“Who gets the money now that the family has been killed?” Jackson asked.
“It goes in probate, and what’s not used to cover funeral expenses and outstanding debt will go to charity,” Luke explained.
“Something’s not adding up,” English muttered, and Ben agreed.
“I think it comes back to motive. Why would Boyd want to kill Warner?”
“I go back to Cassius. It wouldn’t surprise me if he’s connected to this somehow,” Luke said.
“We can check him out, but honestly, I don’t think Cassius is involved.”
All eyes turned toward Remi. She stood tall under the scrutiny, but Ben wondered if her assessment was more personal than professional .
“What makes you say so?” Ben asked her.
“I know Cassius. He used to be involved with a friend of mine. Cass is not a killer, nor would he have anyone killed. I’m not even sure he has the stones to survive a career in politics. His father, on the other hand, is a mean son of a bitch. If we can take him down for this, I’d owe you all. Big time.”
“It’s okay. Tell them,” Alex signed.
“Right,” she said on a sigh. “The boss wants me to explain my connection to this case. Cass was engaged to my best friend, but his father didn’t approve of her. He offered to pay her onemillion dollars to walk away from Cass and never tell him why. She told him to shove his money up his ass.”
Remi smiled as if amused by the memory. “You just had to know Tessa. She spoke her mind and never pulled any punches. She was exactly the type of person Darius deemed unworthy of his son.”
“Was?” Paige asked softly.
Remi frowned. “She was killed in a car crash. It was ruled an accident, but I don’t think it was. The problem is that her car burned up with her body inside. There was nothing to conclusively rule it foul play. Boyd barely gave Cass time to mourn before he started grooming his son for his political career. Everything about Cass’ life has been orchestrated by his father.”
“I’m sorry about your friend,” Paige responded, and Ben hugged her tightly.
“So I have a question,” Reagan changed the subject. “Is it possible that Mrs. Warner and Boyd were involved? They had an affair. Maybe she ended it to save her family. He got mad and decided if he couldn’t have her, no one would.”
“No,” Paige spoke up. “I spent time with them. I took their photos. Mr. and Mrs. Warner both shared with me how they met and how happy they were. Their children joked that it was gross how much their parents doted on each other. I can’t see her having an affair and jeopardizing her marriage that way.”
“It wouldn’t be the first time,” English said.
“We might as well check into it even if it doesn’t get us anywhere,” PJ said. “We have nothing solid to go on, so it doesn’t hurt to cover all the bases.”
“What charity did you say gets Warner’s estate?” Drake suddenly asked.
“I didn’t,” Luke said. “But there’s three. American Cancer Society.”
“His mother died of cancer, so that tracks,” Drake interrupted.
“The Academic Achievement Society for Excellence,” Luke continued.
“They award scholarships to economically disadvantaged students to use for college. Warner was a scholarship recipient at one time, and once he became successful, he started donating to them on a regular basis,” Drake explained.
Luke scowled. “Sounds made up to me. Anyway, the third one is the Cartwright Foundation.”
“Bingo!” Drake settled back against his chair with a shit-eating grin. “That’s the charity run by none other than Nyla Cartwright Boyd. Cassius’s wife.”
“Another connection to Warner and Boyd,” Jackson murmured.
“So we have leads to figure out motive, but we need evidence to tie Boyd to the murder. Otherwise, he’ll keep coming for Paige,” Ben said.
“He may not have to,” Drake said. “The police have Paige listed as their top suspect. The evidence is circumstantial, but we’ve seen criminals convicted on less. At this point, her testimony will be suspect at best.”
“What reason would I have to kill him?” Paige protested.
