Ring of Lies (40 page)

Grace smiled
softening the lines of tension around her mouth
.
‘
U
nder the circumstances,
I think you could make
an exception
, don’t you?
’

‘
Point well taken.
I flew Lionel down to one of the small private islands off Marathon Key
, as usual
.
It’s little more than a sand bar in the middle of the Gulf.
I don’t even think
it’s on the charts
,
and
as far as I know,
it doesn’t have
a name
.
’

‘
If it’s not on the charts, h
ow did you find it?
’
Jack asked.

Jacobs
scooped a handful of peanuts
out of the
bowl
on his desk
, popped them in his mouth
and chewed for a minute before answering.

‘
Lionel gave me the GPS co-ordinates.
There
’s
only one house
.
It’s
built on stilts
and surrounded by palm trees
. It’s
hard to see from
the air
.
On the seaward side, t
here’s dock
that
leads
out into deeper water
, and a helipad.
’

Jack kept his gaze firmly fixed on
Jacobs
.
A nervous tick played at the corner of
h
is face.

‘
What happened after you landed,
did you taxi up to the dock
?
’

‘
Depends
on the tides.
Most times a
boat
came
out
for him
.
’

‘
Did you
hang around
?
’
Jack asked.

‘
Sometimes
.
It depended on whether
Lionel
was
st
ay
ing
over
.
Whenever he did that,
I came back
here
, wait
ed
for
him to
call
,
th
en f
lew
down
and brought him back
.
’

‘
Do you know who own
s
the island?
’

‘
No, but I can fly you down there if you like.
’
Jacobs
looked hope
ful
.

‘
That won’t be necessary
,
’
Jack said
.
‘
But I
woul
d like the
GPS coordinates
.
’

Jacobs
went
over
to the filing
cabinet that
stood in the corner
and
to
ok
out a folder.
He scribbled something down on a pad and handed it to Jack
, who slipped the piece of paper into the pocket of his jeans.

‘
Thanks.
Did you see or meet any
one while you where there
?
’

‘
Like I said, I dropped Lionel off, and either hung around until
the launch brought him back
or
returned to Boca Grande
.
Look, are you sure you’re not a cop?
’

‘
Jack is a
close
friend,
Mr
.
Jacobs
.
He’s acting on my behalf.
If you have a problem answering his questions I can always put this on a more formal footing
and involve the police
,
’
Grace bluffed.

‘
I’m sorry,
Mrs.
Lattide.
I keep forgetting how difficult this must be for you,
’
Jacobs
said.
He turned to Jack.
‘
I onl
y saw the guy handling the boat,
but
I didn’t get a good look at him.
’

‘
Will you be around for the next day or so
in
case we need to ask you anything else
?
’

‘
I’m flying a party
over
to Sanibel, and then
taking
a honeymoon couple down to Key West, but other than that,
yeah,
I’ll be around.
’

‘
Thank you for your
time,
Mr
.
Jacobs
,
’
Grace said.

‘
Lionel was a nice guy and a good customer.
Always paid cash and turned up on time.
You don’t usually get that kind of business in my line of work.
I’m gonna
miss
him
.
’

Jack caught hold of Grace’s elbow and led her towards the door.
‘
Just one more question—did
anyone accompany
Lattide
on these trips to the island
—
a woman perhaps
?
’

Jacobs
looked away.
‘
Lionel always travelled by himself.
Why do you ask?
’

‘
No reason.
Thanks for your help,
’
Jack
said. He
ushered Grace out the door.
They crossed the st
reet and
got
into
his car
.

‘
Did you believe him,
Jack?
’
Grace asked, snapping the seat belt into place.

Jack hesitated, wondering whether she was up to hearing the truth.

‘
He knows the name of the island and
who owns it
.
’

‘
Then
why didn’t he tell
you
?
’

‘
Because he’s protecting someone or
he’s
been paid not
to
talk
.
’

Grace swivelled in her seat to face him.
‘
What happens now?
’

‘
I’m going to keep pushing until I get some answers.
In the meantime, w
e
grab
something to
eat
, and
then
go
back
to the house
.
I want to examine the desk and see if I can open the safe.
’

The island deli and bake
ry occupied a corner lot just o
ff
Main Street
,
and was full of sun worshipers shopping for goodies for their picnic baskets.
Jack and Grace
stepped inside
to
th
e aroma of freshly baked bread and coffee.
A
n elderly
couple wearing matching T-shirts and shorts stood at the cheese counter debating whether to purchase some
Brie
or
Gorgonzola
.
Grace smiled
at
a
small
redheaded
boy
who
tugged at his mother’s hand, pleading for an
ice cream
and took her p
lace
in the
queue at the deli counter.

W
hile
sh
e
waited
for their order to be filled, Jack wandered around the store.
A
middle-aged
man
wearing
beige chinos, a pale blue shirt
,
and a Stetson,
entered
the shop
.
For
someone
with a limp
he moved confidently
,
and
seemed intent on watching
Grace.