by Ali Vali
She kept her voice calm and waited to see if Hayden would make any other smart comments. When he turned away from her and leaned into Merrick, Shelby got up and went to find Emma.
“Do you think she’s right?” Hayden asked Merrick, once they were alone in the room with only Mook.
“Boy, you got a lot of learning to do yet, so I wouldn’t worry about it too much. Cain didn’t get everything right the first time, and you don’t have an edge on doing it any better.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“It means that you are your mother’s son, and nothing anyone can say will ever change that.” Merrick pushed back the hair that had fallen on his forehead and smiled at him. “She has one fiery temper when she sets her mind to it, and it makes her say things she normally wouldn’t. Lucky for us she doesn’t give in to that part of herself often.”
“I can’t help but get mad sometimes.”
“I know, buddy. Thing is, I’m paid to sit, watch, and listen, and to provide counsel when asked. I was there when Emma left and eventually realized why. I also knew that one day she was going to come back.” She smiled kindly at him. “You were a heavy factor as to why she made the trip, but not the most important. I know that sounds cruel, but sometimes love is.”
Merrick’s words shamed him, and he couldn’t hold back the tears, but he dropped his head so Merrick wouldn’t see. “I know she doesn’t give a rat’s ass about me. You don’t have to rub it in.”
“Listen to me, Hayden. You’re Emma’s son, and half the blood running around in here belongs to her.” Merrick tapped him on the chest over his heart. “But as important as the bond is between mother and child, it’s as strong for the person who owns your heart. The woman didn’t move to some out-of-the-way farm because she had a burning desire to stare at cows all day long and find someone else to fill Cain’s place. She left her heart here with your mother, and dying is the only way she’s going to get it back.”
“I wish I could remember more about what that time was like. It seems like I should, but I don’t have many memories of her. I like that Mom sometimes talks about her so that I have some mental picture to go along with the ones in my room, but I just can’t forgive her for leaving me behind. And if what you’re saying is true, for leaving Mom behind too.”
“My sweet boy, you’re learning after all, so don’t let the fed get to you. Your mother is proud of you. I promised I’d never admit this, but when you aren’t around she just goes on and on about you.”
One light pull on his sleeve was all it took to get him to collapse into her arms and have the cry he really wanted to have.
“She’s going to be fine, Hayden, if only to kick some serious ass for this happening in the first place.”
“Are you all here with Cain Casey?” A middle-aged man in green scrubs stood in the doorway of the waiting room, looking like he had sweated a bucket of perspiration on his outfit.
“Is something wrong?” Hayden stood up so fast he knocked Merrick back into her chair.
“No, I’m Don Elton, her surgeon, and I just wanted to tell you she’s out of surgery and holding her own. Are you her son?”
“I’m Hayden Casey, and yes, I am.”
“All I can tell you now, Hayden, is she’ll probably be in intensive care for a couple of days, and after that’s over I’ll be able to share with you more about what comes next.”
“She’s going to be all right?”
The doctor ran his hand over his head, pulling off the surgical cap with his action. “I don’t know yet, son. Your mom had a lot of damage, and she lost a lot of blood. I wish I could sugarcoat it, but I don’t believe that’s fair to you if something goes wrong later. The thing I know for sure is that it’s been a while since I’ve had someone on my table who’s in such great shape. That’ll mean a lot later on down the road, and now that I’ve met you I know she has something to fight for. Could you pass the information on to the other family members who were out here earlier? I’m going to see about getting her set up for the night. Call me if you have any questions, or if you need to talk about anything. The nurse will have all the information you’ll need to get in touch with me.”
“Thank you, doctor. We’ll take care of it.” Merrick put her hand on Hayden’s back in an effort to provide some comfort from the less-than-stellar report on Cain’s health.
“Can I see her?” Hayden asked.
“Not tonight. Why don’t you go home and get some sleep, and tomorrow morning we’ll see?” The doors swished silently as he stepped back through them, leaving the family alone.
*
“Are you comfortable, Barney?” George sat in the rigid chair across from the agent and took a sip of the coffee he’d brought with him.
Kyle leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest to try to intimidate the attorney into letting him go. Nothing else had worked, and he had been alone in the interrogation room for over three hours. He felt confident that whatever the problem was, he was only minutes from securing his freedom. All his years in law enforcement had made him an expert on the tactics they were using on him. It would take torture to break him, of that he was sure.
“You want to just get to it, George. I’ve got a crime scene to get back to, and all this bullshit is really cutting into my night.”
“I’m afraid there’s a little problem in just letting you walk out of here, Barney. Surely you can understand we have to follow the procedures, especially when someone such as you is involved. We can clear this up really quickly, though, if you just want to answer some questions and explain a few things.”
The smirk George was more than familiar with was plastered on Kyle’s face, and he returned it in kind. It would be a good feeling, he thought, to be the one who knocked it off.
“Sure, shoot. Give it your best, George.”
“When did you become Giovanni Bracato’s whipping boy, Barney?”
Anthony, Lionel, and Joe almost choked on their coffee on the other side of the mirror. They would have given their boss some more talk before just getting to it, the old proverbial rope that would eventually hang him. Maybe they could learn something from this old warrior. Kyle’s pale face was testament to that.
Two minutes ticked by before Kyle felt ready to talk. He used the time to gather his thoughts and retrace where he might have gone wrong.
The silence only confirmed his guilt to George. Innocent people never shut up when they put them in these rooms. They were always eager to prove they didn’t do it.
“I have no idea—” said Kyle.
“What I’m talking about,” George finished for him. “Do you want an attorney present? I’m sure you’ve read that list of rights enough to know yours.”
“I don’t need an attorney. I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“This is the part where I usually tell the cocky bastard in the chair that if he cooperates things will go better for him. That is, when I took the time to come down to the bowels of the building and help out with the questioning. So, Barney, if you cooperate maybe we can work something out for you. I’m picturing something along the line of minimum security, if you play this right and help us out.”
Kyle laughed and leaned forward, putting his hands flat on the table. “Go fuck yourself, George, and like I said, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I would imagine you took more than your share of psychology classes before getting that more-than-nifty badge you have, am I right?”
Kyle nodded and didn’t say anything, wondering where George was going with this.
The other agents watching also wondered what everyone referred to as mind-bending classes had to do with what Kyle had done.
“Placing your hands flat on the table like that is a sign that you’re lying. Rapid eye blinking is another dead giveaway.” George almost laughed when Kyle jerked his hands back to his lap and tried to pry his eyes open and keep their movement down to a minimum.
“George, we’ve k
nown each other a long time. You can’t be serious in thinking I would help an animal like Bracato. My career means everything to me.”
“It meant everything to that fellow in Virginia, I’m sure, but he sold out his country for the cash. What you did, though, is help someone bring more poison into our city and become a paid enforcer to get rid of Bracato’s enemies. His main one just got out of surgery, and, like I told you at the warehouse, you’d better start praying she makes it through this. Because, old friend, if she doesn’t, I’m going to add murder to the list of indictments. You shot an unarmed suspect on direct orders from a known crime boss. Are you sure you don’t want an attorney present for this?”
“There’s no way you can prove any of this, because it didn’t happen.” Almost as if without his permission, Kyle’s hands were back on the table and he had started blinking.
It was getting late and George had tired of the game. He got up and tapped on the glass to get the others to join them. Three chairs had sat empty throughout their talk, and Kyle hadn’t even bothered to notice. The veins in his forehead, though, were noticeable when his underlings filed in and took a seat.
“You all will be investigating ice-flow patterns in Antarctica when I’m done with you.”
His glare didn’t work, and Anthony placed the folder they had showed George in the middle of the table. The young agent started placing pictures on the metal surface and kept at it until the whole table was covered.
Kyle looked down and saw himself accepting thick envelopes from a smiling Giovanni Bracato. Whoever had been behind the camera had even gotten a shot of him counting the payoff.
When Anthony pulled out all the relevant photos, he put a small tape recorder in front of Kyle and pressed the play button. The volume was set so that the two people on the tape filled the room.
“You think she’s set to go tonight?”
At the end of the question everyone heard the speaker spit something out. In front of his boss, Simmons placed a picture of Giovanni spitting out the end of the cigar he was chewing into the river.
“The talk we’re picking up is making me think so. We lucked out with the team I’ve been able to put together. Casey can’t take a piss without our knowing about it.”
The inside breast pocket of Kyle’s coat was barely big enough for the envelope full of hundred-dollar bills Bracato had given him.
“Yeah, I’ll admit, buying you, Fife, was the smartest investment I got going. Not everyone in my business has someone watch the watchers as well for them. I owe you for keeping my own team of federal pit bulls running around in circles trying to pin anything on me. As for tonight, how would you like to earn a big bonus?”
“What do you have in mind?”
“One million for that little retirement fund of yours for Cain’s head on a plate.”
Kyle made no verbal response, but Simmons showed a picture of the two men shaking hands. In court, that binder to the agreement, along with Cain being shot, would be good enough. Murder for hire would get both Kyle and Bracato the needle, if they were convicted.
“We have it all on tape too, sir. If you’d like, we can have equipment brought in so you can view the meeting. We also have hours of tape from the other meetings you had with Mr. Bracato, if you want to see those.”
“I want an attorney. I have nothing else to say,” said Kyle.
All the other men in the room pulled back from him because Kyle looked like he was about to be sick.
“Wise choice, Agent Kyle. I hope you can afford a good one,” George told him as he stood up.
“Please, sir, don’t insult the rest of us by addressing him as Agent. To some of us, the fancy ID you spoke of stands for something.” Lionel stood with George and spoke in his usual quiet tone.
“Then, Agent Jones, why don’t I give you the honor of arresting Mr. Kyle and locking him up for the evening.”
“Stand up,” ordered Anthony.
“You’re under arrest,” said Lionel as he produced a set of cuffs.
They were all anxious to finish with the traitor so they could go back to Cain’s warehouse and wrap up.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“She’s out of surgery and in recovery.” Hayden spoke to Emma’s back and didn’t care that Shelby was also standing close by.
“Thank you for letting me know.”
“The doctor, he said we should go home and come back in the morning. They’ll call if we need to return before then.”
Emma wrapped her arms around her chest and held herself in despair. She was alone. No allies to ease the raging emotions of having Cain almost die in her arms. “I’ll go with you, then. That is, if you don’t mind?”
Had she turned around, she would have seen Hayden act his age for once. He stubbed the toe of his shoe into the ground, obviously fishing for the right thing to say. “If you want, you can stay with us tonight. If you want, that is.”
Her tears started to fall again. For one brief moment, she almost heard the little boy who would beg her to hold him when something was wrong. “I’m sure Cain wouldn’t like you offering that, Hayden.”
“I think it’d be all right with her. That way we can come together in the morning and see how’s she’s doing.”
The ringing of Shelby’s phone disturbed the emotional scene, and she smiled sheepishly for the intrusion. “Excuse me.”
The call was from Anthony to tell her they had finished with Kyle and were headed back to the warehouse. They would wait for her, since now she would be the head agent for the investigation. She would delay any questions about their talk with their boss until they were face-to-face.
“Ms. Casey, will you be all right? I really have to get going, but if you want a ride somewhere, I’ll be happy to give you one,” she offered.
“She’ll be fine, Agent Daniels. She’s coming home with me.” Hayden stepped closer to Emma, as if he dared Shelby to say otherwise.
“I’m sure she will be fine with you, Mr. Casey. Have a good evening.” Shelby gave him an approving smile before she headed back out to the parking lot. The sun would be coming up in a few hours, and she still had plenty of work to do.
“Are you ready to go?” Hayden asked Emma, who hadn’t answered him about where she would be spending what was left of the night.
“Yes, son, I am.”
A few minutes later Emma walked through the front door of her old house and had a strange sense of déjà vu when she found her bags sitting in the foyer. Only this time they would be carried upstairs instead of to a waiting car. From what she could see, everything was as she remembered.
The woman who ran the household was waiting for them in the den when they got home. “Carmen, would you please put my mother’s bags in one of the guest rooms? I’m sure we’re all ready to go to bed.”
“I’ll be happy to take care of that in a minute, Hayden, but first tell me, how’s Cain?”
“You know Mom. She’s hanging in and doing okay for now.”
Carmen hugged the boy and patted him on the back. The look of sheer terror he’d worn when he first left for the hospital was gone, and having him come home with Emma was more than a little strange. “We’re all praying for her.”
“Thanks.” He hugged the older woman back before turning to Emma. “Let’s go.” He walked her to a room at the opposite end of the hall from the one she had shared with Cain, but only a few doors down from his own. “Call if you need anything.”
“Thanks again for doing this, Hayden. I know we have a long way to go before we ever become friends, but I’m grateful for you trying.”
“You can thank Mom when she wakes up. She’s the one who told me I should give you a chance.”
“Is that the only reason you’re doing this?”
He shook his head as if to emphasize his answer. “Yes and no is the best answer, I guess. I want to talk to you some more and find out why you did some of the stuff you did, but Mom made me want to do it.”
“That’s the best thi
ng I could have hoped for. Could I ask for one huge favor before you go to bed?”
“What?”
“Could you hug me?”
The last time they had shared any physical contact Emma had been the taller of the two, but now he had become the comforter just by his size. He held her close as memories flooded his brain of all the times they had done this before. The longing of a child for his mother replaced the anger, and he felt warm inside for the brief moment he allowed himself to enjoy holding her close. It was nice to have someone other than Cain make him feel that way.
“Thank you.”
“Yeah, sure. Have a great night.” He turned abruptly and walked to his room without looking back. What Cain had tried to explain to him about safe havens made sense to him now, and he felt guilty for enjoying this newfound warmth, though the rational part of his brain told him Cain wouldn’t mind if he ventured in that direction when he needed to.
The house gradually grew quiet, and Emma lay between the soft cotton sheets staring at the shadows the outside lights cast on the ceiling. Sleeping alone in this house now felt strange. Even on the nights Cain had worked late or was away on business, she had never felt alone.
The last four years she’d spent on her father’s farm had been unbearable when the sun went down. Most nights she would sit up and read to Hannah, even after the little girl went to sleep, so she wouldn’t have to face the empty portion of the bed, which taunted her for her stupid mistakes.
Twelve Years Earlier in the Casey Bedroom
Branches barren of any leaves cast almost scary images on the bedroom window. Emma was close to putting the covers over her face so she wouldn’t have to look at them anymore. She couldn’t explain her tears, but suddenly she was sobbing uncontrollably.
The bed dipped a little when someone sat down, and she was embarrassed to turn around and face who she was sure was Carmen.
“What’s the matter, sweetling?”
In an instant she turned around and buried her face in Cain’s chest.