by K T Brodland
“I can’t promise flowers or carrot cake, but I can guarantee you’ll have a good time.”
Olivia glowered at her in mock annoyance. “You aren’t going to give up until I agree to go with you, are you?”
“Nope.”
Olivia threw up her hands in defeat. “All right, already. I’ll come with you.”
“Right answer!”
“I can see why Doctor Morgan called you a badass. Now let’s get out of here before I have to throw something at you.”
Cat grinned. “Your wish is my command.”
“Yeah, right,” Olivia muttered.
“All joking aside, you have no idea how much I appreciate you doing all this,” Olivia said when they were back in the car.
“I’ve got a pretty good idea. I don’t know what I would have done without my friends when I needed them after my wife died. Let’s just say you’ve given me a chance to pay it forward.”
“Glad to oblige,” Olivia said softly.
Cat drummed her fingers on the steering wheel before turning to Olivia. “By the way, did you learn anything useful from Trish?”
“Other than the name of one of his buddies, no, not really.”
“What was the buddy’s name?”
“Um. Sonny. Sonny Wilkes.”
Cat’s eyebrows rose. “Well, well, well. That is interesting. My business partner was asked to do a background search on that young man just last week. Turns out he has been hanging out with the Alphas a great deal lately.”
“Think there might be a connection?”
“If the Alphas are involved, definitely. We are going to need to dig a lot deeper to find out what it is.”
“So, where do we start?”
Cat side-eyed Olivia. “At the moment, getting you back to my place. You look all in but your shoelaces. Think you can stand more of my cooking or would you prefer to eat out?”
Olivia absently massaged her forehead while debating the merits of both ideas. “I’ve got a better idea. Pizza and beer and an early bedtime. For me anyway. Today has taken the starch out of me.”
“I’ll bet it has. I just happen to know the best pizza place in town. And I also happen to have a supply of Heineken on hand.”
“Yay!” Olivia exclaimed. “A woman after my own heart.”
Chapter Six
T wo hours later, the pizza was little more than a memory and two empty beer cans sat side by side on the coffee table.
Olivia put the recliner footrest up and snuggled against the cushioned chair with a sigh of contentment. “Thanks. I think I just might live now. Oh, wait,” she muttered. “I still have to phone Trish’s mom.”
Cat glanced at the clock on the mantelpiece. “Where does she live?”
“Edmonton.”
“Yeah, it’s early enough. Mrs. Jelinski should still be up.”
“We can hope.”
Olivia dug out her cell phone and dialed the Jelinski’s number. After three rings a woman picked up. “Hello.”
Olivia proceeded with the message she had worked out. There was silence on the line for a few minutes, then Mary’s trembling voice came back on. “Thank you so much, Olivia. I’m going to leave first thing in the morning and should be there by noon. I want to spend some time with Trish until she’s ready to leave the hospital, convince her I really have changed.”
“Sounds like a good idea.” Olivia gave Mary her cell phone number before hanging up.
“That’s taken care of.”
Cat nodded. “You did a great job there.”
Olivia shrugged, waving a hand in dismissal.
“I have the distinct feeling you’ve done something similar before with kids like Trish.”
“No. I just remember what it’s like to be that young, scared, and alone.”
“And then you met Alison?”
“Something like that.”
Olivia closed her eyes, effectively ending that line of discussion. She waited a few minutes more before regarding Cat through half-open eyes. The hard planes of Cat’s face along with the long, lean length of her body gave her a look of feline power carefully under control. She was reminded of a Siamese cat she had come across in her travels once upon a time. It had the same look about it. The slow rise and fall of Cat’s chest suggested she was asleep. Or doing a good job of playing possum.
Now that she had a chance to look around, she took in the big oak hutch that took up one entire wall, her attention lingering on the eclectic collection of china and glassware. Moving on, she bent forward to take a closer look at an array of photos laid out on the walls on either side of the fireplace. She jumped when Cat spoke. “Feel free to check out the rogue’s gallery if you like. In fact,” Cat said, as she levered her recliner into an upright position. “I’ll even give you the guided tour.”
“Thanks, perhaps some other time. I think I’m going to turn in. Goodnight.”
Cat hadn’t missed the shimmer of tears in Olivia’s eyes as Olivia headed upstairs a little faster than necessary. She’d learned long ago that tears can be cathartic and healing. Best to let Olivia deal with whatever she was feeling in her own way for now.
When she heard the distant sound of a door closing from the upper part of the house, Cat sighed and pushed up out of her chair. Making her way to the liquor cabinet, she picked up a crystal decanter and poured a hefty portion of Glenlivet. Swirling the amber fluid around in her glass, she glanced in the direction of the array of photos in what she jokingly referred to as the rogue’s gallery. She was especially fond of the one of her father and grandfather, both dressed in the RCMP red serge dress uniform. The occasion was the day her father had graduated from the depot in Regina. Next to them was a photo of herself, also in uniform, smiling at the camera, arms around the shoulders of her two best friends, the day she graduated. A third photo showed her brother, Chris, looking quite dapper in his dress blues, the day he graduated from the police academy in Seattle. Another photo showed Chris with his two little girls smiling up at him, sunlight picking up the amber highlights in their hair. Her other favorite was that of a family gathering at her uncle’s home in Seattle. She smiled at the memory of that day, with Uncle Hank’s five kids, her mom and dad, her brother and herself, stuffed with hot dogs, burgers, corn on the cob. And beer. Of course, there was beer. Lots and lots of beer. Fortunately, no one was driving anywhere that night. She didn’t have much of a hangover the next morning, but she was sure a few of the ‘growns’ were suffering.
She took a long swallow of her drink, blinking as the liquor hit the back of her throat. At least, that’s what she tried to tell herself as she wiped tears from her eyes. She had a pretty good idea as to just how Olivia must be feeling at the moment. She missed her big rowdy family even though they only lived a short flight away. She sniffed, took another slug of the whisky. A quick glance at the mantel clock and she reached for the landline phone on the table next to her favorite chair. Settling into its depths, one ankle crossed over her knee, she dialed a number she knew by heart. When the call was picked up a few seconds later, she drew in a deep breath. “Hi, Mom.”
Chapter Seven
O livia waved goodbye the next morning after Cat dropped her off at the farm. As the Mustang roared back up the driveway, she blew out her cheeks, relieved that Cat wasn’t going to be around while she changed the tires on the pickup. The woman had earned major brownie points for not taking off after witnessing her little temper tantrum the day before. At least there’d be no danger of anyone getting hurt this time.
Even so, she was quite happy to not have an audience during the hour it took her to finish the job. As a kid, Steven had surprised her on more than one occasion when she thought she was alone and was using her abilities to move something from one place to another without the tractor or any other mechanical aid.
Getting the truck jacked up was easy enough but the lug nuts, put on with a pneumatic wrench, proved to be a little more resistant to her efforts. One by one they loosened and ende
d up in an upturned hubcap. It had been a while since she’d used that much effort with her abilities, and she had to stop and catch her breath before she put the spares on. The damaged tires were put to one side. Later she’d take them off the rims and recycle the tires into the garden. They were just the right size for the rhubarb plants she wanted to get.
Next, she turned her attention to her kitchen door. She sprayed the black marks with graffiti remover, then fetched a bucket of warm water while she waited for the chemicals to do their job. After the prescribed ten minutes had passed, she pulled on a pair of rubber gloves, then proceeded to scrub the offending script off the door. She had a few choice words for the bottom-feeders who were responsible.
To further work off the rage simmering beneath the surface, once she had emptied the bucket of dirty water onto the driveway, she headed to the barn and a stack of dried apple tree logs waiting to be split into kindling. She seized the axe driven into the chopping block and savagely attacked the first piece of wood that came to hand.
With each blow of the axe she pictured whoever was responsible for what had happened to the McIntyres on the receiving end of her fury and chanted. “That’s for Abe. That one’s for Barbara. That one is for Steven, damn his hide. That one’s for Trish.”
It wasn’t until her sweat-soaked shirt was sticking to her body, and her arms ached from her effort, that she dropped the axe and sank down onto the chopping block. Her chest heaving, she swiped her arm across her forehead, then slumped forward, resting her forearms on her thighs. Her vision blurred as tears streamed down her cheeks and she sobbed openly.
After a time, she hiccupped and swiped a grubby hand across her face, smearing dust and tears into a mask. She remained seated for a moment or two, then pushed up off the block. She’d deal with the kindling later. She blew out her cheeks, then returned to the house. Starting a large pot of coffee, she headed upstairs.
In the bathroom she caught a glimpse of her reflection and burst out laughing at the comic raccoon face looking back at her.
Feeling calmer after showering and changing into clothes that didn’t smell like a gym locker, she made her way to her office. She checked the external cameras that showed the driveway and the area between her place and the mobile, then settled in front of her main computer. She stared at the blank screen for several minutes while she ordered her thoughts. First up would be to contact Abe’s brother and sister-in-law at the hotel. She glanced at her watch. It was almost noon. With any luck they would still be around. She dialed the hotel’s number and asked the desk clerk to put her through to their room. When there was no answer, she had her call redirected back to the front desk. She left her cell phone number along with a message for Abe’s brother to call her as soon as possible.
She spent the next hour surfing the web, trying to learn as much as possible about one Steven McIntyre. What had he been up to that had strangers ransacking his house and leaving cryptic comments on her door? And why had he been so pissed off at Trish when he thought she’d been spying on him? None of it made sense. On the other hand, Trish had mentioned a connection between Steven and the Alphas.
She was interrupted by the ringing of her phone. The caller turned out to be Sid McIntyre, Abe’s older brother. They exchanged pleasantries, then got down to business. Sid gave her the name of the funeral home where services would be held for all three members of the family and the location of the cemetery where they would be laid to rest.
Olivia was about to offer to meet Sid and his wife for lunch at the hotel until she remembered she didn’t have wheels.
“Damn,” she muttered. What a time to be without her car. She could always use the pickup of course, but she’d like to get the alignment checked first. However, it turned out that Sid was going to be tied up for pretty much the next day or two. He assured her they would talk after the funeral and work out the details of what should be done with Barb and Abe’s belongings. She nodded, realized that Sid couldn’t see her response and said that would be fine.
She hung up and sat there staring out the window, trying not to think too much about going to another funeral. Losing Alison had been traumatic enough. The McIntyre’s’ funeral was going to be almost as bad. She shook her head, surprised at how much she was missing the couple who were with her for so many years. The thought of going through the process of hiring someone else to take their place was enough to make her want to curl up in a corner and cry. She had a hunch Cat felt much the same about hiring a new secretary.
Which brought her to the subject of Cat helping her track down the McIntyre’s killers. Would having the PI on board help or hinder her own efforts? She could certainly afford to hire her. That was not going to be a problem. What bothered her was the idea of working with someone. Up until now, she’d managed to deal with the ungodly pretty much on her own. She scrubbed at her face. Let’s get through the rest of this week, then decide , she told herself. Right now, I have more immediate concerns.
She poured another cup of coffee, then settled down for what she hoped would be an uninterrupted session at her computer. First order of business was to access the hospital’s billing department and locate the information she needed regarding Trish’s account. Since the girl didn’t have medical coverage or proof that she was a permanent resident of British Columbia, Trish would be billed directly for the services she had received while in the hospital. There was no way Trish could pay the amount showing and she was expected to be in the hospital for at least another three days. Somehow Olivia doubted the mother was going to be in a position to pay that bill either. Fortunately, she could and would take care of that little matter when the time came. In the meantime, she’d see about getting a couple of new outfits for the girl. Even she could tell the old jeans and shirts she’d seen in Trish’s closet weren’t going to fit her for much longer. She’d seen street kids who were better dressed.
Next, a quick search of Steven’s bank statements showed no unexpected large deposits. In fact, he had little money in his account. She had more success with the cell phone Trish had given her. A few of the numbers were local calls, but there was one in particular that showed up on a regular basis.
Not too smart, Stevie, you should have deleted your call logs, instead of leaving them on your phone where someone like me could find them.
She did a reverse search and wasn’t surprised when the name Sonny Wilkes showed up. Trish had mentioned that Steven was chummy with him.
A number on the message icon caught her eye and she clicked on the button. The name Sonny showed in the client box.
“Where the hell are you, Steve? You said to meet you at two this afternoon and now it’s almost four o’clock and there’s no sign of you! You aren’t even replying to my text messages. What the fuck’s goin’ on? What am I supposed to do now? I can’t stick around here all day. I’m going to be royally pissed off if you don’t show up soon.”
Now, what was that all about? She checked the date the text was sent. Thursday, the day of the drive-by shooting. Clearly Sonny knew nothing of what had happened.
From what she knew of the way gangs operated, the rules were simple. Keep your mouth shut. Do as you are told. Do not use the product they sold. Break any of those rules and you’d better hope you could get lost somewhere where they couldn’t find you.
A tight smile tugged at Olivia’s lips. She had her own set of rules. And the Alphas were not going to like the way she enforced hers.
Before she could read through the other text messages from Sonny, a chime announced that the battery was critically low. Olivia found a charge cord and plugged the phone in. She checked her watch, decided it was time to call Cat and let her know she was finished for the day.
Chapter Eight
H alf an hour later Cat pulled up in front of the house. Olivia tried to ignore the flush of pleasure she felt on seeing the woman who had befriended her such a short time ago. What was it now? Only five days? Seemed like much longer than that since she’d awakened on
Cat’s couch. And now here she was, letting someone get close to her, something she hadn’t done since the only person to love her unconditionally had left her on her own. Or maybe, with the death of the McIntyres, she was just feeling lost and alone again. She tried to shrug the feeling off. It would pass, especially once she could immerse herself in a familiar routine. She put on a smile for Cat’s benefit. “Hi, stranger. Long-time no see.”
Cat laughed as she got out and held open the passenger door for Olivia. “Yeah, it’s been all of what, six hours since I dropped you off here this morning?”
“Good heavens, is that all? Felt more like six years.”
Cat grinned. “Now who’s being a smart ass? So, how did your day go?”
Olivia rolled her shoulders, a dull ache reminding her of her session with an axe earlier. “So so, I guess.”
“Good. Have any problem with the pickup?”
“No, it went off without a hitch. I just need to get the alignment checked. Unfortunately, that’s going to have to wait until the weekend. I’m going to be run off my feet between now and then. I managed to touch base with Abe’s brother. The funeral and the internment are being held this Thursday at eleven. Do you know where Forest Lawn is?”
“Yes. I know where it is. Would you like me to come with you?”
Olivia considered the offer. Abe and Barb had stood by her after Alison died so she wouldn’t be alone. Did she need Cat with her now? A heavy sense of loss settled in the pit of her stomach and she fought back the tears that pricked the back of her eyelids.
“Yes, I’d like that. If it’s not going to be too much for you, that is.”