Chapter 34

Gunnar and I retraced our steps to the SUV and slunk inside; even the air inside the vehicle was dejected. ‘So,’ I said, ‘Aoife told me her mum wasn’t her murderer.’

Gunnar rubbed a hand over his face. ‘Of course she did. That doesn’t leave us with a whole lot of suspects.’

‘Yeah.’ I shivered. ‘Can you turn the heat up? I’m a little cold.’

Gunnar fiddled with a dial. ‘Better?’

‘Thanks.’ I was still chilly but I’d soon warm up.

‘Time to find the dad,’ Gunnar said firmly.

‘Yeah,’ I agreed again, biting my thumb as I thought. ‘My gut is telling me we’ve missed something.’

‘Is it?’ He looked over at me. ‘I trust your gut, so what else is it saying?’

‘It’s saying to focus on the gems.’

‘Why?’

‘This has been brewing in the back of my head for a while. The gems are cursed. True, we use them for the barrier, but what if someone wants them for another reason? They are worth millions in their own right, and that’s a pretty good motive for murder. Stealing the gems and killing Aoife to bring down the barrier doesn’t quite add up. I understand people can be fanatical but Aoife’s dad is a jewel thief, so that’s a big target on his back. Maybe the motive for the theft isn’t complicated – maybe he just wants the big bucks.’

Gunnar was quiet for a moment. ‘Maybe,’ he finally conceded. ‘Either way, we need to find the prick.’ We turned into the car park behind the station. ‘We have to follow the leads we have, but there’s nothing to say we can’t follow some other ones too. Let’s look at the dad, and at the same time find out what we can about the cursed gems. Maybe they’ll lead us to a new suspect. Sound good?’

It was a relief that he didn’t dismiss my thoughts out of hand – but he’d never done that so far. ‘Yes, sounds good.’ I smiled.

Inside the Nomo’s office I let Shadow out of his carrier and he sat on my lap as I stared at my blank computer screen. I knew what I needed to do but I was putting it off: I had to talk to Liv, no matter how much she freaked me out. She knew the origins of the gems and she might know why someone would want them besides for their obvious monetary worth.

If anyone would have some more suspects for me, it would be Liv.