It’s never better for either one of us to remain loyal unless we can trust each other one hundred percent.
My gut squirms as I take a seat in front of the desk. I notice the sheriff is in a power position behind the desk. He turns on the voice recorder, clasps his hands across the table, making one big conjoined fist, and stares at me.
“Miss Samantha Reed, convicted of a felony and recently released after serving her time. I suggest you tell me the truth. Your co-conspirator, Braden Powers, has already confirmed you’re not his daughter. He suggests you give him an alibi. What I want to ask you is, what’s in it for you? Mr. Powers is family. You’re not. He stands to gain from his grandfather’s demise. What’s in it for you?”
Yep. He’s using the prisoner’s dilemma against me, suggesting Braden’s already turned on me. The question is whether I believe him or not.
My mind tells me to cool my jets, but my gut is scrambling like trapped squirrels upchucking a batch of poisoned acorns.
“Nothing for me,” I reply, keeping my gaze leveled on him. “I can confirm Braden’s alibi. We share a room because we’re believed to be father and daughter. We never left each other’s side the entire night from midnight until Lindsay raised the alarm.”
“Were you in the same bed?”
“As a matter of fact, yes.” I’ll let him draw what conclusions he might.
“I expected you to say that.” He leans forward. “What if I told you Braden has a motive to do away with his grandfather? The lawyer was here changing the will. Did he discuss it with you?”
“As a matter of fact, he was afraid his grandfather would change his will under false pretenses.” I square my shoulders and swallow back my flailing heart. If Poppy changed it to me, I’m in big trouble, but my saving grace is knowing Poppy is still alive.
“Care to explain?” His voice is little more than a growl.
I tell him about the Elfprentice contest and how Lindsay is lobbying for Will and Abbie to win. “However, Braden and I agreed last night to tell Poppy the truth. That I’m not his daughter. We only posed as father-daughter so Poppy can be proud of Braden. I’m afraid Braden feels his brothers are more accomplished than he is, and by having a smart daughter like me, he felt he could lift his head higher.”
He steeples his hands and grins confidently. “Interesting story, although not believable by a jury of peers.”
Asshole.
“Believable with a jury of Asian mothers.” I lift my chin and blink. “My mom is disgraced because of my prison term, but before that, she was proud of me for being a mathematical whiz, winning hacking competitions, and solving genius puzzles.”
“Book smart, but not street smart,” he repeats the tired cliché.
“Actually, both. What I’m telling you is that Braden and I have no motive to harm Poppy in any way. We love him, and that’s why we pretended to be more successful than we are—to make him proud and happy. We wanted this to be his best Christmas ever, although now that I think about it, I’m pretty sure we are poor substitutes for his dear wife, Braden’s grandmother, who passed on a while ago.”
“Noble sentiments.” He makes a motion as if playing the world’s smallest fiddle. “From your own admission, you and Braden set up a scam to get his grandfather to change his will in your favor. I have enough evidence to rouse the judge for a warrant. You two colluded to defraud Mr. Jon Powers into sentimentally naming you in his will. I have enough to nail you two for premeditated murder due to Braden’s admission of injecting his grandfather with half a dose, or so he says.”
“You don’t have anything.”
“Oh, yes, I do. Braden volunteered the information about the Narcan. That shows premeditation. He claims you brought it without his knowledge. I suggest you intended to murder Mr. Jon Powers after he told you he named you in the will. You snuck downstairs while Braden was asleep and administered the fatal dose. Too bad for you, Lindsay couldn’t sleep, and she decided to check on Jon Powers, then you panicked and produced the antidote.”
“How do you know Lindsay didn’t do the deed?” I rear up out of the chair. “She wants Abbie and Will to inherit the cottage.”
“You admit to being in contention for it? Good, because Braden has a lot of debts owed to shady people, and he needs an infusion of cash fast. You two agreed to split the proceeds of the cottage, didn’t you? You two have been conning people for a long time, and we have a video of one of the victims, Mitch Slack, a well-known CEO that you defrauded.”
“Mitch cheated me!” I slam my palm on the desk. “Not the other way around.”
“That’s your story. From where I’m sitting, you and Braden are quid pro quo. You help him nail Mitch, and he helps you get half of his grandpa’s inheritance. How long have you been partners in crime?”
My head is swirling from all this news. “I never met him until a few days ago.”
“Funny, because Braden admits to being in the same state prison as you. He was released a few months ago.”
My jaw thuds to the ground. “Wait. That’s not what he tells me. He says he’s working with law enforcement—trying to catch Mitch for blackmailing one of his clients.”
“Looks like he lied to you.” The sheriff snickers and laughs roughly, his double-chin jiggling. “Enjoy your last minutes of freedom. When you step outside, Seth will read you your rights—unless you give me something on Braden Powers.”
My throat tightens as if hanging from a noose. Give up something on Braden? I don’t have anything on him. He’s screwed me.
“I have nothing,” I sputter, grasping at straws. “I swear, I don’t know the man.”
