Part 40 (1/2)
”No, I think I'll hang around here.”
David frowned at her. ”You should come.”
She smiled. ”I'm fine. Really.”
”Ah, the nights are not enough!” he teased. ”She's awaiting the return of Laird MacNiall.”
She forced another smile. ”I have a book I want to read,” she told him.
”Um,” Kevin teased. ”The book of man. And it's partially in braille.”
”You two are terrible,” she said.
”I'd rather thought last night that there was some trouble in tranquil waters,” Gina said, looking at her somewhat sharply.
That caused David and Kevin to study her, as well.
”Oh?” she said.
”I heard your voice when I came up. You sounded a little sharp,” Gina said. ”Are you two arguing?”
Toni shook her head.
”Because we really need him to sign this agreement,” Gina reminded her.
She sighed. ”He will sign it, or he won't sign it. I'm not arguing with him.”
They heard singing and Ryan came bursting into the kitchen, doing a version of ”Oklahoma.” He seemed cheerful. They all stared at him; he wasn't known for his vocal ability.
He stopped and stared back. ”What?” he demanded. ”Okay, so this is Scotland. Brigadoon! I feel a new song coming on.”
”Let's get out of here, please!” David begged. ”Toni, come on. I'll go read more headstones with you, if you want.”
She laughed. ”I'm fine here alone. I'll walk you to the car.”
They started to trail out, but when David opened the front door, they were startled to find Constable Jonathan Tavish standing there. He looked grim.
”Constable,” Toni said. ”h.e.l.lo. Can we help you? Bruce isn't here.”
Jonathan shook his head sadly. ”I'm sorry. I've not come to see Bruce.”
”Then.. .how can we help you?” Ryan asked.
”I've come for your cousin, Miss Fraser.” He hesitated a moment. ”I'm truly sorry. I've come to arrest Thayer Fraser.”
David was the one to gasp. ”Why? For what?”
Jonathan Tavish s.h.i.+fted uneasily on his feet. He truly looked miserable. ”Fraud,” he said.
”Wait! Please, explain this!” Toni said.
”Is he here?” Tavish insisted.
Toni shook her head. ”He may be about...we don't know where he is. But--”
”I'm sorry to say this, folks, but he engineered the whole deal. Set you all up. He created a fict.i.tious corporation on the Web and arranged for the box as an address. He probably presumed that you'd all be out after the MacNiall returned.. .you'd have to go home, broke, and he'd have managed to make himself long gone. It's quite a surprise that he hasn't flown already, but maybe he thought he'd covered his tracks.”
”Thayer!” Toni exclaimed.
”Your cousin?” Ryan said.
”Now, now, we may be able to retrieve a bit o' the money,” Jonathan said consolingly.
Toni shook her head. ”I don't believe it.”
”You don't want to believe it,” David murmured.
”What kind of proof is there?” Toni demanded.
”Enough for an arrest,” Jonathan told her quietly.
”I still don't believe it,” Toni said stubbornly.
”Y'are not certain the chap isn't about?” Jonathan asked.
”He could be. We don't know,” Ryan said. He stepped back. ”Come in.. .I can check his room.”
”I'll take a look around upstairs,” Gina said, ”while Ryan goes to his room.”
Toni stood awkwardly for a moment, then thought that she might know where Thayer was. The stables. Up in the rafters. She didn't know what he did up there. And maybe she didn't want to know. But she did want to see him before the constable got to him, though.
”I'll.. .look around outside,” she said.
She walked out the main doors, gazing toward the stables. Despite the fact that he'd actually warned her just yesterday that a trace had been made to Glasgow, she was stunned. You don't want to believe it! That much was true.
As she started across the gra.s.s, she saw Thayer. And she was certain he had been up in the rafters of the stables. He was walking toward her casually, though, smiling, taking long strides, his arms swinging, as if he hadn't a care in the world.
She stood still, feeling the cool breeze lift her hair from her forehead. ”Top o' the mornin' to you, cous-- ach! That's Irish, eh?” he said teasingly. Then he stopped, seeing her expression. ”Toni? What's the matter?”
”The constable is here.”
”Aye?”
”To arrest you.”
”Arrest me?” He appeared honestly stunned.
”For fraud.”
”What?”