“Right.” He returned his attention to the quiet street. “What gossip have you heard about them?”
“I haven’t heard anything bad about Faye or Bonnie.” She tried to remember what the townspeople had said about the Lambs. “Faye is generally well liked and admired because of her philanthropy. Most people in town are impressed with Bonnie’s devotion to her mother.”
“And Todd?” Travis asked.
“Todd had been in a lot of trouble when he grew up around here. I remember my parents and their friends talking about him. He was caught vandalizing, trespassing, and I think he did some petty stealing.”
“And what is he like now?”
“I don’t know. I guess he grew out of it because if there had been any legal trouble, we would have heard about it,” Christine said. “He lives on the other side of the country and he doesn’t come around very often. Only when he needs cash, according to gossip.”
Travis frowned and looked at Christine. “And Faye is going to give him family heirlooms?”
“I know. I don’t understand it, either,” she said. “Faye only has complimentary things to say about her son. I think she believes what she wants to believe.”
“What does Bonnie think?”
Christine shrugged and took another sip of her coffee. “As far as I can tell, she has no opinion.”
“No opinion?” he repeated. “If we are judging Faye’s choices, you can bet Bonnie has an opinion. She may not show it when they are in public, but I’m sure she has tried to influence her mother’s decision. What was her expression when they told you Faye’s plans?”
Christine tilted her head back as she tried to remember that day. “She didn’t have one. She looked tired, that’s all.”
The harsh lines in Travis’s face softened as his mouth tilted in a lopsided smile. “She did it.”
Christine gave a husky chuckle. “Because she looked tired?”
“Sure. She was exhausted trying to convince her mother. She knew she was defeated and she decided that she’d take the bracelet.”
“That’s speculation,” she warned him. “You have no proof.”
“Think about it,” he said as he set down his coffee cup and turned to face her, gesturing with his hands as he explained his theory. “Todd goes off and does his own thing while Bonnie stays behind to take care of her mom. She must be furious that Faye is splitting the jewelry down the middle.”
“Let’s say you’re right and Bonnie wanted the jewelry for herself,” Christine said carefully. “Why would she choose to take it at the bank? Bonnie didn’t have to steal the jewelry in a public place. She could do that without anyone watching in her own home.”
Travis exhaled sharply. “Okay, that does put a dent in my theory, but she did it. I know it.” He glanced at his watch. “Where is she?”
Christine looked at the street and then back at Travis. “Are you expecting Bonnie?”
“I saw her jogging along here yesterday morning.” Travis reached for her coffee cup and set it down before he helped her off the porch swing. “Come on.”
“What are we doing?” she asked as he led her out the porch door. “Can I at least change? I’m still in my bathrobe.”
“No time,” he said as he fixed his sight on the street. “We’re going to confront Bonnie.”
“What?” Her legs locked and she pulled back on Travis’s hand. She wanted to stop him, but he was much stronger than she was. Her bare feet slid along the wet grass. “Are you kidding me?”
“No,” Travis said as he dragged her to the edge of the sidewalk. He looked down the street to see if Bonnie was coming. “She has the bracelet. We’re going to get it from her.”
“We have no proof,” Christine whispered fiercely as she tried to pull him back in the direction of the house. “What if we’re wrong?”
“She’ll be angry,” he predicted calmly as he glanced at his watch again. “She will probably hold a grudge and move her accounts to a different bank.”
“Oh, is that all?” Christine tossed her hands in the air. “Her family is very powerful here. It would make my life difficult. Our life difficult,” she corrected.
“But what if we’re right?”
Christine thrust her fingers in her hair as panic and worry swirled inside her chest. “Yes, what if we’re right and we can’t do anything about it? We tip her off and she gets rid of the bracelet.”
“That’s why we’re using the element of surprise.”