by Dale Mayer
“Any chance you’re coming to the meeting today?” she asked. “There’s likely to be a murder committed there.”
Drew’s eyebrows shot up into his hairline.
Trevor laughed, but it was dark. “It’s not likely going to be that bad,” he said. “We’re meeting the financial advisors and apparently her father has butted into the meeting without our permission.”
“Did you ask for a private meeting?” Drew asked curiously. “I’d have thought that meeting would be as confidential as one could get.”
“You’d have thought so, but then there is my father,” Hannah said. “And the rules he forces the rest of the world to live by.”
“I haven’t received confirmation from the company that they are aware of Goodman’s impending presence during the meeting,” Trevor said. “I was clear that such a thing would not be looked upon favorably.”
“Might be time to talk to Roman.” Drew suggested.
Trevor nodded. “I’ve mentioned him to Hannah, but she’s got a lot on her plate right now. We’ll see how the meeting goes.”
“I sense a but in there…” Drew frowned. “Are you seriously expecting trouble?”
“We are today, I don’t know about at this meeting. But it’s crunch time,” Trevor admitted. “Someone tried to burn us alive last night. I suspect a second attempt will be made today.”
A strangled sound erupted from Hannah’s lips. “That sounds horrible.” She stared out the window. “But you’re right, it feels like it’s going to come to a head today.”
“What is?” Drew frowned at Trevor. “You need to fill me in a little more.”
“It’s woo woo stuff,” Trevor said with a small grin. “Are you sure you want to know?”
Drew gave a curt nod. “I live with Maddy, what do you think?”
Trevor laughed. “True enough.” He motioned to the kitchen table. “Take a seat. You’ll need to be sitting for this one.”
In as concise a way as possible, Trevor walked Drew through the events from the fire that killed his old teacher to finding Hannah outside Stefan’s door to last night’s fire.
Listening, Hannah couldn’t believe how twisted and convoluted her life had become. In her heart she knew that one person was at the root of the problem, likely Sticks. But he hadn’t acted alone. Had Stones helped? But who was Stones today? Hell, who was Sticks today?
How did they know Hannah? Why go after her now? She hadn’t done anything to warrant these attacks, had she?
*
“Could Will be Sticks?” Drew asked, his glance going from one to the other.
Trevor heard the question. “I actually considered that, but the coloring is different. The way he speaks is different. His facial features – different again.”
Drew nodded. “All of which can be changed.”
“I don’t think so in this case, he’s also older,” Hannah said slowly. “Besides, Will was working for my father back then…I think.” She shook her head. “No, maybe not. But it was around the same time that…” and she stopped.
“What?” Trevor said. “If it’s a memory let it come into your psyche fully then consider the information. It’s too unstable to believe otherwise.”
“No,” she whispered. “Will was pissed when George came on board.”
“Why would he be pissed?” Drew studied her. “He wasn’t the only guard then, was he?”
“Something about not deserving the position.”
“Have I seen George?” Trevor frowned at her. “He couldn’t be Sticks, could he?”
She twisted to look up at him. “I’d have known, wouldn’t I? That was within months, a year at the longest. I think, but it’s hard to remember. And he doesn’t look similar at all. Sticks was close to three maybe four years older than me.” She shook her head. “George is even older than that.”
“How old?” Trevor sat down as a horrible premonition slid into his mind. “Oh Jesus.”
Silence.
“Trevor?” she asked. “What are you thinking?”
He shook his head. “It couldn’t be.”
“What?”
He took a deep breath, turned to Drew, and said, “Have you had a chance to look into Sticks’s whereabouts?”
“No, why?” Drew narrowed his gaze at him.
“Could you check the morgue first?” he said in a low voice. “Particularly any deaths in a fire?” He cast a sidelong glance at Hannah. “Especially in Hannah’s store.”
They all stared at him. “Trevor, what’s going on?” Hannah asked, her voice rising.
He winced. “The other two members of our group left early, remember. But one of them was Sticks’s stepbrother. It’s the reason he walked away. He couldn’t get along with Sticks. They fought all the time. His name was Victor.”
Hannah whispered, “Who was his partner. You said there were two of them that left. Both hung tight together.”
He stared down the long memory lane and said, “His name was Hank, I think. It was a long time ago. I don’t think he’d have anything to do with this.” He shrugged. “But who the hell knows?”
Drew picked up the phone and started making a few calls.
Hannah just sat, lost in thought.
Trevor struggled to consider if either Sticks or his brother could have had anything to do with it when Hannah said, “Trevor, did Stones ever have an affair with Sticks’s brother?”
His mind flooded instantly with that one night years ago that had separated Sticks from his brother forever. It had been nasty. And violent. And ended up with Sticks getting his face smashed in.
“Oh yeah,” he said. “It wasn’t an affair. Stones was with Sticks’s brother, Victor, first. They were together for a long time. Then she switched to Sticks, only broke up with him and went back to his brother. I don’t know what’s happened to the three of them, but they were very entangled back then – and looking to score big.”
“Shit. Did she break up with Victor to come back to Sticks that night I saw her crying in his arms?”
“Maybe.” He lifted his head and stared at her. “Now I have a question for you…”
“What?”
“Was George ever married?”
She let out her breath slowly. “He wasn’t married but he had a partner around for a long time until she switched partners,” she said caustically. “I gather she liked variety.”
Chapter 40
They stood outside the ornate building where the meeting with the financial advisors was due to take place. Hannah knew it would be impossible to prove any of their conjectures. Drew needed time to find proof of the identities of those involved. It would be even more impossible to catch these assholes in the act or get a confession.
She had an idea but didn’t know if it would work.
Stefan was there in spirit, she could feel him. She knew Dr. Maddy was on alert. Kind of like she felt at the moment.
“Ready?”
“Hell, no,” Hannah said with spirit. “But we need to get through this.”
Trevor held out his hand, and led her to the front door. Drew was with them.
“We’re going to feel stupid if we’re wrong,” she warned.
“I’d rather feel stupid than dead.”
She winced. The offices were on the third floor. As she looked at the flashy lobby with loads of gilt and marble she shuddered. “Please tell me your friend Roman doesn’t have an office like this.”
“He doesn’t. He has one in his house and one downtown but operates out of his house most of the time. That way he’s closest to his studio.”
“His favorite subject to paint?” Drew said with a smile.
Trevor chuckled. At the look on her face, he added, “His wife.”
At the humor in his voice, she studied his face. “She must be beautiful.”
“She is, and they make a great couple.”
The elevator opened to a quiet wealth that made her feel slightly better. “At least this floor doesn’t look like a pim
p hall,” she muttered.
Trevor gave a bark of laughter at that.
They walked through to a large office where they were greeted by a receptionist who led them into a private board room. After offering refreshments, which they all refused, the receptionist walked out saying, “They’ll be here in a few moments.”
“They?” Hannah asked.
“It’s not uncommon for partners to show up together for a big client. This way they cover their asses should one make a mistake.”
“Right.” Knowing she had her own agenda and hard pressed to still her nervousness, she was at the point of getting to her feet and walking around the room to work off some of the nervous energy when the second door opened and two men walked in. Followed by her father, Wanda and both henchmen.
Instantly Drew and Trevor stiffened. Her reaction was the opposite. She was delighted to find her father true to form.
She laughed. “What’s the matter, Father? Couldn’t leave well enough alone?” She grinned at Wanda. “Come to check on the family bank accounts, did you, Wanda?”
“Leave her out of it,” her father growled.
Hannah laughed again, but inside she was trying to fit Wanda’s face into the memory of the girl she’d seen crying in Sticks’s arms.
The door behind them opened, and another strange man walked in with a cheerful, “Sorry I’m late.”
And proceeded to sit down beside Drew.
It was as if the two sides lined up on opposite sides of the negotiating table.
Hannah glanced over at Trevor and watched him hide a grin. Okay, so this was a good thing then. Right? She studied Drew’s features, but he never lifted his eagle eyes from the henchmen.
She turned to the stranger behind Drew’s back and whispered, “Thanks for coming.”
The stranger turned his warm twinkling eyes her way and smiled. “You’re welcome.”
She knew this must be Roman Chandler, the investor suggested by Trevor and Drew. That he’d come to the battlefront on her behalf likely because one of the two men called him meant she liked him already.
“Hannah, who are these people,” her father said in harsh tones.
Trevor smiled. “Well, I’m her husband as you know. This is Drew, a friend and a local police detective, who has been working to help us solve some big issues happening right now, and our financial advisor, Roman Chandler.”
At Roman’s name, the two advisors’ faces pinched up tight. She snickered silently. They knew Roman and didn’t like him. That was good enough for her.
“As Roman will be handling my financial affairs going forward, it seemed prudent that he be here to facilitate the process as easily and as quickly as possible,” she said in haughty tones she’d learned on her father’s knees.
“But we haven’t had a chance to speak to you,” the first advisor protested. “Surely we deserve a private word with you before you make such a major decision,”
“That’s too bad,” she said coolly. “As we deserved and asked for the same respect and didn’t get it either.”
She felt Trevor suck in his breath. But he stayed quiet. She looked at the first advisor then the second. “You may proceed with the full description of my portfolio.”
The men looked uncomfortable around the crowded room. “It’s not normal to have so many people hear the financial details of your estate.”
“You know, you’re right.” She turned to face to the two henchmen who’d come in with her father. “Victor and Will, neither of you are entitled to hear this, you can both leave.”
Silence.
Her father grumbled impatiently. “As you well know that’s George, not Victor, and Will and they go wherever I go. Don’t be tiresome.”
She locked her gaze on Victor’s face and studied the lethal predator in the back of the room. And crossed into grayscale. His grayscale world. Out loud she said, “Hello, Victor. Did you really think you were the only one who could play games like this?”
The room stilled in shock. The financial specialists turned to each other and then slid a look toward her confused father. She ignored them. One should never turn their back on a predator. And Victor was the most lethal predator in the room.
You fucking bitch, he roared in her mind. What are you doing in my world?
Better things than you were doing in mine, she answered, her voice hard, her tone clipped. Asshole. Killing your stepbrother. Did you kill that teacher in the school too? She snorted. And what about Hank? Did you bury him deep somewhere where he can’t be found?
There was a stunned silence – inside and out of her mind. She could sense Trevor and Stefan’s shocked presence in Victor’s mind. She’d shocked them and maybe that was a good thing. She’d been too meek. She’d blame that on the blocks and drugs. That girl was gone now.
Victor was stuttering at the blow. She went in for blood. Oh and let’s not forget you brother’s passion for fire. Did you kill him because of it? Was that him you left behind in my store? Did you use him as your scapegoat to hide your crimes? She snorted. Typical that you’d hide behind your little brother.
She could feel the parts of her mind stir as if he was in there. Like hell she’d tolerate that. She reached around and kicked him out. He jolted back into his chair, the others staring at him in surprise. But their gazes quickly turned to her as she snapped, “No, you will not go into my memory banks again. Not that you were the one who placed the blocks there, were you?”
“Hannah, stop this. You need help…” her father tried to say.
She ignored him.
“You don’t know anything, you stupid bitch,” Victor bit off. The financial advisor who sat at his side shifted back and out of the way. He might not understand what was going on, but he knew he was too damn close to whatever it was.
I don’t know everything, she corrected. But I know what I need to know. You fed the blocks in my head to keep them strong all these years. You were just no good at building them in the first place. Stones did that for you, didn’t she?
She heard the shock all around her as Stefan and the others listened in. But the biggest shock waves emanated from Victor. Good. She finally understood what had happened and why. It was too bad it took her this long. “It’s too bad she was such a conniving, greedy bitch and couldn’t leave well enough alone.”
Don’t speak about her like that, he roared.
In the rest of the room, Hannah knew this conversation on the ethers must look odd. Half in her mind and half out loud they were only getting tidbits. Just enough to make her look looney.
“What the hell is going on,” her father roared. “She’s lost her mind. Surely you don’t need more proof than this.”
Hannah ignored him and focused on the lethal killer in the room.
Why not? She didn’t like to stick to one man, did she? She wasn’t happy unless she was playing games. Games she’d played with anyone she fancied. Your brother and my father for a couple of them. Will for another.
She snorted at his look of outrage. After a quick glance at the uncomfortable faces on the far side of the table she turned her attention back to Victor. He’s been walking like a peacock for years. Screwing her and thinking he was pulling one over on both of you. He always acted the most dangerous, terrorized people, but you were the dangerous one. You’re the one that walked into people’s minds and caused all kinds of havoc. Made them think, believe and do stuff they didn’t want to do. Then with Stones’s help, block it out of their memories.
So what if I did? We did? He grinned at her. But the look in his eyes – chilling. You can’t prove anything.
She studied him closely for a moment, seeing the tension in his energy, the frustration and anger at her words. Did Sticks know he lit the chemistry trailer on fire? She thought the answer was yes.
Of course he did. How do you think he ended up in trouble at that age already? He burned his mother alive in their house when he was only eight. But no one blamed him. I knew what he was though. I watched him
give you the can after he lit the trailer up.
And his mother, did she deserve to die like that?
Damn right she did. He glared at her. That’s why I never said anything. That bitch was psycho. She’d burn all of us with her fucking cigarettes. One time she held his hand on a hot burner as punishment for stealing one of them.
Hannah could feel her stomach churning inside. It made sense though. Some people were born badly and others turned that way depending on how they were treated. Right, so why the chemistry teacher?
He tried to get Stones into bed. He was drunk one night and propositioned her. After all he knew about her affair with the other teacher.
But did he really, or was that more of Stones’s games. She probably screwed the teacher then knocked him out with his own bottle and came to you and your brother with her lies.
There was an odd silence as he contemplated her words. He shrugged. You know, she just might have. She’s that kind of bitch, he said affectionately.
Well, nice to know that you understand her, Hannah said in a quiet voice. And my mother? Do you know what happened to her?
Well, I didn’t touch her, he snapped. We weren’t around back then. For the longest time I figured your father did the job. Then I wondered if she hadn’t committed suicide. He shrugged. Whatever. Whoever started putting blocks inside your head did us a favor. Once the first one was there, we had no trouble adding more. Of course that was Stones’s work. But then the blocks started to fail, and I’ve been shoving energy to shore them up, but it’s no use. They’re coming apart at the seams. His face twisted with malicious humor. Sounds like you are too.
I am not. I’m healing – on my own, she said. Once I knew the blocks were there, they became foreign bodies to roust out of my head. Once the first few fell, I had no trouble dropping the rest.
He nodded. “So what now?” he said out loud. He waved at the group of confused faces staring at them. “Do you really think they are going to prove any of this?”
“I’m sure with some time and effort they will prove you burned my store and tried to kill us last night. As for the rest of what you’ve done…”