In Their Blood (34 page)

“What?”

“That’s what he said. ‘Your mama’s calling you.’”

“What on earth?” his grandfather said. “Who would say such a thing?”

Elise’s eyes were glassy.

“We’d better go, Elise,” his grandfather said. “I’m not as fast a driver as you, and you don’t want to be late for school.”

“That’s a good idea, Grandpa,” Jeremy said.

“I need to stay here,” said Elise.

“Why in the world?” his grandfather said.

“There’s something I’m almost remembering, but I only feel it here. In the house.” She tightened her arms around her as though chilled. “I know it’s connected to my nightmares.”

“Why would you want to awaken your nightmares?” his grandfather asked.

“Because I can’t stand the feeling of almost remembering. It’s so close to the surface. I, I keep touching it, but then I lose it. Please, Grandpa. Please let me stay.”

His grandfather’s eyes begged Jeremy for help.

“You have to get to school, Ellie,” Jeremy said. “Why don’t you come back later?”

“That’s a good idea,” his grandfather said, herding Elise from the room. He glanced back at Jeremy, his expression so distraught that Jeremy turned away.

The house was silent once again, but Jeremy felt as though conch shells were up against his ears and the sound of crashing waves filled his head.

Your mama’s calling you.

It was one of them— Enrique, Liliam, Bud, or Irv. He just needed to figure out which one. Should he call Detective Lieber? Maybe she could put it all together. But Jeremy couldn’t do that. He had to see this through himself.

Jeremy needed to make him bleed. To writhe in pain. To suffer like an animal at the bottom of a pit as his flesh was consumed by scavengers.

Suffer. He had to make their murderer suffer.

He opened the door to his parents’ bedroom. The smell was
still wrong. No matter how thoroughly the room had been cleaned, their splattered blood would have seeped through the porous walls and into the wooden floorboards.

Jeremy sat on the edge of their bed and slid his hand under the pillow. It was where he had left it, soft and small, like a child’s stuffed animal. He held up the red bandanna in the weak light, knowing it contained his hair— his promise to his parents.

They were watching him, trying to tell him something. What was it? He understood Elise’s need to be in the house. Because here, they still existed. If Jeremy could only listen hard enough, he could hear them.

Your mama’s calling you
.

He slipped the bandanna into his pocket and went to his father’s closet. The Smith &Wesson 9-millimeter automatic was still in the place his father had shown him when he was fifteen.

He remembered the thrill. His father taking the gun from a hard plastic case hidden between some blankets and handing it to Jeremy. He had never imagined there had been a gun in his parents’ bedroom closet.

“I’m going to teach you how to shoot and reload this thing, Jeremy. But I don’t want you saying a word about it to your mother.”

No chance of that. A secret between Jeremy and his father was far more powerful than any guilt about not telling his mother.

His father had squeezed his shoulder. “You may be young, but I know you’re responsible. I trust you, Jeremy. I trust you to take care of your family.”

Jeremy ran his hands over the gun. He’d forgotten that scene until this moment. His father had once trusted him. Believed in him. How much he wanted to forgive his father for all that had happened. How much he wanted him back— alive and well, with all his flaws.

My son has the character to become the man I’ve been too weak to be.

Jeremy took the cartridges from their box on the shelf and loaded the gun.

Chapter 48

Robbie rested against her crutches, waiting for a taxi outside her townhouse. It was seven forty-five a.m. and her entire body ached. She felt as though she’d been bounced around in a clothes dryer for hours. But the fact was, she had slept most of the day yesterday. The Percocet had dulled her senses, but unfortunately not her memory.

How could she have come on to Jeremy like that?

There had been no calls in the almost thirty hours of her deep sleep. PCM, she understood. They often lost track of their auditors, not knowing which client engagement the auditor might be working at on any particular day. So they had no reason to wonder where she was or be concerned by her absence. But she’d been hoping Jeremy would call. Hoping he’d make light of the other night. But he hadn’t, and that could mean only one thing. That she’d stepped over a boundary and irrevocably damaged their friendship.

She studied her cell phone. Should she call him? But what would she say? That she was sorry about the other night? Wouldn’t Jeremy already know that? But if he did, why hadn’t he come by to see her or at least call?

Two newspapers still in their yellow plastic wrappers were lying on the lawn. She threw them behind some bushes, wondering if anything important had happened in the outside world while she had slept.

No. She wouldn’t call. It would be too awkward. And then he might ask what she was doing now. And she couldn’t tell him she’d decided to go to the office despite her condition. He’d surely be disgusted with her then, if he wasn’t already.

There was honking in the street. The taxi had come.

The PCM offices were quiet when she arrived ten minutes later. Although she lived close by, she couldn’t drive with her broken right ankle. She could smell coffee brewing and hear joking voices coming from down the hall. She propelled herself toward the partners’ offices on her crutches, sweating and breathing hard as she went. She couldn’t believe how much work it was to thrust her body weight forward.

She passed Gladys’s desk, relieved to see she wasn’t there. Although it was early, she was hoping Bud would be in and she could speak with him without his assistant running interference.

The accident had brought Robbie an epiphany. What was she doing chasing paper? The answer wasn’t going to be hidden in a pile of old reports. Rachel had already gone that route and had concluded the only way to find the truth was to go to the Olympus Grande.

But the other night had also changed Robbie. There had been a sense of release when she’d asked Jeremy to make love to her. She was following her instincts and not overanalyzing things the way she usually did. While the lack of control disturbed her, there was also something thrilling about it. And, like a junkie, she craved another fix.

Robbie caught her breath as she stopped outside Bud’s office. She knocked. There was no answer. “Damn,” she muttered.

“Jesus, Robbie.” Bud’s voice surprised her from behind. “What the hell happened to you?”

She touched the bruise on her forehead. What a mess she must
look like. But at least Bud gave no indication he knew about the file room accident. “I fell down some stairs,” she said. “At a friend’s house.”

“You look like hell. What are you doing at the office? Shouldn’t you be in bed?”

“I’m okay. Just a broken ankle. I can work.”

He shook his head and opened the door to his office. He was less formally dressed than usual, in a casual shirt and sports jacket.

“Do you mind if I speak with you for a few minutes?” she said, hopping after him.

He glanced down at his watch. “I wasn’t even planning on coming in this morning.”

“It’s kind of important.”

Bud looked impatient. “Then why don’t we set up an appointment for tomorrow late afternoon? I wouldn’t want to rush you.”

“Actually.” Robbie struggled to hoist herself forward, closer to his desk.

Bud was thumbing through some papers, found the ones he was looking for, and slipped them into his briefcase. The worn leather strap that usually hung on the hook behind his desk was missing. Robbie had always found its presence disturbing.

“It’s about the Olympus.”

Bud gave her an odd look. “What about the Olympus?”

“The site visits.”

He waited for her to continue.

“I was thinking now that Rachel’s gone, National may be concerned with the independence issue, again.”

“Meaning?” He remained standing.

“They may want to bring in another partner. To replace Rachel. You know, so there’s no perception of impropriety.”

“And let me understand this, Robbie. Were you going to remind National of their obligation?”

“No, of course not. I’m just concerned they may realize this on their own. Bringing in someone new would be a terrible inconvenience to Castillo Enterprises. I thought there may be a way to placate National, at least for now.”

“And your suggestion is?” He glanced again at his watch.

“Well, the biggest area of exposure is the Olympus Grande. It’s Castillo Enterprises’s major source of profits. The problem is, no one other than you and Irv has done a physical review of the property in years.” Her upper lip was perspiring, but she didn’t dare wipe it. “I think if someone else visits the property, that would eliminate National’s concern.”

Bud sat down in his chair, carefully adjusting his jacket so it wouldn’t wrinkle. “Why don’t you have a seat, Robbie?”

She hobbled over to the guest chair and awkwardly rested her crutches against it. The chess game that was always in progress on his desk was in its final stages with only a few pieces still standing.

“You bring up some interesting points.” He folded his fingers, no longer in a rush. “Did you have someone in mind to do this independent site visit?”

“I was thinking I should.” There was a nervous palpitation in her chest. The controlling side of her brain was battling with the newly ascendant impulsive side.

“You think you should,” Bud said flatly.

“I’m most familiar with the client. I’m senior on the job, under you and Irv.”

“It’s hilly with rustic paths; how would you get around?”

“I’d manage.” The two feuding sides of her brain had worked a compromise. First, she’d get Bud to agree. Then, she’d insist on bringing a couple of staff people along with her. She certainly wasn’t reckless enough to go to the Olympus Grande by herself.

He turned his Mont Blanc pen around in his thick fingers. “Your concern about National is valid, Robbie. And I’m impressed with
your offer, but I can’t let you go in your condition. You might hurt yourself.”

“You don’t have to worry.” Her voice was stronger. She’d almost worn him down. “I can take care of myself.”

He closed his briefcase. “I’m sorry, Robbie. I can’t let you do it.” He stood up slowly, as though weighing something. “I have a meeting this morning, then I’m flying out to St. Mary’s. Enrique’s already there and Irv will be joining us.”

Robbie’s stomach did a flip-flop. Today, Bud and Irv were meeting Mr. Castillo at the Olympus. It was too tempting an opportunity. And no one would dare pull any hanky-panky with the others present.

“Let me go with you. Please, Bud.”

“That’s impossible. We have private business to attend to. In fact, I shouldn’t have mentioned the meeting to you. I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t discuss it with anyone.”

“Please, Bud. I’ll stay out of the way.”

He glanced down at the chessboard. Something seemed to have captivated him. He moved the black bishop and removed the white queen from the board. He laid the queen down carefully, then looked up at Robbie with a smile.

Chapter 49

Jeremy checked the time as he pressed down on the accelerator, edging between cars, trying to outrun the rush hour traffic. eight twenty-five.

I-95 southbound was moving at twenty miles an hour. He should have called her yesterday. Regardless of how messed up his own life was, he should have called her. He picked up his cell phone and dialed Robbie’s number. Still no answer. Maybe she was asleep. At least, that’s what he hoped.

He turned off the highway and navigated through the street traffic. Not much faster, but at least he had a sense of progress. At eight forty-five, he turned onto her block.

Her car was there. Okay. Good. She was home. He knocked on the front door. Could she hear it in her bedroom? He doubted she was still sleeping on the sofa. He rang the doorbell and waited. He tried again. Nothing.

He walked through the overgrown plants on the side of the house and tapped on her bedroom window. The blinds were closed so he couldn’t see in. “Robbie,” he shouted. “Robbie? Wake up.”

He listened for any sound. A white cat sidled up to him, rubbing against his leg. Robbie’s cat. He tried to remember. Was the cat inside or out when he left her the other night? In. Definitely in. Which meant sometime since he’d left her sleeping, over twenty-four hours ago, Robbie had gotten up and at least opened the door to let the cat out.

Something yellow was lying between the bushes and the house. Newspapers. A strange place for the newsboy to throw them. He pulled off the plastic wrappers and checked the dates. Today’s and yesterday’s. Had Robbie already seen them? Why were they in the bushes? Unless she’d thrown them there on her way out.

He banged on the front door again. She couldn’t have gone to the office. Not after what had happened in the file room. How could he not have called and warned her?

And then, a taxi pulled up. Robbie got out. She hopped a few feet, balanced on her crutches. She gave Jeremy a tentative smile.

“Jesus, Robbie. Where’ve you been?”

“Excuse me?” Her face changed at his tone of voice. She brushed past him and fumbled to unlock the door.

“I asked where you’ve been.”

“I heard you. And I’d like to know where the hell you’ve been and why you’re showing up now like a raving lunatic on my doorstep.”

“I need to talk to you.”

“No, you don’t. Apparently, you need to shout at me. And you know something, Jeremy? I don’t need to be shouted at.” She got the door open.

He tried to follow her in, but she pushed the door closed catching him in the doorway. “Please, Robbie. A lot’s happened since your accident. You may be in danger. Let me in.”

Robbie looked skeptical, but she took her weight off the door. She hopped into the living room, dropped her crutches on the tile floor, and collapsed on the sofa. The bump on her forehead had receded and her eyelid was normal size, but a bluish bruise covered the upper side of her face. Robbie and Elise, both injured. How come he couldn’t take better care of the women he cared about? Then he thought about Marina.