“Did you see anyone else?”
“No. Well…, I know how this sounds, but I thought I saw an angel. I thought I was dead, that the men had killed me,” she confessed tearfully. “I might’ve imagined that because I was drugged and sick. It felt as if I had died and maybe I saw what I wanted to see.”
“Did you see an angel?”
“You think I’m crazy, don’t you?” Kendall asked, crying even more.
“No, I don’t think you’re crazy. I’ve seen my own angel and, after you’re better, I’ll tell you about it. Now, I need to understand what happened to you tonight and how you got away. Can you help me understand?”
“I heard roaring and thunder. I saw lightening flashing before the man was pulled off me and flung away. I didn’t see what he did after that, but I heard the men screaming. They were even praying for God’s protection, but I was glad that he punished them,” Kendall admitted bitterly before sobbing harshly again.
“It was a terrible ordeal and you are lucky to be alive,” Vivien gently soothed as she waited for Kendall to regain her composure.
“When he came back, he’d been in the backyard. He knelt beside me. He was so beautiful…I asked him if I was dead and if he was an angel. He told me that I wasn’t dead and it wasn’t my fault. He told me there were other women buried in the backyard…that Geno had tricked all of them. He said the men would’ve buried us in the backyard too. He told me not to be afraid and to tell the police everything. He wrapped me in beautiful white wings and took me to the car and covered me in the LSU blanket. Then, he went back inside to get Robin. Before he left, he reminded me to tell the police about the backyard. It was very important to him,” Kendall said as she paused between each sentence. “Can I please see my mother now?”
“Your mother was in New York on a business trip and your father accompanied her. They haven’t yet arrived, but their flight is due shortly. You’ll see your mother as soon as she gets here. I promise. I’ll wait here with you until then. This is my card. When you’re ready to hear my angel story, call me.”
Chapter 29
“What did you find out?” Bright asked enthusiastically when Vivien called in a report.
“It was a miracle those girls didn’t die,” she said flatly.
“F’sho! At the scene, you mentioned that the area looked like a college dorm room…why did that stand out to you?”
“Well, it was part of his ruse. Geno played the part of a college student to pick up girls. I can only suppose that he didn’t want anyone to panic until he had them behind closed doors in the other part of the home,” Vivien theorized, trusting her instincts.
“That makes sense. He was kicked out of Tulane five years ago and, from the looks of the backyard, he stayed pretty busy. Did you find out how they got away?”
“Yes, they were rescued just as I was, just as Latisha Miller, Jenny Worth, and Thomas LaCour were rescued. I know you don’t want to hear that, but it’s true,” she said.
“Listen, take a few days off. Now that the FBI has taken over, our team could use some rest,” Bright said, ignoring her final remarks.
“I still have a few more things to do concerning the young girls and have promised to make myself available to them and their families. As soon as that winds down, I’ll take the time off. Thanks. What about you; when will you be back at the office?”
“As soon as I can,” he replied.
He was up to his ass in alligators at the moment. The FBI kept him on speed-dial and he was at their beck-and-call for the time being. Their forensic pathologist had given a preliminary determination that the time of deaths dated back for almost five years and that coincided with Geno Bennett’s boot from Tulane. Some of the victims were buried with their purses or other belongings, but for those who weren’t, matching the bodies to the descriptions of missing persons according to the dates reported was a hellava job. There were so many of them. The FBI took care of it, but they still didn’t let Lieutenant Albright or Coroner Davis off the hook. They wanted both men nearby and involved. Davis was lucky; they actually used his expertise. He was also getting hands-on forensic training, making him a happy bastard. Albright, on the other hand, felt as if he was only standing around waiting the majority of the time. He hated feeling useless as much as he hated waiting.
In the meantime, Kendall and Robin were released from the hospital and Vivien was free until Kendall reached out to her again. She took two large file boxes home with her over the weekend. She finally took advantage of the lovely patio while reading the court transcripts of the Alec Winters trial and everything else she could find on the case, including newspaper articles…some were favorable, while others were not. She returned to sit with Boudreaux on his nice patio and sipped a cold beer with him as she gave him the most recent facts on the latest case. He was always interested and actively listened. After that was finished, Vivien grew pensive.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Boudreaux, I want to visit the Winters family, but specifically, I want to visit Catalina Winters at the mental hospital. Do you think they’ll talk to me?”
“That’s difficult to predict. I’ve sort of followed the family over the years. The son just got home a while ago. He’s retired from the military now. Sabrina Devereux was still waiting for him. They were high school sweethearts. The mother, Cassidy, is home and teaches classes several times a week. She’s like a ‘guru’ or something. And, as you know, Catalina is still in the mental hospital. Still, I can’t rightly say whether they will see you or not. They’ve tried to put the incident behind them, but no one can ever really let a tragedy like that go,” he replied.
“Will it hurt to try?”
“I don’t suppose it will hurt to ask. The only answer you fear is ‘no,’ but you might get a ‘yes,’” Boudreaux encouraged.
“Do you want to come with me?”
“No, I can’t say that I do, but I do want to show you something,” he said. “After we talked the first time, I thought about it a while before I paid old DeVry a visit. I can’t imagine why he kept it, but he still had the sketch that the little Winters girl made of the angel. I have it now.”
“Oh, my god! I want to see it right away!” Vivien exclaimed.
“It’s inside in a plastic sheet. At least the old bastard did that much to preserve it. Come, I’ll show you.”
Vivien couldn’t believe it when she saw the sketch. It was exactly the way she’d pictured the angel in his entirety. The blue eyes were clear and bright. The white wings were beautiful and huge, plenty big enough to shield anyone. And, the angel was exactly the way each combined testimony portrayed him. Catalina had seen him clearly, not just in glimpses the way the others had seen him. Vivien wished for a sketch of her own and that was the final determining factor that pushed her to visit the mental hospital.
When Vivien went to visit Catalina Winters, she was informed that the patient didn’t see visitors. With a little more prodding, she discovered that there were only three authorized visitors on her guest log. Vivien was unsuccessful at getting those names even though she begged and promised secrecy. She was told to take it up with the family.
“Wait,” she halted the receptionist who began to close the small glass window to the office area, “Is there a visitation day? Is there a specific time that family and friends are allowed to visit with the patients at a regularly schedule time?”
“There is a monthly visitation day, the last Saturday of the month in the common room. But again, unless her family has notified her of their arrival, the patient doesn’t join in that area with the others.”
Discouraged, she returned home and to the box of files, memorizing any names associated with the family during the trial. In witness statements, the neighbors who heard the loud commotion on the night Buck Winters died, had an obvious dislike for Cassidy Winters. The family, especially Cassidy, didn’t get any sympathy from the community, but she certainly had Vivien’s compassion and understanding. Accord
ing to nearby residents, she simply didn’t fit in and was considered both a radical and liberalist who believed ‘all kinds of things’ that the Catholic Church didn’t teach or approve. When questioned about ‘those things’ there were only vague responses and shrugged shoulders. One neighbor finally went on record:
“Cassidy Winters believes in Buddha’s teaching, Zen ideals, and foreign ideology. That’s a crime against the church. That’s why her husband is dead. She got too far away from the truth and this is her punishment.”
Before she could make up her mind to visit Cassidy Winters, Bright stopped by. They sat on the patio together for some time, chatting lightly about the current case and the FBI, but the banter came to lulls more often than not. The lieutenant could tell that she was absorbed and thoughtful about something, but for the time being, she didn’t share. Knowing she needed to sort things out, he abruptly excused himself to allow her to get on with it, whatever it was.
Chapter 30
The next day, Vivien parked in front of the large home on Carrollton Street. She sat in the car for some time, trying to gather the courage to knock on the door. This was not a professional appointment and she hadn’t called in advance to ask for permission to visit. It took nerve to knock on a stranger’s door to ask for a favor. As she wrestled with her options, she glanced around at the nearby cars. All were empty except one.
Inside a late model Mercedes, a man held a camera and took many photos of the Winters family home. He was parked on the opposite side of the street, but focused on that home alone. She wondered if the family was under surveillance—what else could it mean. At that moment, her attention was drawn back to the front entrance where an exotically beautiful woman came outside. Soon she was joined by a handsome man. They linked arms, laughing lightly before he quickly scooped her up in his arms. He swung her around on the broad stoop before kissing her passionately. The man in the Mercedes took numerous pictures of the couple’s romantic actions.
Sabrina had just told Alec that she was fully retired now and, with Cassidy’s blessings, they could live together here at the family residence. She would put the condo up for sale immediately. He’d been as thrilled about it as she was, as happy as she knew he would be when she’d first set the plans in motion some time ago. They were in a celebratory mood and unaware that they were watched and photographed. Sabrina was lighthearted. She’d finally convinced MeChelle DeLaurent, her last client, that she was through with the goddess business. He hadn’t been happy about it, but she thought it was settled and that he wouldn’t give her any more trouble or grief about the decision. He’d promised to bow out gracefully.
“This has to be Alec Winters and Sabrina Devereux,” Vivien muttered aloud. “What a beautiful couple they make! But, why would anyone care about their romance?”
The man, mysteriously handsome and well-built, walked the beautiful creature to the curb where a taxi pulled up. He opened the door for her and they kissed again before she got inside. Alec watched as the cab pulled away and waited until it was out of sight before he went back inside. Vivien observed the scene and then noticed that the Mercedes followed the cab. She took down the license plate, tucking it securely inside a journal. She didn’t visit the Winters family that day…instead, she made a snap decision to follow the private eye or whoever it was that followed Sabrina.
The cab and Mercedes entered an upscale condominium complex in the Quarter. Sabrina got out and went to unit B-Eleven, closing the door behind her. The Mercedes took a few more photos and then left. Again, Vivien followed. Unaware of the tail, the driver took I-10 West to Lake Pontchartrain Causeway. After thirty minutes or so, he took the East Causeway Approach, and Vivien stayed behind him all the way to an isolated section of Mulberry Avenue.
He pulled into a long drive that led to a massive hunting lodge while she parked alongside the road. Although the property was nearly a quarter of a mile off the main road, in essence, it sat directly on Lake Pontchartrain. No other homes shared the adjoining property lines or blocked its view, making her suspect that whoever owned the lodge also owned everything in sight. With the waterfront view and the huge amount of acreage involved, it was a very valuable piece of real estate.
She wrote down the address and retraced her steps to the cottage on Conti. She was not expected back at District Eight headquarters until Bright returned. Although she couldn’t explain it at the moment, she felt that following the Mercedes was very important. Still, she was a little discouraged that she’d missed her chance to visit Cassidy Winters that day. She’d try again tomorrow.
Once at home, Vivien used the laptop computer Bright had supplied. It was loaded with all the cool toys and she used it to run the plate for the Mercedes. It was registered to one Willy Burns, a private eye, with an office in St. Bernard Parish. Next, she looked up the owner for the property located on Lake Pontchartrain.
“Holy cow!” she exclaimed.
The property owner was none other than MeChelle DeLaurent, the wealthiest man in the great state of Louisiana. She dug a little deeper to discover that he also owned a penthouse in the business district, an antebellum home in the Garden District, and his business holdings listed a mailing address in New York. It was his base of operation; as well it should be, since he was legendary on Wall Street. Vivien was befuddled to say the least. Why on earth would DeLaurent be interested in the residents of the Carrollton home?
“He’s not interested in them. He was following Sabrina!” she exclaimed out loud. “Is he romantically involved with her?”
For the rest of the afternoon, Vivien skillfully investigated Sabrina Devereux. She learned of Sabrina’s orphaned status at only eighteen and the loss of the family home. With a little more digging, she found out about the goddess business. Everything fell into place after that. She started a file on the young goddess, adding every detail that she had learned. Her instincts warned that it was very important.
Chapter 31
The next morning, Vivien Simon was back at the Winters home, knocking on the door. She desperately wanted to visit with Catalina Winters and knew that she must win over the family to make that a reality. A housekeeper answered, explaining that Cassidy was teaching a class at the moment. She invited her to either wait or come back. Vivien decided to wait and, after giving the middle-aged, bustling woman a business card, she was shown into the breakfast room and served a chicory flavored coffee. Thirty minutes later, she heard muted voices as the class dismissed and students left. Cassidy joined her in the breakfast room and served her own cup of coffee before sitting at the round table with the uninvited guest.
“How can I help you, Miss Simon?” Cassidy asked calmly.
“I’d like to visit with Catalina, but I was told that only the family could approve that. Do you have any objections to me seeing your daughter?”
In the meantime, Alec had come downstairs. He now leaned against the doorjamb listening. Vivien was unaware of his presence, but Cassidy was used to her son’s silent wanderings around the home. Sometimes, he was like a ghost, appearing instantaneously and without warning. It wasn’t that he walked through walls or anything, but still, he seemed to mysteriously materialize without any forewarning. She was glad he was there.
“Why do you want to see her?” Cassidy asked.
“She’s the first one who saw a protector, an angel who defended her. She draws pictures of this wonderful being. I’d like to know how she sees him so clearly. Most of the other descriptions are vague and unclear, but when I put them altogether they form the same picture she has drawn in her sketches.”
“How did you come to see one of the sketches?” Cassidy asked next.
“Well, as you know, when your husband’s death was originally investigated, there were two detectives involved. Detective DeVry thought your son was guilty while Detective Boudreaux was convinced he was innocent. According to Detective Boudreaux, Catalina gave him a sketch. He said that, at that time, she drew many of the likenesses of the angel who saved her,
but no one actually listened to her. He kept the sketch your daughter drew, or rather, he recovered it recently after it went missing from the file. He was kind enough to show it to me.”
“I see,” Cassidy commented. “You’d like one of these drawings as your own, am I correct?”
“Yes, of course, I’d be honored to have one of the sketches. I have to admit that I am fascinated by this protector, but I’d also like to talk to her. I’d like to know how she sees him so clearly.”
“Miss Simon, the fact that Catalina sees this celestial being so clearly is one of the primary reasons she remains in a mental hospital. She refuses to deny him and according to the psychiatrist, that is symptomatic of her delusion. She would rather see this protector than return to a normal life…do you understand?” Cassidy explained.
“Yes, I think I do. Still, regardless of psychiatric jargon and labels, I believe her.”
“Just be careful that you don’t receive such a label, Miss Simon. Seeing angels and other spiritual beings is considered hallucination. How did you get involved with this?” Cassidy continued to question the young reporter-slash-consultant. She’d read Vivien Simon’s articles when she worked for the Rag, but according to her card, she now consulted for the New Orleans Police Department. “And, how did you come to work for the police, Miss Simon?”
“Please, call me Vivien. It’s a long story. The short version is that I pissed off the owner of the paper for riling the Catholic Church and was fired. Lieutenant Albright liked the way I colored outside the lines and I was hired.”
Crescent City (An Alec Winters Series Book 1) Page 18