The Diamond Affair Read online

"He's the only one who is helping! He's there for me. He listens to me."

  "He's taking advantage of you, Darling."

  "What?"

  "Trust me, I know what guys want and it's got nothing to do with listening."

  "You don't know anything, Dad! Not when it comes to women and relationships. He does."

  "I doubt that. Darling, boys your age—."

  "He's not my age," she said with a take-that attitude.

  The room at the end of the hall fell oddly silent. Jake didn't like it. He didn't trust Beauvoir. The man was capable of great violence. Would he turn that on his daughter?

  "Who is he?" Beauvoir said. Menace dripped from every word. Penny said nothing. "Who. Is. He?"

  "I'm not telling." Penny sounded much less sure of herself than she had moments before.

  "Give me your phone. I'm going to call him."

  "No!"

  "I said, give it to me."

  Jake broke into a run. Penny screamed and the sound of shattering glass split the air. He arrived in the lounge room to see a tearful Penny on the floor surrounded by the shards of a broken glass-top coffee table. Her father stood over her, a pink phone in his hand. His concentration was on the phone, not his daughter and definitely not on the door or Jake.

  Jake went straight to Penny. She gasped when she saw him but allowed herself to be picked up out of the mess. She had a few cuts but there was no major damage from her fall.

  Finally Beauvoir looked up, a grim set to his mouth and confusion in his eyes. "Who the hell are you?" he said to Jake. "You look familiar."

  "I'm a friend of Penny's."

  Beauvoir turned a confused stare onto his daughter. "I know this number," he said, holding up the phone. "I don't understand. What are you doing calling him?"

  "He's my boyfriend." Far from sounding scared, Penny spoke with absolute confidence. She thrust out her chin. "We're in love. I'm going away with him just as soon as he finalizes a deal he's got going."

  "Deal?" Her father's frown deepened. "What deal?"

  She shook her head, a smile on her lips. "That's for us to know and you to find out."

  Cold tentacles of dread wrapped around Jake's gut. He snatched the phone off Beauvoir and looked at the number on screen.

  He recognized it.

  The tentacles squeezed.

  Ruby!

  CHAPTER 17

  Penny took back the phone from Jake's loose grasp. "I believe that's mine," she said.

  "Actually, it's mine," Beauvoir said. "I pay the bills."

  Penny rolled her eyes and pocketed the phone.

  "Frankie?" her father asked. "What can you possibly see in him? He's an overweight moron—."

  "He listens to me. He's kind and generous and—"

  "He's using you, Penny!"

  Jake didn't have time for this. Ruby was in danger. Frankie wasn't working for Beauvoir anymore.

  "No," he said, "he's using you. They both are. Frankie stole the Florentine. He used you to get the information he needed then ambushed the transportation crew. It wasn't Ruby. Isn't that right, Penny?"

  Penny crossed her arms over her chest and said nothing.

  "Wh, what?" Beauvoir stared wide-eyed at Jake. "You're the man Ruby Jones hired to protect her. How the hell did you get into my house?"

  "Back door. You really should keep it locked." And just because he felt like it, he raised his fist and hit Beauvoir in the nose.

  Beauvoir fell backwards, knocking over a tall lamp that in turn knocked over a vase that crashed to the floor.

  "Frankie stole the Florentine, not Ruby," Jake ground out. "And he did it with your daughter's full knowledge." He stood over Beauvoir, trying to decide whether to hit him again. It wasn't necessary but it sure would make him feel better.

  "What's going on here?" Sonya teetered in on perilously high heels, stopping when she saw the carnage. "Has there been another gas leak?"

  "That's where I've seen you before," Beauvoir said, getting up. He sat back on the floor again when Jake curled his hand into a fist.

  "You're all pathetic," Penny spat and stormed past her stepmother.

  "Where are you going, young lady?" Beauvoir shouted.

  "My room. To pack. As soon as Frankie gives me the word, I'm leaving. And you," she said over her shoulder to her father, "can't stop me."

  "B, but...your studies! School!"

  "Screw school. And screw you. Both of you," she said with a sneer at Sonya. Then she strode out and up the stairs.

  "Can someone fill me in, please?" Sonya said, feet planted on the floor and hands on hips.

  "He's duped her," Beauvoir said to Jake, ignoring his wife. "She doesn't know what she's doing. Frankie's been telling her lies and stringing her along, making her think he's going to take her away. He didn't steal the diamond. Ruby did." But he didn't look entirely convinced by his own words.

  "Frankie who?" Sonya asked.

  "You're a bigger fool than your daughter thinks you are," Jake said.

  "He works for me!" Beauvoir said. "I pay him exceptionally well."

  "Not well enough. Ever been to his apartment? It's bare. The guy's obviously in some kind of financial strife. That's why he stole the diamond."

  "Who stole my diamond?" Sonya asked, looking from one to the other. "Will someone please tell me what's going on?"

  "My diamond," Beauvoir said. "The one Ruby Jones stole."

  "Frankie stole it," Jake said. Now he was really getting mad, and impatient to get back to Ruby. The longer he was gone, the more chance there was of Frankie calling her and giving her the details of a meeting time and place. And if he did that, Jake couldn't be absolutely certain she wouldn't go there by herself. If she went, Frankie would kill her, somehow leaving enough evidence so everyone would think she definitely stole the Florentine. Only then could Frankie leave knowing his boss wouldn't go after him. It all made sense now. Sickening sense.

  He had to get back to Ruby.

  "Neither of you leave this house," he said.

  Only Sonya nodded, rubbing her arms as if she were cold. Beauvoir said nothing as he reached for his phone.

  ***

  She was gone. Jake sensed it as soon as he drove into the drive of the Brighton house. He ran inside, checked every room, including the garage. One of the cars was missing.

  He threw a punch at the wall but pulled back at the last moment. Now wasn't the time for mindless violence. That would come when he had Frankie at the end of his fist. Now he needed to remain cool and think.

  But the only clear thought was that Ruby was in danger. Frankie had no reason to keep her alive once she showed up.

  Wherever the hell that was.

  Jake pulled out his phone and called Beauvoir's number. "Where would Frankie take someone he wanted to get rid of? Somewhere out of the way?"

  "Who does he want to get rid of?"

  "Just answer the fucking question."

  Beauvoir hesitated then said, "There's a cabin up near Bendigo. He probably went there."

  "I want exact directions. NOW!" he yelled when Beauvoir hesitated again.

  "Only if I come with you."

  In the time it took Jake to pace the length of the garage, he realized he had no other choice. "I'll pick you up in ten."

  ***

  Ruby thanked her lucky stars that she had a good memory and a fast car. She didn't get lost and the journey was much quicker than when Frankie had driven her to the isolated cabin the first time.

  Frankie. He had Evie and he was going to kill her.

  She swallowed a sob as she stopped the car. This was no time for tears. If she was to get out of this alive, with Evie, she had to think without emotions getting in the way.

  She had to be like Jake.

  The element of surprise is the greatest weapon you can have.

  She got out of the car and walked along a rough path leading to the back of the cabin. Without a flashlight to aid her, it wasn't easy. Thick scrub and low tree branches scratched her
legs and arms and she hoped like hell she didn't step on a sleeping snake. Dry leaves scrunched underfoot but gave way to quieter stones closer to the cabin. She edged around to the back, the cloudy night offering coverage once she was out of the shadows. The cloying air held the possibility of rain.

  She removed the gun from the waistband of her shorts. Its weight felt unnatural in her palm. She hoped she wouldn't need it because she had no idea how to use it.

  A dim light shone through the single window on that side of the cabin. She crept up to it and peered through.

  The first person she saw was Frankie, his back to her as he sat in a chair. One elbow rested on the rickety table, his fisted hand holding up his head. He looked like he was asleep.

  Ruby's heart leapt into her throat. If he was asleep, her job just got a whole lot easier.

  But he suddenly stood up, stretched. His changed position revealed the barrel of a gun gleaming in his right hand and, beyond him, a figure curled up in the corner.

  Evie.

  She was gagged, her feet bound together and her hands behind her back, presumably also bound. Her eyes were puffy and closed but in the dull light, Ruby could just make out the rise and fall of her chest.

  She lived.

  Ruby nearly choked on her relief.

  Then she saw the tear stains down Evie's cheeks and the black bruise around her closed eye. Bile rose to her throat. She wanted to throw up.

  With great effort, she swallowed and stepped up to the door. Three, two, one...

  "Put the weapon down, Frankie," she ordered. It amazed her that her voice could sound so calm when everything inside her was on heightened alert. "I've got a gun and I'd be happy to use it on you."

  Frankie only laughed. "Question is, would you?" He turned, slowly, an ugly smile twisting his mouth. "So glad you could come, Mizz Jones. I do hope you followed instructions and came alone."

  "Of course I did," she snapped. "Evie, can you stand?"

  Evie nodded and began to rise, her back pressed against the wall for support.

  Frankie's arm shot out at his side, his gun pointed at her. "Don't move."

  Evie sank back down to the floor. A whimper escaped her white lips then she fell silent. It was hard to tell from her battered face whether she had closed her eyes or not.

  "Didn't you hear me, Frankie?" Ruby said, putting all her remaining courage into the words. "I'll kill you—."

  "No, you won't." He sat down and stretched out his legs. "Your gun's not even loaded."

  How did he know? She wanted to cry out in anguish but she forced herself to remain still. Calm. "The deal was to let Evie go once you got me." She held out her arms. "Well, you got me. Now let her go."

  He looked to Evie, cowering in the corner of the room, her body shaking uncontrollably. Then he looked to Ruby again. "No. I think I'll keep you both. Make that kill you both."

  "You can't!" Ruby shouted over the top of Evie's renewed sobs. "I have the Florentine. If you kill us, you'll never find it."

  He laughed again, a hollow sound that resonated around the room. "You don't have the diamond."

  Ruby's heart actually stopped beating. "I do," she whispered. "You've been chasing me for it for days."

  He looked at her as if she was a page behind. "No, I've been chasing you for days."

  "B, but I don't understand. What's so special about me?"

  He crossed his legs, the picture of a relaxed man. The gun lay loosely in his lap but he still held it and Ruby had no illusions about whether he would use it. "That's the funny thing." He laughed. "Nothing. There's absolutely nothing special about you. You just happened to be in the right place at the right time. Or make that the wrong place at the wrong time."

  The pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place, revealing the bigger picture. The foyer of Beauvoir's office. The conversation between the armed guards who were transporting the Florentine—the one she was supposed to have overheard but didn't. Frankie had been the one to suggest she'd taken it. To set her up.

  "You have the diamond?" she muttered, almost unable to believe it.

  "Now you're catching on."

  She shook her head. This didn't make sense. "But if you have the diamond, why are you still here?"

  The folds of skin around his cheeks and mouth twitched but whether in a grimace or wince was hard to tell. "You don't know the half of Guy Beauvoir's empire. He has eyes and ears everywhere. There isn't a place I could go and fence the Florentine without one of his men descending on me in a matter of hours. So I needed to buy some time. I needed a fall guy, or girl, to take the heat off me long enough so I could get away. By the time he works out you're innocent, I'll be free and rich."

  "Then it is just me you want." If Ruby only had one person to worry about—herself—she had a better chance of escape. "Let Evie go."

  Frankie tilted his head to the side. "I have a better idea. To make this seem really authentic...how about I kill you both."

  "No!" Ruby shouted. "This has nothing to do with her!"

  "I can't very well let her leave now that I've told you everything, can I?" He barked out a laugh. "Get over next to your friend, Mizz Jones. That's it, nice and close. Don't think I'll take the chance on tying you up. You've got a good right hook given the chance to use it. Sit on the floor."

  Ruby sat beside Evie who nudged closer. Violent shakes racked her body but she held her chin up and was doing her best not to show her fear. Ruby put a steadying arm around her shoulders and squeezed.

  "I don't understand. That first night you came to my workshop—you really were looking for the diamond at that point, weren't you? You had ample opportunity to kill me then if that had been your aim."

  He nodded. "Very good. You're right, I was. I thought you did have it. My information proved incorrect and I later learned it was safe. However, our little confrontation that night did give me the idea to set you up. A damned good idea if I do say so myself."

  So if he hadn't actually stolen it first—who had? Did he have an accomplice? "We'll get out of this," she said to Evie. A thought struck her. "Jake's on his way. He's bringing Beauvoir and a few mates." She got the impression Frankie was more afraid of his boss than being locked up in prison—maybe it was enough to distract him.

  "Then we'd best get this over with, hadn't we?" he said. But instead of aiming his gun, he dug into his jacket pocket. He pulled something out and threw it at Ruby. She caught it.

  The smooth, multi-faceted rock felt solid in her palm, familiar. "The Florentine!" She blinked down at the diamond that had caused her so much trouble. She couldn't believe it.

  She didn't believe it.

  The facets didn't capture the light. Not as much as they should. And it didn't feel quite the same. Lighter maybe. "It's a fake."

  He snorted. "You didn't expect me to give you the real thing, did you?"

  "You want them to find this on me," she said, the finality of her situation sinking in. He'd considered everything. How had she thought she could ever out-smart him? He might look stupid but he was far from it.

  Her throat clogged with tears but she swallowed them. For Evie's sake, and for her own. She wouldn't let Frankie see what he'd done to her. Her pride might be all she had left but she would die with it in tact.

  "But why?" she said, closing her fist around the stone. "It's not a very good fake. A gemologist could tell in seconds."

  "You think Beauvoir will have a gemologist with him when he discovers your bodies? Not likely. By the time he does find out it's a fake, I'll be far away. Out of his reach." He smiled widely.

  "How are you going to explain my death? Surely they'll put it together quickly when they can't contact you and I turn up with a bullet hole in my head. Since you're the one who's been after me these last few days, you'll be the most likely suspect. To Jake anyway."

  Jake. What would he think when he found her dead? How would he react? Would he care?

  Yes. He would. She knew it, deep in her soul. Their love-making had m
eant something to him, perhaps as much as it had meant to her. He simply wasn't prepared to admit it to her or himself for reasons probably tied to his father, and perhaps even to what had happened in Afghanistan. He'd not given so much as a hint as to why he owed Matt a favor. She would have to ask her brother.

  When she got out of this.

  If.

  As she saw it, she had two options. Overpower Frankie as she'd done the other night, or wait for Jake to turn up. Since she doubted Frankie would let his guard down around her a second time, she had to hope for a knight in shining armor in the shape of Jake.

  She knew he would figure it out and come for her. It was simply a matter of time.

  So she did the only thing in her power left to do—kept Frankie talking.

  "You really have been thinking." He shrugged. "Since you ask so nicely, I'll tell you. Your boyfriend will come across a murder suicide. Your murder," he wagged the gun at Ruby, "and her suicide. She's already written the note and everything. I posted it to my boss on the way here."

  Evie nodded once and buried her face in her drawn up knees.

  "About the time Beauvoir figures out that the diamond in your pocket is a fake, he'll get the note. In it Evie here will say that you were working together. But you betrayed her and hid the real one, replacing it with this fake. You were going to leave the country with the Florentine but she found out. She was furious. She shot you. But then she felt remorse and also realized she had no idea where the real diamond was. She decided she had no option but to shoot herself too or end up in jail or at the bottom of the Yarra River if Beauvoir got to her before the cops did."

  "Why would she kill me here? She knows nothing about this place. If I was the one doing the killing, I would bring her here to set up you or Beauvoir." She thrust out her chin with more bravado than she felt. "Your plan is a little shaky on the finer details, Frankie."

  He stood and pointed the gun at her. She bit the inside of her cheek, tasting blood. "It only needs to work long enough for me to get away," he said. "It doesn't matter if it doesn't stand up to a thorough investigation."

  And that was the horrible truth. It didn't matter. Frankie could be on a plane within two hours and out of the country in a few more. Once gone, he would be virtually untraceable. A man like Frankie would know how to get lost and stay lost for a long time.