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They were going to the king with her theory? Quinn drew in a deep breath. “First, Paris keeps showing up. Kodra mentioned it more than once. Ricci got blackmailed for something he did in Paris. His blindfolded trip to perform the surgery works within the time frame to get to Paris and back. Odette lives and works there.”
Mikel nodded.
“As we just heard, Ricci has a connection with Odette through his wife. Odette also has ties to Caleva that go back decades. First, her touchy history with the king. Second, her friendship with the Duchess of Bruma. Third, she depends on the Calevan lilies for her profitable skin cream.”
“The latter two facts could also support the argument that she wouldn’t want to jeopardize the goodwill between her and Caleva,” Mikel said.
“It would only be jeopardized if she were caught.” Quinn pushed her glasses up on her nose. “She wouldn’t have orchestrated such a high-profile crime if she expected to be identified. In her mind, there would be no danger to her. Besides, if she were convicted of the kidnapping, the other issues wouldn’t be a consideration.”
“Granted,” Mikel agreed.
“There are two other data points I’ve drawn lines between.” Quinn tapped at her laptop screen and turned it toward Mikel. “You know the Lily Cabal that’s been giving the king”—and Gabriel—“such grief? Candidates supporting it have been running well-funded campaigns to win election to both the legislative consejos. We’ve tracked most of the money they’re using to the Cayman Islands. Guess when it was deposited there?” She pointed to an item on the computer.
Mikel leaned forward to read the screen. “Joder! Three weeks after the ransom was paid.”
“Right now, Odette’s company gets a tiny percentage of the lily sap crop. If the nobles take back ownership of the lily fields, she might get more sap because it would put more money in the pockets of the duques and marquéses.”
“But do the candidates know the source of these funds?” Mikel asked, almost to himself.
“My guess is that someone knows they come from Odette or her company, but they assume it’s a normal business-bribe situation. I don’t think even their greed would tolerate such a vicious attack on the royal family.”
“They had better hope you are right.” Mikel’s mouth tightened to a grim line. “You said there is another data point.”
“I keep looking for the trigger. Why did Odette suddenly decide to strike at the royal family roughly eighteen months ago? I’ve been combing through her activity from two years to fifteen months ago. I found one anomaly.”
Mikel raised his eyebrows when she paused.
Quinn adjusted her glasses again. “Five and a half months before the abduction, Odette traveled to the United States, something she does about three times a year. However, after she made what were her usual business calls, she booked a flight to Des Moines, Iowa. She rented a car there and drove about ninety miles before she returned the car two days later. Why would Odette Fontaine go to Iowa?”
“There have been no follow-up visits? No partnerships with companies in Iowa?” Mikel asked.
“Nada. I can’t find any reason for her to be there as a one-off.”
Mikel frowned. “It’s not much to hang a kidnapping on.”
“It’s the timing that caught my attention, based on what Dupont said. It’s also totally out of pattern for her.”
“So whatever drew her to Iowa distressed her so much that she decided to have Prince Raul kidnapped?” Mikel’s tone was skeptical, and Quinn didn’t blame him. It sounded crazy.
“Maybe?” Her Spidey sense was tingling, though. Odette hung out in major metropolitan areas. Des Moines was a small, provincial, midwestern city. The cosmetics CEO had no reason to go there.
“You’re accusing a long-standing friend and a trusted business associate of the king and the Duke and Duchess of Bruma of kidnapping a member of their family and then mutilating him. Your data points are only circumstantial evidence.” Mikel shook his head. “I trust your instincts, but I hesitate to approach His Majesty with…this.”
“You know that Odette is coming to Caleva?” It was a rhetorical question. Of course Mikel knew. “It’s our best opportunity to provoke her into doing something that proves her guilt. She missed her target the first time and got only half the ransom she wanted, so she’s got to be pissed off. We should use that.”
“You’re suggesting that we use the crown prince as bait?” Mikel looked less shocked than his question would indicate.
Gabriel had told her that Raul suffered from terrible guilt about letting his cousin be taken by the kidnappers. The prince would jump at the chance to capture the perpetrator. “It’s not like Odette can bring a gang of bad guys with her to Caleva. You’d know.”
Her boss tapped a fingertip on the table as he considered this. “Write me up a very convincing report. After I read it, I will decide whether to speak with the king.”
Mikel would check with his own sources as well, which was fine with her. Every extra bit of information would help build her case.
“In the meantime,” her boss continued, “I got in touch with the right people about Dupont’s stolen Vermeer, and Kodra’s extradition is being fast-tracked. I’m sure he can be persuaded to flip on his associates.”
“Will you offer him a reduced sentence?” That would surprise her. The king had made it clear that the perpetrators would be severely punished.
“No,” Mikel said without hesitation. “There are other ways to persuade him.”
