Page 58 of Last Seen Alive

“North of eighty mil.”

“Holy crap.”

“That’s what I thought.”

“Quite a far cry from Claire’s twenty K.”

“Claire probably kept money in several locations. Also the take wasn’t hers alone. There were at least two perps at one heist. You asked about video. There was one. Apparently, the quality is horrid, and the perps were also clad in black. Only thing determined was one was male, the other female.”

“Claire and Mystery Guy.” As she tagged him with the moniker, she hated how often it was assigned in investigations. “Run me through the Lawson robbery. You said it was at his investment firm. What time of day are we talking about and why was he there?”

“Was about midnight. He left a formal charity event he was attending that night with his wife, Mona Lawson. Police tracked Lawson’s calls, but none came in the night of the robbery. So no one called him in to work.”

“Whatever got him there went to his grave.”

“And likely Claire’s,” Trent said. “I’m thinking the heist may have been a partial cover for Lawson’s murder.”

“You think his murder was premeditated?”

“I think it’s something we should consider.”

“How much was taken from the Lawson guy?”

“Close to thirty-five million in jewels and priceless statues, including a Fabergé egg. That alone had a value of twenty-five mil.”

“And I assume that’s the case with all these heists… items not cash?”

“That’s right.”

“These types of goods don’t just disappear. It’s not like you can turn them into your local pawnbroker.”

“Exactly why I figure all these heists were done by the same mystery couple, as I said. Also, I reached out to a few detectives who were assigned to the different heists over the years. Cameras were always taken out the same way—except for that one that had a crappy feed—and as far as they’re aware none of these items have turned up.”

“For what we’re talking about, I imagine there would only be a handful of buyers. I’d also suspect any transactions would take place over the phone or the dark web.”

“Well, Lawson’s widow is still around, lives in the place she shared with him actually. I thought maybe if we popped over there, she might have something to offer us.”

“Let’s do it.” Amanda sprung up, thinking that maybe this day could turn around. “Did the lab say anything about the lingerie or the lamp?”

“The lingerie is a dead end. Generic label for sale at numerous department stores and online.”

“That doesn’t sound like anyplace Claire would have shopped. No credit cards for one thing. And the designer jeans… Claire liked the finer things.”

“And had the money for them. As for the lamp, they had a closer look and found Claire’s prints.”

She smiled at that. It always felt incredible when a theory panned out. “She could have wielded it as a weapon. Any trace from another person?”

“No luck there.”

Guess I was being greedy…

They loaded into the department car and headed out.

The Lawson estate was immaculate and set behind a gate with an intercom system. Amanda and Trent were buzzed through, and a woman on staff opened the door for them. Mona Lawson was standing in the marble foyer, at the base of a sweeping staircase. She was beautiful and in her mid-fifties. Amanda went through the formal introductions.

“Detectives, how lovely. You finally find out who killed my dear Martin?” There was a cool demeanor about the woman.

Technically that responsibility landed on the shoulders of the Metro PD, but Amanda said, “Unfortunately not.”