“I know.” Rafe leaned back in his chair with a weary air. “As soon as we think we’re getting somewhere with one angle, it leads us nowhere and a new problem arises.”
As he was talking, Ainsley returned, and the remaining members of the board followed in her wake. The group had been reduced in size since Payne was in the hospital and Ace, the chief suspect in his father’s shooting, was lying low. The other two members were Marlowe and Selina Barnes Colton, VP and public-relations director. They were accompanied by Genevieve, who, in Payne’s absence, had his proxy.
“We never have outsiders present when we discuss company business.” Selina was Payne’s second ex-wife.
“True. But we’ve never had Dad lying in a hospital bed unlikely to recover from gunshot wounds before,” Marlowe said, firing back. “We need to hear from Spencer about how the investigation is going, and we can tell him if any new information has come our way.”
Selina pouted. “I’d have thought updating the police about new information was the duty of every good citizen.”
Ignoring her, Ainsley got straight to the point about Dee and outlined the details of their earlier meeting with Payne’s assistant. “I think there’s little doubt that she breached company rules by sharing confidential information even though she’s stressed it wasn’t deliberate. The question is whether we feel the offense was serious enough for us to fire her.”
Selina drummed long, red fingernails on the table. “Setting aside the breach of trust, she should be fired on the spot for being a member of that creepy do-gooder group. Let’s not forget it was an email from one of them that caused chaos in our company. Plus, they hit me up for a donation twice today as I was on my way here. In two different locations. You can’t walk down the street without encountering those people lately.”
“But with Dad in the hospital, Dee is only part time, anyway, and it may be better to have someone on the inside with the AAG, someone whose brain we can pick if need be,” Marlowe said. She glanced around the table at her siblings. “On those grounds, I’m saying we keep Dee in her job.”
Ainsley and Rafe nodded their agreement.
“I have Payne’s proxy.” Genevieve spoke quietly but firmly. “And I spoke to Ace a few days ago. Although he’s no longer CEO, he is still a board member. He arranged for me to have his proxy as well. Since I agree with Marlowe, there’s no more to be said on this subject.”
Her words prompted Selina to shoot up from her seat like a scalded cat. “So the Colton team have made up their minds to stick together and veto anything I suggest. If that’s the case, I really can’t see any point in wasting my time here any longer.”
With a flip of her long hair, she flounced from the room.
Marlowe sighed. “Storming out within five minutes. That’s a record, even for Selina. Dad’s influence usually keeps her under control for at least half an hour.”
“We’re all too busy to spend time on dramatics,” Ainsley said. “Does anyone have anything that might be of interest to Spencer before we move on to business matters?”
“I do.” Rafe’s words drew everyone’s attention. “One of my contacts has tracked down a man who was born forty years ago on Christmas Eve at Mustang General.”
“We’re sure that the baby switch was carried out by a maternity ward nurse named Luella Smith. Only three baby boys were born that night at Mustang Valley. One of them was Ace, and her son was another. Luella went into labor late Christmas Eve, but she left with her sickly baby on Christmas morning. This happened after the fire that destroyed the maternity records,” Spencer said. “What’s the name of this guy you’ve tracked down?”
“Sebastian Clark.” Rafe held up his hands. “I know what you’re going to say. It’s not Smith, but who knows what Luella did with the baby she stole? Maybe she put him up for adoption?”
“We have to investigate every lead. We’ve already had one impostor, Jace Smith, try to pass himself off as the ‘real’ Ace Colton. We need to avoid a repeat of that.” Spencer wasn’t particularly hopeful about this line of inquiry, but he couldn’t afford to let it pass. “Arrange to meet Sebastian Clark and see if he’s willing to have a DNA test.”
“Okay. I’ll set up the meeting.” Rafe typed a note on his electronic tablet.
“Does anyone have any other information for Spencer?” Marlowe asked.
When there was no response, Spencer and Katrina said their goodbyes and left the room. Once they were outside the building, Katrina drew in a deep breath. “I don’t know how they deal with that pressure every day.”
“It can get pretty full-on,” Spencer agreed.
“It’s made me glad I’m not a Colton.” She paused, a hint of color staining her cheeks as she realized what she’d said. “I don’t mean you...”
&nbs
p; “It’s okay. I know what you mean.” He grinned. “There are days when I wish I could change my name.”
Chapter 14
“When did you learn to cook?” Katrina asked as she watched Spencer prepare a dish of noodles and prawns.
“I taught myself when I left the army.” He stir-fried vegetables and added a dash of chili sauce. “My aunt Amelia couldn’t cook, and we existed on a diet of grilled cheese and store-bought apple pie. When I grew up, I wanted a more varied menu.”
“How long were you in the army?”
“I joined when I was twenty and enlisted for a four-year term. I was stationed in South Korea for much of that time, and while I was there I decided I wanted to be a cop.” He looked up from what he was doing. “I guess I could have joined the military police, but I was also a little homesick. I like living in Arizona, and I missed my brother and sister. It was while I was in South Korea that I developed my love of cooking Asian food.”