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She’d studied the list of missing eggs and had often fantasized about finding one of them at a flea market or garage sale. The appearance of this one with its opaque white enamel seemed to match the description she’d read of the missing Hen with Sapphire Pendant, made for the tsar himself.
If this was truly a Fabergé egg, it should open. She held one hand on the top and one on the bottom and gave the egg a twist. It seemed to move but didn’t open. Maybe it had some paint in the crack. She ran her fingernail around the thin line between the two halves and tried again.
This time the egg opened to reveal a beautiful interior of real gold. Nothing was inside, which wasn’t unusual. The “surprise” inside the egg could have been taken out sometime in the past. According to the imperial archives, if this was indeed that famous missing egg, it should have contained a gold hen studded with rose-cut diamonds taking a sapphire egg pendant out of a nest. No photographs of the surprise existed, so all that was known about it was the description. Some accounts said there was a golden yolk held inside the hen and pendant, but others didn’t list that detail.
While the history was murky, there were between six and ten Fabergé eggs still missing, and the only one with an opaque white porcelain exterior was the mysterious Hen with Sapphire Pendant. The last egg found had been sold for thirty million dollars to a private collector.
Could Roger Adams suspect that Gramma Helen had possessed this priceless egg? That much money could tempt someone to kill for it.
Carly snapped several pictures of the egg with her phone. Who could she trust with this information? Not her sisters, probably not even Gram. Not yet. She would need to authenticate it, and until the egg was safe in a vault or museum somewhere, they could be in danger.
Lucas’s intelligent hazel eyes flashed into her mind. He didn’t seem the type to talk, and he was a detective. Maybe she could trust him with this information.
***
Traffic was light on 17 into Pawleys Island. It had been a pleasant two-and-a-half-hour drive from Beaufort. Lucas parked in the lot outside Gilbert’s Ice Cream. It was a hangout spot for everyone in town, including police officers. Chief Robinson had suggested meeting here, and Lucas hadn’t had the homemade treat in a couple of years. The place was quiet at this time of day. May wasn’t a usual month for tourists, and the ice cream shop had just opened.
He stepped inside and walked around to the ice cream counter. The front blackboard had flavors listed in colorful chalk, and more chalkboards behind the counter displayedthe full menu. He ordered a banana split with coffee, chocolate, and strawberry ice cream.
Chief Jamal Robinson stepped behind Lucas. “I’ll have what he’s having.” The officer wore the usual navy shorts and white short-sleeved uniform of the town. A navy cap covered his tight black curls.
Lucas turned and shook hands with Robinson. “Thanks for coming, Chief.”
He’d met the fiftysomething man a couple of years back when he’d been with Eric. Robinson was just as fit and buff now as he’d been back then. Lucas paid for the sundaes, and the two men went out to a secluded table on the porch of the plantation-style building.
Robinson scooped up a spoonful of ice cream. “Did Carly put you up to this interview?”
“Chief, you have to admit what she found is odd. Eric picked up a tail as soon as he started digging into Mary Tucker’s heritage. You have to at least consider there’s a connection and it’s not a coincidence.”
“Answer me this then. If there’s a connection, why did the murderer stop? The papers Carly just found were still there along with Eric’s note. There have been no break-ins or attempts to recover more information.”
True enough. Lucas had noticed that too. “The guy could have been picked up for something else. He might have taken whatever it was he was interested in. The contents from Mary’s mother’s house haven’t been cataloged. We don’t know what all was in that shop when Eric was killed. Maybe the guy’s job took him away. Do you have a suspect?”
“Nothing solid. Eric had a run-in with an ex-con by thename of Trevor Lloyd a couple of weeks before the murder. He’s at the top of the list, but so far, his alibi has held up.” He lifted a thick black brow. “You’re not going to leave it alone, are you?”
Why was he even sticking his nose in like this? Something about seeing that baby without his daddy had tugged at Lucas’s heartstrings. “Eric was a friend, and his wife is my next-door neighbor. She has a little son who will one day want to know what happened to his father.”
Eric had been a good judge of character, and he’d thought the world of his captain. Lucas didn’t think Jamal would be the type to shut out help. He led a small cohort of officers and could probably use the assistance anyway.
Robinson shrugged. “Have at it then, Bennett. What do you need from me?”
“A look at his work computer might show more of what he learned about Mary’s birth family.”
“I already went over it after Carly called. There were no personal files on it at all. Eric was a man who liked to keep his professional and personal lives separate. I printed out the call log from his phone for you, though. It’s in the truck.”
Lucas thanked him, and the men finished their treats and tossed away the trash. Lucas followed him to his SUV, and Robinson reached inside and retrieved a sheaf of papers. “There’s another call log I included, but you’ll need Carly to help you sort out anything important. I’ve done all I can.”
And thatallwas a lot. “I appreciate it.” He stared at a circled number. “Looks like it’s a Pawleys Island number.”
“It is. Guy by the name of Gage Beaumont. He lives in the True Blue Condos.”
Lucas knew the area. The condominiums were surrounded by golf courses, and it was just down 17 from here. He could make a stop and try to catch the guy at home, though in the middle of the day on a Monday, he was most likely at work.
He shook Robinson’s hand. “I appreciate it, Chief.”
“You’ll let me know what you find out?”
“Sure will.” Lucas slung his long legs into his truck and waved to the police chief as he pulled out onto 17.
