Cursed Read Online Free Page A

appreciate it if you would keep me informed of any
leads you have.”
    “ I’ll keep you informed,
Tess,” Abel interrupted.
    Tess glanced at Abel. “That’s all
right, Abel. You’ve got your hands full at the moment with that big murder
case.” She looked back at Frank. “Would you mind if I called you directly?”
    Frank smiled. He stared at her as
if she were an angel who’d just descended from heaven. As far as Abel was
concerned, she was.
    “Not at all,” Frank said politely
as he reached into his pocket and handed her a card. “Feel free to call
anytime.”
    She took the card between her
delicate, manicured fingers, glanced at it then lifted her eyes to Frank.
“Thank you.”
    “Mrs. O’Brien, I’ll need you to
verify ownership just for the record and we’ll need a photograph of the pendant
as well. I’m assuming it was insured…you’ll need to contact your insurance
company first thing in the morning.”
    “Of course. The receipt and
certificate of authenticity are in my safe deposit box. I’ll get them for you
tomorrow.”
    “Thank you. Was there anything
distinctive about the pendant that set it apart?”
    Tess smiled. “Yes, the stone’s
color is pure white and it was set into a gold pendant fashioned in the shape
of a dove. When I took it in a couple of weeks ago to have the setting checked,
the jeweler noticed a tiny dove inscribed inside one of the prongs. He said it
was probably a jeweler’s mark. He took a picture of it and I sent it along to
my insurance company.”
    “Okay, just one more thing. Why
did you keep your pendant here instead of at your home or a bank?” Frank asked.
    “I didn’t keep it here,” Tess
explained in a quiet voice. “I kept it in a safe deposit box but had just moved
it to Abel’s house so I could have the setting checked. I plan to wear it to
the Carousel of Hope Ball next month.”  She glanced over at the safe. “No
one knew it was here except for Abel and me.”
    “Are you certain of that? Did you
mention it to anyone before you moved it from the bank?”
    “I called my insurance company to
make sure it was okay. I had to add an additional rider to the policy while the
pendant was away from the bank.”
    “Did anyone else know it was
here? A friend, perhaps?”
    Tess frowned and looked at the
chief. “I might have mentioned it to someone; I don’t remember. You don’t think
one of my friends could have had something to do with it?”
    “People steal for all kinds of
reasons, Mrs. O’Brien. Even friends.”
    * * * *
    After the chief and household
staff left, Abel kicked off his shoes and stretched his legs out in front of
him. He watched Tess standing by the window looking out at the snow, her index
finger tapping absently against the side of her glass.
    He looked at the slope of her
small shoulders and wondered where she’d found the courage to assume all of the
responsibilities thrust upon her after his brother’s death. For that and a
hundred other reasons, he admired her. “Tell me about your day.”
    She took another sip of her drink
and looked at him in an absent way as if she just remembered he was there.
“Busy.”
    He hated the thought of her working in a
department store for slave’s wages. “Why do you insist on continuing with that
job when I know my brother must have left you financially secure?”
    She glanced at him, then back out
of the window. “I need to feel useful and earn some money of my own. Besides,
it’s fun. I enjoyed helping men pick out a special Valentine’s gift today for
their wives or girlfriends.”
    Here was his opportunity. Abel
stood and walked to her side. A strand of hair had fallen across her cheek. She
looked utterly charming and he had to clench his hand to keep from brushing it
aside. “Tess, Valentine’s Day is a little over three weeks away. I was
wondering if I could take you out to dinner.”
    She raised her eyes and studied
him a moment while a smile trembled over her full mouth.