Page 46 of Out of Time (Undaunted Courage #3)

“I’ll let you go.”

“Not until we finalize our plans for this week. Does Thursday work?”

“Fine by me. Let’s hope third time’s the charm.”

“Nothing short of a natural disaster is going to divert me from my mission this go-round. I’ll call you back to discuss details.”

“I’ll put you on my calendar—and hope no tornadoes crop up. Talk to you soon.”

As they ended the call, he looked over at Rod, who’d propped a shoulder against the doorframe. “What’s up?”

“I talked to our private lab a few minutes ago. They said you dropped a blood sample off first thing this morning for DNA testing, along with a box of Danish. They were impressed by the personal delivery as well as the Danish. It got their attention.”

“Good.” That had been his goal.

“The lab’s not exactly in our backyard. What time did you have to get up to be at their doorstep?”

“Early.” But it had been worth the predawn rising. The private lab they used to handle backlog would process the sample fast. Who knew how long they’d have to wait if they sent it to the state facility?

“Must have been a hot sample if you were willing to ding the department budget for a private facility.”

“Yeah. It may be a match for your vomit.”

Rod arched his eyebrows. “No kidding? You have a suspect?”

“I’d put him in the semi long-shot category, but there are enough markers pointing to him to justify giving this a try.”

“Let’s hope it pans out. I’d like to wrap up the paperwork for that autopsy.”

“We’re getting there. I’m working the case on a couple of fronts.”

In fact, his next call was to the firm he’d recommended to Natalie, to line up camera installation.

“Keep me in the loop.” Rod pushed off from the doorframe.

“You got it.”

As the coroner disappeared into the hall, Brad picked up his phone and scrolled through to the number for the security company.

In light of the decent scare he’d given the trespasser Thursday night, it was possible the guy was spooked and would stay away long enough to give them a chance to get cameras up and running before he came back.

Best case, someone from the firm could go out there and get the cameras in place by midweek.

The only glitch?

If Steven happened to be their target, he’d have an inside track to any security measures Natalie implemented.

Meaning he’d know how to circumvent them.

That’s why getting a read on the potential DNA match was urgent.

Because if it came back positive, the cameras might not be necessary.

And Natalie’s nephew would have a whole lot of explaining to do.

HE WAS OUT OF TIME.

Shoving his cell back into his pocket, Steven stormed over to the bar in his condo, poured a scotch, and tossed it back. After refilling his glass, he continued to the window of the upscale high-rise unit that offered a panoramic view of the parkland-dotted cityscape.

These cushy digs were his home and giving them up was unthinkable.

But if he didn’t come up with his back mortgage payments pronto, he was going to be out on his ear. They were done with his stall tactics.

He gulped down the second drink and squeezed the glass.

Natalie would give him a short-term loan if he asked, but he’d have to explain why he was in such deep debt. Reveal how desperate he was. Acknowledge his bad judgment.

Not an option. He needed to maintain his image with her as a responsible money handler or she’d never trust him with her financial affairs.

It would be much better to find the jewels, which would provide instant cash.

Well, almost instant. He’d have to exchange his bitcoin profits for cash, since virtual currency was the monetary standard for the under-the-radar transactions he’d be doing. That would only take a few days, though. He could hold off his creditors until then.

Maybe.

But he was down to the dregs in the hourglass.

That’s why he’d have to go back to Natalie’s by Wednesday afternoon. Having two extra nights to search would expedite the process.

He’d just have to be extra careful not to drop one of his dirty boots again when he returned from his hunt, as he had Saturday night. If Natalie had come out of her room moments earlier, she would have seen him sneaking down the hall in his stockinged feet, shoes in hand.

That would have been difficult to explain on the fly.

After returning to the bar, he set his glass in the sink and scrolled through the messages from the two clients who’d fled his firm early on this Monday morning.

He had to respond to them soon.

But what could he say?

Certainly not the truth, that dabbling in options and futures had been a colossal mistake.

The risk had been too high, and he hadn’t had sufficient experience with those markets.

He should have left speculative deals of that nature to institutional investors, which by virtue of size could absorb dramatic losses in one or two investments.

By contrast, the bottom-line impact of such losses was far more profound on private-investor portfolios.

As he’d learned to his regret, attracting clients with promises of high returns was much easier than keeping them once dicey investments went south.

From here on out, he was sticking with sure bets.

Assuming he could rebuild his client base.

But perhaps the jewels and paintings would bring in sufficient money to not only pay off his debts but give him a sizable cushion going forward.

There were always Natalie’s assets to tap too. Family lore said her father had inherited a fortune from his wife, and how much of it could Natalie have spent living in the middle of nowhere her whole life?

It was a shame she’d never let him invest her funds for her instead of keeping them in CDs. Then he’d know exactly how much she had.

On the other hand, if she had let him handle her money, she could be as broke as he was.

Going forward, though, he’d try to get a clearer read on her resources. For future lifestyle planning.

His lifestyle, not hers.

For now, however, his focus had to be on the jewels.

He strode into his office, pulled out the folder containing his drawing of the cave passages, and concentrated on planning his schedule for the coming trip. It was important to cover as much ground as possible with each visit to the subterranean corridors.

And hope he hit pay dirt before the life he’d built imploded and left his precarious world in ruins.