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“Saw through him how?”
“I did a little research on Leland Walsh. His academic record is quite impressive, but I spoke with a good number of others who attended Harvard at the same time as he, and they couldn’t believe he’d done so well. They insisted he wasn’t nearly so brilliant as he would have the world believe. He’s built his empire on the backs of others, my friend. He is an evil man. Asher despised him.”
“Do you have any proof that he’s involved with anything shady or illegal, or are we talking about evil in the sense that he’s ruthless and will do whatever necessary to win?” She’d never met a really good attorney who wouldn’t.
“Probably the latter. I know how ruthless he is. He turned my sister against me. Tried to take Asher from me. His firm has quite the reputation for winning. Their record appears to be unblemished, and we both know you don’t win like that without crossing certain lines. It’s the corroborating it that most often proves impossible.”
Sadie recognized part of Naomi’s hatred for the man was nothing more than the fact that he had stolen her family. But Sadie also knew Naomi had a keen, highly intelligent mind. She was no fool. There was likely some merit to her claim.
“Do you feel his sheer ruthlessness is what ruined his relationship with Asher?”
Naomi nodded slowly. “I do. Asher was a kind, loving soul. He was one of the rare few who truly believed in justice for all. The older he got, the deeper his hatred grew for the mentality of people like his father.”
“Would you like me to have his ass kicked while he’s here?”
Naomi laughed so hard she lost her breath. “I suppose not, since I would surely be blamed. But the thought is marvelous.”
Now for the part she dreaded. “Naomi, I’ve looked into your sister and her husband a bit. Like you, I couldn’t find anything off about Leland, but I did discover something odd in Lana’s activities over the past year or so.”
Naomi’s eyes lit with hope. “Please tell me that she’s been cheating on the bastard. That would make my day.”
“Afraid not.” Sadie wondered if this lady would be hurt by what she was about to learn and if it mattered in the grand scheme of things. She couldn’t risk that it might. “Did you know Lana has been coming to Birmingham once a month for a day, sometimes two, for the past fifteen months? Maybe longer, but that was as far back as I could find data.”
Surprise claimed the older woman’s face. “I could see her coming to visit Asher since he moved to Birmingham, but as far as I know, she didn’t. Are you certain you have the right Lana Walsh?”
“I am. Can you think of any reason Lana would come here without telling you or Asher?” Though he hadn’t been here so long, one would think Lana would visit her only child if she came all the way to Birmingham. Obviously, she had not, or at least Asher hadn’t admitted as much to Sadie or Naomi.
Naomi appeared baffled by this news. She shook her head. “Lana has always hated everything about the South, particularly Alabama. I can’t imagine any reason she would visit so frequently. Did you say every month?”
“Yes. Could she have some other family or friends here? Maybe there are distant relatives your mother never told you about.”
Naomi shook her head. “There are no other relatives on either side. As for friends, all my sister’s friends are in Boston. She only came here a couple of times. Asher most always traveled alone when he came for his visits. Lana would put him on a plane in Boston and pick him up when he returned. She hates Alabama. Always has.”
Moving on, Sadie asked, “Is it possible your father left her some sort of property or share in some kind of investment?”
“Absolutely not. I executed my father’s will. Lana was not mentioned.”
“But could he have passed something along to her before his death? Something you didn’t know about?”
She exhaled a heavy breath. “Just because I adore you,” she said to Sadie, “I will double-check. I have an old friend who retired from public records. I’ll see if she can dig anything up.” Naomi’s gaze connected with Sadie’s. “However, there were no secrets between me and my father. I am utterly confident that you’re barking up the wrong tree on this one, my dear.”
Sadie hoped Naomi was right.
19
4:00 p.m.
Jefferson County Morgue
Sixth Avenue South
Birmingham
Kerri parked. Shut off the engine and collapsed against the seat. She had spent the past five hours tracking down information on the Cortez family and surveilling their house. She’d watched as the black Cadillac Escalade arrived home with Alice in tow. The woman and the girl had climbed out of the vehicle and walked into the house. Alice had a haughty walk about her. Kerri hadn’t noticed that before. Maybe she only noticed it now because of what Sue had told her.
Tori had sent a text saying Diana had picked up her and the boys. They were going for ice cream. Kerri had called Tori back immediately. A text wasn’t good enough anymore. Not after Amelia. She had needed to hear her daughter’s voice.
Tori had sounded tired and ... depressed. The idea that Kerri couldn’t protect her daughter from this kind of pain broke her heart all over again. But she couldn’t. All she could do was support her, love her, and try to find the truth. Before ending the call, she’d spoken to Diana and urged her to keep a close watch on Tori. Her emotions wereso fragile and unstable right now. She needed to feel their unwavering support.
