His Substitute Bride by Elizabeth Lane

Author:Elizabeth Lane
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2009-12-05T16:35:18+00:00

Quint had made the routine interview appointment through Rutledge’s secretary. Now, as he mounted the steps of City Hall, he wondered if it had been a bad idea. With his nerves frayed raw and his wits dulled by exhaustion, it would be all he could do to keep from grabbing the oily bastard by the throat and choking him till his eyes bulged out of his head.

In his career as a journalist, Quint had interviewed Rutledge six or seven times, and he knew the man’s style. Smooth as a greased rattlesnake, all half-truths and evasions. Today, he sensed, would be no different. Rutledge would admit to nothing. But he would be on watch for signs that Quint was cracking under the strain. Those reptilian eyes would miss nothing.

As he approached the reception desk, Quint almost lost heart. What if he said the wrong thing and gave too much away? Maybe it would be safer not to risk it.

But no, he had to take a chance. Rutledge was human, too. He could easily slip or lose his temper and reveal some vital bit of information. If there was anything to be learned, anything that might make a difference, he couldn’t walk away.

The young man at the reception desk recognized Quint and greeted him with a smile. “Supervisor Rutledge is expecting you, Mr. Seavers,” he said. “You know the way. Right down that hall.”

Walking down the corridor, Quint passed the large room where the typing and filing clerks worked. Their desks were lined up in two long rows, all of them occupied save one. The empty desk had the look of having been cleaned out and wiped down, leaving no trace of the person who’d worked there. It was as if Virginia Poole had never existed.

Quint’s jaw tightened as he moved on down the hall. He needed to do this for Virginia, as well as for Clara, he reminded himself. Whatever happened, whatever sacrifice it took, he would crush Josiah Rutledge and bring him to justice.

The door to Rutledge’s sumptuous office was open. Rutledge was seated behind a vast marble-topped desk in a tufted leather chair that probably cost more than some San Franciscans made in a year. If he had any paperwork pending, it had been cleared away before Quint’s arrival.

“Mr. Seavers.” Rutledge rose and extended his hand across the desk. Quint was loath to return the gesture, but showing his true feelings would gain him nothing. He shook Rutledge’s cool hand, recoiling inside as if he’d just touched a cobra.

He motioned Quint to take a seat in the straight wooden chair opposite the desk. “I must say I was surprised when you requested an interview. But of course, I’m always happy to oblige the press. Would you like a cigar?” The box he extended to Quint was gold plated and engraved with his initials. The cigars inside were likely Havanas, the finest to be had.

“Thank you, no.” Quint fished a notebook out of his pocket, pencil poised to begin the farce that would masquerade as an interview.

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