papers said you’re representing Mr. Blair,” the woman said.
Benedict nodded. He had been fired but no substitution of counsel had been filed yet, so technically he was still Horace’s lawyer.
“Has he mentioned the scepter?”
“Not specifically. Perhaps you can tell me a little about it so I’ll be knowledgeable when we discuss it.”
“When Sultan Mehmet II conquered Constantinople in 1453 he was concerned that there would be an appeal to Rome for liberation that would set off a new round of Crusades.”
Benedict nodded knowingly, although he had no idea what Blankenship was talking about. He’d had one history course in college, and that was many years ago and he couldn’t remember if Constantinople had been mentioned. All he knew for certain was that Constantinople was now Istanbul and Turks lived there.
“The Eastern Orthodox Church commanded the loyalty of the masses,” Blankenship continued, “so Mehmet asked Gennadius, who was hostile to the West, to become the first Patriarch of Constantinople under Islamic rule. When Gennadius accepted, the sultan gave him a gold, bejeweled scepter as a symbol of authority. This scepter disappeared until it was rediscovered by Antoine Girard, a French soldier of fortune, in a bazaar in Cairo in 1922. Girard spent many years authenticating the scepter. Then he was murdered and the scepter was stolen.
“Recently, we were contacted by a person who purported to own the scepter. He was in financial straits as a result of some very bad investments and had to sell it. I thought of the Blairs immediately.”
“Why the Blairs? Why not a museum?”
“May I be frank?”
“Please.”
“And can I count on you keeping a confidence?”
“Of course.”
“My seller insisted that I only deal with a private buyer. I don’t know this for a fact but I suspect that he didn’t want me to approach a museum because the scepter may be stolen goods.”
“But why the Blairs?”
“There are no longer any jewels in the scepter, but the scepter is solid gold. However, the value of the gold is secondary. The historical importance of the scepter makes it incredibly valuable.”
“What does that mean in dollars?” Benedict asked.
“I can’t say exactly, but as I said, we’re talking millions. That’s why I contacted Mrs. Blair.”
“You mean Mr. Blair,” Benedict said.
“No, Mr. Blair never seemed terribly interested in art or collecting. But Mrs. Blair had a true appreciation of the value of the scepter.”
“From what I’ve learned, Carrie Blair didn’t have the kind of money you’re talking about.”
“But she was going to. That’s why I had to get back to the States. The week Mrs. Blair died was the week she would have met the terms of a prenuptial agreement she had entered into when she married Mr. Blair. Under the terms of that agreement, she stood to receive twenty million dollars, part of which she planned to use to buy the scepter.”
Benedict’s heart thudded in his chest but he kept his voice calm.
“There’s been a lot of speculation about this prenup but no one seems to have seen it,” he said.
“I have. Mrs. Blair showed it to me.”
“Why did she do that?”
“I called her about the scepter, assuming that she would talk to her husband about purchasing it, but she told me she didn’t want Mr. Blair involved. I was dubious about Mrs. Blair’s ability to pay, so she gave me a copy of the agreement.”
“You have it?” Benedict asked casually, giving the impression that the prenuptial agreement was of little interest to him.
“Not with me.”
“In Seattle?”
“No, I brought it here. It’s at my hotel, in my file. Mr. Benedict, can you tell me what Mr. Blair said about the scepter? Did Mrs. Blair tell him about it? Does he have any interest in obtaining it?”
Benedict pretended to be in conflict while his visitor fidgeted.
“Ms. Blankenship, I’ve sworn to keep your confidences, and an attorney also has a duty to keep secret those matters his client discusses with him.”
“Of course,” the woman answered as she leaned forward expectantly.
“Will you promise not to divulge what I’m going to tell you?”
“Yes.”
“Mr. Blair has mentioned the scepter.”
“Then he’s interested?”
“I’m not certain. During one of our conferences—when we were discussing Mrs. Blair—he told me that she had mentioned purchasing an expensive historical relic. Presumably that was the scepter.”
“What else did he say?”
“Nothing. You can understand that his present predicament has dominated his thoughts, but we have high hopes that we’ll win his case. And then he can turn his thoughts elsewhere.”
Benedict’s features displayed an expression of the utmost seriousness.
“I can assure you that Mr. Blair is