by Jana DeLeon
“You might have been right—” I started, but then stopped.
As soon as the nurse disappeared from sight, Brandon glanced around and then hurried for the door to the ICU rooms.
“He’s headed for the ICU rooms,” I said and bolted into the hospital.
The nurse had returned to the front desk, looking confused since Brandon was no longer standing there, then startled when I ran past her.
“Ma’am!” she called out, but I didn’t even hesitate.
By the time I rounded the corner to Emmaline’s room, Mannie was standing there, holding Brandon two inches off the ground by his shirt collar. Brandon’s face was turning red and he grasped at the shirt around his neck, clearly struggling to breathe.
“You can put him down,” I said. “But don’t let go.”
Mannie dropped him and his knees buckled, but since the Heberts’ strongman still had hold of his shirt, he didn’t fall completely to the ground. Then Mannie shoved him into the chair he’d been using and glared down at him, daring him to move. Only an idiot would take that bet.
“What are you doing here?” I asked. “And don’t even try to pass off an injury. I saw you distract that nurse so you could slink back here.”
I have to give him credit—at least he had the good sense to look frightened.
“I swear I wasn’t doing anything,” he said.
“Then why are you here?” I asked. “You can answer me here or my associate can take you with him to answer questions somewhere else. I saw Palmer talking to you today and you didn’t look very happy. Trust me when I say that Palmer is a walk in the park compared to my associate here.”
Mannie grinned. “Thank you.”
Brandon glanced up at the mountain of scary muscle and some of the color drained from his face.
“Hello?”
It took me a second to process that it was Emmaline’s voice I’d heard.
I bolted into her room, Ida Belle right on my heels. She was still lying flat and the only illumination in the room came from those small lights on the hospital bed. As I walked up to the side of the bed, she blinked a couple times, clearly trying to bring me into focus. I saw Mannie walk in behind Ida Belle, clutching Brandon by his collar.
“Mama?” she asked, her voice weak.
“No, Emmaline,” I said. “It’s Fortune. Carter’s girlfriend.”
Her brow creased and I could tell my name wasn’t registering, but what concerned me more was that it didn’t seem as if Carter’s had registered, either. She looked over at Ida Belle and smiled.
“Good to see you, Ida Belle,” she said. “I can fix some sweet tea.”
“Not right now,” Ida Belle said. “I’m fine. You just stay put.”
She looked briefly at Mannie but there was no sign of recognition, but when her gaze shifted to Brandon, she pushed herself up and smiled.
“Cam,” she said. “You came home early. How did you manage that?”
Brandon’s eyes widened and he looked at Emmaline, then me, then Mannie, clearly not knowing what to do.
“So sleepy,” she said. “I’m going back to bed. We’ll talk in the morning.”
And she drifted off again.
“Call Carter,” I said to Ida Belle as we headed back into the hall. “We need to get him and the doctor in here.”
The nurse who had been at the front desk came toward us, looking much aggrieved.
“You cannot be back here,” she said. “The only person allowed back here at this time is the gentleman guarding the patient.”
She glanced at Mannie, who was still holding Brandon in place by his shirt collar, and stopped talking. If she was waiting for us to explain, it was going to be a long night.
“Mrs. LeBlanc woke up,” I said. “I need you to get the doctor right now. We’ve already called her son.”
The nurse looked into the room where Emmaline was sleeping, then gave me a suspicious look.
“I’m Carter’s girlfriend,” I said. “And his mother just woke up. Get that doctor now or you’ll have to deal with him. I don’t think any of us wants that. We’ll head to the waiting room.”
She didn’t look convinced but apparently wanted to avoid a confrontation with Carter enough that she hurried back to the desk. I heard the page for the doctor as we were walking back to the lobby. Mannie shoved Brandon into a chair in the corner and pointed a finger at him before turning around and walking off.
I looked down at Brandon. “Let me be really clear—that man is not the only person in this hospital who could kill you without much effort. And none of us need much more reason than what we’ve already got. So you better not move. I don’t care if your body parts go to sleep or you have to pee. Not one inch. Are we clear?”
He gulped and nodded.
I stepped away, positioning myself between Brandon and the door. Ida Belle leaned in.
“Should we question him?” she asked.
“Definitely, but I was wondering if we should wait for Carter.”
“That might hack off Palmer.”
“Yeah, well, when this dude tries to sneak into Palmer’s mother’s hospital room, then he can have an opinion on that.”
Ida Belle nodded. “I agree. I doubt we’ll have to wait long.”
We stood our ground in the waiting room for fifteen more minutes, then Carter’s truck flew into the drive and screeched to a stop. He jumped out and ran inside, stopping short when he saw Ida Belle and me.
“What happened?” he asked.
I pointed at Brandon. “This guy tried to pay your mother a visit and while we were impressing upon him what a bad idea that was, Emmaline woke up.”
“Is she still awake?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “She fell back asleep and we left. Ida Belle and I have been standing guard here and Mannie’s at her door. The nurse called for the doctor but I don’t know if he’s arrived yet. Go check.”
He gave Brandon a look that could kill and hurried off down the hall.
“Do you have any idea how much trouble you’re in?” I asked Brandon.
“Yeah, I’m getting that,” he said. “But I swear, I wasn’t trying to cause trouble.”
“Then what were you doing?” Ida Belle asked.
“I just wanted to see if the lady was all right,” he said.
“You could have asked the nurse at the front desk,” I said.
“She wouldn’t have told me,” he said. “You got to be family to find that stuff out.”
“Exactly,” I said. “So why do you care?”
He shrugged. “She was hurt in my attraction. Maybe I feel guilty about it.”
“Are you the one who hurt her?” I asked.
His eyes widened. “No. I already told you, I went to the john. That cop found someone who saw me back there.”
“Uh-huh,” I said. “Then what do you have to feel guilty about? You claim you don’t know St. Ives, so you couldn’t have known she would be in danger being near him. You claim you closed up after he went in, so how is it you’re responsible?”
He dropped his gaze to the floor and shook his head.
I looked over at Ida Belle, who raised one eyebrow. I was in agreement. Brandon was sketchy as heck. So much about his story didn’t ring true that I couldn’t sort out if any of it was truth or if it was all one big lie. The only part that might be true was that the cops thought he had an alibi. That didn’t mean he did. The other ticket taker had lied and told us Brandon had quit. I suspected any of them would lie and say he was at a party in Texas if the police were asking.
No one liked the police lurking around. And if an employee was suspected in a murder investigation, that wouldn’t be good for business. It put everyone’s job at risk of a shutdown. Not to mention that if the cops took someone in for questioning, they might give up someone else’s secrets to save their own heinie.
Carter came back into the waiting room and Ida Belle and I gave him expectant looks.
“The doctor was just fini
shing his exam when I got there,” he said. “She was conscious again for a bit but seems confused about things.”
“I noticed that,” I said. “She called me Mama and didn’t seem to recognize my name or yours, but she knew Ida Belle.”
“Her mother was a pretty blonde, so maybe her mind is dialed back in time.”
“A time before I was here and you were born?” I asked.
He ran one hand through his hair. “The doctor said anything is possible. As the swelling goes down, her memory will come back, but it might come back in pieces.”
Ida Belle nodded. “That’s completely normal. You need to give it some time. I know it’s hard not to worry, but Carter, she’s awake. That’s huge.”
He blew out a breath. “You’re right. I just need to be patient, but man, it’s hard.” He directed a hard stare at Brandon. “And you—what the hell were you doing? What do you want from my mother? It’s bad enough you let a killer into that funhouse and she almost died. Now you’re sneaking around, doing what? Trying to finish the job?”
All the color drained from Brandon’s face. “No! I swear. I didn’t hurt her and I wouldn’t.”
“Then why did you come here?” Carter asked. “And I suggest you tell the truth. Did Fortune mention that I was Special Forces? Or that she is a former CIA operative? Or that the guy guarding my mother is the right-hand man for Big Hebert, who is a personal friend? Lying to us is a really bad idea that you’ll never pull off.”
Brandon’s eyes widened and for a minute, I thought he was going to pass out.
“Okay, I’ll tell you the truth,” he said. “But you’re probably not going to believe me and it’s just going to make you madder. That’s why I wanted to see your mother. To get proof.”
“Proof of what?” Carter asked.
“I think your dad was my dad,” Brandon said.
Chapter Sixteen
I was pretty sure I’d never been more shocked in my life, and given what I used to do for a living and the fact that I’d been running around with Gertie for over a year, that was saying a lot. Ida Belle had gone so stiff that a strong wind would have broken her in half. Carter looked as if he were going to throttle Brandon where he sat.
“I want you to rethink what you just said,” Carter said, each word measured and controlled. “My father never cheated on my mother. I don’t know what you’re trying to pull, but you picked the wrong people to tangle with.”
“Can I get my wallet?” Brandon asked. “It’s in my back pocket.”
“Stand up,” I said. “I’ll get it.”
He rose from the chair and I removed his wallet from his pocket and flipped it open.
“In the bill section, there’s a picture,” he said.
I pulled out the picture and tried to steady my hands as I passed it to Carter. The man in the photo was Carter’s dad. Except he was a lot younger in this photo and the woman he had his arm around was not Emmaline.
“Anyone can doctor a photo,” Carter said. “This means nothing.”
Ida Belle motioned to Carter. “Can I speak to you a second in private?”
“Don’t move,” I said as I followed Carter and Ida Belle to the other side of the room.
“Carter, I know this sounds crazy, but that’s your dad in the picture,” Ida Belle said.
“I know someone who can photoshop you having lunch with Elvis,” I said.
“Yes,” Ida Belle said, “but when Emmaline woke up, she called Brandon Cam. Look at him, then look at that picture.”
I looked back over at Brandon and gasped. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t seen it. Maybe it was distraction or maybe it was simply not wanting to, but Ida Belle was right. Brandon looked like Carter’s dad. That’s why Emmaline, in her confused state, had thought her dead husband was standing next to her bed. Her mind must be stuck in the past, which is why she remembered Ida Belle but not Carter and me.
Holy crap! Talk about the biggest curveball in the history of curveballs.
“It’s not possible,” Carter said. “You knew my father. You’re telling me he had a baby with another woman? That he was of such low character to do that? Not to mention abandon a child. And we’re talking about my mother here. Do you really think my dad could have cheated on her and she wouldn’t have known?”
“I don’t want to think any of those things are true,” Ida Belle said. “But in this picture, your dad is in uniform, which means he could have been stationed elsewhere. I don’t want to think the worst, but I can’t deny what I see with my own two eyes.”
Carter glanced back at Brandon and I could see the pain in his expression. “What the hell am I supposed to do? I can’t tell my mother this. We don’t even know when she’ll be right again. Or if. This would kill her.”
Ida Belle nodded. “I agree. We don’t say anything to Emmaline until she’s one hundred percent and we’ve verified everything.”
“Which means Brandon needs to start coughing up information,” I said. “Don’t worry about this. We’ll handle it.”
“You don’t have access to the police databases,” he said. “I can get you information faster than you can run it down.”
“You can’t access information on a suspect in the murder case,” I said. “Palmer would be all over you in a second. Trust me, after that porta-john incident, he’s just looking for an anthill to kick over.”
Carter cursed and his jaw clenched. His entire body was so rigid that I was afraid his muscles would start to spasm.
The door to the ICU opened and Mannie stuck his head out. “Your mother’s awake again.”
“Go see to her,” Ida Belle said. “Fortune and I will take care of everything else.”
I could see his uncertainty and my heart broke for him. Of all the things in the world that could have happened, I would never have imagined something like this.
“Go,” I urged. “Spend the night here with your mom. Walter will be here in the morning. Ida Belle and I will handle everything. You have to trust us.”
Carter looked me directly in the eyes. “At this point, you’re the only people I do trust to handle this.”
He gave Brandon one more angry glance then hurried off. Ida Belle and I headed over to Brandon.
“You’re coming with us,” I said. “You have a lot of explaining to do.”
“Yeah, I get that,” he said. “I wasn’t trying to make trouble, I swear.”
“Then you’ll head up the highway about two miles to a diner at the next exit,” Ida Belle said. “We’ll be right behind you. Don’t even try to run. My SUV is faster than exotic cars and Fortune can shoot a fly from a thousand yards away.”
He nodded then looked from one of us to the other.
“Is it okay if I stand up?” he asked.
“Go,” I said. “Just don’t make any sudden moves and you’ll be fine.”
He looked uncertain and more than a little scared but finally stood up and walked slowly out of the hospital. He pointed to his truck and I nodded.
“Keep to the speed limit,” I said and we headed to Ida Belle’s SUV.
As soon as we climbed inside, I looked over at Ida Belle.
“What the heck is going on?” I asked. “You knew Carter’s dad and you’ve known Emmaline all her life. You’re married to her brother. Is it even possible that Brandon is telling the truth?”
Ida Belle shook her head as she followed Brandon out of the parking lot.
“I don’t want to think so,” she said. “Lord knows, it’s the last thing I want to believe, and I know that photo could have easily been photoshopped. But Brandon didn’t photoshop that face on his body. He looks just like Carter’s dad did when he was young. Something about him has been bothering me from the beginning. I kept thinking I’d seen him before but couldn’t place him. Now I know why.”
“This entire thing stinks worse than Number Two Island.”
“Agreed. So how do you want to handle this?”
“I’m going to start with the basics—lik
e everything about Brandon, including how he just happened to be conveniently employed with the fair when it came to Sinful. And what his intentions were tonight or for the future. I need to get as much as possible out of him that might verge on the truth so that it’s easier to run down more information.”
Ida Belle nodded. “What do you want me to do?”
“Be ready to jump in when we get to talking about the past. You’ve known the family since they came to Sinful. I don’t have that depth in my wheelhouse.”
“This is a horrible mess.”
I didn’t even have the words to answer.
There were only two other cars in the diner parking lot, which made sense as it was well past 1:00 a.m. Brandon parked right up front and went straight inside, hands in his pockets and shoulders slumped. Ida Belle and I headed in behind him and we took a table in the far corner, away from the counter and the two other occupied tables. A waitress came over right away and Ida Belle and I ordered coffee. Brandon got a soda. We waited until she’d served the drinks and we’d all turned down food before I launched into my questioning.
“Start talking,” I said. “You can begin with your real name and home address.”
“You know my name,” he said. “I can show you my ID.”
He pulled out his driver’s license and I took a picture of it with my phone.
“This has a New Orleans address,” I said. “Is that where you’re from?”
“No. I’m from Ville Platte originally, but I’ve been in New Orleans for about a year. That address isn’t right, though. I mean, it was, but I don’t really have one now. I got the gig at the carnival about six months ago, but they had some lawsuit thing and shut down for a couple months, so I got the apartment on a month-to-month lease and picked up side jobs to pay the rent. When the carnival took up again, I didn’t need the apartment.”
“And when did the carnival take up again?” I asked.
“About a month ago,” he said.
“You told me when I talked to you earlier today that your friends back home got you into trouble and the carnival got you away from them,” I said. “But if you’ve only been with the carnival for six months and you moved to New Orleans a year ago, then the carnival isn’t what got you out of Ville Platte. Don’t you think you ought to start telling the truth? Former CIA, remember? I know who shot JFK. I’m pretty sure running down everything about you wouldn’t be a problem.”