Libraries and Larceny (Hearts Grove Cozy Mystery Book 5) by Collins Danielle

Author:Collins, Danielle [Collins, Danielle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Fairfield Publishing
Published: 2019-06-29T16:00:00+00:00

8

“Ladies, please have a seat.” Inspector Rodney Lansen smiled broadly as he invited Shannon and Henrietta into his office at the Victoria Police Department. “I take it you have news on the case?”

To Henrietta, he sounded almost a little too hopeful, but she let that idea pass. “We were hoping you might have something for us,” she said with a smile.

“Ah, I see. And who is we exactly?”

“I’m so sorry.” Henrietta turned toward Shannon. “This is my friend and, I suppose you could say, boss. Shannon Dunsmuir. She’s a writer and is working on a biography of Joseph Laurabee.”

“Oh, I see. I am sorry about the loss of the book, though.” He frowned, shaking his head. “A shame that it’s likely gone forever.”

“So you haven’t had any leads on it then?” Shannon asked.

“Sadly, no. I’ve been working several other cases in the meantime, but nothing has come from the clues we did have. I can tell you that it seems Mr. Grausen had a somewhat checkered past as well as a potentially checkered present. You can’t trust a man like that.”

Henrietta took in Shannon at this news, but she didn’t look wholly surprised.

“Perhaps he went to certain lengths to acquire things of value?” Henrietta hinted.

“Precisely.” The inspector shuffled through a few papers until he came up with the one he wanted. “He had a few known brokers on his list as well as a few rather illegal markets to which he bought and sold. May I ask, Miss Dunsmuir, how you learned of him?”

She looked down and pink tinted her cheeks. “I was…can I say, a bit desperate?” She looked between Rodney and Henrietta. “I heard from a friend of a friend about this man in Canada who could get any book you ever wanted—for a price.” She shrugged. “I reached out to him over email and the rest is history, I’m afraid. In our last communication, he assured me that he’d acquired the book in question and was securing it, awaiting my arrival. When I told him that I was sending a proxy, he was fine with that.”

“Securing it.” The inspector nodded, thoughtfully stroking his chin. “Did he explain what that entailed.”

“No. I didn’t ask.”

“Naturally.” He nodded. “Do you think I could gain access to your emails so I could look through them myself?”

“Oh, I’m afraid I deleted them weeks ago. Went through a special process he told me about too—I think he was covering his tracks.”

Henrietta’s keen eyes caught a flicker of something behind Shannon’s gaze, but now was not the time to press.

“What I don’t understand,” she interjected, “is how we can’t find it now despite the fact the man is dead and the perpetrator got away. I assume you have people following up on the black market and your local fences someone might sell a book like that through.”

“Yes, and no luck so far. I honestly think the man you saw, while likely the perpetrator, wasn’t able to secure the book upon his exit. Thanks to you.

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