Makeovers Can Be Murder

Chapter 18

On the way home from the hospital, I reached Shaina′s uncle Belmont Miller by telephone. The Millers had just landed at RDU Airport from Los Angeles in-must be nice-their private Gulf-stream jet.

″I owe you one for keeping that jerk Gavin away from Shaina,″ Belmont said when I told him what had happened at the hospital. ″He′s the last person she should see right now. I wonder why he was so insistent on seeing her.″

The possible answer made me shudder. What if Shaina was right and Gavin had had Jana killed? What if he′d had her mother murdered for the insurance money? The notion seemed far-fetched, but I wasn′t in the mood to overlook any possibilities.

As I was mulling that over, Belmont continued, ″We′re going to take Shaina to our cottage in the Bahamas. She can recover there.″

″So soon?″

″The doctors said she′s okay to travel. I just got off the line with the police. I gather from the detectives that they′ve already gotten all the information they need from her for now. We′ll fly her back in for anything else they need.″

″Still, I don′t know if it′s best that she-″

″I′ve brought our private physician with us. Don′t worry-Shaina will get the best of care.″ All at once, Belmont sounded like he was in a hurry to end the conversation.

I wasn′t too happy about the idea that Shaina was going to be whisked out of the country right after her mother′s death. It was hard to wrap my head around the idea of bopping around the world on a private jet with one′s own doctor. It sounded like the life of royals. Even though I′d always known Jana came from a rich family, I′d never realized how rich.

Belmont, Luke-everyone, it seemed-were telling me not to worry, that things were under control. They had their suspect and their story lines straight. But I still had a duty to my friend Jana.

I needed to know why she′d been killed.