BEVERLY BARTON - Dangerous Deception

“And so you went to see her?” Desmond asked. “At her home?”

“Yes, I went to her home. After all, she was Audrey Bedell Perkins, the boss’s daughter.”

“Was there anyone else there when you arrived, a maid…a secretary…anyone who can verify that you met with Ms. Perkins?”

“No, there wasn’t anyone else there. She’d made certain that we met alone, in private.”

“I see.” Desmond nodded. “Go on.”

“When I arrived at Ms. Perkins’s home, she asked me if I’d like to earn fifty thousand dollars and—”

“Did Ms. Perkins pay you that amount?” Desmond asked.

“Yes, she did.”

“Cashier’s check, personal check—”

“Cash,” Lausanne replied and heard the collective ah-ha sigh reverberating around the room. “I deposited the money in a savings account. Regions Bank.”

“And what service were you to provide to earn the fifty-thousand?” Lt. Desmond watched her carefully.

“Ms. Perkins offered me the money, plus an extravagant vacation, new clothes, and use of her credit cards. And all I had to do was travel from one city to another, moving every three or four days, registering under the name of Audrey Bedell Perkins and pretending to be her for a few weeks. She said that the reason she’d thought of me for the job was because she remembered seeing me at the office one day and had noticed that we were about the same height, same size, same coloring and even close to the same age. When she offered me a chance to earn fifty-thousand dollars, she also promised me that my job at Bedell Inc. would be waiting for me when I returned to Chattanooga, that she’d make certain of it.”

When murmurs rose from others in the room, Sergeant Swain requested quiet; then Desmond continued with his questioning.

“Did Ms. Perkins tell you why she wanted you to impersonate her?”

“Yes, she did. She told me that she intended to run away with her boyfriend and she didn’t want her husband or her father to find them, that all they needed was a good head start on any search her family might instigate.”

“And you didn’t have any qualms about—”

“Yes, I had my doubts, but when she handed me a bag filled with cash, I pushed aside all my doubts. Fifty-thousand is a great incentive for most of us who don’t have that kind of money.”

Desmond nodded, as if agreeing. “Do you have any idea where the real Audrey Perkins is right now?”

“No, sir. I have no idea.”

“And do you have any proof—other than fifty-thousand dollars in your bank account—to back up what you’ve just told me?”

“No,” she admitted. “The only person who can verify that what I’ve told you is the truth is Audrey Perkins.”

“And Ms. Perkins just happens to be missing.”

“Yes, sir. And considering the predicament I’m in, I want her found as much, if not more, than anyone else in this room.”

Dom had watched and listened, studying Lausanne’s body language, her voice, every aspect of her responses. He wanted to believe her; some part of him did believe her. But was that part his head or his heart? Or a region a little farther south?

“I don’t believe anything this woman has told you.” Cara Bedell’s declaration broke the momentary silence. “She’s lying. She knows where Audrey is.”

“I agree,” Grayson said. “Audrey would never concoct such an elaborate scheme just so she could run away with one of her lovers. She’s gone off with other men before this and never found it necessary to—”

“But she’s never been in love with any of the others,” Patrice pointed out. “Bobby Jack Cash was different.”

“Yes, he was different,” Edward said. “He was a lowlife scum. And he was dangerous. Why Audrey would give a man like that the time of day is beyond me. She was far superior to him in every way.”

No one else noticed the stricken look on Lausanne’s face at the mention of the name Bobby Jack Cash, but Dom had been staring right at her. He got a sick, sinking feeling in the pit of his belly. He’d bet his last dime that Lausanne knew the man, that there was a connection between them. And here he’d been on the verge of believing all her lies, of being taken in by her sweet, innocent appearance. An ugly scenario formed in his mind, one that put Lausanne Raney and Bobby Jack Cash together in a wicked scheme that ended in murder.

“Ms. Raney, do you know Bobby Jack Cash?” Dom asked.

LAUSANNE HAD TWO CHOICES —lie or tell the truth. But considering the trouble she was in and the fact that the truth was bound to come out, she chose complete honesty.

Mentally preparing herself for Dom’s condemnation and suspicion, she looked directly at him when she responded to his question.

“Yes, I know Bobby Jack Cash.”

A loud rumble of angry, accusatory voices bombarded her, but once again Sergeant Swain quieted the Bedell family with a stern warning.

Lausanne hated the expression on Dom’s face, knowing that any chance she’d had to persuade him of her innocence had now been lost. Damn it, what was wrong with her? Why did she always pick the wrong guy, the guy who’d disappoint her, get her in trouble and break her heart?

“Ms. Raney?” Bain Desmond spoke her name.

She turned to him. “Yes, sir?”

“How do you know Mr. Cash?”

“I met him when I first went to work at Bedell, Inc. He was employed there as a guard.”

“So, you were simply fellow employees and that’s the extent of your relationship with the man?” Dom asked.

Keeping her gaze on the police lieutenant and avoiding direct eye contact with Dom, she replied. “No, not exactly. We went out on a couple of dates, but that was months ago and—”

“You were Mr. Cash’s girlfriend?” Lt. Bain asked.

“No.” Lausanne shook her head. “It was only two dates. That’s all.”

“Were you lovers?” Dom asked.

Cackling laughter drew everyone’s attention away from Lausanne and to Patrice Bedell. Realizing her outburst had removed the spotlight from Lausanne and focused on her, she quieted. Then chuckling softly, she glanced around at the others.

“What’s the matter?” Patrice asked. “Don’t the rest of you find this as amusing as I do? Bobby Jack was bonking this little nothing receptionist while he was having an affair with Audrey, who fell madly in love with him. My bet is that Audrey found out and—”

“I did not have sex with Bobby Jack,” Lausanne swore. “We were not lovers.”

“I think she and Bobby Jack murdered Audrey,” Patrice said.

“I didn’t murder Audrey. And I haven’t dated Bobby Jack in months.” Lausanne wanted to scream, to rant and rave. But most of all, she wanted to kick her own rear end for getting embroiled in such a complicated mess. First of all, she never should have dated Bobby Jack Cash; but the guy had been so persistent, so charming and persuasive. And she’d been lonely. But it had taken her only two dates to realize the guy was bad news, just like all the other men in her life, starting with her own father.

Hindsight was twenty-twenty, of course. If only she’d said “thank you, but no thank you” to Audrey Bedell’s proposition, she wouldn’t be in trouble. Again. No one would be accusing her of murder.

“I want you to arrest this woman for murder!” Patrice got right up in Lausanne’s face. “You might as well admit what you did. You and Bobby Jack Cash. You killed her and we all know it.”

“For once I agree with Patrice,” Cara said. “Make her tell you what they did with poor Audrey.”

“No!” Edward Bedell stepped forward, a haggard expression on his wrinkled face. “We have no proof that this girl did anything other than what she said she did—impersonate Audrey. There’s a good chance that Audrey is in the Caribbean or in Europe, either alone or with Bobby Jack Cash. Until we find Audrey, we can’t be certain of anything.”