Lost Legacy Read Online Free PDF Page B

risk.”
    She nodded, the overhead light sparkling in her hair. He could see it was killing her to keep silent during the exchange.
    Lock shook his head. “Your reason is too far-fetched to merit the risk. There have never been any undiscovered Tarkentons and there are certainly not any underneath this university.”
    Victor shrugged. “Far-fetched, but not impossible. Brooke says Donald Ramsey sent the painting here to Colda. Now both the painting and the professor are missing.”
    “The police have searched the tunnels. They found nothing out of place and no sign of any painting.”
    Brooke broke in, “Then it won’t do any harm to check again.”
    Victor sighed inwardly, wishing she had stayed quiet. As he suspected, Lock took offense.
    The dean’s gray eyes narrowed. “Harm? I believe your father has caused enough harm to me to last a lifetime.”
    He heard Brooke exhale slowly. “Dean Lock, my father did not engineer that theft at the museum. I am sorry that you lost your position as head curator there but—”
    “But heads had to roll and mine was the one that did.” His eyes narrowed. “Someone knew the delivery schedule for those paintings. It was clearly an inside job.”
    “So it could have been you,” she answered quietly.
    Victor was surprised at her courage to speak even though her lips were trembling.
    Lock leaned back as if she’d struck him before he swiveled his eyes to Victor. “I’m disappointed to see you’re throwing in with her. Four years ago you hired an investigator to find evidence that her father was guilty.”
    Brooke’s face flushed, and Victor fought an unexpected urge to take her hand. “I hired Tuney to look at every suspect, and that included you.”
    The ghost of a smile played across his face as he massaged his bad hand. “You made your father angry doing that.”
    “It wasn’t the first time. Your friendship with my father aside, I had to find proof of who might have caused my wife’s death.”
    “But you didn’t, because there wasn’t anything to incriminate me. I loved that museum. Why would I engineer a robbery?”
    Because you are an art freak. The chance to own a rare piece thrills you like nothing else on earth. Because, as my father said, you love dead artists far more than any living. “We’re not here to imply anything.”
    “Good, because I had nothing to do with that robbery.”
    Victor held up a hand. “And Tuney found nothing to incriminate Donald either. Tuney’s back, by the way. He’s been following Brooke.”
    “Really? Who hired him?”
    “He wouldn’t say who hired him, but it can’t be another coincidence.”
    The dean sighed, a long, mournful exhale that seemed to shrink him several inches. “Victor, I understand your need for closure on this.” His eyes clouded. “I’ve lost people, too, a woman I loved more than anyone else in the world, as a matter of fact, but getting involved in this ridiculous treasure hunt is not going to bring Jennifer back.”
    “I know that,” Victor barked, surprising himself with his tone. He continued more softly, “I’ve accepted the loss and dealt with the grief, but the thing I cannot make peace with is that nobody paid for the crime. If this situation is in any way connected to what happened four years ago like Tuney seems to believe, I need to know the truth, all of it.”
    Lock smiled and sat back in his chair. “Your father’s nickname for you was right on the money.”
    Victor felt his cheeks flush and swiveled his eyes away from Brooke. “So will you allow us to go in? I would take it as a personal favor. Besides, we might just find the treasure of a lifetime.” Victor didn’t want to go over Lock’s head, knowing it would destroy his relationship with his father’s old friend. He didn’t want to, but if Lock proved an obstacle, Victor would circumvent the problem one way or another. He always did.
    Dean Lock cocked his head. “All right. Because you are Wyatt’s son and because