“Yes, and it gets even more interesting. Apparently, she and your father have separated.”
“What? Impossible. My mother would never contemplate such a move.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Couples do fall out of love.”
“Yes, but they were never in love. It was a union of political and power consolidation, nothing more.”
“Which means,” Belle said, “she must have a very good reason for putting him aside.”
“Which I think Ashworth might be able to tell us about. Oh, and before I forget, Ashworth and Eli met the truth seeker and auditor at Tullamarine this afternoon.”
I frowned. “They’re not going to have time to record what happened to me. Not before the meeting tonight.”
“No, but they can bear witness to said meeting as part of the information gathering process.”
“Neither my father nor Clayton will admit anything in their presence.”
“Which is why they will be recording the conversation from a safe distance.”
“We’ll all be recording the damn conversation,” Belle commented.
Monty glanced briefly over his shoulder. “I think it likely they’ll demand all phones turned off and placed on a table—especially given how cautious they’ve been to date.”
“Which means they may also pat us down for listening devices.”
“They may well, but they won’t find it.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Why not?”
“That, my dear cousin, will soon be revealed.”
I rolled my eyes. “You fail when it comes to being all edgy and mysterious.”
“Well, there goes one means of attracting my true love.”
Belle snorted, and Monty’s grin grew. I shook my head and said, “Is it actually legal to record a conversation without informing all parties involved?”
“I did check, and here in Victoria the answer is yes, just as long as the person who is secretly recording the conversation is one party of that conversation.”
I frowned. “But they’ll be elsewhere—”
“In this case, you’re the person recording it, as you’ve requested their help to sort out this situation.”
“Are they sure that will hold up in court?”
“Certain of it.” He pulled into the driveway of a cream-colored, Victorian-style double-story building and parked around the back. “This way, ladies.”
He jumped out and led us into the beautiful old building. After speaking briefly to the waitress who came to meet us, we were taken into what looked like an old Regency parlor. Maelle would have been very at ease in this place.
Belle and Monty ordered a meal and coffee. I stuck with tea and a bag of plain potato chips; anything else would have been dangerous given the uneasiness in my stomach. The drinks and the food arrived promptly, and we talked about everything other than the meeting that was now less than two hours away.
Just after seven, the door opened. Ashworth and Eli stepped into the room, followed by two women—one who looked barely out of her teens, the other in her mid-fifties.
Ashworth strode over to me and wrapped me in a big bear hug. “How’re you holding up, lass?”
I smiled into his chest. “Better now that you and Eli are here.”
“Wouldn’t miss this confrontation for the world.” He pulled back, then turned around and motioned to the two women. “I’d like you to meet Jenna Jones and Ruby Harrison, our truth seeker and auditor respectively.”