“Standing still and looking dangerous?” I asked.
“Looking swoon-worthy,” Marie said with a brief chuckle.
I watched for a moment, then took the opportunity, “The fantasy is great, but a real-life bank heist is far different, as we both well know.”
“I’m still having nightmares about it,” she said, resting her hand against her chest for a moment. “The odd thing is that no money was taken. Their only interest was the safety deposit boxes.”
“The FBI’s already ahead of it,” I said, seeing how much she was aware of what was going on with the investigation. “They’vefigured out it’s likely tied to overlapping box holders. Same person, multiple banks, being targeted.”
Marie nodded absently, eyes still following Ian as he shifted into another pose. “That’s more common than most people realize.”
“It is?” I asked, hoping she’d share more.
“Yes, it is,” Marie said. “The bank has a limit on the insurance that will be paid. So, to cover the amount they might lose, they spread the contents throughout several safety deposit boxes at different banks. This way their valuables are covered.”
“Valuables, like in priceless gems?” I asked.
“Or documents,” Marie said, her eyes still on Ian. “We had this one man who got to his father’s safety deposit box before other family members, all quite legally, found his will and claimed he had made a new one. It looked like it was going to turn into a bitter dispute… until the man’s other safety deposit boxes in various banks were opened by other family members, and the same will was found in all of them with a notarized letter stating that the will that was found in all the locations was the legal will.”
“So, the thieves could be searching for documents,” I said.
“And any kind,” Marie said, “vehicle ownership, business agreements that date back years, old letters that could prove vital to inheritance, or to past deeds being brought to light.”
I thought about finding the startling news about Ian’s Uncle Max being a spy during World War II that I found in my Aunt Effie’s letter. Could that information be valuable today? But my aunt didn’t have multiple safety deposit boxes.
“I was actually relieved,” Marie continued, “that some of our safety deposit clients here in Willow Lake maintain boxes at other banks. Diversification is prudent.”
I kept my expression neutral, though my mind sharpened immediately. She said some, not one overly cautious individual, not an isolated eccentric—more than one.
Marie’s gaze remained on Ian, the very distraction or attraction that I had hoped would be enough to get her talking.
“In uncertain times, people who prepare sleep better.” She turned to me then with a smile. “As you well know, Pepper.”
I nodded. “Preparation prevents panic.”
“Exactly,” Marie said. “Those who plan ahead are rarely the ones who panic.”
The words lingered long after Marie fell quiet.
I watched Ian move through another pose, steady and deliberate, and let the idea settle instead of rushing it. If the robberies were centered on overlapping safety deposit boxes, then whoever was being targeted wasn’t careless or scattered. They were organized and someone who didn’t trust one place. Someone who planned ahead. Someone who prepared.
I felt the thought form slowly, almost reluctantly.
Could it be a prepper?
CHAPTER 24
Ian had made me promise to go home and rest, but the first time he suggested it, I got sidetracked.
Considering how I looked, it wasn’t an unreasonable request. My jaw and eye were still tender, and every time I caught a glimpse of the bruises in a mirror, I was reminded of my rather undignified encounter with a rug, an elbow, and a cell phone.
But resting wasn’t exactly working.
I sat in my office with my laptop open, Mo stretched across the floor beside my chair, Roxie supervising from the windowsill, watching for birds to cackle at.
The word prepper kept circling in my head.
Marie had pointed out that those who plan ahead are rarely the ones who panic.
