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“Didn’t she die in a car accident on the way home from a fundraiser before the last mayoral election?” Sting’s eyes narrowed.
Wylde grinned. “Sure did. When she died, the money dried up, because Hollister was a sneaky, paranoid, controlling bastard. He’s got his money locked up even from the grave.”
Sting raised his eyebrows. “Wow. How’d he manage that?”
“All kinds of stipulations in his will. He made sure no one he didn’t want to have his money could get his money. No matter what happened to the original beneficiaries.”
“So? What happened to Mrs. Winston’s share of the inheritance after she died?”
“It went to Blossom, to be combined with her original trust.”
Sting glanced at Roman before turning his full attention back to Wylde. “Where was she when her mother was killed?”
“At home. Her father hadn’t left the fundraiser yet. Claimed Petunia wasn’t feeling well or something and wanted to call it an early night.” Wylde shrugged. “Not improbable. As to Blossom’s alibi -- and there was really no reason to have one -- security cameras at the estate showed her swimming and lounging by the pool all afternoon and into the evening. Seemed like the local police were doing their job thoroughly. Covering all the bases.”
“Or someone thought something seemed off.” Atlas mused.
“That’s my theory,” Wylde agreed. “I’m still looking into it, though.”
“So, Blossom got her mother’s money. What did the mayor get?”
A smile split Wylde’s face, like he was gleeful about the whole thing. Considering what happened to Blossom, maybe he was. “A big ol’ fat goose egg. He got nothing except what was already in his bank account. He’d been siphoning from his wife’s for years before she died.”
“So he didn’t know it all reverted to Blossom?”
“Judging from the complaints filed at the bank when he tried to take control of his late wife’s money? I’d say that’s a hard no. Nearly got himself arrested. It’s the only thing he hasn’t found a way to control since he’s been mayor. And that’s likely because the bank where everything is tied up isn’t in Evansville. It’s in New York. And Switzerland.”
“If Blossom got her mother’s money, is Winston trying to kill her?” Roman asked.
“Possibly, but I doubt it. I’d say he was trying to soften her up. Maybe trying to get her to give him a bunch of it in exchange for leaving her alone? After he didn’t get what he wanted with her mother’s money, he’s probably being careful not to make the same mistake twice.” Wylde shrugged. “Don’t know. Still workin’ on that part, boss. What I do know is that Blossom hasn’t touched anything in her account. She gets interest from the trust deposited into a checking account she can access at any time, but from what I can tell, she’s never used a penny. The car she drives was in her mother’s name, and she has no assets linked to herself other than that account.”
Sting raised his eyebrows. “Interesting.”
The door opened, and Eagle strode inside. As he passed me, he punted me behind my knee. I grunted and went down, but the other man didn’t do or say anything other than to keep on moving in the direction he was going. His feelings on the matter were clear, though. I gritted my teeth together as I stood. In any other circumstance, I’d have thrown the other man a beating, but I deserved this and more.
“Blossom is going to be OK. That’s the short of it.”
“And the long?” Sting focused entirely on Eagle, like Blossom’s well-being was the most important thing on his mind. I had no doubt it was.
“She’s got several broken ribs -- nothing really to do about those except watch her and monitor her breathing to make sure she doesn’t pop a lung and encourage her to breathe deeply every hour or so. A dislocated jaw -- which Stitches was able to put back in place with relatively little problem. The bottom of her feet look like they were whipped with a cane. It’s possible she’ll have nerve damage, but that will have to be something to look into later. After she’s healed. She has a crapton of small lacerations, just small enough so that most of them don’t need stitches. We think it was to terrorize her. One or two looked like the bastard cuttin’ on her got serious. Stitches has closed those and cleaned everything else. Says she’ll have a few scars, but nothing major. At least, on the outside.” He stopped, shaking his head slightly and wincing. “Only thing he’s worried about is her head. Says he suspects she has some facial fractures and possibly a closed head injury. He needs some imaging, but we have time. It can be a few hours or as long as a couple of weeks before it will show, anyway. He says other than the superficial bruising and swelling, he can’t find anything major. Pain, but no depressed areas in the bone. She’s OK for now but needs watching closely. And she will definitely need some imaging on her face at some point.”
