Buck nodded. “I saw him too. He’s looked suspicious for a few minutes. Let’s bolt.”

We walked slowly out of the café, each carrying our briefcases, until we found an unoccupied bench. We sat down.

I pulled open my briefcase and pulled out the folder. I drew in a deep breath. “Care to give me some idea of what I’m about to look at?”

“Pictures speak louder than words, Wolfe. Just prepare yourself.”

I closed my eyes and drew in another breath. He’d mentioned stench. I could be holding photos of dead bodies. Of severed limbs. Of…

God.

Of my father doing things to…

I swallowed hard.

I opened the folder.

And I gasped.

“You’re kidding. Fuck.”

No severed limbs greeted me. Thank God. But I’d have preferred nameless and faceless bodies to what the first photograph showed.

It was another of Lacey’s old business cards, and this one hadn’t been stomped and rained on.

“Circumstantial,” I said robotically.

“Keep going,” Buck prodded.

I fought back the puke threatening to erupt from my throat and slid the photo of Lacey’s business card over, revealing the next photo.

I swallowed hard. It was a blue scarf with the initials LW clearly embroidered on it. I swallowed again. “Still circumstantial.”

“Agreed. Keep going.”

More and more photos of Lacey’s belongings. Or what appeared to be Lacey’s belongings.

“Did you take these items?” I asked.

“Of course I did. I have them all in a safe place. But that’s not what concerns me.”

“What, then?”

“These things could be extras. Stuff implicating Lacey could have already been planted.”

“Why her? Why Lacey?”

“I’m not sure,” Buck said. “She was Derek’s estate lawyer, but that’s no reason to frame her.”

“No,” I said, swallowing again. The lump didn’t move. “My father would implicate his kids before he implicated his attorney.”

“Right, which means…”

“It means Father Jim—or someone else—is implicating Lacey. But why?”

Buck didn’t need to answer. I already knew. Father Jim was trying to lead the authorities on a wild goose chase so he wouldn’t be implicated. He was afraid my father had left a loophole somewhere that would lead to him.

Derek Wolfe didn’t leave loopholes. I knew that better than anyone, but Father Jim, apparently, did.

“I think we can use this to our advantage,” I said to Buck. “Jim is afraid. So afraid that he’s framing an innocent woman for a murder he might have had a hand in.”

“Framing an innocent lawyer is nothing compared to what the bastard has already done,” Buck reminded me.

“True. He’s evil. But now we know what he’s up to, and we can fight it.”

“You don’t know everything,” Buck said. “You haven’t seen the last photo yet.”

41

Zee