Steve replaced the receiver and stood there a moment. “It’s unbelievable!”
“What?” Julia asked.
“Sit down…”
Thirty minutes later, Steve was in his car headed for Rose Hill. All the pieces had finally fallen into place. He’s brilliant. It almost worked. It could still work if anything happened to Julia, Steve thought.
At Rose Hill, Clark answered the door. “Good evening, Mr. Sloane.”
“Good evening, Clark. Is Judge Stanford in?”
“He’s in the library. I’ll tell him you’re here.”
“Thank you.” He watched Clark walk off.
A minute later, the butler returned. “Judge Stanford will see you now.”
“Thank you.”
Steve walked into the library.
Tyler was sitting in front of a chess board, concentrating. He looked up as Steve walked in.
“You wanted to see me?”
“Yes. I believe the young woman who came to see you several days ago is the real Julia. The other Julia was a fake.”
“But that’s not possible.”
“I’m afraid it’s true, and I’ve found out who’s behind all this.”
There was a momentary silence. Then Tyler said slowly, “You have?”
“Yes. I’m afraid this is going to shock you. It’s your brother, Woody.”
Tyler was looking up at Steve in amazement. “Are you saying that Woody is responsible for what’s been happening?”
“That’s right.”
“I…I can’t believe it.”
“Neither could I, but it all checks out. I talked to his doctor in Hobe Sound. Did you know your brother is on drugs?”
“I…I’ve suspected it.”
“Drugs are expensive. Woody isn’t working. He needs money, and he was obviously looking for a bigger share of the estate. He’s the one who hired the fake Julia, but when you came to us and asked for a DNA test, he panicked and had your father’s body removed from the coffin because he couldn’t afford to have that test made. That’s what tipped me off. And I suspect that he sent someone to Kansas City to have the real Julia killed. Did you know that Peggy has a brother who’s tied into the mob? As long as Julia’s alive and there are two Julias around, his plan can’t work.”
“Are you sure of all this?”
“Absolutely. There’s something else, Judge.”
“Yes?”
“I don’t think your father fell off his yacht. I believe that Woody had your father murdered. Peggy’s brother could have arranged that too. I’m told he has connections with the Marseilles mafia. They could easily have paid a crew member to do it. I’m flying to Italy tonight to have a talk with the captain of the yacht.”
Tyler was listening intently. When he spoke, he said approvingly, “That’s a good idea.” Captain Vacarro knows nothing.
“I’ll try to be back by Thursday for the reading of the will.”
Tyler said, “What about the real Julia?…Are you sure she’s safe?”
“Oh, yes,” Steve said. “She’s staying where no one can find her. She’s at my house.”
Chapter Thirty-three
The gods are on my side. He could not believe his good fortune. It was an incredible stroke of luck. Last night, Steve Sloane had delivered Julia into his hands. Hal Baker is an incompetent fool, Tyler thought. I’ll take care of Julia myself this time.
He looked up as Clark came into the room.
“Excuse me, Judge Stanford. There’s a telephone call for you.”
It was Keith Percy. “Tyler?”
“Yes, Keith.”
“I just wanted to bring you up to date on the Margo Posner matter.”
“Yes?”
“Dr. Gifford just called me. The woman is insane. She’s carrying on so badly that they have to have her locked away in the violent ward.”
Tyler felt a sharp sense of relief. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Anyway, I wanted to ease your mind and let you know that she’s no longer any danger to you or your family.”
“I appreciate that,” Tyler said. And he did.
Tyler went to his room and telephoned Lee. There was a long delay before Lee answered.
“Hello?” Tyler could hear voices in the background. “Lee?”
“Who is this?”
“It’s Tyler.”
“Oh, yeah. Tyler.”
He could hear the tinkling of glasses. “Are you having a party, Lee?”
“Uh-huh. Do you want to join us?”
Tyler wondered who was at the party. “I wish I could. I’m calling to tell you to get ready to go on that trip we talked about.”