Page 53 of The Silence of Hell

Whittaker narrowed his eyes at her, and Chatter bristled.

“You’ll regret this,” he muttered, and Chatter got into his face.

“Did you just threaten her? Because that’s a mistake you won’t walk away from,” Chatter growled out.

“I’ll take my leave now,” Whittaker stated with dignity and marched down the porch steps.

Lavender watched him leave and turned to Tatum. “How the hell did that rat bastard find out about Ravenberry?”

“It’s got to have come from someone you’ve asked to value one of the collections,” Tatum said.

“Shit, I should have asked him which one,” Lavender muttered.

“And that would have let him know there’s more than one valuable item here. No, you did it right. Did the asshole mention anything?” Chatter questioned.

“No,” Tatum replied.

“Yes,” Dan interrupted. Everyone looked at him. “I opened the door to him, and he declared he was here to value the trinket collection. That’s exactly what he called it. I know you would have told us at breakfast if someone was coming today, so I was suspicious. Then he started ordering me to let him in and take him to it.”

“And no doubt Whittaker would have pocketed some of the most valuable items before being kicked out,” Tatum added angrily.

“Which means he must have found out from Tasmin Walker, who is part of your group,” Lavender said with accusation in her voice.

“Not a chance in hell. Tasmin wouldn’t tell him anything,” Tatum denied.

“Who gave you Tasmin’s name?” I asked.

“Jake Mann!” Lavender exclaimed. “He did mention Whittaker at first and I said no. His reputation was unsavoury. I should have heard the alarm bells then.”

“I’ll call Tasmin and get her out here asap. With Whittaker around, you need to start cataloguing everything,” Tatum offered.

“No. He can’t get into the house. Slaughter has increased security and we’ve already too many here. I trust you, Tatum, but with this current threat and everything else, I don’t want anymore strangers here,” Lavender declined. Chatter couldn’t blame her.

“I understand, but you need to get those collections catalogued,” Tatum said.

“And who do I trust? I have a well-known thief on my doorstep, I have a car collection at Hellfire MC. I’ve got more dolls and collections than I can handle. This is my legacy, and I have to protect it. But letting people run all over the Manor and maybe have them steal? My own parents stole from me; a stranger wouldn’t hesitate!” Lavender exclaimed.

Chatter saw she was feeling overwhelmed. Phoe and Callie stood close by, watching.

“I’ll trust in the security measures and hope they don’t let me down. If they do, it’s on my head,” Lavender said.

Tatum inclined his head. “Just be careful. Now Whittaker knows, they’ll all come out of the woodwork.”

Chatter saw the worry on Lavender and Tatum’s faces, and then Lavender’s phone rang.

Lavender

Finding Whittaker on my doorstep was a grave concern. I knew him to be a thief. It meant that others out there might have knowledge of the collections. Once more, feeling pressure, I answered the call and was surprised at who it was. A brief conversation later, I hung up and blew out a relieved breath.

“Lavender?” Chatter asked.

“My parents have been charged with the thefts and fraud, as had Janice. They’re facing multiple counts, and their property, bank accounts, and belongings have all been frozen by a judge. He has warned that they might head here, although they’ve been told not to leave the state,” I said with a smile.

“Which state?” Chatter asked.

“New York,” I confirmed.

“Far enough away from you,” Phoe interrupted.

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