Distant Blood

by Jeff Abbott

  “Of course not.” I started toward the door, not willing to suffer her company. She pushed a hand, hard with rings and nails, against my shoulder.

  “My brother claims you and he have settled your differences. Says y'all are truly father and son now.”

  “And I'm sure it galls you.” I kept my voice low. I wasn't about to let Sass steam me again.

  “Make sure it works out. Don't renege on your promise. I don't want to see my brother hurt any more.”

  “Yes. Your support is just the kind he needs.” I moved past her.

  “And be kind to Gretchen. No one wants her upset and drinking again,” Sass called to my back.

  I turned slowly. Her smugness was practically a low art form. I wanted to tell her I knew all about her family's filthy secret and see if she could squirm. But I held my silence as close as a lover. I didn't answer, just looked at her, and eventually she wriggled under my gaze, crossing her arms in discomfort.

  “Why do I believe Gretchen drunk and Bob Don unhappy truly wouldn't matter much to you?”

  “That's ridiculous.”

  “Do you think they don't deserve to be happy?” After all, he killed your other brother. Shouldn't he pay? But I kept my thoughts to myself.

  “I declare there's something wrong with you,” she muttered, pushing past me in her own retreat. I followed her down the stairs to the clan gathering.

  The study was funereally quiet. It looked like a room that belonged in a far more placid house. Books stood lined per-fectly on the shelves, patiently awaiting interested readers; a crystal vase of lilies stood on a side table, mournfully drooping in shallow water; the television was tuned to a sports channel, muted. Baseball players moved between the points of the great diamond, the crowd celebrating silently as the runners headed home. The collected Goertzes ignored the excitement on the screen.

  I found Candace sitting with Deborah on the couch. Tom stood moodily by the windows, close to the hammer of rain pounding the panes. He did not even look at me as I came in. Philip and Sass, my favorites, stood near the fireplace, heads leaning close together. Wendy roamed the room, bringing drinks. Aubrey stood on the opposite side of the room from Tom, watching the assemblage with guarded eyes. Jake sat in his customary chair, staring off into the air, his face creased with sadness. I wondered if he was finally beginning to mourn for Lolly.

  Pop and Gretchen stood near the television, talking in hushed tones. Gretchen caught my eye and gave me a shaky smile.

  Maybe everything was going to be okay.

  Mutt strode into the study. His body seemed tensed and he darted a quick glance around the entire room, as if quickly tallying attendance. “Get settled, y'all.” He went to the television and switched off the baseball game. “Everyone get a drink, if you don't have one. Wendy'll get them.”

  Wendy paused in front of me, since nearly everyone else already had glasses in hand. “What do you want?” she asked.

  “Beer, please.” I watched her retrieve a cold bottle of Shiner Bock from the study's bar refrigerator. Aubrey, Gretchen, and Candace all declined alcohol. Aubrey poured tall glasses of cranberry juice for himself and Candace. Gretchen opted for a can of diet cola.

  “Everyone got their drink?” Mutt asked as Wendy handed me my beer.

  “This ain't no party, Mutt,” Uncle Jake huffed. “If you got a point, make it.”

  “I do,” he said, and he hoisted his own glass of bourbon in the air. “To Lolly. To her beloved memory.”

  Awkward silence filled the air, then a rush of voices murmured in unison, “To Lolly.” We all sipped at our drinks. I felt little enthusiasm for Mutt's toast; it seemed in odd taste, at best. Pop wouldn't catch my eyes; he was busy watching Gretchen, sitting next to him on an antique chaise.

  “And where have the police run off to?” Aubrey inquired. He sipped again at his juice and sent a challenging stare over the rim of his glass at his uncle.

  'They have not run off, Aubrey. They've left this family to mourn alone, as they should.” Mutt iced his answer with a chilling tone.

  “And without completing their investigation,” Philip quietly observed.

  “My sister's death is a terrible tragedy. There's nothing to investigate.” Mutt didn't act like he'd heard Philip's aside.

  “Cost you a pretty penny, didn't it?” Aubrey said. He took another hard swig of his juice and the look on his face suggested he'd consider spitting it at Mutt.

  I sipped my beer and watched Mutt's reaction. He shook his head sadly at Aubrey. “You perplex me, Aubrey. That's just the word for what you do. You nag this whole family to get in touch with their feelings, but as soon as we start expressing grief, you turn up your nose. Do we stink like shit to you?”

  “This charade—it isn't grief!” He stared around the room. “Has anyone here cried? Is anyone sorry's she's dead?”

  “Oh, Aubrey,” I heard Gretchen murmur. “Don't. Don't.”

  “How dare you ask such a question!” Uncle Mutt stormed. “How dare you ask if I'm sorry my sister's dead!” Aubrey didn't flinch.

  “Did you gather us here just for a toast, Uncle Mutt?” Tom quietly asked. “Or was there something else you wanted?”

  “I—” Uncle Mutt fell silent. I thought—oddly—he was unprepared for the question. Tom sipped at his drink and I saw mud ingrained deeply around his fingernails.

  “How generous Jordan is,” Aubrey said. “I see he toasted Lolly. After she sent him those despicable letters.”

  “Don't you ever get tired of hearing yourself talk?” Can-dace snapped. “God, Aubrey, you're like an endless self-help tape.” I glanced at her. She was not usually irritable—at least with anyone but me. Her skin looked flushed, and she sipped at her cranberry juice while scowling at Aubrey.

  “It's called forgiveness, Aubrey,” I added, before he could lay into Candace. “I forgive Lolly for what she did to me. I'm in an awfully forgiving mood these days.” I didn't glance at Pop, but I figured a hint of a smile might be on his face.

  “How fortunate for the rest of us,” Sass observed from her perch.

  “Stop this bickering,” Uncle Jake said. He rubbed at his chest, a faint wheeze issuing from his mouth. “Y'all make me tired. Too tired. Tell Lolly to get my pills.”

  Deborah stood and hurried to him. “Aunt Lolly's not here, Uncle Jake.” She glanced at Mutt, who also went to his uncle's side.

  “Good God, don't all hover,” Jake said. “I'm okay. Just… I'd like to get to bed. Take my pills.” Deborah eased the old man up to his feet, and Tom pushed past Mutt to take Jake's other arm. Sass tried to help, but Jake waved her away. “I don't need a damned parade, Cecilia. Deb and Tom'll manage. Good night, all.” He made an absent gesture of farewell, and the rest of the family bade him a quiet chorus of good nights as he left, propped up by Tom and Deborah.

  “Maybe we should call a doctor for him,” Sass suggested.

  “Deborah'll take good care of him,” Mutt said. He went to the bar and refilled his glass with a sloppy pour of bourbon. Wendy stood behind the bar, watching him—and us—with arms folded, wrapped in her own silence.

  “What'll you do with Uncle Jake now that Lolly's gone?” I asked. “He's been worried you'll ship him off to a nursing home.”

  “Hell. I ain't gonna shove poor Jake out on an iceberg, if that's what you mean. Goertzes take care of family. Always family.” He turned back from the bar and I saw he was a little drunk. Mutt favored himself with another big swig of bourbon and raised his glass once more, as though one awkward moment wasn't enough. “Here's to Lolly. Our Lolly.”

  The second salute was met with less enthusiasm. I felt fidgety, as though I was sitting through a too-rehearsed play. As the others reluctantly quaffed their drinks I stood for my own toast.

  'To other absent kin,” I said, tipping my beer bottle toward Mutt. “To Brian. May he rest in peace.”

  The storm intensified outside, or else the sudden, shocking silence in the room made it seem louder.

&n
bsp; “Sit down, son,” Pop said from his chair. Gretchen's face paled.

  'To Brian,” Aubrey murmured, downing more of his juice. He shifted from foot to foot, as if uncomfortable.

  “Toasting dead children is horribly shameful.” That was Sass's contribution.

  “You're right,” I shot back at her. I didn't know if it was the beer warming my veins, but I felt sick and tired of the hypocrisy seeping through the rooms.

  “I guess you know about the tragedy of Brian,” Mutt answered. “And I don't appreciate you making light of it.”

  “I certainly am doing no such thing, Uncle Mutt.” He wasn't the only one who could frost his voice. “I feel sick and sad I never got to know my cousin Brian. I feel cheated. He sounds like he was a great kid.”

  “He was.” Sass made a coughing noise. “He was a wonderful, kind boy.”

  Philip stared at the floor. Aubrey turned away and downed the rest of his drink. Pop put an arm around Gretchen's slumping shoulders. I glanced again at Sass. To my amazement, she was crying, fat tears rolling along her rouged cheek.

  What did you know—the beast could weep. I wanted to say, I'm sorry. I'm sorry he's gone. But I didn't. I said nothing.

  Aubrey leaned against the back of the chair Uncle Jake had vacated. “Maybe we should go check on Uncle Jake. Tom might've buried him. You know Tom's been roaming around the island with a shovel?” Aubrey looked excited. His skin was flushed, his eyes wide, and he dragged a hand across his lips. I saw with distaste a ropy string of drool stuck to his hand.

  “Shovel?” Mutt said. “What the hell for? Ain't no buried treasures on Sangre.”

  “So what is buried here, Uncle Mutt?” Aubrey persisted. I turned to stare at Mutt. Of course. If I could gather suspicions in a matter of days—what of Aubrey, or Tom, or Deborah, who'd had years to think and reflect on the events of that long-ago night?

  “Nothing. Nothing,” Mutt said.

  I glanced back at Aubrey, just as his eyes rolled and he fell away from the chair. His knees buckled and he collapsed bonelessly, his head striking the rug, his empty glass of juice shattering on the hardwood floor. He gasped in hard breaths and began to retch, moaning.

  Sass, Gretchen, Pop, Philip—the whole room rushed to his side, crowding around him, and Gretchen began screaming out for Deborah to hurry back down. Her voice was like a banshee's to haunt one's dreams. Aubrey's face, slick with vomit, turned toward mine as Sass tried to ease him into a more comfortable position. His pupils were huge, like black holes of death.

  The broken cranberry juice glass lay at my feet.

  Oh, no.

  I leaped toward the couch as Candace stood and, cradling her stomach, folded to the floor. I seized her arms in mine and pulled her close to me. Her skin felt clammy against my hands. The thump of her heart against mine seemed thud-dingly slow.

  “I'm sick,” she said, and vomited across my back. I grabbed her and headed for the bar sink, shoving Mutt and Wendy out of the way. I fumbled for a glass of water, forced it down her. She threw it back up, over my fingers, shuddering. Okay, maybe vomiting was better, to get whatever filth was in her system out of her. I shoved my fingers into her mouth, doubling her over the sink, and felt another warm rinse of bile cascade past my hand.

  “Get some mustard,” I hollered at Gretchen. “Mix it in water.”

  Across the room, I saw Philip stand up from kneeling next to Aubrey, a look of disbelief on his face.

  Pop rushed to the bar, holding on to Candace's side. I pulled her head back, mopping at her face, screaming at my father to get Deborah. Candace stared up at the ceiling, as though looking for the entrance. Her breath shook.

  “No, no,” she gasped. “Jordy! No!”

  “Baby, we'll get help,” I said. “You'll be okay.” I glanced at Pop. “Call 911, and get the boat. We've got to get them to a doctor!”

  Pop stumbled for the phone.

  “Jordan.” Wendy stood behind me, and she stepped around to support Candace's other side. Wendy's face, usually emotionless, was now crumpled with shock.

  “Oh, no,” Candace moaned, her damp fingers squeezing mine numb. Hard cramps doubled her over, and I couldn't see her agonized face. “No. Please, not the baby. Not the baby.”

  IT WAS OVER.

  I sat on the floor outside of Candace's room, banished for the moment by Deborah. I could hear quiet noises of movement inside as Deborah tended to her patient. Blood— Candace's and that of our child—slicked my hands and I stared at my reddened, trembling fingers. Outside, the wind continued its angry roar, but it was a mere whisper compared with the rage I felt inside.

  I didn't even hear Pop approach and kneel down on the floor next to me. He didn't speak, he just wrapped awkward arms around me, ignoring my bloodied state, and I hugged him back fiercely. I thought tears would come, should come, but I felt empty and barren inside. But Pop's hold was comforting, and he smelled like a dad should, of mint and bourbon and sweat.

  After a minute he spoke. “How's she doing?”

  I managed to speak, my voice not sounding like my usual raspy drawling baritone. It sounded like the voice of an old man. “The bleeding's stopped. She's resting. She's still showing some effects from the poison, but Deb induced vomiting with warm mustard water and she said she thinks she's going to be okay.” I could hardly make my mouth form the next words. “She was pregnant. And she hadn't told me. Our baby is gone.”

  “I am so sorry, son, so very sorry,” Pop whispered into my hair.

  “The phones?” I asked.

  “Still down. The storm—” He didn't finish his sentence.

  “Then a boat. We've got to get her to a hospital—”

  “Son.” He pulled away and his blue eyes stared hard into mine. “We can't take a boat out in this mess. It should pass soon, we'll get her and Aubrey more help—”

  “I can't just sit here!” I bolted to my feet. “We have to get her help! Deborah can't do everything—” I gestured helplessly toward the shut door.

  “You listen to me!” Pop grabbed me and shook me hard. “Jordan. Deb has done everything she can. But we can't call for help right now, and we can't risk taking a boat out in this storm. We could swamp in minutes, and what good is that?” He squeezed my arms. “The phones could be back up at any minute. We'll keep trying, we'll get them help.”

  I steadied myself. The last thing Candace needed was me hell-bent and foolish. “How's Aubrey? Deb left Candace for a while to tend to him.”

  “Not good. He drank more of the poison than Candace did. But he's holding on. Sass and Gretchen are with him.” Pop's eyes teared, and I realized Aubrey mattered a lot to him.

  “Oh, Pop, I'm sorry.” I embraced him. “I know you're worried sick about Aubrey, too. I hope he's okay.”

  “Sass—said she hopes Candace is all right.” Pop averted his face. “I know you and Sass haven't gotten along. She's just a tad protective of me.”

  “I don't want to talk about her,” I said abruptly. “Okay?”

  “Gretchen said she'll be up in a minute, she's worried sick about poor Candace.” Pop tactfully changed subjects. “She'd have been up here, it's just that Sass needed more help with Aubrey—”

  “I understand, Pop.” I turned from him and leaned my head against the wall. The door opened and Deborah slipped outside. She looked exhausted, dark bags sagging beneath her eyes. Her hands were clean, but I could see the red tinge of blood still on her knuckles and her unpolished fingernails.

  “Deb?” I asked. “Is she going to be okay?”

  “She's resting, and the vomiting has stopped. The bleeding hasn't resumed. But I don't know what poison was used, and I don't know what else to do. Just treat the symp- toms as I can.” She leaned against the door. “She needs a doctor, Jordan. Is the phone working yet?”

  “No,” I said. “And Pop says it's way too rough to risk a boat right now.”

  “A rough boat ride might do more harm,” Deborah said softly.

  “Can I go back
in now?” I asked.

  “Yes. But she needs to rest. She needs someone with her at all times, in case the symptoms worsen.”

  Gretchen came down the hall then, looking as weary as the rest of us. Her eyes were reddened from weeping.

  “Oh, God,” Pop said. “Aubrey?”

  “He's still with us. Sass is asking for you, Deb.” Gretchen leaned against her husband.

  “I'll go check on him. One of y'all stay with Candace.” She hurried down the hallway. I watched her leave.

  “Pop, stay here a minute, would you?” I turned and went into her room.

  One lamp was on, and it cast a harsh light across the pallor of Candace's skin. She breathed slowly, and I saw a thin stream of drool issue from her mouth. I wiped it away with a towel by the bedside. Her eyes lay half-open and I brushed her hair back with my hand. She smelled of vomit. I pulled the sheets back and stared at the towel jammed between her legs. Three more, soaked with blood, lay crumpled in the corner. Deb had been in a hurry. I didn't want to think about what might lie inside. Hands shaking, I picked up the towels and moved them into the bathroom. I didn't want Candace to see them.

  She had been poisoned and she'd lost a lot of blood. Her skin was cool and clammy to my touch. I brushed her cheek softly and her eyes opened, her pupils huge and dark, the blue of her irises barely circles around the blacks.

  “Baby?” I stroked her face with one hand.

  “Daddy?” Her eyes shut again.

  “No, sweetheart, it's Jordan. I'm here.”

  “Oh.” She exhaled harshly, and another cascade of spit oozed from her lips. I wiped it away. “Is the chickory on yet? You know you gotta drink chickory when you're in New Orleans.”

  I grimaced. Whatever substance had nearly killed her also painted illusory pictures in her mind. “No, baby, the coffee's not on yet. I'll go make you some, though.”

  “Um. Those damn birds sure are making a racket.”

  Tears stung my eyes. “I'll make them be quiet, sugar.”

  She licked at her lips and shrugged away from my touch. “Fucking birds'll wake up the baby.” A dark flush colored her skin and she bent to her side, retching. The heaves were dry and I held her until they subsided. She rolled back over on her back and grew still, her breathing a little more even.