by H. P. Bayne
The statement drew a laugh from Sully.
“Seriously, D? You think there’s any chance of us getting this sorted by Christmas?”
“We’re going to give it a solid try. Right now, we’re going to pick up the girls and Pax and head out to the acreage. Once we get there, we’ll put together a plan.”
“Not the acreage,” Sully said. “It’s too remote. If you and I go somewhere, and if Eva’s at work, that leaves Mom and Kayleigh alone. Even with Pax there, they wouldn’t be safe. The guys who came at me today, at least one of them had a gun. If someone shot Pax, Mom and Kayleigh would be—”
Dez cut in, not needing or wanting Sully to finish the thought. “Okay, I get it. No acreage. But we need somewhere to go, somewhere safe while we start digging into this. We’re going to piss off some powerful people once we really start going after Lowell.”
“What about Paul?”
Dez glanced at Sully. “Paul Dunsmore?”
“You told me he’s going to help by feeding us info on the Circle. Maybe he could find us somewhere to stay. He’s in the Circle. He knows who’s in it, so he’d know where in the city we could go to avoid being seen by any of them.”
Dez nodded. “Okay, I like it. Let’s get back to my place and we can start making calls. We’ll need Lachlan’s help too. Probably even Raynor’s once we start closing in on Lowell. I’d like to get them on board ASAP.”
When a reply didn’t come as quickly as he’d expected, Dez peered back at Sully. “You with me?”
Sully’s weighty breath belied the short nod he gave. “I don’t know, man. The second we start getting close, Lowell will lash out. He always does. People are dead because of it.” He met Dez’s eye. “I couldn’t deal with it if he did something to any of you.”
Dez offered what he could of a confident smile. “So all we need to do is deal with him before he gets the chance.”
Easier said than done, Dez realized. Even so, they at least had a way to start.
Kayleigh was at school, with just a few days to go before the Christmas break, and Eva’s shift was on days off—the perfect situation to enable the family, plus their handful of visitors, to start formulating a plan of action.
Dez’s boss, Lachlan Fields, and Raynor, each chomping at the bit for what would be a massive feather in their respective caps, quickly agreed to come over, Forbes even consenting to pick up Lachlan on the way. Dez could only imagine the amount of grumbling and infighting the drive would entail, given the mutual dislike between the pair.
Dez had made one more call, asking Paul Dunsmore if he had some time to meet up. He, too, was on his way, and he’d hopefully bring good news about temporary accommodation for the Braddocks and Sully as well.
Given the extra distance Forbes had to travel to pick up Lachlan, Paul ended up arriving first. The Dunsmores were filthy rich, but Paul didn’t go in for showy, opting to donate much of his earnings to various community endeavours. His car reflected this trait; while it was a BMW, it was at least a decade old—not the sort of thing you’d expect a highly paid architect and the son of a city development magnate to tool around town in.
“Give me a minute with him,” Dez suggested to Sully. “He still thinks you got killed in that cave collapse two years ago.”
While Sully made for the kitchen, Dez answered the front door.
Paul was all smiles. “Desmond. Good to see you. I must say, your tone on our call intrigued me.”
“Come in, Paul. My wife and mom are here, too, and Lachlan and Forbes Raynor with the KRPD’s Major Crimes unit are coming to join us as well, if that’s all right.”
Paul stepped into the entryway and removed his boots as Dez closed the door behind him, sealing the cold outdoors. Dez waited until the man had finished with his boots before launching into the necessary reveal.
“There’s someone else here, too, actually. We were going to let you know eventually, and it seems this is the time. Sully’s alive.”
Paul’s eyes widened, his face freezing in place. “Sully? You mean Sullivan Gray? Your brother, Sullivan?”
“Yeah. It all plays into what we’re trying to sort out here, what we asked you to listen for within the Circle. Sully had to fake his own death to escape… well, it’s a long story, but he’s been in hiding since. I didn’t find out about him myself until a few months ago.”
Seemingly over his shock, Paul beamed. “My God! Where is he?”
Dez met the grin with his own and led Paul through the house, toward where he’d seen Sully heading. They found him in the kitchen, sitting at the table with their mom and Eva, Pax lying on the floor at his feet. Pax’s head shot up, and he studied the newcomer; the fact no growl or bark resulted struck Dez as further proof Paul was one of the good ones.
“My God,” Paul repeated, eyeing Sully. “Look at you. Long hair suits you. Even the beard, which surprises me.”
Sully stood and met Paul’s embrace. “Good to see you, man. Sorry I had to go cloak and dagger. Not much option.” He pulled back to smile at Paul. “Thanks for coming to my funeral, by the way.”
“You were there?”
“Yeah, he was,” Dez said. “Hiding in the bushes, watching, like a jerk.” He gave Sully a light shove, a far cry from the punch he’d delivered upon having learned that particular piece of information a few months back.
Luckily for Sully, Paul wasn’t a violent man, nor one with the same cause for it. Instead, he met the explanation by grasping Sully’s arm and giving it a gentle squeeze. “I don’t believe it. I don’t believe it.”
Dez had put the extra leaf into the kitchen table in anticipation of this meeting, and now ushered Paul into one of the remaining spots while taking a chair next to Eva. They offered Paul a brief history lesson, filling him in on what they’d learned about Lowell and Gerhardt.
“Listen, Paul, we’re really closing in on some stuff here, and it’s likely to turn us all into targets,” Dez said. “We’ll discuss it more once Lachlan and Forbes show up, but there’s something we want to talk to you about first.”
“We don’t think we’re safe at any of our homes anymore,” Mara said. “Sully has people after him who won’t worry about collateral damage. And the moment we start going after Lowell, there will be some real fallout.”
“You’re hoping I can put you up somewhere,” Paul said.
“Since you know everyone in the Circle, we thought you might be able to help,” Eva said. “You’ll know where we could stay to avoid anyone finding out.”
“I know just the place,” Paul said. “But be warned: it isn’t exactly glamourous.”
Sully smirked. “That lets Dez out.”
Paul joined in the welcome laugh before supplying the answer. “I have a cabin in the Black Woods, the other side of Winteredge. I had it built after the flood destroyed my old place. It’s very secluded and a bit of a challenge to get to—which is exactly why I love it. Sometimes I just need to get away from everything and everyone.”
Dez grimaced. “Uh, thanks, Paul, but is there something a little closer?”
“If you’re in the city, you could run into anyone. If you truly want to avoid certain people, this is the best solution. I can take you up there, show you the place. Then you can decide if it’s what you need.”
They had just time enough to arrange to meet up there later today and take a look before Lachlan and Forbes showed up.
Dez dragged over one of the kitchen island stools, allowing them all to sit at the table. Already tall, and now seated on the highest chair among them, Dez slouched forward to make himself less imposing. Without chatter, he launched into the issue of Sully’s birth family returning and sending a group of hit men after him.
He left out the part about the death of one of them, as well as the hangman’s involvement in saving Sully.
Dez ended by turning to Forbes. “Have you heard from Greta since she left the treatment centre?”
Forbes’s face fell, and he shook his head. “No. Nothi
ng. I’m still looking, but if it’s like the last time, I don’t know how much luck I’ll have. The only reason I found her then was because she was in the middle of trying to kill Sullivan.”
“What should we do about the Dules?” Mara asked Forbes and Lachlan. “They won’t stop until Sully’s dead. Obviously, we need to stop them first.”
“If I can find them, I can arrest them—all three of them—and hope like hell Greta will turn on her mother and grandmother in exchange for some lighter treatment in court. Obviously, I’m not at liberty to make a deal like that, but the Crown just might. Of course, that’s dependent on Sullivan agreeing to come forward too. I can’t arrest anyone on kidnapping, attempted murder or arson charges if I don’t have an existing victim.”
“We know,” Dez said. “That’s why we need to take down Lowell at the same time. The second Sully reveals he’s still alive, he’ll be leaving himself open to Lowell coming at him again. Since his pet psychiatrist is out of commission, Lowell won’t find it as easy to discredit Sully or put him in a state where he can’t talk to anyone. That means the only way he’ll be able to shut him up is permanently.”
“Does Lowell know about the Dules?”
“No,” Sully said. “At least, he shouldn’t.”
“Unless they went to him,” Eva said. “We don’t know for sure they haven’t.”
Sully met Paul’s eye. “You said you thought your father was the man in the mask in the Blue Room at Lockwood. Do you think there’s a chance he could be persuaded to come forward and report what he saw? He can put Lowell in the room. Even if no one believes me, they’ll have to believe your father.”
Paul remained silent a moment. “If Ray Dunsmore senses his house of cards is about to fall, he’ll do whatever’s necessary to protect it. If that means sinking Lowell Braddock, he’ll do it—as long as he’s got some assurances he won’t go down with him.”
“I can’t make that kind of assurance,” Forbes said. “But if he can come up with a plausible explanation for being there, that might help.”
Paul’s eyebrows sunk low over his eyes. Then they lifted, along with the corners of his mouth. “You know, I think I can see my way to a scenario where my father comes forward, saying he suspected wrongdoing so went in to see for himself. He could say he didn’t come forward sooner since Sullivan died, thereby eliminating the issue—or so he thought.”
“I shouldn’t be hearing this,” Forbes said.
“But would it work?” Paul asked. “If I take it to him that police are looking at Lowell, and reports exist of a man in a mask believed to be him, maybe I could persuade him to come forward—if he believes he can avoid prosecution and come out smelling like roses.”
Forbes considered it. “For obvious reasons, I can’t head up this investigation. But I can tell you if someone of his ilk came forward with something like what you’re saying, someone would definitely sit down with him and treat his statement seriously. I’m not saying he wouldn’t be looked at for possible involvement, but if he’s a good enough storyteller and he’s eliminated any potential ties between himself and the experiments, it would help.”
“Honestly, I don’t care if he ends up arrested and charged right alongside Lowell,” Paul said. “All I want is to figure out a way to get him in there and telling the truth.”
“It might nail Lowell on his involvement in the drug experiments,” Lachlan said. “But it won’t get him on the biggest stuff. We want him on a series of murders and attempted murders, after all.” He peered over at Mara. “I hate to ask, but your husband and Aiden—were they buried intact or cremated?”
Mara’s lips formed a tight line. “I know what you’re wondering about, but no. A second post-mortem isn’t a possibility in either case. They were both cremated. Anyway, Lowell had an explanation for how the epinephrine ended up in Flynn’s system. We wouldn’t have learned anything new there.”
Lachlan rubbed his jaw. “And the boy? Might there be something new to discover there?”
“Aiden showed me his death,” Sully said. He glanced apologetically from Mara to Dez before returning his eyes to Lachlan. “Lowell held him under. Maybe some bruises were left by Lowell’s palms or fingers.”
“He had bruises,” Mara said. “I remember. Flynn and I sat with him before the cremation. But nothing much was made of them. He had a number of injuries from banging against debris in the river and others from simply being a six-year-old boy.”
“I’d still like a closer look,” Lachlan said. “I can speak with the coroner, see if I can get a look at Aiden’s file. In the meantime, I think there’s another avenue we haven’t explored as fully as we might. The Schusters. We suspect Lowell was the one who shot and killed Betty, correct?”
“There won’t be any physical evidence tying him to it,” Dez said. “Not anymore.”
Lachlan fired him a quick glare. “I realize that, Junior. I’m just making sure I’ve got a handle on his suspected involvement. So we think he killed Betty and played a role in Harry’s death—likely by supplying whatever drug was used to do him in. What about their kid? Thackeray, was it?”
“Yeah,” Dez said. “All I know is he disappeared. Lowell told me he just up and left, walked away from everything. Lowell said Thackeray didn’t give notice to vacate or anything, and that he didn’t hear from him again.”
“Do we suspect Thackeray might not have walked away willingly?”
“Yep,” Dez said. “I think you could say that.”
“So maybe that’s our way in,” Lachlan said. “Since I’ll be asking to look at the Aiden file, I’ll take advantage and ask about Harry too. If he died in Lockwood, there should have been some involvement by the coroner. In the meantime, maybe you boys want to start asking around about Thackeray. Could be we find him, we find some answers.”
Lachlan turned to Forbes. “How about the judge’s murder? You getting anywhere with that?”
“I’ve been asking around about Lowell at some local ranges. He uses the Kimotan Rapids Shooting Club, and I’m told he’s been practicing out there routinely for years. He’s not certified as such, but he’s known for being an excellent sharpshooter. I didn’t get specific about why I was asking, but it sounded to me like he definitely has the skills to pull off a hit like the one against Prescott Montague.”
“You never found the gun used, did you?” Dez asked.
“No, but if Lowell’s as smart as we all know he is, he won’t have it in his possession.” Forbes shrugged. “He’ll have dumped it or even melted it down somewhere. We won’t connect him through physical evidence—not to Montague and not to anyone else. We’ll need something else—best case scenario, a confession.” Forbes turned to Sully. “And when you’re ready to come forward and provide a sworn statement, you let me know.”
Sully offered him a smile—which was about all he’d be at liberty to provide for the time being. “As soon as I’m in a position to make Lowell face reality, you’ll be the first to know.”
4
It wasn’t much of a plan, but Sully had to acknowledge it was more than they’d gone in with.
The meeting over, the group split up; Forbes headed back to work, Lachlan to the coroner’s office, and Paul, Mara and Eva to check out the cabin.
That left Dez and Sully in town, ensuring someone was nearby for Kayleigh’s sake and enabling them to enact their own portion of the plan.
Sully hadn’t been back to the Schusters’ old house for more than two years, and he hadn’t seen any of their ghosts in almost as long. The house seemed the logical place to start searching, and Dez drove the two of them over as soon as everyone else left.
Dez’s voice cut into his thoughts as they neared the Schusters’ block. “It’s been a while. You think the ghosts will still be there?”
“No idea. Only one way to find out.”
Unfortunately, finding out wasn’t going to be an easy matter. Sully remembered Betty’s house awash in flowers and shrubs—a small but vibrant oas
is in the midst of the rundown Riverview neighbourhood.
Someone, it seemed, had moved in since—someone with no use for an oasis.
The flowers in the front yard were gone, replaced by xeriscaping and a recently paved walk. The house itself had been redone, which wasn’t a bad thing given the state of the place back then. But nothing was left here to remind Sully of the woman he’d come to call a friend.
Nothing but the woman herself.
She stood in an upper-floor window, her face a pale, blood-speckled image through the glass. With a round of barking ,Pax signalled he’d caught the same sight from the backseat.
“She’s here,” Sully said for Dez’s benefit.
“Where?”
“In the house. Upper floor window.”
Dez ducked his head and leaned across Sully as if he could see what he’d indicated. Unsurprisingly, Dez returned to his previous position none the wiser.
“Okay, but someone else obviously lives here,” Dez said. “Can you get her to come down to talk to you?”
Sully fixed him with a smirk. “You want me to have a conversation with a ghost on the street?”
“Okay, good point. There’s a car in the drive. Hopefully that means someone’s around.”
“And hopefully that someone won’t mind a couple of strangers in their home,” Sully added. He started to get out of the SUV, but found his arm caught in Dez’s grasp.
“Hang on,” Dez said. “Lowell might still own the place. If the people who live here are just renting it, they’ll know him. What happens if they go to him with the fact a couple of guys closely resembling his nephews turned up asking questions? Let’s face it; there aren’t exactly a whole lot of six-and-a-half-foot tall gingers in KR. And if they describe you, and he puts two and two together….” Dez left the rest of the statement unspoken.
Sully knew where it ended anyway. “I hear you, but I think the time’s rapidly approaching where I’ll have to face him. I can’t stay in the dark much longer, Dez, and you going in by yourself won’t get us anywhere. I’m the only one who can see her.”