Cut and Run (Lucy Kincaid #16) - Allison Brennan Page 0,29

killed two months ago. A Realtor—which seemed like an odd way to label the real estate diva who ran a multi-million-dollar business. Her longtime friend and business partner Stanley Grant had confessed to her murder nearly a week later, stating that she’d learned that he’d embezzled money from their company because of a gambling addiction.

The case seemed straightforward. The only reason Max had even been interested was because the Mills family were family friends. When Grover Mills asked Max for her opinion on the investigation, Max had hired Sean Rogan. Sean had done a good job tracking the media, pulling copies of public records, and running a basic background on Victoria, Grant, and their third partner, Victoria’s ex-husband, Mitch Corta. Sean thought there was something more going on with Corta—he had a large cash flow—but Max didn’t find it unusual considering that MCG Land and Holdings moved high-end properties throughout Texas.

Max’s timeline had photos, charts, police reports—some she probably shouldn’t have, but Sean had truly gone above and beyond. But she didn’t have all the reports, including the original crime scene report. The coroner’s report had been released to the family, but it didn’t give her the full story. Victoria had been stabbed twice in the gut, then fell into a pool. Cause of death was listed as drowning with secondary cause of stabbing. She wouldn’t have drowned if she hadn’t first been stabbed.

Max knew that the weapon had never been recovered and that Stanley Grant hadn’t turned it over to the authorities when he confessed. He claimed he threw it in a sewage drain near the property, and since this was right after a big storm, the water was still running high. The police searched—at least they said they did—and didn’t find it, but that didn’t necessarily mean he was lying.

Yet this morning Stanley Grant changed his plea from guilty to not guilty. His attorney quit and he’d been assigned a public defender.

Chances were that the plea change was a game to him, that he was facing life in prison and wanted to take his chances with the jury. If the confession could be thrown out, maybe there was a chance. But there was no guarantee, and if the jury heard that he confessed, he’d better have a believable reason for changing his statement.

According to the official police statement, Grant had turned himself in because he believed that they would find evidence of his embezzlement—the theft he’d claimed was the reason he’d killed Victoria.

A spokesman for the San Antonio Police Department, John Rivera, indicated that Mr. Grant had stolen more than two million dollars in funds from the business he co-owned with Ms. Mills and Mr. Corta. “We have a full confession,” Officer Rivera said. “Mr. Grant stole $2.1 million from the company and when Ms. Mills confronted him, he killed her. He said his guilt prompted his confession, in addition to the fact that the SAPD had a warrant for all financial records of the holding company.”

It made sense … until Sean uncovered the fact that the funds hadn’t disappeared until five days after Victoria was killed. Max wanted to ask Grant bluntly why he lied, why he confessed, and why he recanted his statement.

Grover and his wife, Judith, had both turned seventy this year. They were good people, self-made, wealthy, and generous philanthropists. They asked Max to find the truth; how could she turn her back on them? More, she could hear her grandfather in the back of her head saying, “Reveres help family, for better or worse.” The Millses may not be blood, but her grandfather had treated them as such, and that was good enough for Max.

Maybe, she realized as she finished labeling the crime timeline that she’d attached to the wall of the suite’s office, she’d been thinking far more about family since Eve entered her life.

Sean had learned a lot over the last two months. It was true that Grant had a previous gambling problem, but he hadn’t stolen from the company before—at least that Sean could find. His confession stated that he had taken the money to cover a lost bet, but Sean hadn’t been able to find out to whom or when. If the police knew, they hadn’t shared the information publicly. The fact that the money had been taken after Victoria’s murder was a huge red flag to Max—and should have been to the police. Maybe there was a logical explanation. Maybe it would make sense when she had all