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Lucas switched on the speaker. “I have you on speakerphone, Officer. Would you repeat what you told me?”
“Of course. A neighbor reported hearing gunshots from the residence at 7:25 p.m., and officers responded immediately. They found the back door breached. When they entered, they discovered the home had been ransacked. As they continued through the rooms, they found a large pool of blood in the living room. No body, though.”
“Oh my stars,” Elizabeth whispered. “I’m glad we were gone. I have security cameras.”
Lainey rose and went to squeeze her grandmother’s shoulder.
“I can tell you where to find the security cameras,” Holt said.
“We’d appreciate that,” the officer said. “The family won’t be allowed back in to stay until we process the scene.”
Lucas handed the phone to Holt, who gave the officer a list of four cameras and their locations.
Mary patted her sister’s leg. “It will be okay, Beth.”
It wasn’t safe for them to go home, and Lucas had to be the one to tell them. He squatted in front of Elizabeth. “I’d prefer you to stay here until we’re sure what’s going on at your house.”
He had no question what had happened—one of the parties after the egg had tracked her house. Had their visit today led them right to Elizabeth’s door? And who had been shot? Could two of the factions have been there at the same time? Those were questions he couldn’t answer, but Elizabeth and her family needed to know what they were all up against.
He glanced at Carly and her sisters. They stood in solidarity with their arms around each other. Carly’s brown eyes were wide, but she gave him the nod he needed to start the story.
“There’s something you need to know about your birth.Your mother left each of you something of value when she couldn’t keep you. Carly found a painted egg in an old trunk, and it opened the mystery of what had happened. She sells collectibles and decided to strip the old paint off the egg. Under it, she discovered a beautiful enameled egg that opened. The inside was pure gold.”
“Like a Fabergé egg?” Lainey asked. “I love those.”
Carly broke away from her sisters and came to join him. “Itisa Fabergé egg—one of the missing ones. I believe it’s the Hen with Sapphire Pendant. Ever since we found out about Gram’s sister and began to try to find you, someone—or multiple someones—have been one step ahead of us.”
Lucas told them about the break-in at Mary’s house and the female burglar he shot. He moved on to Anna Martin’s death and the break-in at Grace Adams Hill’s house as well as the attack on Kelly.
“And someone tried to impersonate a Willard Auction House expert,” Carly said. “I nearly gave him the egg but changed my mind.”
“Someone tried to steal the egg from the bank today,” Lucas said. “The danger around this is immense.”
“Back up a second,” Lainey said. “You said Grandma’s birth mother gave each child something. You got the egg. What did Grandma receive?”
“It appears to be the surprise,” Carly said. “That’s probably what the burglars at your house were searching for.”
Lainey perched on the arm of the sofa beside her grandmother. “This sounds terrifying. What would this surprise look like?”
“There are no pictures of it, but the descriptions say it’sa gold hen plucking a sapphire pendant out of a nest,” Carly said. “The hen and nest are studded with tiny diamonds. It’s thought the hen might have ruby eyes. That surprise might be inside a golden yolk, but no one is really sure. Have you seen anything like that?” She glanced from Lainey to Elizabeth.
Both women shook their heads. “It doesn’t sound familiar.”
“Do you have any old trunks or safes around that your mother left you?” Carly asked.
Elizabeth pursed her lips. “I have some antique furniture scattered throughout the house. I’ve never gone through looking for anything like this, though.”
“I’d like to examine what you have once you’re allowed back in the house,” Carly said. “It’s possible the burglars found it and made off with it, but I’d like to check.”
Mary rose. “I’ll sleep with Carly tonight, and you can have my room. Lainey and Holt, you can have the big bed, and there’s enough room to put in a twin size bed as well. I’ll freshen things up for you. Lucas, could you see to moving in a twin?”
He nodded. “There’s an extra twin in Ryan’s room. I’ll move it over.”
And just like that, the size of his newfound family grew.
Thirty-Three
This had gone far enough.
