Hell (21 page)

‘It's OK. Go on.'

‘You know what a Hertz doughnut is, Doc?'

‘I'm not sure,' Grace said, though she did know.

‘Guy comes up to you with a box of doughnuts and says “Do you want a doughnut?” and you say sure, and then the guy punches you and says “Hurts, don't it?” Don't-it, like doughnut.'

Grace nodded. ‘Charlie did that to you?'

Pranksters, she had always felt, were bullies.

‘He did Indian burns on my arm, too.'

‘Pete, why didn't you tell your mom?' The horror was in her tone, and probably in her face, but she couldn't help it.

There were tears in his eyes now. ‘One time, he pushed me when we were out in our backyard at home, and I fell down and hit my knee on the table, and my mom came out and he helped me up, pretended he was helping me, you know, but he whispered in my ear that if I told, he'd come and get me.'

‘Pete, I'm so sorry,' Grace said.

‘He knew I was scared of stuff,' Pete went on, ‘because Mom told him, and he said I was a wuss and laughed at me, but never when she was around.'

Grace remembered how she'd felt that evening when he'd started to tell her about what ‘Charlie' had said to him, remembered the anger blossoming in her, and then
it
had happened, and that man had lain dying at her feet . . .

But now, right now, she could hear sirens, coming closer.

Stopping.

And then two uniformed Key Biscayne police officers, one male, one female, were coming their way, moving rapidly over the grass.

‘Doc?' New fear in Pete's eyes.

‘It's OK,' Grace told him calmly. ‘I think it's me they want to talk to.'

‘No!' He jumped up. ‘They'll take you to
jail
!'

Magda was up on her feet.

Grace stood up slowly, saw another woman behind the officers, hurrying.

Sara Mankowitz.

‘Mom!' Pete cried, fury in his voice.

He took off, running, but he didn't get far, the policewoman reaching him easily, taking hold of him by one arm.

‘Don't hurt him!' Grace cried out.

Pete was yelling and kicking out, and Sara was weeping and the male officer had to go join the melee, and Grace's impulse was to go and help.

‘No, Grace.' Magda was at her side. ‘You can't do anything.'

‘Oh, God,' Grace said. ‘I've made it worse for him.'

‘No, you haven't,' Magda told her. ‘You did the only thing you could.'

‘He was telling me what Duggan – Bianchi – did to him.'

‘Careful,' Magda warned her. ‘Not now.'

‘Oh, God,' Grace said again.

‘She didn't tell you where she was going?' Sam asked Claudia on the phone.

He was trying not to yell at her, but it was hard.

‘She went out with Dr Shrike,' Claudia said. ‘I figured that had to be OK.'

‘What exactly did Grace say before they left?'

‘I told you. She said they had something to do, that Magda was picking her up. And she did, I saw her car pull up, I checked that Dr Shrike was driving, and I felt like I sometimes do with the boys, making sure their friends aren't crazy drivers or going to drink. Grace is not a fool, Sam, as you know.'

‘Did she say they were going to Magda's?'

‘No, but I guess they might have.' Claudia's anxiety level suddenly rose. ‘Sam, has something happened?'

‘Nothing new,' Sam said. ‘Other than that there's a multiple killer out there who hates our family and, oh, yes, Grace is out of jail on bail.'

‘Hey,' Claudia said. ‘Take it easy.'

Sam took a breath. ‘I'm sorry.'

‘It's all getting to you,' she said. ‘Me, too. Though I know it's different. All the pressure on you to make it go away, make it better.'

‘You're not wrong there,' Sam said.

‘I'd offer to go looking for her, but with Joshua here . . .'

‘You stay put,' Sam told her. ‘I'm sure she's OK.'

‘Me too.'

‘Thank you.' He paused. ‘I haven't been saying that enough. Thank you, all of you, the boys too. You've all been better than great.'

‘We love you,' Claudia said simply.

‘If you hear from Grace, have her call me, please.'

‘Likewise,' Claudia said.

It could have been far worse for her.

She knew that.

Though it was bad enough as it was.

The Key Biscayne police were courteous with her, listened to what little she was able to tell them – since to her mind Pete was still her patient – and told her they would be making a report.

Then Magda, who had waited throughout, took her back to Névé.

Sam opened the door immediately.

He'd received a courtesy call an hour ago.

‘Are you OK?' he asked her.

‘Yes,' she said. ‘Thank you.'

She heard the Lexus departing through the gates, wanted to turn and wave, but thought better of it, felt too much like an errant child.

‘I've talked with Jerry Wagner,' Sam said. ‘I expect you have too.'

He closed the front door.

The first floor was quiet, empty. The family cars were outside, but tact, she guessed, had driven them all into retreat.

‘I know you're mad at me,' she said. ‘And I'm mad at myself, too, but I still don't see what choice I had in the circumstances.'

Sam shook his head. ‘How can you
not
see?'

‘Magda was watching me at all times.'

‘Does Magda carry a gun?' Sam asked.

‘I doubt it,' Grace said, ‘and I doubt you'd be happy if the answer was yes.'

Woody appeared, tail wagging, approached, then stopped, sensing a mood. ‘I'd be happy,' Sam said, ‘if I could trust you to behave like a sane person.'

‘And ignore a child threatening to kill himself?' Grace felt her own anger mounting. ‘And I don't care if he was a witness, or I didn't care at the time, and I'm betting that if you were me, you'd have done pretty much the same thing.'

‘With one notable difference,' Sam said.

‘You'd have called me first,' Grace said.

‘You got that right,' Sam said, and walked away.

Sam seldom walked away from her.

It was much later before they talked about it again.

Family having intervened, time with their son, dinner,
safe
conversation, no one asking too many questions – though Claudia had tackled her briefly in the kitchen, had said that though she understood, she still objected to having been deceived.

‘I'm sorry,' Grace had said.

‘It must have been terrible for you,' Claudia had said.

‘Much, much worse for Pete,' Grace had said.

She and Sam went up early, checked on Joshua, then went into their room and closed the door.

‘Did Jerry tell you what to expect?' Grace asked.

‘I'm not his client,' Sam said.

‘He didn't know much yet,' she said. ‘He said he thinks the prosecutor will be made aware and they may try to have the bond revoked.' The impact of that struck her suddenly. ‘My God, Sam, what would that do to you financially?'

‘I don't think it'll happen,' he said. ‘But thank you for considering it.'

‘A little late,' Grace said.

‘Just a little,' he said.

‘I wish you'd yell at me.'

‘I don't want to.'

‘Do you hate me?' she asked.

‘What are you suddenly, sixteen?'

She sat on the bed. ‘I'm sorry,' she said. ‘I keep screwing up, but things keep happening when I least expect them to, and maybe my decision-making skills aren't at their best.'

‘But if Pete called you again tomorrow, you'd probably go to him.'

‘Not without checking with you first,' Grace said.

Sam sat down beside her.

‘I don't think you realize how scared for you I am,' he said.

‘I wish you wouldn't be.'

‘All the time,' he said. ‘Not just when you're off doing crazy things, but even when I know you're here, and I should believe you're safe, but I don't, not the way things are, and that's more my fault than yours.'

‘Of course it isn't,' Grace said.

‘My fault for not having gotten the job done yet,' Sam said.

‘Oh, Sam,' she said, and leaned against him. ‘I thought, for a while, I was going back to jail tonight.'

‘What else did Jerry say?'

‘That they might bring everyone back into court, and because I had contact with one of the state witnesses, the prosecution might try— I already said that . . .'

‘You did,' Sam said.

‘So what now?' Grace said.

‘We wait.'

TWENTY-EIGHT

May 12

I
n the dream, she was in a cell, but there was only one other prisoner.

Joshua was there, too, chained up, too far away for her to hold him, but she could feel his warmth, hear his breathing . . .

‘Joshua,' she said softly, so no one would hear and come to hurt them. ‘Joshua, sweetheart, everything's going to be OK. Isn't it, Daddy?'

Except Sam didn't answer, because of course he wasn't there.

‘I've left you,' his voice said suddenly.

‘Sam?' she said. ‘Where are you?

‘I've left you because you never listen,' his voice told her. ‘Because you lie.'

‘I don't,' Grace said.

‘You're a liar, and you're a murderer,' Sam's voice went on, ‘and look what's happened to our little boy because of you, Gracie, just look at Joshua now.'

She turned her head, saw their little son in chains.

And then she saw that
he
was there too.

Cooper.

On his knees beside Joshua, a knife in his hand.

Pointing at his heart.

Grace screamed.

And woke up.

Alone in the big bed.

Only four in the morning, but Sam wasn't with her, though logic told her, even as her heart still pounded in her chest, that he had not left her, just the bed, because he hardly slept these nights and got up so as not to disturb her.

‘Oh, God,' she said.

And lay back again, wondering, for the thousandth time since that night, what was going to become of them all.

‘
Murderer
,' Sam's voice from the dream accused her again.

‘You're right,' she said, into the dark.

‘It looks like yesterday's going to go away,' Jerry Wagner told her when he called just after ten.

‘Are you sure?' Grace asked.

She was in her sister's kitchen, and Claudia was standing by the big steel fridge, watching and listening, and Grace supposed this was how it would be now, one of them standing guard, making sure she didn't break out or do anything more to bring the wrath of the law down on her head.

‘I have it on good authority,' Wagner went on, ‘that Mrs Mankowitz got quite upset when she thought you'd been arrested, because she knew you were only trying to help her son, who was in real danger.'

‘That's good of Sara,' Grace said.

‘I guess so,' Wagner said, ‘though maybe it's the least she can do if she can't take proper care of him herself.'

‘That's a little unfair.' Grace sat down, weak with relief.

‘Can we talk about you now, please?'

‘Yes,' she said.

‘About the fact that if you do get away with this, it's the very last time.'

‘I know,' she said again.

‘I'm not sure you do.' He spelt it out. ‘You can
not
have any more contact with state witnesses. There will be no more chances. And then you'll all lose. You, Sam, Joshua, Cathy, the whole of your family.' Wagner paused. ‘Are we clear? Or do I have to start thinking you might be safer with an electronic monitoring device around your ankle?'

‘No,' Grace said. ‘You don't.'

‘I don't want to see you back in that place,' he said. ‘And I plan to do every last thing I can to stop that happening.'

‘I know,' she said. ‘I'm very grateful.'

‘Don't be grateful,' Wagner said. ‘Just keep to the rules.'

Angie Carlino called Sam just after noon.

‘No bullying history for Bianchi that I could dig up, though it doesn't mean he might not have been a nasty or even a troubled kid.' Angie paused. ‘Bernice van Heusen aka Blossom van Heusen, aka at least three other married names. George van Heusen, a big property guy, having been her last husband.'

‘Dead or alive?' Sam asked.

‘All dead,' Angie said. ‘But nothing suspicious, unless maybe Blossom excited them to death. From what I can make out, she used to make a good living out of prostitution.'

‘Hooker or madam?'

‘Both,' Angie said. ‘Though she seems to have given it up for George, who died ten years ago – cancer – and left her a small fortune.'

Sam tried to conjure up the widow, then sixty-one.

‘If she had money,' he asked, ‘how come she drove an old Beetle?'

‘Maybe she liked it,' Angie said. ‘Sounds like she was a fun broad. Or maybe it was just one of a string of cars.'

‘Where was she living at the end?'

‘At home, in her house. Mr van Heusen's nice, big house, I guess.'

‘She have staff looking after her?'

‘I don't know,' Angie said. ‘That's all I could get, Sam.'

‘It's good,' he said. ‘I owe you one.'

‘No problem,' she said. ‘How's Grace doing?'

‘Doing OK,' Sam lied.

No sense adding to the worry pool, he figured.

Enough people swimming around in there already.

He waited till halfway through the afternoon, when all the other detectives were out of the office, before he shared his new thoughts with Martinez.

‘I'm getting a definite feeling about Mrs van Heusen and Cooper,' he said. ‘I know it's a leap, but the lady used to be a madam.'