Thiago spoke calmly.
“Someone replaced the baton in the case.”
Celeste blinked once. Then she let out a low whistle. “Oh, that is clever.”
She walked to the piano and held out her hand for the baton. Dominic handed it over. She examined it as though it were an ancient artifact.
“So the gunshot gets everyone’s attention, and then this appears.”
Dominic muttered, “They’re staging something.”
Celeste straightened. “Well,” she clapped her hands once. “That is deeply unpleasant.” She addressed Thiago. “Mr. Reyes, I assume you’re now investigating everyone who has ever walked through Dominic’s front door.”
“I am.”
“Good. It’s a long list.”
She gestured toward me. “Luca knows it better than anyone.”
I nodded in agreement. “I’m compiling it now.”
Celeste lowered her voice slightly as she stepped closer to Dominic. She was still loud enough for all of us to hear.
“The man sees the room before he speaks.”
Dominic glanced toward Thiago.
“Yes.”
“Good. That’s the sort we need.”
Celeste straightened again and turned back toward the door as abruptly as she had entered.
“I’ll send Bridget over at eleven,” she said. “And Dominic—“
She paused in the doorway.
“Try not to get shot today.”
The front door closed behind her.
Thiago began moving around the salon, systematically inspecting everything. He touched the piano lid lightly,examined the side table surface, and crouched near the baseboard beside the doorway.
I watched his hands glide over surfaces, with the muscles in his forearms flexing.
Dominic retreated to the kitchen and poured a second coffee. He stood near the doorway and looked through the French doors to the courtyard. Thiago had positioned himself near the far gate, speaking quietly into his phone with his back to the house.
“We’re both staring,” Dominic said.
He didn’t look at me. He kept his eyes on the courtyard.
“I’m evaluating,” I said.
“Of course you are,” he said.
I turned to check the red beans.
Dominic stirred a cube of sugar into his coffee. “Fortune favors the bold.”
