Suspicious (On the Run) by Sara Rosett Read Free Book Online Page A

Zoe, but then Alessi had insisted Jack and Zoe come with him and give an official statement. Jack had objected, but Alessi had been firm. They could either come willingly or in handcuffs. Since they didn’t have a choice, they’d gone with him, but Jack had used the cell phone to find a phone number for the American Embassy and had called it while they were on the way. Alessi hadn’t liked that. His frown deepened, but he hadn’t stopped Jack either. Unfortunately, when Jack explained their situation, the American official took down the details and said he would get back to them soon.
    They’d been separated, and Zoe had waited at least an hour in the stuffy room before Alessi threw open the door and placed the plastic bag on the table.
    Zoe rubbed her forehead. “Look, my answers aren’t changing. Your questions aren’t changing. We’ve been over this—many times. We took the plaque back to our hotel room and put it on the dresser. We didn’t examine it or try to pry it open like you did. We just set it down and went on with our sightseeing. Instead of being so interested in Harrington, I’m surprised you’re not asking about Melissa Davray. She was the one who gave it to us.” She considered telling him about Harrington’s theory of a thief in the company, but Alessi’s questions hadn’t gone there yet, and the last thing she wanted to do was give him a new avenue to explore. So far, he was mostly interested in the plaque. And, Harrington himself had admitted that he had no proof of a thief within Millbank and Proust, only a theory.
    She was sure Jack would stick as closely to the truth as possible, but given his recent run-ins with police when he’d been wrongly accused, Zoe was sure he wouldn’t give up the details about Harrington and the real reason for their trip to Rome. If she volunteered the info when Jack hadn’t, it wouldn’t look good for her or Jack. And considering she had stuffed several million dollars’ worth of diamonds into a lotion bottle back at the hotel, she wanted to keep this encounter as short as possible. The less said, the better.
    Alessi said, “Every possibility will be considered, but at this point, you and your husband are a special case. This morning, we received information that you, your husband, and Harrington Throckmorton stole the diamonds. Signor Throckmorton cannot be found, and you and your husband had in your possession a plaque, which you obviously used to remove the diamonds from the exhibit last night, so I’m sure you can understand why we are so interested in you. Tell me, Signora Andrews, was it Signor Throckmorton’s idea? Did he come to you and your husband? Or have you perhaps done this before?”
    Zoe closed her eyes for a second and fought off the sheer panic that rose inside her. “I’ve told you—there wasn’t any plan to steal anything. Harrington contacted Jack about the award. We didn’t know anything about the plaque being hollow. As I said, we didn’t see it or know about it until Mrs. Davray handed it to us. Harrington only said it was an award. I thought it would be a certificate or something like that.”
    “Ah, but Signora Davray says it was Signor Throckmorton who coordinated everything involved with the plaque. How often were you in contact with him?”
    “Me? Never. He contacted Jack.”
    “And how many times did you meet with him to plan this robbery?”
    Zoe muttered, “It’s like talking to a brick wall.” In her normal voice, she said, “We never met to talk about a robbery.”
    Alessi jumped on her words. “But you said earlier that you met yesterday.”
    “Yes, we met, but—as I also said earlier—we discussed the award.”
    The scowl that seemed to be permanently etched between Alessi’s eyebrows deepened. “It was his suggestion for the company to give you the award and pay for your travel here to Rome. He arranged it all.”
    “But that doesn’t mean he planned to replace the Flawless Set with fakes and