“His father had an affair with my mother.”
Both women wore shocked expressions, but Angela recovered faster. Maybe in her job she’d seen a lot of infidelity and secrets come bubbling to the surface. Blake took a bite of his sandwich while his thoughts ticked through possibilities. Paradise had been right, and if the two families had been friends for decades, was it possible Governor George might know something about this?
He took a sip of sweet tea. He’d slathered on the jalapeño sauce, and his mouth was on fire. “We learned Pamela Collins hired a private investigator before her ‘fall’”—he used air quotes—“down the stairs. Did you ever suspect it wasn’t an accident?”
The governor nodded. “I admit it seemed odd. If you knew Pamela, you’d question it too. She’d been a figure skater since she was a little girl. She was always so graceful and poised. She never rushed anywhere. I assumed there’d been something on the stairs she didn’t see.”
“I knew her well too.” Angela glanced at Drew. “Do you have evidence her death wasn’t an accident?”
Drew set his tea on the table. “No, but three other murders of people connected to her within a week is suspicious. I was surprised the police ruled it as accidental without a lot of investigation.”
“Sometimes accidents happen,” the governor said.
“We heard she was a difficult person. Maybe it’s not too hard to believe someone wanted her gone.”
“Ben was a womanizer, and that’s putting it politely,” Angela said.
“He seemed to really love my mother. He told Pamela he was divorcing her.” Paradise leaned forward. “He was bludgeoned to death, just like my parents. The method ties them together.”
“Your parents were killed with a golf club?” the governor asked.
“No, the killer used a ball bat on them, but clearly the murderer likes more personal, up-close killing,” Drew said.
Blake could see the women were intrigued but not convinced. “We were told to take a close look at family members. Do you know Bear?”
The governor picked at her coleslaw. “Of course. I knew all of Pamela’s family. I can’t imagine him raising his hand to a man, let alone a woman.”
“And what about Percy? Someone told me he would do anything to keep the family in power.”
“Percy is always a gentleman. I can’t see anyone in the Collins family committing such atrocious crimes.”
The governor’s manner grew frostier, and Blake smiled. “I’m sorry I brought it up. I can see it’s upsetting you.”
The governor managed a smile and picked up her sandwich. “I’m not upset, but I can tell you that family had nothing to do with this.”
Blake moved the topic to King Julien. Maybe they were on the wrong track.
Chapter 32
Paradise checked on the black jaguar and saw him sleeping in the shade with no sign of facial swelling. He was going to be fine. She checked her phone. Drew and Blake would be waiting for her to discuss the contents of the files they’d gotten from Roger’s office.
As she crossed the strip of grass, she spotted Angela leaning against a fence by the lemurs. She changed trajectories to join her. “Lemurs are great, aren’t they?”
Angela turned with a smile. “I don’t know why I find them so enthralling. Something about their eyes.”
Paradise spotted King Julien. “That’s the one I mentioned at lunch. He was held in a crate most of the time and never saw another lemur for years until we got him. Funny thing about lemurs is they’re such social creatures. He was unhappy, antagonistic, and short-tempered. Once he saw others like him and was accepted into their conspiracy, he mellowed out. Now he’s got a mate and a happy life.”
“What a wonderful story. You said something about a conspiracy. Is that what a group of lemurs is called?”
Paradise chuckled. “Sounds odd, right? I’ve always wondered why they’re called that when they’re so social. Maybe it’s because they conspire together to thwart predators. They also do something called ‘mobbing,’ where they leap out of nowhere to attack an enemy together. They aren’t that tall, but they can jump six times their height so it can feel like the attack is coming out of nowhere.”
“How fascinating! I don’t know much about them except I love them.” She studied Paradise a moment. “It sounds like you’ve been dealing with your own conspiracy for a lot of years. I’m sorry about your parents.”
“Thank you. I’ve only recently begun to remember the night of the murders. I hope to remember everything eventually.”
“So you were there.” Angela gave a delicate shudder. “I’m sorry you endured something like that.”
“I wish I’d had my parents all these years.” Paradise watched the mama lemurs groom the new babies, and her eyes blurred at the memory of her mother’s fingers in her hair, taming it into braids. Someday maybe she’d have the chance to do the same for her daughter.
