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Savannah kept sneaking glances at the clock. Would this class ever end? Hez would be as blown away by the job offer as she was, and she couldn’t wait to get his take on it, but it would have to wait until he got back from Birmingham. University president. She wasn’t under any illusions that it was anything more than her father using his influence, but that didn’t matter. She could do good work here.

The students gathered their books and backpacks and filtered out the door. Savannah grabbed her purse and slung it over her shoulder, but before she stepped away from her desk, she heard the staccato of heels on the hallway floor. It had to be Jess. No one else walked with that purposeful stride in pumps.

Her sister hurried into the classroom and shut the door behind her. Her navy suit deepened the color of her hazel eyes, which were fixed on Savannah. “I saw Pierre and the rest of the committee come into the building. Were they here to see you?”

“They were.”

Savannah exhaled and sat back down in her chair. “They offered me Abernathy’s job. They want me to take over as president of TGU. I still can’t believe it.”

Jess took a couple of steps closer. “You’re not going to take it, are you? I haven’t said much because of my confidentiality clause, but, Savannah, you’d be foolish to try to save the university. It’s going down. The fallout from the murders and the smuggling of artifacts affected our enrollment, and that’s only going to get worse. Get out of the blast radius while you can. The way I see it, it was a good thing not to get tenure. It left your options open.”

“We’ve always worked well together. The two of us could turn things around. I know we could. We’d have Hez’s legal support too. A trifecta of sharp minds.”

Jess’s eyes narrowed. “You’re parroting your dad. That’s more of Pierre’s scheme to harvest as much money from TGU as possible. All he cares about is his fat university-funded trust fund. If he was concerned about the university, he wouldn’t have put Abernathy in charge. He knew he was a corrupt incompetent, but Pierre got a promise from him to turn a blind eye to the embezzlement. Think it through, Savannah. Why would he suggest a history professor with zero executive or fundraising experience to take over as president? I’m sure he thinks you’ll do the same.”

Savannah stiffened. “I didn’t realize you thought so little of my skills.”

“You know I love you, but sitting at the helm of a failing university is a big job. It will be a lot of hours and high stress. Do you want that when you’re trying to start over with Hez? Especially now that he’s started drinking again.”

“He says he didn’t drink that wine.”

Savannah winced inwardly at that feeble statement.

“And someone just magically put it there. Listen to yourself. Surely you aren’t swallowing that line. Don’t be gullible about him or this job offer. Did you stop to think about why they didn’t offer me the job? Wouldn’t that be the logical thing to do with my experience? He knew I’d take all that stolen money out of his trust. He’s afraid of me.”

Jess’s lips curved in satisfaction. “And that’s exactly how I want him to feel.”

Her sister wasn’t wrong. The ill will between Pierre and Jess worsened every year. “But we have to at least try to save the school. The three of us make a formidable team.”

Jess folded her arms over her chest. “Why should we save something that’s rotten at the core? We didn’t create this mess, and we risk our reputations to save it. If it goes down, it will take us with it.”

“Are you going to quit?”

Jess lifted her chin. “I don’t know yet. Maybe it would be worth my reputation to stick around and watch the place fall to ruin.”

“I know Hez thinks it can be saved.”

Jess rolled her eyes. “Oh please. How reliable is Hez? I know he’s a brilliant attorney and means well, but his behavior lately calls everything into question. If he truly believes he didn’t put that wine bottle in the trash, he’s having blackouts. Otherwise, he’s lying. Neither option bodes well for helping us. Or for your marriage for that matter.”

Savannah didn’t want to examine her sister’s logic. Hez’s face when he thought she didn’t believe him still pierced her heart. He was depending on her to help him get through this. “I don’t believe it’s as bad as all that.”

Jess leaned forward. “I handle the financials, Savannah, and I am telling you it is. I don’t want you left holding the bag. You realize you’d be blamed if you’re at the helm when it all falls apart, right? I’m already planning my landing spot, and you should do the same.”

“Where’s your landing spot?”

A mysterious smile lifted Jess’s lips. “You’ll know when it’s time. I haven’t decided what to do just yet, but no matter what happens here, I want you safe and protected from the fallout. You have to believe me—get away from here before the nuclear blast levels everything.”

No matter what, Jess had always tried to give Savannah good advice. The ring of truth and genuine concern in her voice proved Jess believed what she was saying. Savannah’s inclination to take the job wavered. Maybe she and Hez would be better off in a low-pressure environment. What if staying here increased the stress Hez felt and the drinking got worse? She didn’t want her desire to save the university to doom their fresh start.

But could she really walk away from the place that generations of her family had devoted their lives to? “I’ll talk to Hez.”

Irritation flashed across Jess’s face. “You do that. Maybe he can talk some sense into you.”

She turned and strode away.

Savannah gathered her purse and followed. This decision wasn’t going to be easy.

* * *

Hez stepped out of the neurologist’s office and took a deep breath. The wild, fresh scent of the sea was especially crisp after the big tropical storm that came through a few days ago. Hammers rang on the roof of the nearby courthouse as workers replaced lost shingles. Some parts of the county had been hit hard—Blake, Jenna, and their crew had stayed with Savannah while they waited for the floodwaters at the Sanctuary Animal Rescue to recede.

A knot of tension relaxed between his shoulders. He hadn’t realized how stressed he’d been over this. He’d had to swallow a big lump of pride, but he didn’t regret it. The doctor had listened carefully and hadn’t seemed to doubt Hez’s story, but she did a thorough exam and ordered a CT scan without hesitation.

Hez felt fine and he hadn’t noticed any memory lapses—but would he notice? No one seemed really convinced by his theory that someone planted the bottle in his trash, and even he didn’t find it to be a compelling story. He only believed it so firmly because it really happened to him. Or had it?

It would be good to get the test results.

Hez did his best to push the whole thing out of his mind as he walked across the courthouse square.

A familiar voice called to him. “How are you doing?”

Hez turned to see Martine Dubois walking toward him. “I’m fully recovered from your cross-examination, thanks.”

Martine laughed, forming little crinkles at the corners of her brown eyes. She patted his cheek. “Sorry about that. You were a tough witness—too tough for my client and me. I assume you heard the verdict?”

Hez nodded. As he’d predicted, Beckett had been convicted of kidnapping and attempted murder, but he was acquitted on all the other charges. “I did. Beckett got off very easy, though I admit I’m biased. Nice work.”

“Not as nice as I’d hoped, of course, but it could have been worse. We’ll see how things play out post-trial.”

“Oh?”

Hez arched an eyebrow. “What kind of post-trial motions are you bringing?”

“The usual stuff—mostly some evidentiary rulings that should have gone the other way.”

Hez shrugged. “I took a look at the court file and the rough transcript. The prosecution’s case seemed pretty solid. Hope did a good job.”

A secretive smile tugged at the corners of Martine’s mouth. “She did, but maybe I’ll be able to pull a rabbit out of my hat anyway. See you around.”

Martine walked off before Hez could respond. Tension started to creep back into his shoulders as he watched her retreating back. She was gloating about something, but the question was, what? Hez had a bad feeling about the answer.

He pulled out his phone and called Hope. She answered on the second ring. “Hi, Hez.”

Did her voice sound tense, or was he just projecting?

“Hey, Hope. I just ran into Martine Dubois. We chatted about the Beckett Harrison trial, and she acted all mysterious about post-verdict proceedings—like she had a secret ace up her sleeve or something. Any idea what’s going on?”

Hope let out a long sigh. “Let me know if you ever need an assistant for that legal clinic you’re starting. I may be looking for a new job soon.”

“Why? What happened?”

“I’m under orders to keep it confidential until tomorrow’s hearing, but I’m done following Elliot Drake’s orders. Besides, you have a right to know. Drake made a deal with Harrison.”

Hez groaned. This was exactly what he’d feared Martine was hinting at. Drake viewed the DA’s office as little more than a platform for his personal ambitions, and he would make whatever deal he thought would benefit him. Martine would have figured him out in thirty seconds, maybe less. “What kind of deal?”

“I’m not entirely sure. I wasn’t part of the negotiations.”

Her voice dripped acid. “I do know that Harrison hired an old friend of Drake’s who just happened to have made a big contribution to his last campaign. Martine and this guy showed up at Drake’s office to meet with him. I wasn’t invited, but afterward I was told to draw up a stipulation and take Harrison’s proffer. The good news, I guess, is that Harrison is going to testify that Deke Willard murdered both Ellison Abernathy and Peter Cardin. So Drake will probably get the murder conviction he wanted.”

Hez grimaced. He doubted Willard committed either murder, at least not alone. Beckett had been the mastermind, and probably the killer. “And what’s the bad news?”

“After Harrison testifies, we’ll stipulate to Martine’s post-trial motions. The verdict will be overturned and Harrison will be a free man.”

Free to come after Savannah again.