problem for us.”
“So Hank set me up at a hotel in New York on the bureau’s dime and worked to plant me here as a servant. Hank appreciates that it’s probably been hard for you to get a chance to go through Forrest’s things, being his guest—a servant would have a lot more access. He said I couldn’t contact you. Otherwise, sweetheart, you know I would have.”
She nodded. “I know. I’m just happy you’re safe. And Hank’s right—I could use your help.” Gloria told him about Forrest’s inheritance from his late father. “So you see, he’s not a criminal at all. Hank probably just got bored with gin busts and decided to target Forrest. But Hank will never believe me without proof. I’ve been waiting for the right moment to search Forrest’s room so I can find his father’s will and we can leave the past where it belongs: in the past. And move on with our lives.”
Jerome peered at Gloria, skeptical. “What makes you think Forrest is telling the truth?”
“I know this mansion and the company he keeps might make you think differently, but Forrest really is a decent man,” Gloria said. “You’ll see.”
Jerome couldn’t bring himself to dash the hope in Gloria’s eyes. “All right. The first chance I get, I’ll search his room and find that will. Then we’ll get out of here and it’ll be just you and me.”
When Gloria fell asleep, he sneaked back to the servants’ quarters happier than he’d been in weeks.
But now the joy drained from him as he watched Forrest manhandle Gloria. Forrest’s hand had been on Gloria’s waist for what felt like hours. It was too much for Jerome to take, no matter how decent Gloria insisted Forrest was.
Jerome abruptly twisted the hand holding the silver tray so that all five remaining gin and tonics splashed all over Forrest’s navy-blue pin-striped jacket. Gloria squealed in surprise and Forrest jumped away from her.
“I’m so sorry, sir,” Jerome said half a second too late.
There was a tense, sickly pause in the air as Forrest pulled a white handkerchief out of his jacket pocket, wiping his hands with it. Then he did the impossible: He laughed.
“Ah, that was refreshing,” he remarked. “I think a gin shower was exactly what I needed to up my game.” He glanced at Jerome without really looking at him. “Thank you, good sir.” He took off his jacket, folded it over, and handed it to Jerome. “I’m afraid I’ll need a new one of these, though.”
Damn. Maybe Gloria was right after all. “You’re not angry?” Jerome asked.
Forrest waved him off. “If even half the drinks that get poured around here survive, I count myself a lucky man. There’s a similar jacket on the far right side of my closet.” He pulled a heavy silver key ring out of his pocket, pulled a brass key free from the rest, and handed the key to Jerome. “I keep my bedroom locked, old boy.”
Jerome looked behind Forrest at Gloria, who eyed the keys in Jerome’s hand and looked as though she was trying to suppress a delighted laugh. Gloria probably thought Jerome had orchestrated this whole thing so he’d be able to get into Forrest’s room.
“Of course,” Jerome said to Forrest, “I’ll be right back with that for you, sir.”
Five minutes later, Jerome stood in the middle of what was easily the finest bedroom he’d ever seen.
The walls were paneled in soft mahogany, and a few tastefully abstract paintings hung in gilded frames. A four-poster bed sat in the middle of the room, and a few framed photos on the dresser and the desk by the window displayed Forrest next to gorgeous Follies dancers or famous actors.
Jerome crossed to the closet. It was full of fine silk shirts of every color and enough suits to clothe an army of gentlemen. Jerome removed the navy-blue coat Forrest had mentioned and hung it on the back of the desk chair. Then he moved to the desk and began shuffling through Forrest’s mail. He didn’t really know where Forrest would keep a copy of his father’s will—he was a musician, not a detective. But he did have an advantage in this investigation that Gloria didn’t: invisibility.
When Hank had first mentioned the possibility of Jerome’s working as a servant in Forrest’s home, Jerome had never thought it would work.
“We’ve paid off Forrest’s head housekeeper. She hires all his help for him,” Hank had explained. “You’ll show up with a few other new servants, and it’ll