Lucky Thirteen (The Raiford Chronicles Book 1)

by Janet Taylor-Perry

  ♣♣♣

  However, Ray made one phone call to his boss. “Chief, I need a little trust for the next several days,” he said.

  “What the hell are you up to?”

  “I don’t want to tell you so that you can claim complete ignorance if it fails.”

  “Are you going to get both of us fired?”

  “I don’t think so. Just back me up when the time comes.”

  “Ray, I swear.” Chief Gerard took a deep breath. “Does this have anything to do with the man that came in who looks like you?”

  “You heard about that, huh?”

  “Yeah. Baker mentioned it to me.”

  “Yeah. It has everything to do with him and the missing woman. Please have some faith in me.”

  “Okay. I don’t feel easy with whatever secrecy you’re planning, but I’ll trust you—for now. But I swear if anyone else dies, I’ll fry your ass.”

  “As you should.”

  21

  Getting to Know You

  As Chris and Larkin waited for the twins to make their transformation, they became well acquainted. Chris put herself in charge of their physical needs. Larkin took control of their social interaction. After two days, they felt a sisterly connection. Chris got out Styrofoam cups and plugged in the coffee pot the second morning. She asked, “Larkin, are you sure you wanna go through with Ray’s lame-brained plan?”

  “Want to? No. But I think it might be the only way to pin down Latrice. And Ray will be wired and there’ll be agents, including you, stationed strategically to be in the door within seconds on Ray’s code word.”

  “I’m worried about Raif, too,” Chris confessed. “He’s really a good guy. I don’t want him to get hurt anymore.”

  “Chris, what’s going on?”

  “Nothing. I just have a soft spot for him. Working with Ray and getting to know both of them makes me want to know what happened to my daughter after she was adopted. She’ll be turning sixteen next month.”

  “So, track her down. Abuse your authority a little.”

  “That’s what Ray would say. Finding out he has a twin has made him more thoughtful. Don’t misunderstand.” She held her hands in the air in a stop motion. “My partner’s great! That’s just it—he’s my partner. He’s as hardheaded and headstrong as I am. We would kill each other. Raif seems sweeter and needier.”

  Larkin interrupted, “And a part of you wants to take care of him. I understand. I’ve seen how vulnerable Raif can be. I just think you’ve missed that part of Ray. He tries so hard to hide his insecurity. I sense he needs somebody to look after him, too. The difference is he won’t admit it. Well, maybe when he finds the right woman, he’ll admit he needs her.”

  “Ray’s very proud, or at least self-reliant. He’s afraid of failure. He’s the type that says, ‘If you want it done right, do it yourself.’” Chris mimicked Ray.

  Larkin laughed. “Yeah, I get that impression, but he sure seems to rely on you.”

  “That amazes me, but we’ve truly become partners. I’ll find it hard to leave when this is over.”

  “Don’t go.”

  “What reason would I have to stay? This is my job.”

  “If God wants you to stay here, He’ll find a way.”

  “Larkin, you astound me.” Chris poured two cups of coffee and handed one to her new friend. “Considering everything you’ve been through, how do you remain so strong and positive?”

  For a moment Larkin looked at the cross at the top of the wall as if seeking inspiration. “I have a true abiding faith,” she responded.

  “I wish I could feel that way.”

  “You can. You must simply trust in God.”

  “I believe, but I was brought up in the Eastern Orthodox Church. It’s very works-oriented. Strict obedience is the key.” Old hurts resonated in her voice. “I’m sure after my rather immoral past, I’m bound for Hell.”

  “Works come as a result of faith, Chris. Faith first; works come later. And you can never be perfect, but you can be forgiven.”

  “I’ve done some pretty…um…shall I say loose things?” She stirred sugar into her coffee and took a sip. “I haven’t been celibate like you by any means.”

  “Have you ever asked God to forgive you?” The early morning sun flickered through the cross in the window and made a reflection on Larkin’s hair like a halo.

  “Yes, and I’ve reformed over the last few years. I’ve become much more selective. I keep hoping for someone to actually love me.” The agent sighed. “I wish it was that simple.”

  “It is,” Larkin said with conviction. “And with the love of the Heavenly Father, other kinds of love seem to come easier.” She paused with a slightly dubious look on her face, dipped brows and a half frown. “Well, I think romantic love might come easier. I’d like someone to love me, too.”

  Chris laughed a little. “Like Brad? I didn’t like that jerk.”

  Larkin shrugged. “He didn’t like the fact that I wanted to wait for marriage to have sex.”

  “I’m really glad I met you. ‘The love of the Heavenly Father,’” Chris repeated what Larkin had said. “Nobody has ever made this much sense to me.”

  “Raif said the same thing. Like I told him: I’m just the messenger. Listen to the message.”

  “Ray needs to hear the message.”

  Larkin giggled and put her coffee cup down. She made the sign of the cross and looked heavenward. “If he pulls off his little switch-a-roo, he will. Be assured, my friend.”

  Chris sat on the bed beside Larkin. “Mind if I ask you something else?”

  “Of course not.”

  “Do you believe in the supernatural?”

  Larkin thought before she spoke. “Yes. Why?”

  Chris heaved a sigh. “I dreamed Raif asked me to help him find his heart before I ever met him.”

  The two women locked eyes without speaking as Larkin considered all the dreams she’d had, especially since being abducted. She clutched Chris’s hand. “Let me tell you about the dreams I’ve been having…”

  ♣♣♣

  Meanwhile, both Ray and Raif were becoming rather scruffy as each tried to master the other’s mannerisms and speech patterns. They found they did many things the same way. They liked many of the same foods. They chose the same cologne. However, there were differences. Raif tended to be more easygoing but more formal in his speech and interpersonal interactions. He liked his life orderly, with little complication, but he was flexible and adapted. Ray had a quicker temper and was impatient. Ray was also brutally candid. He had been known to hurt feelings. Both were analytical as their choices of professions showed.

  Their lives had been similar, yet different. Both had been adopted by families who loved them dearly. Both had affectionately called their sisters “Ronnie.” And both had had their hearts broken by a woman who could not handle a difficult situation, but when that topic came up, both balked and shared very little.

  Ray said, “I don’t like to talk about Mia.”

  Raif nodded. “I understand. Talking about Abbey hurts too much. We’ll get there one day.”

  “Yeah, just not now,” Ray agreed. “Hey, did you know you’re older by thirteen minutes. You were adopted a few days before me. I was still in incubation.”

  “Good to know I’m the big brother.” He grinned. “I was brought up on a farm. My family often struggled financially, yet their love never faltered.” Raif told his brother, “Because of a severe case of mumps, Louis Gautier was sterile. When I was six, the Gautiers adopted a little girl that they named Rhonda. My dad, sister, and pet dog died tragically seven years later in a car accident. Mom worked hard to get me through high school, and I won a scholarship to Tulane University to continue my education and became an architect as Dad had encouraged.”

  Ray asked, “Did the two of you actually frame a house when you were about ten?”

  Raif laughed, eyes crinkling at the corners. “Yeah. I designed it with a ruler and a protrac
tor. It was a simple ranch style. That’s when Dad told me to be an architect. How’d you know?”

  “I dreamed about it.”

  “I dreamed about you my whole life.”

  “I know. I did, too.”

  Ray already knew all that had transpired with Abigail Bertram even if Raif didn’t talk much about it and how Raif had come to live in Eau Bouease. Raif spoke fondly of his childhood. Though not wealthy, he had been happy, and his short time with Louis Gautier had been a firm foundation of unconditional love. Maria, his mother, only strengthened that love as the years went by. Ray was satisfied his brother had been as well loved as he had.

  While Raif’s family struggled with some financial hardship, Ray’s was well-to-do. Ray’s parents had had a daughter they named Veronica. Ray explained how he was adopted. “Due to complications during childbirth, my mom couldn’t have any more children. When Veronica was four, the Reynoldses adopted moi.” He grinned and placed a hand on his chest. “I grew up a bit spoiled. Life was pleasant until Veronica disappeared and was murdered when I was thirteen. That incident made me determined to become a detective to protect others from my sister’s fate.”

  Ray sighed. “I’ve done a miserable job so far, haven’t I?”

  “No,” argued Raif. “You’ve done all that you knew to do. Now, God, at His appointed time, has sent you the means to stop this evil.”

  “Is part of your illness to sound like a religious fanatic?” He arched an eyebrow.

  “No!” Raif laughed. “But I have discovered real faith. Larkin explains it so simply. After you spend a few days with her, you’ll be a changed man, too.”

  A burn filled Ray’s face. “I already feel changed because of her. I think she’s an angel.”

  “She definitely has heavenly guidance, brother. Be careful, or she’ll totally bewitch you.”

  “Has she beguiled you, Raif?”

  “Yes, indeed, but I’m not attracted to her in a physical sense. She reminds me too much of a little redheaded girl that was my sister. Now, Chris!” He stretched his eyes wide. “That’s a woman!”

  “Oh, ho!” cheered Ray with a clap of his hands.

  “Don’t you think Chris is beautiful, Ray?”

  “Yes, Chris is very attractive, but I could never think of her like that. She’s my partner.”

  “Only temporarily.”

  “Then, she’ll be over a thousand miles away.” The detective shook his head. “No, Chris and I would never work.”

  “Good.”

  “Raif, she’ll be leaving when this case is over.”

  “Who says I have to stay here?”

  “I…I thought…You’re my brother, my family. My mom wants you to be part of our family. What about Walter Bertram? I thought…Oh, never mind.” Ray waved his hand as if trying to erase something. “Let’s get down to business. We both need a little more facial hair if we’re to fool first the angelic being and then Satan’s spawn.” He touched his right cheek. “I have this little scar to cover up. After we convince Larkin, you can go clean cut while I continue to look like a reject from the sixties.”

  “Ray?”

  “It’s fine, Raif. I’ve always been self-sufficient. I’ve never admitted this to anyone else, and I probably never will again, but I need you in my life. Losing you now would devastate me.”

  “I’m not leaving. Even if I did, I’d only be a phone call away. You’re a part of me, a part that has been missing for a long time. Now that I’ve found you, I’d hate to leave you. But you’re right; we have something more important than our feelings to deal with right now. We have a killer to catch and God’s messenger to save.”

  The two brothers embraced and Ray said huskily, “Where’s that makeup artist?”

  ♣♣♣

  Well,” quipped Chris as they heard footsteps. “Let the games begin.”

  Forty-eight hours after Ray and Raif left Larkin and Chris, the two men returned. When they entered the wine cellar, identical twins in every detail stood before a pair of astonished women.

  “Larkin, who’s who?” Chris asked.

  “At a cursory glance, I can’t tell. Let me pose a few questions Raif would know from having been with me for more than two weeks. What’s my favorite breakfast food?”

  The men answered simultaneously. “Rice Krispies with fresh fruit.”

  “What’s my favorite fruit?”

  Again the answer came in unison. “Blueberries.”

  “Oh, this will never work. Chris, ask something that only Ray would know.”

  “You know, Larkin, they’ve discussed possible scenarios. I’ll try this one though.” She took a deep breath. “What’s my biggest regret?”

  Larkin gasped. She hurt for her friend and her heart sent up a prayer. How will Chris handle this? It’s so personal.

  Ray looked sidelong at his brother as he felt a pang of betrayal, but for a higher cause.

  Raif made eye contact with Chris and gave her a look of sympathy as he replied, “That you gave your daughter up for adoption.”

  Chris looked at Larkin and shrugged. “Either that’s Ray, or Ray divulged my deepest, darkest secret to a stranger in order to stop a killer. Either could be true. If he didn’t tell Raif, well, everybody knows now. But Ray would do whatever it takes to stop this maniac. So, my assessment as a trained FBI agent is that Raif just answered my question.”

  Both men said, “Chris.”

  She shook her head. “Sympathy from either of you is not required. I did the right thing then although it hurt like hell; just as Audrey did the right thing thirty years ago. Now, it’s time for us to do the right thing. Let’s lay an inescapable trap.”

  “Agreed,” Larkin said.

  Revealing the truth, Ray said, “Really?”

  “Yes. I’ll be in very good hands.”

  ♣♣♣

  Raif and Chris left Ray with Larkin. The time would soon come when Ray would need to deceive a very cunning and perceptive jackal, not an innocent, trusting angel or a dear friend.

  In Ray’s car, Raif, at the wheel, simply asked, “Where to?”

  “Ray’s place. I have to keep you safe while we wait for Halloween.”

  “Will we be going into the police station?”

  “I hate to send you in there alone, but all the guys know Ray would never leave you and Larkin unguarded. We’ll have to put in an appearance now and then. I’ll go most often, but you’ll have to show up two or three times. Keep your conversations short. Be grouchy.” She nodded with high-arched eyebrows. “They’ll buy that. I’ll lay out the plans for Halloween night.”

  Raif released a long puffy sigh. “What about all the other time? I don’t mind telling you this whole act worries me.”

  “I’ll stay with you, Raif. Heck, Ray’s sleeper sofa is as comfortable as the hotel bed.”

  “Thank you,” he said with deep humility.

  “For what? Doing my job?”

  “This is above and beyond the call of duty.”

  “Now, I don’t think you’re as big a challenge as you do.”

  “You’re not afraid of the psycho?”

  “You are not a psycho.” She gave him an affectionate punch in the arm. “As a matter of fact, I think you need to see a neurologist. After what you went through in New Orleans, your problem could be physical, not psychological.”

  “You really think so?”

  “Yep.”

  Raif glanced at Chris and could tell she was serious from the firm set of her jaw and her narrowed eyes. “All right. When this is over, I’ll go if you’ll hold my hand.”

  Chris winked. “I’d love to.” She reached out her hand. “I’ll start right now.”

  He squeezed her offered hand. “I think this could be the start of something very nice.”

  As they pulled into Ray’s parking place, she affirmed, “I agree, but first let’s get you looking presentable.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” He scratched his chin. “This mess itches. I can’t wait to
get it off. I feel for Ray. He has to keep it for Latrice.” He said the name with derision.

  Upon entering Ray’s apartment, they were greeted by enthusiastic ankle rubbing. Raif picked up Cyclops and rubbed his head soothingly. “Larkin is just fine. She’ll be home soon.” He turned to Chris. “I was surprised to see Larkin’s cat here.”

  Chris waved her hand. “Ray’s a softie. He won’t admit it, but he’s very sensitive.”

  “I’m glad I’ve met my brother, but I do wish it were under better circumstances.”

  “Me too.”

  The FBI agent made her way through the small, functional apartment. The living area consisted of one large open room with the living room and dining room running continuous and separated from the kitchen by a bar, which had cabinet space accessibility from both sides beneath it. The color scheme ran the gamut of the beige spectrum: wheat colored walls, ecru trim, grayish-tan Berber carpet, and tan linoleum with white octagons in both the kitchen and the bathroom. All countertops were off-white, tan-flecked Formica, and every appliance and every piece of plumbing was basic white.

  Raif’s eyes crinkled as he chuckled. “You can tell I didn’t design this complex. It’s satisfactory, but sort of cheap.”

  Chris laughed. Rummaging in the refrigerator, Chris said, “Yes! Go clean up, and I’ll make us something to eat.”

  When Raif returned from the shower, he felt and looked like a new man. He found popcorn shrimp, tater tots, and coleslaw waiting.

  “This looks great.” He took one of the four non-descript light brown chairs around the matching circular table.

  Placing the food on the table and sitting beside her charge, Chris observed, “So do you. A definite improvement.”

  Deep dimples showed as he smiled. “I’m glad you noticed.”

  Over the next week, Chris and Raif talked and bantered. Raif pulled off several visits to the police station, to his relief. The morning after the switch, he even facilitated the press conference in which Steve Journey delivered the killer’s profile to the public.