“Is that you then, Piper Mills?”
“Um, yes, who am I talking to?”
Piper listened to a rambling explanation. This was Maeve Cummings, once Mills. She was Piper’s mom’s oldest cousin. Piper dropped the remote and leaned forward, surprised the many messages she’d sent to the email addresses in her mom’s address book had finally received a response.
“You and I are the closest living relatives of John Carter Mills. Your email said you need information about him?”
“I do. Do you have anything of his?”
“I have some gems and his diary. A few papers.”
“You have...sorry...what?” Piper asked, her breath catching in her throat.
“Three blue stones that are supposed to be worth something,” Maeve replied. Maeve had the missing Blues...maybe.
“And you haven’t had them valued?” Piper asked, trying to keep up.
“Never needed to. I’m as old as dirt and as rich as sin.”
God, her cousin was a character! Why hadn’t her mother kept in touch with this feisty old woman? Thinking it couldn’t hurt to ask, Piper did.
Maeve snorted her displeasure. “I didn’t like your father, and I told your mother he was bad news. Your mother didn’t appreciate my frank assessment of the situation and broke off contact. How is she coping without him? She loved that thieving son-of-a gun.”
“She died years ago. I don’t know if she would’ve managed without him, so maybe it was better she went first,” Piper admitted, pushing her fingers into her forehead.
“I’m sorry to hear that. So, you’re his daughter?”
“Yep.”
“The fact your surname is Mills tells me all I need to know about how good he was at being a father.”
Maeve sniffed her disapproval and let out a hacking cough. Piper waited, listening as Maeve eventually caught her breath. “I live in Sag Harbor. Come and take them when you’re ready.”
“Take what?” Piper asked, confused.
“John Carter’s diary and the rest of the stones. They might as well go to you and not to charity.”
Piper shook her head wildly before realizing Maeve couldn’t see her. “No! Really, I’ll borrow the diary, if I may. That’s all I need.”
“Fine. Changing my will would be a pain in the ass, anyway.”
Dear Lord, this woman was batty. “Have you read the diary?”
“Yes, sixty years ago.”
“Do you possibly remember how he acquired the stones?” Piper asked, holding her breath.
“I’m old but not senile,” Maeve snapped. “There was a landslide in a village to the north of Srinagar, and he pulled some local people out from under a pile of rocks. The villagers thanked him by giving him the sapphires. Three quarters of the way through the book, if I remember correctly, is his description of the landslide and the rescue. A little further along is a detailed description of the stones.”
Piper’s heart flipped over with excitement. Surely that was all the proof and provenance she needed?
“Come and get the book and the stones. I’m here all the time. If I’m not, I’m dead.”
“I don’t want your stones, Cousin Maeve. Just the diary.”
“Don’t argue with me, my girl. The stones belong together, and what would I do with them anyway?”
“Jaeger Ballantyne would buy them from you,” Piper told her.
“Come and see me. Bring vodka, preferably Russian. I’ll send you my address. Don’t wait too long. I’m going to die soon,” Maeve snapped out the commands before disconnecting the call.
Piper stared at her phone before letting out a squeal of excitement. If she and Jaeger could shoot up to the Hamptons tomorrow, they would have what they needed and could finalize the sale. She’d tell Jaeger about Ty and sell Ballantyne and Company the stones. Maybe, if she was very lucky, they could start a new chapter with no secrets between them.
Jaeger’s phone went straight to voice mail and Piper nearly howled with frustration. “Jaeger, can you call me? As soon as possible? I think I’ve found the provenance we need. It’s in the Hamptons with an old relative. She’s batty, but she has a diary, and I think she has more Kashmir Blues. We need to get there, like, tomorrow! Seriously, I need you to call me! Now! Please?”