Keeping the Peace (30 page)

“Yes. New Year’s Eve. The band had just played Atlantic City. When the show was over, I sneaked in backstage because I wanted to see Gabriel. I knew that girl wasn’t with him this time. I left the flowers at the hotel like I always did, and they told me at the desk that the band was traveling alone. That means just themselves and their roadies. Well, I saw him.”

“Richard Seeley?”

“Yes. Backstage. The band members had gone back to the hotel. I was headed there myself to the party. They always have a party.”

“What did he do?”

“He came up behind me and said, ‘Will you be seeing Gabriel?’ I jumped, then I recognized him. I tried to act like I didn’t know anything about the restraining order. I said, ‘You’re Gabriel’s friend, aren’t you?’ And he said, ‘Yes, I’m his mother’s fiancé. I need to give him something. Will you take it to him for me?’ I said I would, and he handed me an envelope. He thanked me, and then we had a short conversation about how the band was headed to New York and then to Dartmouth College for the winter carnival. I asked if he knew where the band was staying in Vermont. I was trying to get information to give to Gabriel. He said Dartmouth was really in New Hampshire and they were probably staying right there in the town. Then he said he had to get going and he left.”

“What did you do next?”

“I went back to my hotel room. And—and I sat on the bed, just looking at the envelope. I didn’t know what to do.”

“What do you mean?”

The girl started to cry again. John handed her another tissue. “I didn’t have an invitation to the party. I couldn’t get in. They wouldn’t let me in to see Gabriel, even when I told them who I was and that I had a letter for him.”

John nodded sympathetically. “Go on.”

“I opened the letter.”

“The envelope Richard Seeley had given you to give to Strand?”

“Yes.”

“You read it?”

“Yes.”

Cully could not contain himself. “Well, what did it say?”

Kayla dabbed at her eyes with the tissue and motioned toward her purse. “It’s in there. You can read it yourself. I’m too tired. I’m tired of everything.”

Cully looked at John, and John nodded. “Get the letter out of the purse, Cully.”

The young man opened the leather bag and carefully withdrew an envelope. He put the bag back on the floor and took the letter out, unfolding it.

“Read it,” John said.

Cully glanced at the girl in the bed. She lay back against her pillow, her eyes closed. He cleared his throat and read: “This is a warning to make it more sporting. I have a plan. It’s a plan to take you out of the equation once and for all. All you do is confuse the issues at hand and make everyone’s life miserable. You are important no longer.”

“That’s it?”

“Yes, Chief.”

John wiped his hand over his face and sighed. “Hmm.”

Kayla sat up, her eyes wild. “Don’t you see? He’s going to kill Gabriel. That’s what the note means. That’s why it’s so important for me to talk to Gabriel. I have to warn him. If you’re telling me the truth and he’s still alive, then I have to warn him.”

John put his hand on the girl’s arm in an attempt to quiet her. “That’s what the police do, Kayla. We’ll warn him. You rest. That’s the best thing you can do for yourself. You’ve probably saved his life just by telling us this. I’m going to take that letter, and we’re going to find this guy.”

Kayla lay back down, a look of worry on her face. This time, her voice sounded weak as she spoke. “He’s here. He’s here waiting to strike. I saw him in New York. He was hanging around the Garden, where the band was, and he was talking to this guy, this Bruce Blake. I talked to him, too. He was kind of a bossy, self-important little guy. He bragged to me that he was going to have a private meeting with Gabriel here in Vermont. He said he was going to make Ragged Rainbow the biggest band ever, because after this meeting, he was going to be their manager. That’s how I knew he was here. He even told me the hotel. I’m sure that’s how Richard Seeley found out Gabriel was staying here. From backstage. From Bruce Blake. He was such a loudmouth.”

John and Cully exchanged glances. John said, “We’re going to go now and let you rest. The people here are nice. They’ll get in touch with your mother and father.”

“Oh, great. That’s all I need.” The girl sighed and closed her eyes again.

“Have a good rest,” John said. He left the room quietly, Cully at his heels.

“This just gets weirder and weirder, doesn’t it?” Cully said, quickening his pace to keep up with his chief.

“What’s that?” mumbled John, thinking of six things at once.

“I mean, we’ve got two stalkers, and one of the stalkers ends up stalking the first stalker and tries to outstalk him.”

John gave a little laugh. “If it didn’t involve life and death and a real murder, that’d be funny.”

“He’s going to show up real soon, Chief.”

“I know that, Cully.”

Chapter Twenty-One

J
OHN
A
ND
C
ULLY
W
ALKED
O
UT
of the hospital into the cold gloom of early evening. It was still flurrying as they drove back to the police station.

John spoke to Becky as the two men took off their jackets and knocked the snow off their boots. “Anything new?”

“Well, it’s been busy with a lot of little stuff. There was a fender-bender over on Church Street. That bad corner. Then, that young guy from Boston who’s was living with his girlfriend in the old Martin house called to say she’d kicked him out. He said he needed to get his stuff, and he was afraid to go in because she had a gun. Jason went over to see what was going on. Irene called from Chandler’s to say they’d discovered the old back entrance open. They thought it was the wind, but they wanted to file a report in case it was a break-in and something turned up missing. Steve’s over there now. That’s about it. Oh, and sorry, but I got busy with these things, so your kids are still here. They’ve been quiet, so I guess they’re resigned.”

“Don’t go apologizing for not running them around. No sign of Richard Seeley?”

“Not a single one, Chief. The boys have been just about everywhere, and Joe Bernard is circling through the whole town as we speak.”

Cully said, “Well, we’ve got some news. And some evidence.” He waved the envelope in the air and set it down on her desk.

Becky looked questioningly at John.

“That’s right,” John said. “It appears the dominoes are falling in sequence. We had quite the talk with this Kayla person. Cully, get going and write this up, will you? Here are my notes. Be as accurate as you possibly can. Then hit the road. Find this guy.”

Michael stepped out of the back office and handed a small stack of papers to his father. “Here’s everything I could get, Dad. Some of it’s really interesting, but I didn’t read it all. I figured you’d want to look at everything.”

“Thanks, Mike.” John took the papers and went into his own office.

Mia was sitting at his desk, typing away on his computer. Peter was leaning back in the straight chair, his chin on his chest, pretending to doze. Mia looked up as he entered.

“We’re still here, Dad,” she said dully.

John looked at her and sighed, but said nothing. Instead, he stood by his desk, looking through the pile of e-mails Michael had given him. There was a tap at the door.

“Come on in,” said John, not looking up.

Becky stuck her head in. “Sorry, Chief,” she said. “Peter, would you help Irene in the clerk’s office, please? That guy who was in there earlier dropped a map down behind the copy machine, and she can’t reach it. I think you can move the machine enough for her to get her skinny little arm back there.”

Peter sat upright. For all his affected grumpiness, he liked to help people, especially when it required muscle. “Sure, Becky. I’ll go right now.”

John looked up and smiled. “Thanks for that, Peter.”

Peter nodded importantly and left the office. He returned five minutes later. “That was weird. The tax map he copied was the map of Mom’s office.”

Three things happened at once: Michael came through the open door and said, “I don’t understand why this guy is so interested in Mom’s building.” Then, John’s cell phone rang, and a sudden wave of fear washed over him so profoundly that his mouth went dry and his knees became so weak that he had to grasp the edge of his desk.

A tremor went through him, and he struggled to regain his composure. He heard Mia say, “Dad, answer your phone. Dad! Dad, are you all right?”

He fumbled in his breast pocket for his phone. He knew without looking who it was.

“Melanie?” he said. Somehow, probably because of that tremor, he had hit the speaker button.

“John? Is that you?” Melanie’s voice was oddly shrill.

He caught his daughter’s eye and saw her rise from the chair. The boys were looking at him, too. “Of course it’s me. What’s up?”

“John, Gabriel and I are down here at the office, and I just wanted to call and tell you I’d be a little late. Sorry, I know this is an important date for you, but we’ve just got to finish this up.”

Before he could ask what “date” she was talking about, she went on. “John, can you hear me?”

Now, Michael and Peter had moved in to stand beside their sister, their eyes still on their father.

“Of course I can hear you, Melanie. What is it?”

“This is very important. You’ve got to go back to the house and take the rhubarb pie out of the oven. Please, John, hurry. The rhubarb pie. I—I’ve got to go now. I just wanted to tell you that.” Melanie ended the call.

Mia’s hands flew to her mouth.

“Dad,” Peter said. “Dad!”

“Mom said ‘rhubarb,’” Michael added quietly.

John rubbed the back of his neck roughly. Everything was becoming clear and very rapidly.

“Mom said ‘rhubarb,’” Michael repeated.

“I know. I know.” John leaned on the desk. “Let me figure this out for two seconds.”

It had started so long ago, when he had first taken a job with law enforcement. At first, it was a code between the two of them, but as the kids came and grew older, the parents included them. They all knew that if at any time they were in danger and couldn’t speak of it, if they were kidnapped, held hostage, or needed to spread a warning without giving themselves away, they were to convey their danger by saying the word “rhubarb.” No one else knew about it, only the five of them. It was only to be used in matters of life and death. They had never used it before.

John said, “Get Irene, Peter.”

The boy ran out of the office and down the hall.

Becky stood in the doorway. “What’s up, John?”

“Mom’s in trouble,” Mia said, her voice catching.

“I just got a call from Melanie,” explained John. “I think Seeley has them.” He rubbed his hand over his face, struggling to think clearly. “Mike, did she say she was at the office?”

“Yeah. She said she was there and would be late.”

Becky said, “I’m calling in Jason and Steve. Cully, get out here.”

Mia’s eyes were awash with unshed tears, but her voice was steady. “What are you going to do, Dad?”

“I’ve got to go down there. I’ve got to try to find out what’s going on.”

The town clerk came into the office behind Peter.

“Irene,” John said, “is this the guy who went through the tax maps today?” He handed her the computer print-out image of Richard Seeley that LAPD has sent him.

“Why, yes, Chief,” she said. “That’s just who it was. What’s going on?”

“I think he’s got my wife and Gabriel Strand hostage, Irene.”

“Oh, Chief. Oh, no! Becky, can I help?”

John said, “The best thing we can all do is go about our business until I find out what’s really happening.”

“Absolutely! I’ll be in my office if I can do anything helpful.” With that, Irene left the room.

John’s mind raced as Cully, Becky, Mia, Peter, and Michael stood looking at him. He needed a plan that would keep his wife safe.

“I’m going to drive down there. Cully, you follow me, but take your own car and go into the elementary school parking lot. You can hide there until I can call you about what to do from there. Hopefully we won’t spook the guy.” Then he did something he’d done only a handful of times before in all his years as the chief of police: he pulled out a key from his pocket and unlocked the gun cabinet behind his desk. Four rifles stood there. He took one and handed it to Cully, whose face was now ashen. Then he took one himself. “Mike,” he said as he checked the firing mechanisms, “take your brother and sister home.”

“Dad—”

John looked up. “Mike, please. I am deadly serious. Do as I say. Do it now.”

There was a glaring match between John and his children. “I’ll call you,” he said. “I promise I will.”

The three of them stood together. They were fifteen, seventeen, and nineteen years old, closing in fast on adulthood, but as he looked at them standing there together, he could only see them as three, five, and seven. His children stood as a unit. Michael was in the front, Peter two steps behind him and to his left, and Mia, the most courageous of all of them, at Michael’s right elbow with her fists clenched. John fought back the tears that were breaking at the backs of his eyes. “I will not let anything happen to your mother.”
I will not let anything happen to the one person I cannot live without
. “Now go home.” He barked the order, and they turned as one.