She leaned over Jamie to protect him. “Let’s all stay off to the side so we don’t get hit.”
A second clatter. Lord!
“It isn’t going to work,” Mandy said.
“Nor does it need to.” She grabbed a towel and climbed up on the table beneath the window. “I just hope he sees this.”
“There’s your signal, Walt, I did hit it.”
“No, your bombardment made the castle surrender.”
“Sorry, Walt, I used to be able to hit it.”
“Anyway we know Doreen is in the tower, thank God.”
“I thought you wanted to get her out.”
He shook his head. “I’ll explain later. You can go off on your date or whatever.”
“You won’t be sorry, Walt.”
He was glad to be rid of the scatterbrain. He hadn’t really needed him after all.
He looked at his watch. Still a ways to go. The next time he looked at his watch two minutes had elapsed. Are we on geologic or astronomic time? Another minute. You’re going to wear out your watch looking at it. He concentrated on the tower. Doreen’s up there. She’s counting on you. Hell, you’re counting on you.
Eventually, the hand lowered on the dial face. Almost seven. He left the greenhouse and walked toward the front of the house, stopping near the gravel to await a certain car. There? No. That one, yes. It begins now.
The three of them stood on the table by the window, DeeDee with Jamie in her arms. “When I give the word, my darling, I want you to scream as loudly as you can, for as long as you can. This is one time in your life when you can make all the noise you want.”
He opened his mouth.
She put her fingers over it and smiled. “Not quite yet, darling. I’ll tell you when.”
25: Unexpected Visitor
Lupe stopped her unmarked car in front of the castle steps, flashed her badge and told the attendant she would only be a minute. She pulled ahead a little at his instruction, grabbed her shoulder bag, got out and waited at the steps for Walt Byerly.
“Did the rock work?”
“Don’t ask.”
She heard the hubbub of voices from inside. “Somebody must be having a party.”
“Shame to ruin it, let’s go.”
They mounted the steps and entered through the open front doors. The reception for Wright was just breaking up. Diners were beginning to take their seats in the banquet hall off to the left, while others, be-gowned, be-jeweled and be-tuxed, milled around with half-filled glasses. Lupe knew she was agog at the beautiful setting and the beautiful people. She saw Victor Dragon with a gorgeous blonde stuffed into a red dress.
“What are you doing here, Hernandez?”
The gruff voice brought her back to reality. She turned and gasped. “Sgt. Brogan!” Lupe felt herself wilting under his gaze.
“Were you hired as extra security?”
Her courage returned. “Are you here as private security, Sgt. Brogan?” She knew it was true.
“I’m still your superior.”
“Not off duty.” She motioned. “This is Walter Byerly. He believes his wife is being held here against her will. He’s filed a complaint, and I’m here to investigate.”
“Bullshit! You’re not investigating anything.” He stepped toward her.
“Don’t try to bully me, sergeant.”
Just then the screaming began, loud, high-pitched, piercing. It carried inside the house, silencing the crowd.
“What the hell is that?” She recognized Dragon’s voice.
To Byerly, the screaming sounded deliciously loud. Good girl, Doreen, keep it up, Jamie. He looked at Dragon. Rage scarred the handsome face, and his lips mouthed obscenities. He started outside, then stopped in the doorway, turned and raised both his hands. “It’s nothing, folks, just some pranksters. They don’t like us having a good time.
“Yes, some neighborhood kids, pay it no mind.”
That came from Joy Fielding. Byerly turned to her. “Then how come someone is calling my name? Listen, you can hear, ‘Walter, Walter, save me’.”
“I hear it, too,” a voice said behind him. “Are you Walter?”
“Yes, Walter Byerly and the person calling is my wife Doreen. She’s being held captive here, along with-”
“Don’t be absurd,” Dr. Joy said. She turned, “Mrs. Uberreich, please put a stop to it-and take Dirk with you.”
Byerly stepped in front of the housekeeper. “By all means unlock the door to the tower, only I’m going with you.” She tried to push him aside, but he refused to budge.
“This man is an intruder,” Dr. Joy said. “Sgt. Brogan, remove him.”
“Happily, ma’am.” He grinned. “Okay, Byerly, you’re coming with me.” He clasped his arm.
“No, he’s not.” Lupe’s voice was steely.
“Stay out of this Hernandez.”
“Sergeant, you have no idea what’s going on here. You’ve already got a lot of explaining to do. Don’t make it worse by interfering now.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Buster, you’ve bungled a murder investigation and allowed a child to be abducted. If you want to keep your pension, then I suggest you decide whether you work for the Santa Barbara Police Department or Victor Dragon.”
Byerly watched the detective’s anger slowly give way to fear. “Thanks, Lupe.” He freed his arm. “Now Mrs. Uberreich, I believe you were about to visit my wife.”
She looked at Dr. Joy for approval. Rage distorted the once-beautiful face. He grinned at her. “I guess the Joy has gone out of your life. Too bad, doctor, but the jig is up, the cookie has crumbled, the music has been faced, the piper is-”
“Let him take his lousy wife out of here.”
Lupe beside him, he followed Uberreich to the kitchen passageway. It seemed to take forever for her to unlock the door, mount the stairs and unlock the second door. At last it opened and he burst inside.
All three stood on the table across the room.
“Oh, darling, I knew you’d come.”
“Thank God, you’re safe.” She leaped from the table into his arms. “I was so worried, I thought-”
“I know what you thought.” She kissed him.
Over her shoulder he saw the other two, still on the table. “You can stop screaming now, Jamie, you did a fantastic job.”
Mandy put her hand over his mouth to silence him. “You must be Walter Byerly. I’m Amanda-”
“Sykes, the long lost. You’re a hard person to find.
Lupe extended a hand to help her and Jamie down. “Let’s get all of you out of here.”
As they returned downstairs and approached the front entrance, everyone stood aside, looking at them as curiosities. A voice said, “Why it is DeeDee.”
Doreen recognized her. “Hi, Janet, do I ever have a story to tell.”
“I’m sure you do, Mrs. Byerly, but I’m going to tell the truth first.” Joy Fielding took over. “This woman stole this little boy and hid him from his mother.” That brought a heightened murmur. “Fortunately Victor Dragon found out where the boy was, got a court order and saved him from this…this kidnapper and reunited him with his mother here at the estate.”
“What a bald-faced liar you are,” Doreen said.
“But she wouldn’t give up. Still determined to get the child back, she disguised herself in a wig and uniform and induced a friend to bring her out here, posing as a servant. She almost got away with it, too. Fortunately we recognized her and-”
Doreen laughed. “Then why were Mandy and Jamie locked up in that tower? Hardly luxury accommodations, no toilet, no running water, a single light bulb hanging from the ceiling. I suppose you were protecting them from little old me.”
Joy Fielding looked around at her guests, all certainly puzzled now. “Don’t listen to her.”
“You were going to tell the truth, Mrs. Kinkaid. Then by all means tell everyone how your goons abducted Mandy off the street, in broad daylight, and brough
t her here. Tell them how Mandy was locked up and held prisoner in this very house just so you could influence an election.”
“This is slander. You can’t say things like that. There are laws. I’ll sue the pants off you.”
“I’m wearing a skirt, but never mind. Yes, by all means sue, so all this can come out in court. Meanwhile, Mandy will support what I’m saying.”
Byerly let Doreen fight her own battles, not that she needed help. His attention was on another drama. Mandy stood there holding Jamie, transfixed by Justin Wright. Apparently she had not seen him since…Byerly did not know since when, maybe since she slept with him, or perhaps the birth of Jamie. She was speechless, virtually unblinking.
Wright was not much better. His eyes moved, but only between the faces of Mandy and her son. At last he spoke. “Is that…Jamie?”
Mandy said nothing, just stared.
“He seems…a…a fine boy.”
Byerly waited for Wright to do something, perhaps go to his son, take him in his arms. He even sensed he wanted to. “You’re right, Governor, Jamie is a great kid. You should be very proud of him.” Now Wright looked at him. “I’m Walt Byerly. I tried to get you on the phone to tell you-”
“My husband knows nothing about all this.”
He had forgotten Edie Wright. She was tall, slender, with honey-colored hair and blue eyes, classy, patrician and regal. She was also a lioness defending her mate.
“All this is just a nasty rumor, concocted by Justin’s political opponents.”
“That’s the exact truth.” Joy Fielding jumped in. ”This is a good place to deny the rumor once and for all.”
“I’m sick to death of these…these ghastly innuendoes about my husband.”
“Are they rumors, Governor Wright?” Byerly said. “This handsome young man just might be your son, your only child. A simple paternity test would prove it.” Clearly the man wavered.
Edie Wright went to her husband, touched his hand, said, “You’ll make such a good President, Justin.”
“I doubt that, Mrs. Wright, at least he won’t get my vote. So what’s it going to be, Governor, truth or expediency?”
Wright looked extremely unhappy.
Mandy spoke. “Please stop, Mr. Byerly. Jamie’s father is for me alone to know. It is my right, and I will never tell. There will be no blood test. I want nothing from anyone.”
“Thank God!” Joy Fielding said, “At last someone makes some sense around here.”
“I want to say another thing. The Byerly’s did not steal my son. They protected him and tried to rescue me. I will always be grateful.”
Joy Fielding clapped her hands, then a second time. “My, my, testimonials all around. Why don’t you take your son, these two busybodies, and leave? We all want to hear Governor Wright speak.”
“This is my house. She may stay if she wishes.”
Byerly heard the voice, then a communal gasp. He turned to see a man advanced in years, stooped and withered, leaning heavily on a cane. His voice was that of a younger man, however. Byerly wouldn’t have known who he was except Josh was with him. “Karl Kinkaid, I presume.”
Josh answered. “I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you, Walt, but I wasn’t sure until the last minute that he’d come.”
“And all this time I thought you were shiftless and uncaring.” He laughed. “My apologies, Josh.”
“I’m the one who needs to apologize-for being such a fool.” Karl Kinkaid looked at his wife. “My grandson has told me about your recent activities, my dear.”
“It’s lies, Karl, all lies.”
“Perhaps, but I prefer to believe him. It gives me a way to get reacquainted with my grandson.”
“Karl, listen to me.”
“That’s the trouble, Joy, I listened to you too much. I let you sour me on my only blood relative. I let you tell me what a wonderful candidate…” He looked at Justin Wright. “Governor, you will get no more money from me. Ronald Reagan was a man of principle. I was told you were, too.” He shook his head sorrowfully. “You, sir, most definitely are not.”
Justin Wright opened his mouth to speak, but Kinkaid silenced him with a dismissive wave. “Don’t embarrass yourself in front of these people any more than you have already.”
He looked around at the guests, raised his voice. “I understand all of you paid $10,000 to be here for dinner. Your money will be returned to you, and you are welcome to stay and eat the food.”
Byerly felt he couldn’t stop smiling. He looked at Doreen. There was joy and relief in her face.
“Let’s go home, dear,” she said, “And take this little one and his mother with us.”
“In a minute. First, we have some unfinished business here.”
26: Whodunnit
Byerly turned to Lupe. “Haven’t you a question or two?” She hesitated, suddenly cowed by the audience and situation. “The ball is yours, Lupe.”
She looked at him somberly, then nodded. “Yes, we do have unfinished business here.” She squared her shoulders.
“If I may ask, who are you?”
She turned to Karl Kinkaid, sitting in a wheelchair now. “I’m Detective Lupe Hernandez of the Santa Barbara Police Department. A man was murdered a few days ago. I believe your wife may have some knowledge of it.”
“Is that true, Joy?”
“Of course not, Karl. The man committed suicide. There was no murder.”
Lupe now looked at Mandy Sykes. “Why did you come to Santa Barbara?”
She held her son in her arms. “Do I have to answer?”
“I’m afraid so. A man has been murdered. I believe you have vital information.”
“Sergeant, you’re the investigating officer.” The voice of the Dragon was heard in the land. “Can’t you put a stop to this nonsense?”
Looking at Lupe, Buster Brogan hesitated. Clearly her warning about his pension had gotten to him.
“At the very least, Sergeant, can’t you hold this stupid interrogation somewhere else?”
Lupe answered. “Certainly, Mr. Dragon. We can go downtown, but you’ll have to come with us.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You’ll see.” She turned back to Mandy. “Please answer my question, why did you come to Santa Barbara?”
“I was told-” She sighed. “-that Jamie’s father wanted to meet him.”
“Who told you that?”
“Harry Gould. We were friends from college.”
“And the father of your child, no doubt,” Fielding said.
Lupe ignored her. “Did Harry Gould pay your way from Boston?”
“He arranged for me to pick up a ticket at Logan Airport.”
“And made reservations for you and Jamie at the Upham Hotel?”
“Yes, but it wasn’t his money. Harry didn’t have much money. He said he had a client.”
“Do you know who that client was?”
“Yes.”
“Did you meet someone else besides Harry Gould when you came to Santa Barbara?”
“That man there. He was with Harry when they came to the hotel to talk to me.”
“Are you pointing at Victor Dragon?”
“Yes.”
“Was he Harry Gould’s client?”
“Yes, he did most of the talking.”
“And what did he say?”
“That Jamie’s father wanted some…involvement in his son’s life, that he wanted to provide financial support.”
Byerly jumped in. “You’re doing great, Lupe, but I have to ask Mandy a question. Was Jamie’s father prepared to acknowledge paternity?”
“That was not discussed. I did not ask for it. My impression was that everything was to be…secret.”
Now Doreen got her two cents in. “Was Jamie’s father involved or was Victor Dragon acting on his own?”
Mandy hesitated.
“That’s a most important question,” Lupe said. “If Jamie’s father was a participant in all this, it may well make him
an accessory to murder.”
Byerly watched Mandy closely. She looked at Jamie, Doreen, her feet, everywhere except at Justin Wright-or tried to. Then the merest flicker in his direction came.
The silence in the room was profound, the tension heavy.
“It’s important, Mandy.”
She nodded, looked at Lupe. “No, I don’t believe Jamie’s father knew anything about it.
Byerly recognized his own disappointment, yet he admired Amanda Sykes. Justin Wright did not deserve a woman like her. “When you had this meeting with Gould and Dragon did they want you to do something?”
“They said Jamie’s father wanted to see his son. They would take us to him the following morning.”
“Did you go?”
“No, Mr. Byerly. I felt uneasy about it. I’ve known for a long time that someone wanted Jamie out of the way. He was a threat-”
“To Whom?”
“I never knew.”
“You worked in Congressman Wright’s office. He was promoting family values in his campaign for President. Surely you realized the effect the mere existence of Jamie would have on-”
“I didn’t want to be involved in that. I didn’t want Jamie involved. That’s why I hid.”
“So you didn’t trust Victor Dragon and decided not to meet him. What happened?”
“I’d taken Jamie to a nearby park. There was a play castle for children.”
“It’s called Kid’s World and it’s in Alameda Park,” Doreen said.
“Jamie met a nice boy, Tommy. I’d struck up a conversation with his mother. She was the only person I knew in town besides Harry and Mr. Dragon.”
“So you asked Karen to baby sit Jamie. Then what happened?”
“I didn’t want to go back to the hotel the way I’d come. I was afraid it might lead them to Jamie. I took a circuitous route and ended up at the library downtown. I was lost. Then a limousine pulled up and I was told to get in.”
“Did you?”
“I had no choice.” She pointed. “That man there pulled me in.”
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