“Oh, I do,” said Graham. “I realize drug development is a risky business for investors, and I intend to put your mind at ease before I ask you to part with any of your immense wealth. In the interests of transparency, I’ve decided to include you in the recovery of an important piece of intellectual property that was stolen many years ago: a notebook containing explicit details about the drug. My boss thinks it’s somewhere in this house, and I’m determined to find it.”
∞∞∞
It didn’t take Graham long to realize he was out of luck, and his distress was so evident that Josh might have felt sorry for him if he hadn’t suspected him of malice. He heard an exclamation of dismay, followed by the sound of someone rummaging around in a frantic manner, but this eventually faded away, leaving nothing in its wake except the faint gasping of breath.
“This is a disaster,” said Graham. “It’s gone!”
“You haven’t even searched the whole house,” said Uriah. “How can you be so sure?”
“Look, someone ripped out the wall,” said Graham. “It must have been hidden inside. I knew I should have come here sooner, but I was so busy trying to flirt with that frustrating woman that I got sidetracked. It’s not that I don’t like Molly; it’s just that I don’t like dealing with her when I have important work to do. She jabbers about garden gnomes every second of the day. Why am I telling you all this?”
“I have no idea,” said Uriah. “I think we’re done here. I’m sorry you have so many personal problems, Graham, but my time is valuable.”
“Wait, Uriah,” said Graham. “Please give me a chance to explain myself. I’ve been reluctant to put my cards on the table until now because my boss specifically requested that I maintain the strictest confidentiality, but I have a proposition that will change your fortunes for the better—not that you need any help in that regard.”
“Cut to the chase,” said Uriah.
“Fine,” said Graham. “This is an opportunity for you to correct a regrettable oversight that has no doubt plagued you during the better part of the last four decades. Correct me if I’m wrong, but from what I understand, Peterson came to you for financial assistance before he went to George Hamilton, and you refused to invest in him.”
“Best decision I ever made,” said Uriah.
“Yes, so it must have seemed at the time,” said Graham, “but things are different now. Peterson is gone. There’s no murder, no treachery, no scandal—just a revolutionary product that has the potential to change life as we know it. If we manage to get this right, we’ll have so much money that we’ll have to find an offshore bank to put it in. Don’t you want to be a part of that?”
“I don’t know,” said Uriah. “You haven’t convinced me your boss is really capable of pulling it off, and if your performance here today is any indication of the usual quality of your work, I’m not impressed. I thought the whole point of us coming to this filthy little dump was to find the notebook, but you couldn’t even manage to do that.”
“It’s not essential,” said Graham in a surly voice. “It would have made things easier, but I can get along without it. I’ve got a contingency plan in place, and it won’t be long before it starts yielding results, but there’s no point in trying to convince you if you’ve already made up your mind. I see how it is. You’re hesitating because you’re afraid of damaging your reputation.”
“It’s a legitimate concern,” said Uriah. “I’m reluctant to attach myself to anything that produces so many corpses. Why don’t you research something else—something interesting—like magnets?”
“What?” said Graham. “No, you don’t understand, Uriah. That’s not even an option. I’ve already started assembling a team.”
“Yes, you mentioned something about a local doctor,” said Uriah.
“Forget about him,” said Graham. “Turned me down flat. I’ve found someone better, though, so it doesn’t matter. We’ve got everything squared away for the next four months, but after that, we’re going to need more space, more people, and more equipment. That’s where you come in, Uriah. Forgive me for being blunt, but my boss has instructed me to ask you for an investment of one million dollars.”
Silence greeted this announcement. Josh glanced at Richard. His face was incredulous.
“That’s a lot of money,” said Uriah. “You’re a funny man, Graham, but you’ve almost persuaded me, believe it or not. You’re passionate, and I like that, even if you’re unreliable. How about a loan instead? I’ll give you as much money as you need, and when you make it big—or after a designated period of time specified by my attorney—you’ll pay me back at twenty percent.”
“I’m surprised at you, Uriah,” said Graham. “I’m also disappointed. I might even be slightly offended. If I wanted a loan, I’d go to a bank. I reached out to you because I wanted a business partner. My boss has a very specific endgame in mind, and you stand to benefit from it as much as anyone else.”
He seemed to know any additional attempts at persuasion would be detrimental to his cause. The sound of his pacing feet echoed through the house, keeping time like a ticking clock. Finally, a chair scraped across the linoleum and the floor creaked as Uriah stood up.
“All right, Graham,” he said. “I’ll give it to you. One million dollars. Not a loan—an investment.”
“Seriously?” said Graham. “I hope you’re not joking, Uriah, because I don’t have the mental capacity to deal with that sort of shock right now. You’re a wonderful human being. You won’t regret this.”
“You might,” said Uriah.
Graham didn’t seem discouraged.
“Please allow me to shake your hand,” he said. “I can’t wait to tell my boss. The past few months have been difficult, as you can probably imagine, but there’s nothing like a piece of good news to change everything for the better. When should we draw up the paperwork to make this thing official?”
“All in good time,” said Uriah.
They left the house. Josh and Richard didn’t move until they heard the car drive away. Then, they climbed wordlessly out of the attic and surveyed the chaos in the kitchen. Richard began picking up the broken plates, collecting the larger pieces of ceramic and piling them up on the table. Josh looked out the window and watched as the car with its sinister occupants disappeared around the corner. When he turned back around, he saw Richard kneeling on the floor. He was motionless, huddled on the ground.
“This is all my fault,” he said in a barely audible voice. “I shouldn’t have come back. What was I thinking? I knew this would happen. The nightmare isn’t over. It’s just beginning.” He scrambled to his feet, and if Josh hadn’t steadied him, he would have lost his balance.
“Maybe you should sit down for a while,” said Josh.
“That’s a good idea,” said Richard. He collapsed onto a chair and leaned back, taking several deep breaths and relaxing visibly. “I didn’t mean to worry you, Josh, but I actually forgot you were here. I wish I’d handled things differently with Peterson back in the day. I knew he was breaking the rules, but I didn’t care because I trusted him too much. If I’d confronted him at the first sign of trouble instead of waiting until he crossed the line, he would have gotten a slap on the wrist and he wouldn’t have had any reason to hate me.”
“You can’t change what happened,” said Josh.
“That sentiment may comfort you now, but there will come a time when you realize the futility of trying to enjoy your own helplessness,” said Richard. He patted the notebook and the color returned to his face. “At least they haven’t got this, and they’re not going to get it as long as I’m alive. I’m surprised Graham was so desperate to get his hands on it. Peterson must have suffered some serious brain damage if he can’t reconstruct his own research.”
“Maybe it’s not Peterson,” said Josh. “Maybe it’s someone else.”
“I don’t think so,” said Richard. “The only other person who had a fanatical interest in the drug was George Hamilton, and
he’s dead.”
“What happened to him?” said Josh.
“It’s a long story,” said Richard. “Hamilton was a shipping magnate, and the owner of Hamilton Corporation. Peterson married Hamilton’s daughter more than a decade before I betrayed him. Hamilton was implicated in Peterson’s crimes, and when Peterson went to prison, Hamilton Corporation went bankrupt. The humiliation was too much for Hamilton. He jumped off the bridge and drowned in the river.”
He got to his feet.
“We’ve had more than enough excitement for one day,” he said. “Let’s go back to the house before your parents start worrying about you. If they ask you where you’ve been and what you’ve been doing, I think it would probably be best if you didn’t mention any of the specific details. It’s not that I want you to keep secrets from them, but there’s a lot more I haven’t told you, and bringing it up to them would be like ripping a bandage off an old wound. I’ll talk to them about it when the time is right.”
Josh wanted to ask more questions, but he thought better of it. Richard had already given him a lot to think about, and in any case, he had the feeling it was only a matter of time before he learned the whole truth about his family and Peterson.
Chapter 7
That evening during dinner, Agnes trotted downstairs and announced that Sabrina wanted to see her children. Lisa was grateful for the interruption and felt an enormous sense of relief as soon as Josh, Shannon, and Stephen left the room. Her fondness for Yvonne hadn’t rendered Sabrina and her family any less odious, and to make matters worse, the impending doom of school was hanging over her head. She wanted to pretend just for a moment that everything was normal again. Her father and Richard were at the lab, and Arthur was in the other room changing the baby. Only her mother and Veronica remained at the table.
“I’m worried about Stephen,” said Veronica.
“Why are you worried about him?” said her mother.
“Because he’s so sad all the time,” said Veronica. “I heard him crying earlier when he didn’t know I was there. He has a sketchbook with all sorts of drawings in it, and he said he was going to go outside to work on a picture for his mother, but when I went to look for him, he was all curled up under the oak tree with his head in his arms. I didn’t want him to be embarrassed, so I made a bunch of noise. He pretended he wasn’t upset, but his eyes were all red. I’ve been trying to cheer him up, but I don’t think it’s doing any good.”
“I’m sure it is,” said her mother. “I’m proud of you for trying to make him feel better.”
Lisa felt her face flushing with embarrassment. She suspected her mother was gently criticizing her for being hostile to Josh and Shannon, but she told herself she couldn’t help it. She wished Veronica would quit being so insufferable.
“I’m so glad Stephen is here,” said Veronica. “He’s different from all the boys at school. I’m not sure how, but he is. He’s easy to talk to. I can’t wait for him to meet all my friends.”
“What’s the point?” said Lisa. “It’s not like he’s going to be around for very long.”
“You don’t know that,” said Veronica.
“Yes, I do,” said Lisa. “You shouldn’t let yourself get so attached to him. When his mother dies, he’ll go away, and you’ll probably never see him again.”
“Lisa!” said her mother. “That’s completely inappropriate.”
“Why?” said Lisa. “She might as well know the truth.”
“That’s not the point,” said her mother. “If Veronica likes Stephen and wants to spend time with him, you shouldn’t discourage her. In fact, maybe you should follow her example and be nicer to Josh and Shannon. You could make their lives a lot easier by treating them with a little kindness and compassion.”
“I could also make their lives a lot harder, but I haven’t,” said Lisa.
“Do you think you get credit for that?” said her mother. “I’m disappointed in you, Lisa. You used to be such a sweet girl, but I’ve noticed a change in you lately. Where is your heart?”
“In pieces,” said Lisa. “Excuse me.”
She rushed upstairs with her eyes stinging and a lump in her throat. When she turned the corner, she nearly collided with Josh. He was standing by himself outside the sickroom. Lisa made no effort to hide her irritation.
“What are you doing?” she said.
“I’m sorry,” said Josh. “I didn’t mean to get in your way.”
“Just now, or in general?” said Lisa, blinking back her tears and hoping Josh hadn’t noticed her distress. She heard Stephen talking to Sabrina and wondered why Josh wasn’t with him.
“We never meant to be an inconvenience,” he said.
“Oh, don’t worry, you’re not an inconvenience,” said Lisa. “An inconvenience is realizing the eraser on your pencil isn’t working while you’re taking a test. Your family is much more than an inconvenience. You’re a catastrophe.”
“I can’t say I disagree,” he said with a smile.
“Do you think this is funny?” said Lisa.
“No,” said Josh. His smile disappeared. “I’m just trying to be polite, even though you’re being incredibly rude. It’s no secret that you don’t want us here. Well, guess what? I don’t want to be here either, but I don’t have a choice. We’re in this mess together, so we can either be civil to each other, or we can resort to juvenile bickering, whichever makes you feel better. It’s up to you.”
“Oh, quit being so high and mighty,” said Lisa, who was more than a little embarrassed by his criticism of her, mostly because she knew it was valid. “There’s nothing special about you. You’re nothing but an arrogant jerk, and no one cares what you think.”
“Then I guess this conversation is over unless you have any other pressing questions,” said Josh.
“Actually, I do,” said Lisa. “Why are you standing out here talking to me instead of spending time with your mother? Is it because you know she’s going to die and you’re trying to get used to the idea of having her gone?”
As soon as she spoke the words, she knew she had crossed a line. She wondered if she should apologize, but she couldn’t bear to humiliate herself by admitting she had done something wrong. Luckily, he seemed more confused than offended.
“It’s not that at all,” he said. “I’d rather just stand out here and listen. If I go in there, everything will change. I don’t want to ruin it for Stephen. Have you ever felt like you didn’t belong in your own family?”
“No,” said Lisa. “That’s stupid.”
“You’re a terrible liar,” said Josh.
“Whatever,” said Lisa. “Go ahead. Play your dumb little guessing games. You don’t know anything about me.”
She pushed past him, went into Veronica’s room, and slammed the door. Did loyalty mean nothing anymore? Her mother and Veronica had taken sides against her. She squeezed her hands into fists. Josh had an insufferable knack for looking into her heart and reading her mind. She knew she would have to be more careful in the future if she wanted to keep him at a safe distance.
∞∞∞
Lisa’s assumption that Josh knew everything about her was false. After she stormed away, he decided she was the most baffling creature he had ever met. He was still trying to make sense of her behavior when Stephen emerged from the sickroom. The relief on his face failed to dispel the brooding dread Josh felt when he thought about his mother, and when Agnes invited him in, his courage vanished.
His mother was propped up on pillows. She didn’t look any better or any worse than she had on the previous day, but because she was surrounded by medical equipment, the reality of the situation struck him for the first time. Fear entered his heart. He began to feel shaky and hoped she wouldn’t notice.
“I heard you spent the day with Richard,” said his mother.
“That’s right,” said Josh. “We drove up the river, and he showed me around. He also told me a little bit about the history of the town. He’s an interesting person.�
��
“He’s worried about you,” said his mother. She tried to adjust the pillow behind her shoulders, but she didn’t have enough strength to move it. Josh reached out to help her, but she struck his hand away and eventually managed to do the job herself. From the grimace on her face, Josh knew she was in pain. He resolutely ignored the sinking feeling in his stomach and tried to redirect his thoughts. His mother lay back in the bed, folded her hands on the blanket, and closed her eyes as if she were preparing to die right then and there.
“Josh, I need to talk to you,” she said. “I’ve been postponing this conversation because I didn’t want to upset you, but the time has come. There’s a hierarchy in every family with expectations and responsibilities that go along with it. You understand that, don’t you?”
“Of course,” said Josh.
“Good,” she said. “I need to take care of myself, your dad needs to take care of Yvonne, and you need to take care of your younger siblings, including Shannon. I realize the two of you are technically the same age, but she’s so scatterbrained—”
She hesitated.
“Mom, don’t worry,” said Josh.
“I’m not criticizing her,” said his mother. “She’s no worse than the average moody teenage girl. Your brother is a different matter entirely, but we won’t get into that right now. He’s still young. Everything will be okay as long as you prevent them from falling apart. They’ll follow your example. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” said Josh. “I’ll take care of them.”
“Good,” she said. “I’m proud of you, Josh. I hope you realize that. I’m not trying to make your life more difficult than it already is; I’m just trying to prepare you for the future. I know it’s not easy, but I’m confident you can handle the pressure. I hope you don’t resent me for expecting so much from you.”
The Patient from Silvertree: Book One in the Silvertree Series Page 9