tension, and tried to break it as she offered him one of the two brown leather chairs that faced each other in front of the modest Queen Anne’s desk. “Please, have a seat.”
“May I shut the door?” Ferguson asked. “What I have to say should be in private.” He reached for the door, while Courtney moved to seat herself in the other available chair.
“Absolutely. Should we sit?”
“If you’d like. What I have to say won’t take long.”
Courtney could feel the agitation in his voice. This meeting was not heading in the direction she was expecting. “Would you like something to drink… coffee, a soft drink?” She was grasping at anything to cut the tension that had settled in the air.
“Miss Lewis, up until twenty-four hours ago, there were only eight people that knew about the letter outlining the possible whereabouts, of what could potentially be one of the art world’s find of a lifetime. One was my uncle, and he’s dead. The second would be me. The third is an old professor, with no apparent knowledge of the artwork under consideration. The other five are you, your father, and his three associates, all with an accomplished understanding of art, and the impact that a discovery of this magnitude might generate.
“I mentioned twenty-four hours, because since then there is at least one other person who knows, and was willing to try and kill me to recover that letter.”
Courtney’s eyebrows rose, and a slight tinge of disbelief ran through her body. Before she could even respond, Ferguson pushed on.
“He was successful in obtaining a copy of one side of the letter, detailing the list of works, but not the map indicating the crash site. In the process of destroying quite a bit of my home and personal property, he damn near cut me in half.” Ferguson’s voice was beginning to rise with the anger that was returning, as he was reliving the previous night’s episode.
“There are only six people that could have been responsible for leaking the contents of the letter, or deliberately orchestrating the theft of the letter itself. And I’ve come to the conclusion it wasn’t Dr. Karl.”
Courtney’s jaw dropped, hung for an instant, and then returned to meet her top teeth in a clench, as she started to flush with anger.
“Wait just a damn minute. Are you accusing me of trying to arrange for someone to steal the letter from you, and have you knocked off in the process? You’ve lost your mind!”
Ferguson was slightly taken aback at the outburst. “Well explain to me then how a complete stranger breaks into my house and is after one thing and one thing only. How does he have any idea what to look for? And I’m having a real hard time pinning this one to the good professor.”
“So, without a shred of evidence, you put the finger on me!” Courtney was livid. “I think it’s time for you to leave!”
“Not until I found out if anyone else knows about the letter. I am not going anywhere until I get some answers from you as to whom you and your father spoke to. I would like to know more about Allen, Hancock and the other one’s name. Who the hell were those folks, and I why am I to believe your Dad when he says he trusts them. I want some answers, otherwise I’m going back to the police, tell them everything, and implicate you and your and father.”
“Paul Keeney is the other, and I haven’t spoken to anyone!” However, before she could get the last word out, she realized that she did not know much about the other three. She also had taken her father at his word. Her wandering eyes gave her away.
“Who’s the no one that you just remembered.”
“It can’t be… my dad wouldn’t do anything like that.”
“Your father?”
“He’s an art expert, he knows history, and I can trust him to keep his mouth shut. He can’t be responsible!” Courtney’s anger was turning to anguish.
“Well if you’re not responsible, and you believe your dad can keep the secret that narrows
“May I shut the door?” Ferguson asked. “What I have to say should be in private.” He reached for the door, while Courtney moved to seat herself in the other available chair.
“Absolutely. Should we sit?”
“If you’d like. What I have to say won’t take long.”
Courtney could feel the agitation in his voice. This meeting was not heading in the direction she was expecting. “Would you like something to drink… coffee, a soft drink?” She was grasping at anything to cut the tension that had settled in the air.
“Miss Lewis, up until twenty-four hours ago, there were only eight people that knew about the letter outlining the possible whereabouts, of what could potentially be one of the art world’s find of a lifetime. One was my uncle, and he’s dead. The second would be me. The third is an old professor, with no apparent knowledge of the artwork under consideration. The other five are you, your father, and his three associates, all with an accomplished understanding of art, and the impact that a discovery of this magnitude might generate.
“I mentioned twenty-four hours, because since then there is at least one other person who knows, and was willing to try and kill me to recover that letter.”
Courtney’s eyebrows rose, and a slight tinge of disbelief ran through her body. Before she could even respond, Ferguson pushed on.
“He was successful in obtaining a copy of one side of the letter, detailing the list of works, but not the map indicating the crash site. In the process of destroying quite a bit of my home and personal property, he damn near cut me in half.” Ferguson’s voice was beginning to rise with the anger that was returning, as he was reliving the previous night’s episode.
“There are only six people that could have been responsible for leaking the contents of the letter, or deliberately orchestrating the theft of the letter itself. And I’ve come to the conclusion it wasn’t Dr. Karl.”
Courtney’s jaw dropped, hung for an instant, and then returned to meet her top teeth in a clench, as she started to flush with anger.
“Wait just a damn minute. Are you accusing me of trying to arrange for someone to steal the letter from you, and have you knocked off in the process? You’ve lost your mind!”
Ferguson was slightly taken aback at the outburst. “Well explain to me then how a complete stranger breaks into my house and is after one thing and one thing only. How does he have any idea what to look for? And I’m having a real hard time pinning this one to the good professor.”
“So, without a shred of evidence, you put the finger on me!” Courtney was livid. “I think it’s time for you to leave!”
“Not until I found out if anyone else knows about the letter. I am not going anywhere until I get some answers from you as to whom you and your father spoke to. I would like to know more about Allen, Hancock and the other one’s name. Who the hell were those folks, and I why am I to believe your Dad when he says he trusts them. I want some answers, otherwise I’m going back to the police, tell them everything, and implicate you and your and father.”
“Paul Keeney is the other, and I haven’t spoken to anyone!” However, before she could get the last word out, she realized that she did not know much about the other three. She also had taken her father at his word. Her wandering eyes gave her away.
“Who’s the no one that you just remembered.”
“It can’t be… my dad wouldn’t do anything like that.”
“Your father?”
“He’s an art expert, he knows history, and I can trust him to keep his mouth shut. He can’t be responsible!” Courtney’s anger was turning to anguish.
“Well if you’re not responsible, and you believe your dad can keep the secret that narrows
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