Presumption of Guilt

by Rachel Sinclair

  Unfortunately, Regina was witnessing this entire meltdown that I was having at my brother’s expense. Christian, thankfully, was in the other room. He was working on my computer, trying to find my brother.

  She came over to me, and she looked me in the eye. And then she looked right at Aidan. “Aidan, why don’t you tell her what you really were doing yesterday? And tell me, while you’re at it. I don’t believe the story you’re telling us, not at all. I think you did see that guy. I think you saw him, and for some odd reason you’re now telling us that you didn’t. Now, you better come clean. This is important. We need to talk to this guy, and find out what he knows. I can tell just by looking in your eyes that you are a lying son of a bitch.”

  “I’m not lying, I’m telling the truth,” Aidan protested. However, when he said that, he looked at the floor. Before, when he was talking to me, he was looking me right in the eye. But, after Regina had called him out on his lying, he decided to not be able to look either of us in the eye.

  “Listen, dude,” Regina said. “You can try to play your shady games with your own sister all you want. You might be able to bullshit her, but you can’t bullshit me. I’ll call you on it every damn time. Now you’re obviously not telling either one of us the truth, and I don’t really know what the truth is. But I at least know with reasonable certainty that that Julian Rodriguez guy really was at that nuthouse you went to yesterday. Because if you really were unable to see him, you wouldn’t come here and lie to both of our faces. I think you saw him, and I think that someone got to you. How close am I?”

  It was then that I saw Aidan’s face flush. “I don’t have to put up with this crap.” And then he went into his room and shut the door. Ten minutes later, he came out in a wetsuit. And then he went out onto the balcony and got his surfboard, which is where he kept it.

  “Aidan, what do you think you’re doing?” I asked him.

  “What does it look like? Let’s see, I’m in my wetsuit, I’ve got my surfboard, I’m going out the front door. I can see that the waves are pretty tasty today. I know that lots of my friends are out there already. It’s a Sunday. I’m not working. I don’t have school. I think that even you, who don’t exactly have the skills of Sherlock, can figure out exactly where I’m going. Later.”

  “Aidan, you go out that front door, I swear to God, I’m going to change the locks,” I said. “You’re not going to be able to come back in here.”

  He raised an eyebrow, opened the door, and stood in the doorway. He hesitated before he left. “You’re going to change the locks? You promise?”

  And then, at that, he slammed the door.

  I was back to feeling enraged. How could he do this to me? After all I had done for him? I was letting him stay with me, not charging him a dime, and this was how he treated me?

  “Dude, you can’t be mad at him,” Regina said. “That guy, your brother, he knows something. He knows something, and he can’t say a word to you about it. I don’t really know why exactly he can’t tell you, but I can almost guarantee you that he knows a lot more than what he’s supposed to know. I think that somebody’s gotten to him, and they made a threat to him that has got him running scared.”

  “And why do you think that? Why are you so sure that he’s hiding something, and that he’s not just a lazy slacker who blew off the assignment I gave him?”

  “You’re too close to this. He’s your brother, he’s done crap to you in the past that has pissed you off. You’re automatically gonna think the worst about whatever he does. I’m just a neutral observer. And, you forget, I’m an investigator. I’ve shaken people down on more than one occasion. I know when someone’s lying, and that dude was definitely lying. I’ll shake him down later, and I’ll come up with the truth. But maybe I shouldn’t come up with that truth. Because maybe if I did, all of us are going to be dead people. I think that we’ve touched a nerve. Somebody is pretty desperate to keep whatever it is that Julian Rodriguez knows away from us. That’s all I know.”

  I thought about what Regina was saying, and I realized that she probably was very right. She was an investigator. She dealt with nonverbal cues like nobody I had ever known. I was an attorney, and I dealt with facts and logic and evidence. And the facts, logic, and evidence all pointed to my brother being a flake who blew off the one thing I asked him to do, then didn’t bother to tell me about it, and went and got high with his friends. But Regina was seeing something else that I wasn’t seeing, so perhaps I needed to give him the benefit of the doubt.

  Christian came out of the bedroom. “I’m guessing that your brother’s phone isn’t turned on, because I can’t seem to track it down. Sorry about that.”

  When he said that, for some reason, I grinned. And then I started laughing hysterically.

  “I have to say, I wasn’t expecting that kind of reaction from you,” he said. “I mean, I tell you that I can’t find your brother, and he’s still missing, and you’re laughing?”

  I saw that my brother’s phone was on the table. And, just like Christian had said, it was turned off. By now, I was laughing so hard that tears were running down my face. I could do nothing but point at the phone on the table, and I collapsed on the sofa, still laughing my ass off.

  Christian looked over at Regina, who just shrugged her shoulders. “Aidan came home. He’s out surfing right now. I think the reason why she’s laughing is because the reason why you couldn’t get in touch with his phone is because it’s here. Turned off.”

  “I guess I don’t understand. What do you mean, Aidan came home? Why didn’t anybody come in and tell me about it?” Christian asked.

  “We would’ve, but homegirl over there was pretty much spending the whole time that he was here reaming him a new one. I was just trying to referee between the two of them, so none of us thought about calling you in. Sorry about that.”

  I finally stopped laughing. And then I looked Christian in the eye. “I’m sorry. You’re probably thinking I’m insane. But, I think I just needed a pressure release valve, and sometimes I laugh when I should be crying. But, Aidan came home and told me that he not only didn’t talk to the person that he was supposed to be talking to, but that after he left that place, the Behavioral Health Institute place, he went over to his friend’s house, got stoned and didn’t bother to call me. However, Regina thinks that he’s lying about all that, and she doesn’t quite know what the real story is. I don’t really know what the real story is either. All that I know is that we’re no closer to figuring out what this Julian Rodriguez knows than we were yesterday.”

  It was then that the doorbell rang again.

  “It must be Aidan. He probably forgot his keys.”

  I opened the door, and it was not Aidan.

  It was some woman. A woman I’d never seen before. She was probably about 90 pounds. Her hair was extremely ratty, what was left of it. She had bald spots all over her head. She was dressed in a heavy coat, even though it was probably 80° outside. She had a backpack. She had shoes on that had holes in the toes. She smelled like somebody who had urinated in her pants over and over again. It was the same smell that I would smell when homeless men used to get on the trolley. Her blue eyes were bloodshot, and her lips were cracked.

  Yet, I could see where at one time, maybe before she became homeless, which she obviously was, she must’ve been an attractive woman. Under all the cracked, leathered skin, I could see elegant bone structure in her face.

  “Avery Collins?” she said to me.

  I was apprehensive. To say the very least. I didn’t know if this was another of my stalkers. So far, the only stalker who’d been bold enough to come into my house was the one who had threatened me with a knife. I never did find out who that was.

  I cleared my throat. “Yes?”

  She extended a weathered and shaking hand. “My name is Lauren Whitmore. I’m Aria’s mother.”

  Chapter 24

  “Aria’s mother,” I repeated dumbly. “Come in. Come in.”

 
She stood in the doorway, looking unsure of herself. She kinda peeked around my shoulder, as if she was looking to see who was in the room with me. I saw her hand going up and down on the strap of her backpack as she stood there, looking like she didn’t quite know what to do.

  “I don’t mean to intrude, I mean, I see you have people here. I’m sorry, I don’t really know why I am here.” Then she shook her head. “No, I do know why I’m here. I have really bad days. Most days are bad days. But today’s been a good day. I’ve slept. I’ve slept more than I’ve slept in a long time. I’ve been sleeping on the beach. They haven’t chased me off yet. And, it’s just been a good day. I finally know what has happened in my life. I remember everything. For the first time in a long time, I remember everything. And I need to tell you what I know. I need to tell you.”

  She was still standing in the doorway, and I was anxious for her to come in. “Come in, please,” I said. I beckoned her into the living room. “If you would like to, you can use my shower. I even have some clean clothes that you can change into. Would you like that?” I asked her. I hoped that I didn’t sound like I was being condescending, rude or presumptuous. But I had a feeling that that was exactly what she needed.

  She swallowed as she took one tentative step into the living room. “Do you happen to have a Jacuzzi tub?” she asked. And then she closed her eyes while her hand started stroking the strap of her backpack on her shoulder again. Then she opened her eyes. “I’m so sorry. I should not have asked that question.”

  “No, no. Of course I have a Jacuzzi tub. I have one in both the bathroom in the master bedroom, and the bathroom in the hall. The one in the hall is a nicer bathroom, so maybe you might go in there.”

  She took another step into the living room, and then looked over at Christian and Regina with wary eyes. “I’m so sorry, I don’t mean to be bothering you guys. I need to talk to Avery, and, well, I think I really do need to wash up. I’ll admit it, I haven’t had a decent shower in so long that I don’t remember the last time I’ve had one. Sometimes I’m able to go to a shelter, but it’s almost impossible to get into their showers, because there are so many people lined up for them. I honestly can’t remember the last time I’ve even seen a bathtub. I think that if I was able to take a long bath in a Jacuzzi tub that I’ll feel like I’ve died and gone to heaven.”

  Regina came over to her, and gave her a spontaneous hug. “I’m glad to meet you,” she said to a Lauren. “And don’t feel like you’re bothering us. We’re really happy to see you.”

  At that, Lauren took a few more steps into the living room. She looked over at the bathroom with longing eyes.

  I put my hand on her back, and guided her over to the bathroom. “There’s towels in there, stacked up on some shelves that I’ve had built into the wall. And I also have a cabinet in there that has all kinds of bath salts and bubble bath liquid and all kinds of stuff. Feel free to just go through and use whatever you like in there,” I said. “I even have some candles on the side of the tub. Feel free to light them.”

  She looked over at me, tears in her eyes. “Thank you. I’m a stranger. You don’t know me. You don’t have to do this for me. But this is probably the most kindness I have experienced from anybody for as long as I can remember.”

  Then she shut the door to the bathroom, and I could hear the faucet running in the bathtub.

  I went over to Regina. “What the hell? Did that just happen? Did we just meet Aria’s mother, and she is now in my bathtub? Did I just imagine that?”

  Regina grinned. “No, dude. That totally just happened. Now, if she really is who she says she is, we’re in business. Who needs Julian Rodriguez, when we have Lauren Whitmore?”

  I went over to Christian, who was sitting at the dining room table, still looking at my computer.

  “I’m looking at some of the pictures online of Aria,” he said, “trying to see if I can find a picture of her with her mother. So far, though, all I’ve seen have been pictures of her with Colleen, her stepmother. I’m trying to see if I can find a picture that we can possibly compare to this woman who just came in the door. Because, for all we know, she could just be some random homeless woman who is taking all of us for a ride.”

  Regina and I sat down with him, and the three of us went through the pictures online.

  I finally saw exactly what I was looking for. It was a picture of Aria when she was about 10 years old. She was standing between a man who was clearly Jacob, and a woman. I looked closely at that woman.

  It was hard to reconcile the homeless woman who had appeared at my doorstep with this woman, but I could clearly see that the woman who was currently in my bathtub was most likely the same woman who was in this picture. The eyes were the same shape – the woman in my bathtub, and the woman in the picture, both had eyes that were round but then on the very edge slanted down just a tiny bit. The lips were the same – both the woman who was at my door and the woman in this picture had full lips. Granted, the woman who called herself Lauren had cracked lips, but they were the same shape as the woman in the picture. The nose was exactly the same, the cheekbones were the same.

  No doubt about it. The woman who called herself Lauren was weathered, beaten down by life. She was quite a bit skinnier than the woman in this picture. But you could always tell a person by their eyes. Those were usually unique. And this woman in this picture and Lauren had the same eyes.

  “That’s her,” I said, as I felt tears come to my eyes. What had happened to her? Her husband, her ex-husband, was a billionaire, for the love of God. What happened to her that she had become homeless? I mean obviously, she probably had some kind of mental illness, but why would her husband just let her be homeless? What kind of person was he?

  I had a feeling that when she came out, I was going to find out exactly what kind of person he was.

  She finally came out of the bathtub about two hours later. “I’m so sorry, I almost fell asleep in there. I felt human for the first time in years sitting in that bathtub.” She was dressed in a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt that I had laid out for her. I had also given her a pair of my socks and a pair of my shoes. My jeans and my sweatshirt hung on her tiny frame. I was not a heavy woman by any stretch of imagination - I was about 5’6” and 115 pounds. But this woman was my height, and probably a good 30 pounds lighter. She was literally skin and bones.

  She shyly came over to where we were sitting, and I stood up, and took her hands.

  “Sit down,” I said. “Regina is in the kitchen, making dinner for us. She makes a mean roasted chicken, with all the fixings. Mashed potatoes, gravy, cornbread, salad, asparagus. I hope you’re hungry.”

  Lauren smiled. “Of course I’m hungry. I haven’t eaten in several days. I mean, sometimes I’m able to get over to the food pantry and sometimes I can get into the shelter and I can eat. And sometimes the dumpster diving is pretty good. You can find some pretty good things in a dumpster, you’d be surprised. But I haven’t had much luck the past few days. So, yes, I’m starving.”

  I nodded my head. “Good. Um, this is Christian, I don’t think that I have formally introduced the two of you. He’s going to be working with me on the Esmeralda Gutierrez case.”

  She looked over at Christian and nodded her head. “Pleased to meet you,” she said.

  “Pleasure’s is all mine,” Christian said to her.

  Christian went in to help Regina get some food on the table, and then the two of them set the table and brought out all the food.

  “Looks like it’s ready to go,” I said to Lauren. “So let’s eat.”

  The four of us chowed down, and it was clear that Lauren really had not eaten in quite a while. She savagely tore into a couple of chicken thighs, a chicken leg and a breast. She ate second helpings of mashed potatoes and several pieces of cornbread. She occasionally glanced up from her plate and smiled sheepishly, as if she was trying to tell us that she was not really a savage - she was just starving.

  After dinner, we all went
out onto my balcony. There was a table and chairs out there, and it was a nice evening. I could hear the waves coming in, which never failed to calm me. I could tell that the sound of the waves was very calming for Lauren, as well. I wanted her to be as comfortable as possible, because I needed to get some information from her. Plus, I really felt for her.

  “Okay, Lauren. Tell us what you know.”

  She nodded her head. “That’s why I’m here.”

  Chapter 25

  “Where do I begin?” she asked. “Aria was a beautiful child. And we had a beautiful life. I mean, we had problems, just like everybody else. I mean, who doesn’t have problems? But, you know, everything was pretty good. I met Jacob when I was only 19. We had our daughter Aria, and then our son, Brad.”

  “Your son? Aria had a brother?” I asked. This was actually something new.

  She nodded her head. “He had problems throughout most of his life. He was kind of in and out of mental institutions through most of his life. He’s a brilliant man. Or at least he was a brilliant boy. I mean, his IQ is just off the charts. But he kind of lives in his own world, even now. I mean, I visit him from time to time. He lived in a group home, but he doesn’t anymore. He was really interested in computers. Very very interested in that. He was very good at that. But, as I said, he had a lot of problems.”