Page 45 of A Rogue to Watch Over Me
“You were to come alone.” Helen’s whisper-quiet tones confirmed her identity. “You’ll get us both killed, you little fool.”
Amelia met her cold stare. “You will have to trust him. Or I will have to be on my way.”
“I know better than to trust anyone. Even you.” Helen’s mouth thinned to a hard slash, but she stepped aside, allowing them to enter. She closed the door and bolted it behind them. “But I want the bastards to pay for what they did.”
“Ye know who murdered her brother, do ye?” Logan questioned.
“I do not know who killed Paul.” The despair in Helen’s voice seemed a warning. “But I know who wanted him dead.”
“Then tell us,” Amelia pressed. “Please, I must know the truth.”
Helen laced her fingers into a knot. “What did Paul tell you about his last trip to Paris?”
“As I understood it, he went to acquire a painting for one of his clients.”
Slowly, Helen shook her head. She tipped back the hood, allowing a better look at her overly thin features.
“He lied to you.” She twisted her hands, as if the words she spoke were a misery. “I only wish he had lied to me as well.”
Logan pinned her with his gaze. “Tell us what ye know, Miss Tanner.”
“Your brother did not go to France in search of an artist’s work. He was there to perform a very specific task for... shall we say, an unusual client. After he returned, he was not the same.”
Amelia dug her fingers into her palm, battling the apprehension welling within her. “What happened to him?”
“A man was murdered.” Helen dropped her gaze to her linked fingers. “In cold blood.”
Pulling in a low breath, Amelia fought for calm. “Surely Paul was not involved.”
“He played a role.” Helen’s voice cracked. “He didn’t think there would be violence. The plan was sophisticated. No one would even know a crime had been committed. But something went wrong.”
“Please, Helen, tell us what happened,” Amelia implored.
“One of Paul’s clients was a criminal—the man calls himself Mr. Hawk. He deals in art forgeries and... worse. Much worse. This time, he’d schemed to pass off a painting as a newly discovered Rembrandt. He paid your brother to provide authentication of the piece.”
“But how could Paul have allowed himself to be deceived in such a way?” Amelia asked, grasping onto a faint hope that he’dbeen an unwitting participant in the plot. “He had a thorough knowledge of Rembrandt’s works. How could he have believed it was genuine?”
“He didn’t.” Helen’s voice was little more than a rasp. “Paul knew it was not real... he knew what he was doing.”
“Why?” The world tilted beneath Amelia’s feet. “Why would Paul involve himself in such a reprehensible scheme?”
Helen stared down at her hands, seeming to search for the answers. “He owed Mr. Hawk quite a large sum. Hawk had some sort of connection with the gents at one of the clubs Paul frequented. Paul had always had a taste for playing cards. But it turned into something he didn’t want to control. Especially when it seemed he couldn’t lose.”
“But his luck turned.” Logan’s tone was grim.
“Ah, that is an understatement.” A rueful expression thinned her mouth. “At the time, I wondered if the games had been rigged. To my eyes, it seemed he was being manipulated by a masterful cheat. I suspect I only knew the half of it. Through an associate, Hawk advanced Paul funds to cover his losses. Enough to avoid ruin.”
A terrible understanding washed over Amelia. “But then the debt came due.”
“Paul knew he’d lose everything. He would be destroyed. When Hawk’s representative offered an arrangement that would settle his debt, Paul believed he had no choice. He traveled to Paris and offered an appraisal that was an utter lie.” Helen sighed. “If only that had been the end of it.”
Logan studied her, questions in his eyes. “You believe Hawk had Paul killed?”
“I don’tbelieveHawk ordered Paul’s death. Iknow.”
“You have proof?” Logan demanded.
“There is evidence.” Helen moved to the window, brushed back the drapes, and peered down to the street below. “After hereturned from France, Paul learned of a murder in Paris. The collector he’d deceived had been murdered. The killers stole a fortune in jewels from a safe in the unfortunate man’s home.”
