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“You want me to plant a bug?”
“Damn straight. I’ll have one ready to go with you in the morning. And I’ll rent myself a nice, unobtrusive gardening truck to park outside the grand manor—close enough to monitor whatever’s said inside. Who knows what we’ll find out?”
“It might not be what you think,” Claire replied.
Casey regarded her soberly. “Judging from your comments, you think Joseph is innocent?”
“No. And yes.” Claire rubbed her forehead. “I’m picking up mixed energy when it comes to Lina’s father. He’s involved in some way. But there’s a dark corner of his life that he’s both aware of and unaware of. I can’t wrap my mind around it. I just know that this situation is complicated.” She met Casey’s gaze. “And Lina… she has to be brought up to speed—right away. That poor girl. She’s so full of life and love, and this is going to shatter her.”
“We want to fill her in tomorrow.” Casey told Claire what she and Marc had discussed as a plan.
Claire nodded. “Good. Emma and I will go talk to Gia and Dani. They’ll be stunned, but by this time, they’re pretty much braced for anything. It’s Lina I’m worried about. I wish I could be here when you talk to her.”
“Me, too,” Emma said.
“You’ll be here when the three girls meet,” Casey replied. “In some ways, that’s more important. Emotions are going to run high. Emma, they’ll need your friendship, and we’ll all need Claire’s insights.”
“I wish I had something concrete to tell them from my end.” Ryan made a sound of disgust and frustration. “Not only have I come up empty on the birth certificates but that Carp guy who’s been Gabe’s contact trashed his phone—probably as soon as he realized Gabe was with Dani and therefore vulnerable. So far Carp hasn’t resurfaced with a new cell number. So I’ve got nothing.”
“Oh, you’ve got something—and it’s huge. But I don’t want to share it with the girls,” Casey said firmly. “No showing them the article about the Pontis’ murders and the missing triplets. We can’t drop that bomb on them right now. It would be total emotional overload.”
“Yeah, I know. I wasn’t even thinking about going there.” Ryan began pacing around the conference room. “Actually I was trying to dig deeper into Angelo Colone, to see where he fits into the bigger picture. Because I just have this feeling that he does.”
“Your feeling is right,” Claire said abruptly. “He has a crucial role in all this.”
“Has?” Ryan reiterated. “He’s dead.” A pause. “Although none of the threats to the girls occurred until after his death. Was he in on something with Brando—something Brando has to clean up now?”
Claire shut her eyes, visibly struggling to make sense out of what she was sensing. “All I know is that there’s a part of Angelo Colone left behind. I don’t know what that something is or if Joseph Brando is directly involved. It’s tied to Lina… and maybe to Gia or Dani, as well. I just can’t get a firm grip on this. Too many conflicting images in my mind. Somehow, in some way, Colone was there from the start. I just don’t know how.”“Yeah, well, neither do I.” Ryan and uncertainty were not a good combo. “So while I’m monitoring things from the gardening truck, I’ll be digging away on all things Angelo Colone, just as I’m digging away on Brando. So far, everything involving Brando’s legal representation of Colone—his construction company, his estate—is on the up-and-up. Every damn thing I dig up about their relationship—both business and personal—shows Joseph to be clean as a whistle.”
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“Either that or it’s been scrubbed to look that way,” Casey said. “If there were a single hint that Brando has mob ties, he wouldn’t be headed for Congress.” She considered that for a moment. “Ryan, have you checked out Neil Donato? If anyone had the motive to make Joseph look squeaky clean, it would be him.”
“I did an in-depth search on the guy from the start,” Ryan supplied. “He looks like a Boy Scout. City College, Fordham Law School—all with honors. Passed the Bar on the first try. Applied for a job at Brando’s law firm and was hired as an associate right away. He actually handles a good chunk of the Colone construction company legal work—probably an extra precaution to keep Brando’s name from being too closely associated. But there’s not the slightest hint of anything dirty going on. Donato appears to be an excellent lawyer, a well-liked, well-organized guy, and, given how put-together and PC he is, the perfect choice for a campaign manager. But not to worry. I never count anyone out. I’ve got eyes on everyone.”
“I know you do.” Casey gave a weary sigh. “Go take care of your bug. And let’s all get ourselves mentally primed. It’s going to be a long, emotional—and hopefully informative—day.”
CHAPTER 31
Todt Hill
10:00 a.m.
Joseph Brando himself greeted Casey and Marc at the door. He was wearing a pin-striped, open-necked sports shirt and perfectly creased navy slacks—clearly ready for a day in the campaign trenches.
“Good morning.” He gave them that warm, practiced smile of his. “I’m so glad you made the trip. Please, come on in.” He stepped aside and waited while they did just that.
“Thank you for seeing us on such short notice,” Casey said.
“Of course. I’m delighted that it happened sooner rather than later.” He glanced behind them. “It’s just the two of you?”
Casey nodded. “Given how busy we are, it’s impossible to get our whole team in one place at one time. Your party was the exception.”
“Then I’m honored.” Joseph was already leading the way down a hall that was in the opposite direction of the living room. “We’ll talk in my office. The Nespresso is on and ready, and there’s a plate of Donna’s addictive cinnamon buns on the coffee table. Unfortunately, she had a morning commitment and couldn’t join us. So she made extra pastries to make up for it. We can enjoy and talk at the same time.”
“That was thoughtful of her.”
They followed him through the hall, turned a few corners, and crossed the threshold of a huge paneled office with rich mahogany furniture, an oriental carpet, twin love seats, and lots of family photos—most of them of Lina. Off to one side of the room was a credenza with the Nespresso machine and a wide variety of coffees and teas. To the other side, nestled between the plush love seats, was a carved mahogany coffee table set with a tray of incredible-smelling pastries, as well as the necessary china and silverware.
