Page 90 of Lorcan
Arnav put his cup on the side table. “So, Lorcan, we have some news.”
Cody put his hand on my thigh. Obviously he knew. Part of me bristled that he hadn’t told me earlier—hadn’t warned me. The rest accepted that if things were unfolding, then this was the best way.I trust Cody. Completely. He said he’d never hurt me.“Yes?” That might’ve come out as a squeak.
“Rayne found Stephen about a week ago.”
I blinked. Then blinked again. “I don’t understand. Stephen’s dead.”
“He wasn’t when I located him.” Rayne cracked his knuckles.
Champ, who’d flopped onto the little mat in front of the sliding glass door, popped his head up, regarded all of us, then went back to sleep.
“How did you locate him?” I rubbed my forehead. “Why were you looking for him?”
Arnav raised his hand. “That’s on me. Everett and I have known each other for a while. Two lawyers in a small town often cross paths.”
“He’s fucking good.” Everett said that with a huge smile.
“We’ve been opposing counsel on a couple of cases. We’ve both won and we’ve both lost.” Arnav cast a sideways glance at Everett. Then he turned back to me. “Rayne’s a bit of a wildcard—”
“Hey!” Even as the man said that with outrage, he grinned. “I own that.”
“You would.” Everett shook his head.
Arnav continued, “So when you were found not guilty, I asked him to see if he could track down your ex.”
“Why not before?” Cody continued to rest his hand on my thigh.
“I didn’t want to interfere with any ongoing police investigation. It became clear, as the trial progressed, that they honestly had put all their eggs in theLorcan is guiltybasket. Which, like, was the dumbest move. I don’t know that prosecutor very well, but I can tell you Zach Finnegan and Remy Stevens sure as hell would’ve done a better job.”
“Who?” I was so damn confused.
“Two of the crown prosecutors in Mission City. They’re not so sloppy.” Everett frowned.
“Anyway, when I saw the weakness of the prosecution’s case, I asked Rayne for a favor.” Arnav jutted his chin toward the man.
I turned to him. “You’re a private investigator?”
“Yep. And a damn good one.”
“No ego at all.” Everett again.
Rayne merely grinned. “So, I found Stephen and the money.”
The moment hung in suspension. I couldn’t take in his words. They didn’t make any sense. “You found Stephen? And themoney?” A shiver of something ran up and down my spine. Like a ghost was walking over my grave.
“It wasn’t actually that hard.” Rayne polished his knuckles on his T-shirt.
Everett chuckled.
“What—” I swallowed. “What does this mean?”
“We informed the Canadian authorities on Monday. Stephen died on Tuesday. We have no idea if those two facts are connected. I know the government of Canada has asked Mexico to freeze the money. Now, I’m no expert on international money issues, but I think they’ll be able to get some of it back. I’m assuming they’ll use it to reimburse the victims of his theft.” Rayne continued to grin.
“Oh God, I hope so. Please tell me there’s enough.” Because it would break my heart if Stephen had spent most of the money. If there wasn’t much left.
“Actually, here’s the thing…” Rayne held my gaze. “He had even more than was thought stolen. I’ve traced some of it to some very shady people. People who will probably be smart enough not to ask for it back.”
“The Mexican government is going to want a piece.” Arnav wrinkled his nose. “But Canada has a strong case to get the funds repatriated. And, obviously, I’m going to fight to get whatever’s left given to you.”
