Chapter 1
Infamous jewel thief dies in prison
By Rona Laughton
WASHINGTON DAILY NEWS
An international jewel thief who eluded law enforcement for five decades and stole a small nation’s crown jewels from a national U.S. museum has died. Leon Jones, known as the Jeweler, died on April 16 at the age of 68 of complications from cancer, in the Devens, Massachusetts, Federal Medical Center.
Jones pulled off his last and biggest theft twelve years ago at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. He made off with the crown jewels of the principality of Gramornia, including a scepter, the royal crown, swords, and rings. Mistakes during the break-in led to the Jeweler’s arrest and conviction.
His son, Cortez Jones, was also convicted of the theft and served a short sentence. The Gramornian crown jewels have never been recovered, according to the FBI and Global Insurance. For five decades, the Jeweler’s heists from museums and mansions confounded law enforcement agencies from the Riviera to San Francisco and…
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Two weeks later
Cortez Jones waited behind a pillar where he had a clear view of the parking garage’s level-two elevator. The Marton woman wouldn’t answer his phone calls, so here he was.
His father’s attorney had given him her license plate number and work address in Crystal City, Virginia. Less intrusive and a whole lot less threatening than approaching her at her apartment. Cort had made an effort to look respectable. Even wore a long-sleeved polo to cover the prison tats. No luck.
The guard at the security desk took one look and showed him the damn door. On impulse, he ducked into the garage as somebody drove out. Once inside, spotting her car was a cinch. No missing that bright red Nissan Versa. He needed to be careful. Diplomatic, low-key, so she didn’t freak and call security.
Scaring her was the last thing he wanted. He needed her help. If she would listen to the ex-con son of the Jeweler. But if Leon’s deathbed story panned out, he had a way to get the FBI off his back. Once and for all. If Leon had conned him—wouldn’t be the first time—he’d go on with his backwoods life. Shit. A half life. No life.
Now that an ember of hope ignited, the possibility flamed into a need that burned in his soul. He wanted more. He wanted out from under FBI and Gramornia pressure. He wanted to hold up his head. He wanted a life. News dating from the Gramornia crown jewels theft investigation, said that Quincy Marton’s widow was Korean.
Cort had figured spotting the daughter would be easy. But he didn’t count on the building’s employees being the United Nations. Several women about the right age with dark hair and vaguely Asian features exited the elevator while he waited. None of them went to the Nissan Versa.
The elevator bell dinged and the doors opened. Another young woman stepped out into a halo of light. About his age. Black hair to her shoulders, high cheekbones, eyes with an exotic slant, but that could be makeup. If she was Mara Marton, she’d inherited her father’s height—five-eight or so.
Dark pants. Bright blue sweater with glittery stuff swirling across breasts that begged for male attention. Cort shook his head, banished the inconvenient sexual awareness. Had to keep focused on business and not on a hot female. For luck, he fingered the ring in his pocket. Leon hadn’t lied about that much. As for the rest, he would see.
Ring of Truth Description:
DEVLIN SECURITY FORCE, Protecting Priceless Treasures
A man in the shadows… As the infamous thief known as the Jeweler lay dying, he gave his son, Cortez Jones, a puzzle piece that will lead to a cache of crown jewels. Recovering the loot could finally get the FBI off Cort’s back, but the only person who can help him is a DSF researcher who blames the Jeweler for destroying her family.
Forming an uneasy alliance with her, Cort finds her courage and tender heart make him want more than riches or redemption. A woman in the light…When Mara Marton’s insurance investigator father was accused of conspiring with the Jeweler, the scandal ruined him and led to his death.
Now the jewel thief’s son wants her help. Although sharing her research expertise and her father’s files with this sexy ex-con could prove her father’s innocence, how can she trust that Cort doesn’t want the treasure for himself? Time is running out…
The puzzle piece brings Cort and Mara together, but danger and secrets threaten to tear them apart. Sparks fly as they struggle to trust one another and recover the jewels before they are claimed by the deadly black-market syndicate Centaur. But with their lives—and their hearts—on the line, there’s no turning back.
