The spotless interior of the garage contrasted with the decaying exterior.
Paradise darted in after him and grabbed the edge of the car cover. “It’s a yellow car.”
He joined her and helped her pull it back to see more of the vehicle. The missing Barracuda sat gleaming in the sunshine coming in the windows.
Chapter 35
At the kitchen table Drew flipped through the pictures Paradise had taken of the missing car. “This is incredible, but it doesn’t make any sense. I spoke with the Pascagoula police about it, and they still have it listed as stolen property, yet the governor has had it all this time. If Ben gave it to the governor or she bought it from him, surely she would have mentioned it in the aftermath of his death.”
Paradise grabbed a chicken salad croissant Jenna passed to her on a plate. “Unless she didn’t know it had been reported missing.” The taste of the chicken salad exploded on her tongue with goodness. She needed to get Jenna’s recipe. “And the governor has connections, so I think she would have to know it had been reported missing.”
“Anyone up for a trip to Pascagoula tomorrow? Let’s talk to the family again,” Blake said. “I’d suggest going this afternoon, but we have that appointment with Scott.”
Paradise reached for her glass of sweet tea. “Any ideas what it could mean? Why would the murderer, whoever he is, take a car he or she can’t sell? No one is even enjoying it. The weird thingis, the building is climate controlled and the car is in pristine condition. The garage is huge too, but there’s only the car and an old tractor inside. Plus a couple of framed prints hanging on the walls, photographs of scenery. No tools, nothing else.” Something felt familiar about the pictures, but it was probably that they were like dozens of others she’d seen over her life—vignettes of a person’s favorite places.
“Maybe it’s evidence of some kind,” Drew suggested. “Whoever killed Ben knew the car could lead back to them. Blood evidence, fibers, whatever.”
“Possible,” Blake said. “It’s been twenty years though. They could probably remove the VIN number and replace it or part the car out and still get quite a bit of money for it. It would be a shame though. It’s an iconic piece of history.”
“It’s crazy to hide it all these years,” Drew said. “If it had evidence in it, why not destroy it? Drop it at the bottom of a swamp or burn it. Storing it where it could be discovered is a little dicey.”
“The property is in the boonies down a long, overgrown lane. I’m not sure she’s been there in a long time. It’s like it was backed into that garage and abandoned forever,” Blake said.
Evidence.Paradise tried to think of the kind of evidence that could be hidden in the car. “Maybe there’s a family member she’s covering for.”
“Let me check.” Jenna’s computer was on the island, and she pulled it to her. “Amelia George has been married for thirty-five years and has two kids, both sons. Jackson is her only grandchild. One son lives in Alabama and one is an aide to Taylor Murphy. Think there’s a connection?”
Drew frowned at Jenna. “The son is what, thirty-two or thirty-three, tops? Twenty years ago he would have just been hitting his teen years. It’s unlikely the governor is covering for him. I usuallylook hard at coincidences like this, but this situation feels like a fluke of no importance.”
Paradise took a sip of her tea and set it back down on the table. “Don’t be so fast to make a snap judgment. Maybe he took that car out for a joyride. You know how kids can be. Maybe he was injured and his blood is in the car, or he was caddying for Ben and they got into a fight so he grabbed the golf club. We hear of kids that age committing crimes all the time. We can’t rule it out.”
“Good point.” Drew rose to read the bio Jenna had pulled up.
Paradise couldn’t get the sight of the car out of her head. Perfect condition yet sitting there for twenty years. She thought Drew had the best theory—it was kept for a reason. “I wish we could go over it better and look for evidence. We were trespassing so we hightailed it out of there.”
She told them about the message from Angela telling her not to deliver the iPad. “Why would the governor have that address on her tablet? If she’s hiding the car, why have its location on her iPad?”
Drew sipped his tea and set it back on the table. “Good point.” He drummed his fingers on the tabletop. “Maybe it’s a taunt, like she dares anyone to find her out.”
Paradise liked Governor George, not just because she’d done so much for The Sanctuary, but because she seemed to be a genuinely kind person who cared about her state and her constituents. “Maybe, but I hope not.”
Blake took the last bite of his croissant and carried his plate to the dishwasher. “We’d better get going to Scott Foster’s office. Thanks for lunch, Mom.”
Paradise rose and grabbed her brother’s plate. “Where are the boys?”
Jenna chuckled. “Abby picked them up for riding lessons again. They were so excited that I’d gotten them boots. They went off proudly wearing them.”
Paradise side-eyed her brother and saw a slow smile start across his face. He was a goner for Abby. She made a mental note to tell him to talk to Abby about his first marriage that ended so quickly.
Scott Foster’s French Quarter building in Pelican Harbor was pale brick with elaborate wrought-iron balconies peering out under a mansard-style black roof. Blake had always admired it, and he liked the leather furniture in the office even more.
Scott greeted them at the door. “Have a seat.” He was in his sixties and whip thin with a shock of reddish-brown hair that had probably been bright red in his earlier years. He was also Hez and Savannah’s attorney, and they thought highly of him.
Paradise sat in the middle highback chair. “Thanks for seeing us on such short notice.”
“Of course. Bea was specific about wanting this in your hands as quickly as possible.”
He placed a square box on the desk, and she put it on her lap. It was about four inches wide and nearly buried in tape. The plan was to examine it privately after they left the office, but her gaze lingered on it, and Blake knew she wanted to tear that tape off and see what the box contained.
