas shrugged. “I really don’t think he thought it all the way through, or even realized Bennett was with you. Remember, this was after he killed Dinah. Every step he took got less precise and more desperate. But then, well, you kind of fell right into his lap as easy prey.”
Belinda frowned. She needed to keep working on that. “So were the paintings of Alec important at all?”
Jonas smirked. “Not as much as we thought, I suppose, though they did help expose Dinah.”
“Speaking of which, Belinda needs to delete those images from her phone.” Bennett gave her a pointed look.
Belinda smiled sweetly.
“We do suspect from Dinah’s e-mails,” Jonas said, “that Angie did know that Dinah was painting Alec and called her out on it. My guess is Angie found out via Kevin. We don’t know for sure, but it’s likely Dinah tossed the paintings to hide that fact.”
That would explain why Dinah disliked Angie so much. “So how did Angie know where to find them?” Belinda said.
“From one of Angie’s artist friends, who works in that area. She saw Dinah toss something into that Dumpster and mentioned it to Angie. The friend claims to not know anything about the fake or the Alec paintings, but I suspect Angie took the paintings to compare with the forged Simone. If Shelby’s telling the truth, Angie figured out it was Dinah, and probably called Shelby to tell her.”
Belinda nodded. Sounded plausible. “Why did Leon dump the vase he killed Kevin with in his own Dumpster? That was kind of dumb. Why not throw it in the water with everything else?”
Jonas smiled. “Leon’s actions were scattered after killing Kevin. He tossed the vase before putting Kevin in his trunk. He claims he didn’t really know what he was doing at that point, or going to do. I figure he never meant for Kevin’s body to be found in the first place, so throwing away the vase, making sure it was at the bottom of a pile of other garbage, probably felt safe at the time. Then, once the murder investigation was under way, it was riskier to move the vase out of the Dumpster. He felt it was safer to leave it be. They’d empty the Dumpster and all traces of his crime would vanish, or so he thought.
“In any case, we’ve got Kevin’s blood in Leon’s office and on his boat that he docks on his own property, and in his trunk, not to mention the vase. He’s the right height to have strangled Angie and hit Dinah on the head. Rope and paint found on his boat match what was found on Angie. His arm got burned by Angie’s soldering iron while strangling her. Plus, we have a witness who saw Leon go into the building where Dinah’s art studio was shortly before it was set on fire. More ties to both murders are probably forthcoming. And the FBI is investigating the art forgery, so I don’t think he has much of a chance of getting away completely free.”
“Guess that means you’re free to attend to other matters?” Belinda grinned.
Jonas returned it. “I took everyone’s advice and confessed to Ardith about the scuba diving.”
“Good boy. How did it go?”
“I guess it went well because we have a private lesson together this afternoon.”
Belinda arched her eyebrows. “Sounds watery.”
“Well enjoy it,” Bennett said, “though I have a feeling you’re going to impulsively get caught in another sticky predicament.”
Jonas smiled wickedly. “I do have a history of that when it comes to women. Based on the way you’re dressed, I foresee the same for you two.”
“You’re probably not far off,” Belinda said, glancing down at her outfit. “We don’t want to keep you from your date. Au revoir, then?”
“Or, good-bye.” Jonas smiled, a lightness to his step when he walked away that she’d never seen before. It was nice.
“Stop it,” Bennett said once Jonas was out of earshot.
“Stop what? I haven’t done anything.” She took the arm he offered and they strolled back to the beginning of the Ocean Walk.
“You’re picturing their wedding.”
“Am not. I’m picturing their children. They’re gorgeous, by the way.” She grinned, walking in front of him as the path narrowed and they came upon the arch, passing under it with hands clasped. Before they went by and while no one was right behind or in front of them, Bennett yanked her back and kissed her right underneath of it.
“I wanted to do that the first time we were standing here,” he said in his familiar velvety voice. He’d spoken to her like that almost right from the beginning, possibly even where they stood. It still made her feel swoony.
“I wanted you to, though I was simultaneously unsure what I thought of you at all.”
“That’s very flattering.”
Belinda laughed. “I’m just being honest. You know, the thing that you do all the time?”
His face became very serious, and she figured something was coming. They hadn’t really talked, just the two of them, since the incident. He wasn’t allowed in with her at the hospital and since then someone had been around every second. “Now that we’re alone, I have something to confess. I can’t take full credit for saving you.”
At first, she was confused. Who else was there? But then she remembered the figure disappearing into the park. “You told someone to leave before the police got there.”
“You got that? You were pretty loopy at that point. I was worried you’d black out.”
“No, I heard. I just couldn’t see the other person. Who was it?”
Bennett paused before answering. “It was Jarrett.”
Belinda blinked in surprise, then felt relief sweep through her. Maybe Jarrett hanging around their house that night was perfectly innocent. “What was he doing there?”
“I spoke to him later, and he said he’d followed you since you left Shelby’s. He was tailing you when you left to go to the car, and he saw Leon attack you. He was trying to break through the window with a rock when I got up the hill, then he called the police.”
“You followed too?”
“I didn’t feel right separating. Something about the whole situation…I didn’t like it.”
She frowned. In hindsight, that was a terrible decision on her part. “I’m really glad you ignored me, even though you had to tamper with evidence to help.”
He cupped her face with his hands. “Are you kidding, Kittridge? I was relieved I’d brought it with me at the last second. Jarrett’s rock wasn’t making it through the window.”
Belinda was getting all teary eyed, and she had mascara on. “You do have a pet name for me.”
“How did we get from saving you to pet names?”
“Kittridge. Your pet name for me is Kittridge.”
“It’s just your name.” He seemed to be calculating what she said, though, unsure if she was right.
“Yes, but it’s my last name and it’s how you say it and use it. You don’t call me that all the time, so it’s kind of…special. It’s like you save it for special moments.” Like when he was emotional, but she wasn’t going to tell him that.
“I guess so. I haven’t really thought about it.”
Belinda kissed him again.
They were forced to move on as other people came down the walk, but they would just make it back to the inn at the path’s official start point as it was, so she guessed they needed to move on. Still, it was nice to be there together again.
Bennett took the lead, winding them around people and rocks until a large white building with columns and black shutters loomed above them. They were meeting Mia’s friend at the inn’s restaurant for lunch to discuss a little problem she was having.
Okay. It was a big problem. A big problem neither she nor Bennett was certain they wanted to have any part of. But to be fair, they’d agreed to meet with her and discuss things more in-depth before deciding. Belinda had ensured that Mia passed on that they weren’t making any promises. They were only agreeing to talk.
“She could be paranoid,” Bennett said, looking up at the inn with her. They stood at the stone pathway leading to it that looked like some secret walkway. “That’s a lot to inherit for a single person.”
“Believe me, I’ve considered that, except that Mia has known her from birth and swears it’s not like her.” Belinda shrugged. “From the little I’ve been around her, I’d have to say it doesn’t seem like her either. She’s kind of flighty and relatively trusting.”
“Well, we’ll hear what she has to say and then decide whether to help or not.” He made Belinda face him. “No matter how emotional she is or however good her story sounds, you will not agree to help her now. We listen and get the information we need, and then we leave and talk about it and get back to her. Agreed?”
“Are you saying I’m soft?”
“Agreed?” Bennett looked her hard in the face.
So he was saying she was soft. Well, fine. She was a mush. It was hardly the worst thing she could be accused of. “Yes, I agree. I won’t say we’re helping her now.”
Bennett nodded and gripped her hand. “Ready to go in?”
Belinda hesitated.
“What’s wrong?” Bennett’s eyes shifted to her neck. “You haven’t changed your mind now, have you?”
Belinda’s near-death experience put things in perspective, and she wanted to say this because you never knew how much time you had. “It’s not that. Back there,” she pointed behind her, “after Jonas left and you thought I was picturing them married with five kids–”
“Five? Don’t mention that to Jonas, for future reference.”
“Well, there’s five kids in his family.”
“True.”
“It was a random number…. Anyway, the point is I joked with you, but that’s not what I was thinking about.” Belinda took a deep breath, ignoring Bennett’s intense stare. “I was thinking about what we talked about earlier…you know, art collecting? I kind of forgot because of, well, everything, but I just remembered and…and…” She wasn’t sure how to phrase what she wanted to say and was getting embarrassed now that she was at that point in her sentence and realized she hadn’t thought it all the way through. But certain things needed to be said.
“You’d like to start thinking about it?” She thought he looked (and maybe now she was the one imagining things) hopeful.
“Yes, exactly. I don’t want you to think…I mean, I’m not pressuring you…” Of course, it was too late now if that’s how he felt. She’d already said it.
“I know.” His eyes were bright–the light gray they turned when he was happy. “I’ve been thinking about it, too. Especially the outdoor sculptures.”
“That was incredibly cool. I sort of have an outdoor sculpture of my own now.”
“Really?” Bennett tilted his head. “You never mentioned it.”
“Well, it’s not something avant-garde like what Angie did. It’s just a garden gnome. Dan forced Victoria to give one away.” Bennett laughed, Belinda joining him. “I knew she wouldn’t get away with it, and they were starting to take over. So even though I’m afraid I’ll find him dancing around at night, I took one off her hands to appease him.”
Bennett’s eyes glinted in delight. “Maybe we should get the rest of the outdoor cameras set up soon then.”
Belinda smiled, thinking the sooner, the better, and they stood there in silence for a moment, not paying much attention to the groups of tourists passing by or the cars whizzing past on the street. “Was that all?” Bennett said finally.
“That was all. I just…I wanted you to know that. I needed you to know that.”
Bennett gave her hand a squeeze, his eyes understanding. “I’m glad you said something.”
Belinda smiled, relief flooding through her. So maybe what she’d imagined before about him, when they visited Meg, wasn’t all in her head. “I think we should go on in now. It’s about that time.”
Bennett waved her on to go first, the path only holding people in single file. They turned up the restaurant entrance from the walkway, heading to meet their potential client hand in hand.
~ * ~