Besides, it wasn’t easy running the show alone. With Tyler no longer available, sending warning messages was more difficult and riskier. And Dave appeared to be losing his effectiveness as a salesman along with his nerve. Taking control of the account had been prudent.

Unfortunately, he was still the best person to do the sell-in for future investments. His reputation and credentials gave him credibility that would be difficult to replicate. So when it came time to choose the next victim, he’d have to be pulled back into the scheme.

For now, though, best to leave him alone. Let him come to terms with how the plan had evolved—and stew about the havoc that could be wreaked in his life if he didn’t cooperate.

Until their next contact, why not forget about him and Grace Reilly and enjoy this beautiful July day and the holiday to come? After all, despite a few glitches and a handful of vague suspicions, the sheriff and his cohorts were no closer to figuring out what had happened to Mavis and Fred than they had been two weeks ago.

And the odds of that changing were tiny. Without a clue pointing them in a very specific direction, they’d never be able to pinpoint the cause of death.

BK opened the door and slid behind the wheel of the car, mouth flexing. It took a smart person to outwit law enforcement, but it could be done if you planned the perfect crime.

Too bad the father who’d once said his sole offspring would never amount to a hill of beans . . . and the one true love who’d ended up being a two-timer . . . and the bosses who treated underlings like second-class citizens . . . would never know how wrong they’d been about the smarts in this brain.

BK inserted the key in the ignition.

None of that mattered, however. Proving to yourself you were worthy of respect was more important than proving it to the world—or the people who’d dissed you. If you got rich in the process, and added a bit of adventure and excitement to your life? That was a bonus.

Plus, pulling the wool over people’s eyes had proven to be very entertaining. It was like a game. Challenging and fun.

As long as you kept on winning.

And BK intended to do exactly that.

20

MORNING, ELEANOR.” Nate stifled a yawn as he passed the administrative assistant’s desk.

She swiveled around in her chair. “Morning, Sheriff.” She beckoned him closer and lowered her voice. “You have a visitor. I told him I didn’t know how late you’d be, but he said he’d wait. It’s Dave Mullins. He’s sitting outside your office.”

This day was full of unexpected turns.

“How long has he been here?”

“He was waiting when I arrived at eight.”

Nate glanced at his watch. Nine forty-five. Still early—but after the pre-dawn wake-up call from Russ and a detour to a meth lab takedown en route to the office, it felt as if he’d already put in a full day.