by LS Sygnet
“I do,” I said. “But what if I learn something that proves he lied to me?”
“Then maybe we shouldn’t keep looking.”
I turned in his arms. Eyes implored his. “How can you suggest that, when Gillette flat out said I’m worth more pregnant? Crevan was right about one thing, Johnny. There are children out there at risk. I can’t do nothing when some of these missing and exploited children end up abused on my turf, or have their birthright of freedom stripped away via relocation to countries that don’t value human liberty. I can’t believe I let anything distract me from finishing this, not even my irrational anger at…”
“Me?”
I nodded. “I should’ve stayed focused. I’ve got to be focused if we’re going to ever figure out whose really pulling the strings in Darkwater Bay.”
“Then churn out the ideas. Pass them off to me, to Tony now too, I guess. Let us do the leg work. Let me keep you and our sons safe.”
“Daddy didn’t want me in Darkwater Bay, Johnny. Could this be why?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “But I think it’s past time that we try to reach out to Wendell in some way and get more answers.”
I nodded. “I’ll work that angle. You’d better get something ready for Tony to eat.”
“Why exactly are we bringing him into this?”
I clenched my teeth. “Because he knows more about the history in this rotten city than anybody I know. He’s a gossip too. I want his take on why Crevan feigned ignorance for all these years.”
“Then you’re going to tell him everything?”
“I wouldn’t go that far. I haven’t told anyone but you everything. He’ll know what Crevan knows. There’s another part of this puzzle that we’re all missing, and I have a sneaky suspicion that Tony knows what that piece is. Also, Dev said something that bothers me.”
“About where Wendell’s real child is?”
I nodded and kept my chin tucked at the end.
“Hey, you’re his daughter. It’s exactly as you said.” One index finger curled under my chin and lifted. “He believed you were his daughter. Now you are. It’s as simple as that, Helen.”
“He knows the truth, Johnny. I’m not sure we should be worried about any of this.”
“Why is that?” His frown rippled across his forehead.
“Think about it. My father, who was at best an assassin, at worst, a serial killer, is presumed dead but really out there somewhere running free all over again, and someone has not only abducted me, but insinuated that this is a done deal, that I’m already bought and paid for, and it’s merely a matter of time before the transaction is completed. How do you think a man like my father would react to that information?” The last words he spoke to me before closing the door on the jet that delivered him to Canada replayed in my mind.
Don’t worry about the rest of it, sweetheart. At the time, I thought he meant that I shouldn’t be afraid of Johnny’s reaction to what I’d done, that Dad believed I’d be forgiven in the end. What if he was talking about the threat to my freedom?
Johnny followed my train of thought and sighed heavily. “Sanderfield is still breathing. So is Lyle Henderson for that matter. Maybe Wendell realizes that your gift was a one time deal, that if he screws up again, somebody will stick a needle in his arm.”
I doubted it. After all, Dad never was convicted for his crimes. To my way of seeing things, Dad’s sentence really belonged to Marie. But if Johnny recognized where my logic led me, he let it slide.
“Are you hungry too?” His lips nuzzled my neck.
“I don’t know.”
“Ah, honey, don’t let all of this ruin your appetite.”
“We have to figure out how to find Dad now. And I’m concerned that Crevan will be watching me more than he will be investigating the real crime.”
“He still works for me, Helen. How about if you let me worry about how to deal with your brother, and you focus on finding Wendell?”
“I can’t worry about Crevan right now,” I said. “Not when Tony Briscoe is on his way over here.”
“You called him in on this, Helen.”
“I know,” I said. “I just haven’t figured out how I’m going to explain the fact that I already used him once for information without sending him running straight to Crevan’s side of this.”
Johnny’s eyes fluttered shut. “Do I want to know what you did?”
“Probably not. Unfortunately, you’re gonna hear it shortly after Tony arrives.”
Chapter 34
There was no culinary aroma on the face of the earth strong enough to distract Tony Briscoe. I swung open the front door. He started to push past me for the kitchen, stopped, did a double take and cursed. “Son of a bitch!”
“Hey.” I cringed in anticipation of the ire I’d earned.
“You damn sure better look sorry,” Briscoe growled. “Did you know when you was pumpin’ me for information about Crevan’s daddy?”
“No, I suspected the truth, but I didn’t know for sure. At least, not until Maya finished the DNA testing.”
“Je-sus tits,” his glare simmered on Johnny. “An’ you went along with this bullshit?”
“Crevan’s suspected since the night Helen arrived in Darkwater Bay,” Johnny said. “In fact, it seems he’s never believed a word of that fiction Aidan wove about a stillborn brother in the first place.”
Briscoe looked for a chair, and for a moment, I wasn’t sure if he had the stamina to walk from here to there without sitting on the floor. I gripped his arm. “We ordered takeout. Johnny and I figured that if you still had an appetite after the conversation we need to have, you wouldn’t mind that it wasn’t exactly the home cooked meal I promised.”
He snorted, but let me keep a grip while we walked to the kitchen. “I reckon you could feed me a cardboard box right now and I wouldn’t know the difference. How the hell did Puppy put all this together?”
“She looks like their mother,” Johnny said with a shrug. “I guess that’s something that a son doesn’t miss like the rest of us did.”
Tony’s eyes narrowed, like a telephoto lens zooming in on me. “I guess. Though the night you showed up in the city, the hair wasn’t quite this short, and if memory serves, it was blonde.”
“That’s right,” I said, “it was.”
“Don’t matter none. Now that you chopped it all off, ain’t no way to miss the family resemblance. Jesus.”
“You’re repeating yourself, Tony.”
He shook his head again, more of a rattle really, like he was trying to ascertain reality from a dream. “No wonder you clued in to shit with the Pup like that. I mean that blackmail thing with Belle. It’s that weird twin thing, ain’t it?”
“Tony, I need you to focus,” I tried my best to tug him out of the Briscoe retrospective. “Did you ever have any indication that Crevan already knew that Aidan lied to him or that he didn’t believe the story of the stillborn brother?”
“Hell no. I thought he bought it hook, line and sinker. Then again, these past few months, I figured the reason he bought it was on account of fear.”
“Fear?” Johnny echoed.
“Sure. His old man was bound to bust a nut when and if Puppy ever came outta that closet of his. Now that it’s out, I guess it makes sense that the rest of Aidan’s house of cards falls.”
“When Aidan tried to use the stillborn brother story to control or manipulate Crevan, was that the first anybody had heard this particular bit of creative historical revision?”
Tony stared at me blankly for several moments. I snapped my fingers in front of his face.
“Sorry,” he said. “I just can’t get over it, how this thing has literally been starin’ me in the face for almost a year and I never saw it before now.”
“Well?”
“Well what, Helen?”
I groaned, repeated the question and tried to tamp down the impatience.
“To be honest, I never knew any of that family until Puppy became my part
ner close to thirteen years ago, see. Knew of ‘em, if you know what I mean. The way I recall that whole case was that Aidan tried to make it seem like some sorta Catholic conspiracy against the real believers, you know.”
“So he’s always been a lunatic. Fantastic.”
“Now, Helen, it ain’t all that bad. I mean, Aidan didn’t go off the deep end what with all the protests and such in Downey until Puppy was out from under his thumb.”
“Which makes complete sense,” Johnny said. “I wish I had been older when this happened. I might actually have something to offer.”
“I’m sorta curious what all of this has to do with anything, Helen,” Briscoe said. “I mean, I get it that the Pup lied to you, but I don’t understand –”
“The man who abducted Helen knew about the details of her infant abduction,” Johnny said, “which was how we learned the truth. It was only today that Crevan came clean with what he knew.”
Briscoe scowled at the tabletop. “Well that don’t make sense.”
I leaned forward. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking Tony?”
“I ain’t sure,” he said. “Ain’t sure if I am, and if I am, definitely ain’t sure that’s a good thing if we’re on the same page.”
I chuckled. “So much for the truce, huh?”
He grinned. “I’d suspect that you joinin’ the Conall family might suddenly make Puppy look not quite so bad to the crazy patriarch. Why’d he keep it a secret?”
“That’s what I’m hoping you can tell me,” I said, “and for the record, that was exactly what I was thinking. Aidan hated me on sight. I’m everything he despises. It’s not like I haven’t been fairly outspoken regarding my lack of religious belief.”
“In Aidan’s circle? You’re rich, Helen, but not part of that bunch. Besides, you protected the queers. That’s enough for Aidan to hate you. Plus, he had to know you saved Puppy’s life when that freak Underwood tried to kill him.”
“You subsequently solved the murder of Aidan’s pastor too, Helen.” Johnny’s frown suddenly mirrored what Briscoe’s had been minutes ago.
“Begs the question, don’t it, John? Did Aidan see somethin’ he recognized when he first met Helen too?”
“How could he not see it? The resemblance to Kathleen is remarkable.”
“Hold on a second,” I slapped the skids on their speculation. “It might be remarkable now, but –”
“Do you think Wendell would recognize you no matter where you went or how old you were?” Johnny interrupted.
“Yes, but that’s different. He raised me.”
“And ol’ Aidan’s been lookin’ at a very similar face for more than 40 years,” Tony said. “It wasn’t so obvious when you had the longer hair, but damn me. I can’t figure why I didn’t notice the similarities before. You got the same eyes, the same mouth, the same reddish sorta tone in the hair.”
“Which Wendell has too. Had.”
“Helen,” Johnny said softly. “Yes to the hair, but not his eyes. Not anything but a little remnant of red in the hair.”
Briscoe turned hard eyes on Johnny. “I guess there’s a whole lot I don’t know if you got a close up of Helen’s old man.”
“It’s not relevant at the moment, Tony. Do you think that Aidan and Kathleen have known all along too?”
He scratched his scruffy chin. “Possible for Aidan. With Kathleen, it’s hard to tell. You ask me, that woman’s more like a concentration camp survivor.”
“After today, I’m sure she’s got all kinds of ideas bouncing around in her head,” I said.
“Oh?”
“Helen met her today at a charity function out on the island, Tony. All this shit came to a head when Helen thought she’d bridge the gaping void between a mother and her son.”
“And Puppy didn’t cotton to that, I take it.”
I perched my chin on my fist and peered at Tony. “Why is that? Crevan acted like he was pissed to see her.”
“I’d imagine he would. His mother – yours too, I guess – has a long history of hot and cold behavior. I think if Aidan weren’t around anymore, she’d be warm and loving to Crevan all the time. As things stand –”
“She’s hot when the cat’s away and cold as ice when Aidan’s there to keep her in line,” I mused. “His disappearance could be arranged.”
Before Johnny could say a word, I wanted to kick myself for the unguarded comment in front of Tony Briscoe of all people. He surprised me.
“Well, I’d be lyin’ if I said I ain’t had the same thought over the years, but I get it that you’re just frustrated, Helen. Multiply how you feel knowin’ this bunch for a few short months by more’n a decade, and you’ll understand how much stronger my sentiments on the subject are. You know I can’t stand that bastard.”
The front gate chime sounded from the intercom.
“Dinner,” Johnny said. “Play nice. I’ll be right back.”
“Tony, you have to tell me the truth. Do you think that Crevan is angry with his mother because she’s inconsistent and doesn’t stand up to Aidan, or is it because in some way, he’s like his father?”
He rubbed his chin again. “I don’t know. I’d like to say it’s the first theory, Helen, but I don’t know sometimes. He can be as rigid as Aidan is on some things. I expect you’ve noticed.”
“Less than an hour ago, I couldn’t argue that point with you, Tony. He’s determined to pin this whole human trafficking thing on my father.”
“Aidan?”
I glared.
He held up his hands in surrender. “Sorry. I guess you meant the one that raised you.”
“He’s the only father I’ll ever have.”
Tony reached for my hand and squeezed it. “Sorry about your loss, Helen. I wanted to say somethin’ that day out at the hangar, but it seemed like you and Johnny was ready for all out warfare. Things look better now.”
Like I said before. The old goat doesn’t miss much. “He was upset with how I handled things, Tony. I didn’t think he’d approve of what I needed to do –”
“So you pulled an Eriksson on him and went off and did it anyway without tellin’ anybody. That ain’t no surprise, Helen. I hope those days are over. I can’t help but notice that your condition can’t hardly be hidden anymore.”
“It could be if I wanted to. I don’t. I’m done running off alone.”
He chuckled. “I heard that one before. Ain’t buyin’ it now any more than I did then. I hope you know that Johnny would do anything to keep you happy.”
“Almost anything,” I said.
“So this was the big story you wanted outta me? How Crevan really seemed about his daddy’s lie?”
I opened my mouth to respond, but before the words fell, someone else spoke.
“He wants Aidan’s approval more than anything else in the world. But what Aidan never understood was that our son was born different than other children. He knew from the very beginning that he had a sister out there in the world somewhere, that for whatever reason God had put her in someone else’s care, and all that we could do was pray that she was as loved as Crevan was.”
My eyes dragged slowly toward the doorway. Johnny stood behind Kathleen Conall.
“I never imagined that I’d see you again, Helen.” She stepped forward tentatively. “I prayed that someday…” Her lips rolled inward, a gesture I recognized but never realized came from a biological parent. “You don’t believe in prayer or God, I know, but I love you anyway.”
What could I say to such a declaration? And was this part of what Tony meant by hot and cold? She’d no doubt flip in a heartbeat if Aidan burst through the door. Speaking of Aidan…
“Does your husband know about any of this?” I asked.
She recoiled a little bit from my chilly reception.
“And how long have you known that the long lost daughter was in town?”
“Helen,” Johnny said gently, “I think this is an olive branch, not an interrogation.”
�
�Sorry, John, but I gotta agree with Helen here,” Briscoe said. “You’re sayin’ that Puppy – er – Crevan knew about a sister from the time he was a little boy. He ain’t never given any indication of that over the years. And why would you go along with Aidan’s lie? If you knew Crevan was different, why didn’t you protect him from that bully you call his father?”
She wilted a little more. I couldn’t forget years of clinical experience with monsters and their victims. Kathleen Conall definitely fell into the latter category. I remembered Aidan’s words to me several months ago, how I reminded him of his mother in law, how he had spoken it with such disrespect and disdain.
“Jesus, he knew too, didn’t he? He’s known all along.”
Kathleen’s eyes fixed on the floor.
“Did you know too, Kathleen?” Johnny asked.
She nodded. “How can a mother not know her own child?”
Briscoe’s arm wound around my shoulders, fingers dug into my upper arm. “Then why in the name of all that’s good and holy didn’t you say somethin’?”
“Look at her,” Kathleen said. “She’s beautiful. Confident. So strong. Who was I to intrude into her good life? It was a good life, wasn’t it, Helen? You were loved and well cared for. You’re obviously very successful. Why would I want to take a speck of that happiness away from you?”
I thought I might hyperventilate and pass out. Briscoe’s skeleton supported me and little more.
“Yes, Kathleen, Helen was loved by her father like she would’ve never known from Aidan,” Johnny said.
She nodded and knocked a few delicate tears loose. “And your mother? Was she good to you too?”
Ho boy. Very bad subject.
“Helen’s mother has been dead for a very long time,” Johnny said. “But she and her father had the closest of relationships.”
“I’m so sorry,” Kathleen said. “You’ve lost him too?”
“Very recently,” Briscoe said. He rubbed my shoulder and asked, “You okay, missy?”
I sucked in a deep breath and dug for some of the strength Kathleen thought I had. There were questions only she could answer. I knew of only one way to get them. I hardened my heart to her tears, to the ache that must’ve consumed her for nearly 40 years. I refused to listen to the tenderness in my heart that whispered questions about how I would ache if I lost one of my sons in a similar manner. My mind squashed the sentiment like a bug. I wouldn’t accept shit. I wouldn’t scurry off to pray. I’d turn over every rock in the world until I found my child, would spare no expense, would hunt down the beasts who dared steal my child and kill them. Slowly.