Part 6
His shoulders lowered.
Mara said, “Inspector Keller will need your statement.”
“I know.”
“And the photograph.”
“I know.”
Margaret looked toward Theo again.
“I should have said something when Adrian spoke. I kept thinking someone else would.”
Theo rubbed the seam of his jacket cuff.
“There were six people.”
“Yes.”
“You all thought that?”
Margaret’s mouth trembled. “Probably.”
“That’s a lot of someone elses.”
Mara watched the words land.
Margaret closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them, she handed the envelope not to Mara but to Sabine Favre, who had approached quietly from the elevator.
“For Inspector Keller,” Margaret said.
Sabine accepted it with both hands.
Daniel Cho arrived before Margaret had taken three steps down the corridor.
He wore the same black tuxedo, the same rimless glasses, and square silver cuff links.
Theo moved behind Mara.
Daniel noticed.
“Mrs. Sloan,” he said, “I was looking for you.”
“I know.”
“You were advised not to discuss foundation matters without counsel.”
“You advise me as a donor or the foundation as its lawyer?”
“Both interests are aligned.”
Margaret looked at him for a long second. “That sentence used to comfort me.”
She continued toward the elevator.
Daniel turned to Mara. His expression was professionally concerned.
“I’m sorry about your nephew.”
“Are you?”
His gaze moved toward Theo, then returned.
“I witnessed an unfortunate accident and an indefensible remark.”
“What part was the accident?”
“The box falling.”
“You saw it fall?”
“I saw the boy near the pedestal.”
“That was not my question.”
Daniel adjusted his left cuff link.
Theo’s hand found the back of Mara’s sweater.
“I was speaking with Dr. Stanz,” Daniel said. “My attention was divided.”
“Where were you standing?”
“Several feet away.”
“Behind Theo?”
“I don’t recall.”
Mara felt Theo’s fingers tighten.
Daniel’s voice remained even. “I understand you are upset. But this kind of informal questioning creates problems for everyone.”
“You are free to leave.”
“This is my hotel suite corridor.”
“It is not your hotel.”
“No. But I represent people for whom the distinction is academic.”
Mara studied his face. He was not arrogant like Adrian. His confidence was procedural. It came from believing every room eventually produced a document, and every document could be negotiated.
“Did you touch the pedestal?” she asked.
His eyes did not change.
“No.”
“Did you move the music box?”
“No.”
“Did you know it was from the Sloan collection?”
“No.”
Theo whispered, “His square was shinier.”
Daniel looked at him.
Mara stepped sideways.
“What did he say?”
“Nothing to you.”
Daniel removed his glasses, polished one lens with a folded cloth, and replaced them. “Children under stress often combine details.”
“Adults under investigation do too.”
Sabine’s radio sounded. She turned away to answer it.
Daniel lowered his voice.
“You revealed a recording device while kneeling beside a crying child. That image can be interpreted in ways you will not enjoy.”
“Was that the threat you sent to my phone?”
For the first time, he blinked without choosing to.
“I have not contacted you.”
“May I see your phone?”
“No.”
“Then we agree on the value of boundaries.”
He looked toward the bedroom behind her.
“Take the boy home, Ms. Bell.”
The phrase was gentle.
The intention was not.
Mara closed the suite door.
Theo waited until the lock clicked.
“That was him.”
“You saw his face?”
“No.”
“Then you don’t know.”
“The shiny square was the same.”
“Many cuff links look the same.”
“He smelled the same.”
Mara turned.
“What smell?”
“Like the dentist.”
“Mint?”
“No. The pink stuff they put in your mouth.”
“Polish?”
Theo shook his head, frustrated.
“Gloves,” he said. “The dentist gloves.”
Latex, perhaps. Or resin. The conservatory had smelled faintly of pine garlands, perfume, and champagne. Mara had noticed no chemical odor near the box, but Theo had been closer to the pedestal.
“Did you smell it before the box fell?”
“Yes.”
“On the man behind you?”
He nodded.
“Why didn’t you say that before?”
“You said not to work hard.”
He was right.
Mara knelt in front of him.
“You did exactly what I asked. I’m going to tell Inspector Keller, but I will also tell him you are not identifying Mr. Cho. You noticed a similar cuff link and a similar smell. That is all.”
Theo looked relieved.
“Can I take off the jacket now?”
“Yes.”
“I hate velvet.”
“I know.”
“You said it looked handsome.”
“It does.”
“That’s not the same as good.”
“No.”
He pulled it off and dropped it on a chair.
Mara did not tell him to hang it up.
At one in the morning, Jonas brought preliminary photographs of the broken box to the suite. Theo was asleep in the second bedroom with a lamp on and the door open.
Mara sat at the dining table in stockinged feet. Her cracked heel lay beside a room-service plate containing half a club sandwich. Jonas looked at the shoe.
“That seems expensive.”
“It was on sale.”
“That still means expensive.”
“Did you come to discuss my shoes?”
“No. I came to remove you from the investigation in person.”
“Evelyn already did.”
“I know.”
“You could have saved the walk.”
He placed a tablet on the table.
The first photograph showed the broken porcelain base. Beneath the decorative felt, a modern manufacturer’s stamp had been ground away but not completely removed. Two letters remained, followed by the outline of a six-digit production code.
The second photograph showed clear adhesive around one brass hinge.
“The adhesive is fresh,” Jonas said. “Likely applied within days.”
“Latex smell?”
“Possibly epoxy. We are testing residue.”
“Theo smelled it before the fall.”
Jonas sat opposite her. “On whom?”
“A man behind him. Black sleeve, square silver cuff link. He later thought Daniel Cho had a similar smell and matching cuff link. That is not an identification.”
“Good.”
“He also said the box wobbled before he touched it.”
“We found one pedestal bolt partially removed.”
Mara looked up.
“Tool marks?”
May you like
“Yes.”
“So the fall was prepared.”
