Sins of the Father (8 page)

“What evidence?”

“Me,” I said. “He was going to sell me and
be done with it. It was the plan all along, at least according to
Gillette.”

The muscle in Johnny’s jaw jumped suddenly.
“I see.”

“I don’t know why. It wasn’t like my
testimony against Datello would do any harm. He was already
dead.”

“Remember when we thought that Danny was the
root of all evil in this city?”

I nodded.

“I’m starting to wonder if that was an
assumption the people who were really pulling the strings counted
on us making, Doc.”

“The ties to Marcos made him a built-in
patsy.”

“What’s your gut instinct on Datello now? Do
you think he was really part of that whole mess?”

“I don’t know,” I said. “I know he hated you
and felt pressured to make OSI go away. He didn’t get rabid about
making that happen until after you blew your cover, Johnny. That
was late October.”

“And Sanderfield had already announced that
he planned to challenge Joe in the election this fall,” Johnny’s
expression grew grim. “Sherman was upset with Joe. Really upset,
Helen.”

“Because of Jerry Lowe’s arrest?”

He nodded. “And the fact that Joe thought it
was perfectly appropriate that he stand trial for murder and go to
prison instead of living at Dunhaven until deemed sane.”

“He’s not insane. Jerry Lowe enjoyed his
crimes. He committed them with malice aforethought. I have no doubt
about that.”

“Neither do I,” Johnny said. “What I don’t
quite grasp is why Sherman was so opposed to Lowe’s day in
court.”

“Zack still hasn’t made inroads getting Lowe
to trial. Have you thought about what might happen to his case
should Collangelo lose the election? Sanderfield could be in a
position to protect him, Johnny.”

“Yeah,” he said. “I guess he would. Maybe
Joe ought to push the issue publicly. It could be damning if
Sanderfield defends a man like Jerry Lowe, particularly since the
majority of the state is outraged that he’s been in custody almost
a year and still hasn’t been found fit to stand trial.”

“Then again, with Sherman out of the
picture, Sanderfield wouldn’t be obligated to keep any promise he
might’ve made about Jerry’s fate. Unless Jerry is involved in the
human trafficking business too.”

“Do you think that’s a possibility?”

I shook my head. “Not in a million years.
Jerry Lowe was too focused on what his personal agenda was. He
stalked his victims. That took time, Johnny. He counted on
surrounding himself with corrupt and inept detectives who were more
than willing to look the other way for the right amount of money.
Jerry Lowe’s greatest asset was that he simply didn’t give a damn
about what happened in Darkwater Bay. He used his influence to make
sure it wasn’t easy for the cops who did care. He created the
perfect storm for the criminal element. This place became a haven,
the safe harbor for all things illegal.”

“I agree.”

“If Terrell Sanderfield sees the benefit in
rewarding Jerry with a cushy sentence at Dunhaven, even though he
could never possibly return to his former position in the police
department, it says a lot.”

“It says that Sanderfield is more than a
little tainted.”

“Exactly. Plus, I can’t stop thinking about
Gillette’s cocky belief that he was untouchable. A man of status
like Sanderfield might’ve been why Gillette believed he’d never be
captured.”

“Why did you keep this from me, Helen?”

This particular tip of the iceberg was
either insurance or the piece of the puzzle that could lead Johnny
to the real revelation that Gillette made. “I have no proof, only
suspicion.”

“Your instincts are enough for me. We’ll
get
the evidence. At least now I’ve got some idea where to
look.”

“That still doesn’t offer up a plan to find
proof, Johnny. Sanderfield has OSI in his sights. Anything you do
will be criticized and scrutinized like crazy.”

“Which is why it’s time to move the
investigation into someone’s hands who won’t be on Sanderfield’s
radar,” Johnny said.

“And who might that be?”

Johnny grinned. “Well, he was recently
bitching that OSI spent too much time excluding the feds from the
human trafficking investigation. Wouldn’t it be a brilliant coup if
it turns out the case was never really closed, that we just put it
in the very capable hands of our friends at the FBI?”

“You want to call David and ask for his
help?”

“I can’t think of a better way to move this
forward, Helen. Can you?”

About ten trillion ways. The last thing I
needed was David Levine looking over my shoulder while I tried to
figure out if my father was part of the human trafficking ring we
uncovered too.

Another thought rippled through my brain.
Maybe this was why Dad was determined to drive a wedge between
Johnny and me. Darkwater Bay was probably the last place on earth
he wanted me to live.

“Helen?”

“Hmm. Make the call, Johnny. David can get a
team on Sanderfield so fast it’ll make your head spin.”

If I could keep them focused on Sanderfield
and based in Montgomery, it would at the very least buy time for
the investigation that had to begin in Darkwater Bay.

Chapter 7

Tears sprang to my eyes the instant that the
Doppler probe touched my belly. Johnny’s hand gripped mine tightly,
not the source of my tears. No, it was the sudden echo of the
whoosh of our baby’s heartbeat.

“Let’s see if we can’t get a picture of this
little guy – or girl,” the ultrasound technician grinned.

“Is that his heartbeat?” It was the first
time Johnny assigned a gender preference to our baby.

“Strong and healthy,” she said. “About a
hundred forty beats per minute.”

“Is that normal?”

“It is for a growing baby, Mr. Orion. Let’s
see here.” The heartbeat faded for a moment before jumping back
through the speaker on the ultrasonic machine. “Well,” she
exclaimed. “This is a surprise.”

“What is? Is something wrong?” My worst
fears leapt from my throat. That bastard Gillette – if he’d done
something to hurt the baby, I wouldn’t rest until I found everyone
in his family and tortured the shit out of them.

“Nothing wrong at all, Mrs. Orion.”

Johnny squeezed my hand, let his thumb roll
over the ridges of my knuckles. Today was the first time I used my
new name publicly. He hadn’t stopped grinning about it.

“I am curious,” she said, while she turned
the monitor to our line of sight. “Do you have a history of
fraternal twins in the family? They tend to increase the likelihood
of multiple births in women who are twins or the child of a
twin.”

Johnny’s jaw dropped. “There are
two
babies?”

“Yep.” She pointed them out on the screen.
“There, and there. Both just as healthy as can be.”

“Can you tell what sex they are?”

Johnny’s stunned elation couldn’t overshadow
the gripping panic in my chest. Was I carrying twins because I was
a twin? I started praying.
Please don’t let him figure out what
I’m really doing. Please don’t let Johnny do that mind reading
bullshit and see right through me!

“Mrs. Orion?”

My eyes snapped into focus on the tech. “I’m
sorry. What did you say?”

She laughed softly. “I think your wife is in
shock, Mr. Orion.”

“No doubt,” he grinned. “Honey, did you hear
her? We’re having twins!”

“Good thing I didn’t start buying furniture
yesterday, huh?”

“How soon can you tell us what we’re
having?”

“It’s a little early, Mr. Orion. In another
couple of weeks, we should be able to have a much clearer picture
of them when we take a peek again. If you want to know what you’re
having before they’re born, that is.”

I didn’t. I suspected already – we would get
a girl and a boy, just like the Conall family had the first time
around.

“So are you a twin yourself, Mrs.
Orion?”

“Only child,” Johnny piped up. “The both of
us.”

“I see,” she smiled. “Well, there has to be
a first somewhere, doesn’t there?”

“You’re sure they’re fraternal?” I
asked.

Her fingers flew over a keyboard and froze
one section of the screen. “Two amniotic sacs. You can faintly make
out the outlines, here… and here. See them?”

Johnny leaned forward. “Uh-huh. Are those
the heads? Wow. Helen, can you see this? You can make out their
little arms and legs and spines. I’ve never seen anything so
amazing in my life.”

“This probably explains the extreme morning
sickness you told the doctor you’ve been experiencing,” she said.
“You’ve got more than the typical amount of HCG in your blood
stream. Let’s hope it doesn’t adversely affect your appetite.”

“It’s getting better,” Johnny said. “For the
first time in her life, Helen actually has a decent appetite.”

“That’s great! Now, if you’ll give me a
minute to take some measurements, we can give you a much more
accurate due date for these little darlings, and then I’ll print a
picture for you to take home with you.”

“Since she’s having twins, does that mean
she’ll start showing sooner?”

“I’m right here, Johnny. You don’t have to
talk about me like I’m not in the room.”

He laughed and squeezed my hand again.
“Sorry, sweetheart. I feel like I just got the best news a man
could ever hear.”

“Good thing you got two on your first try,”
I said dryly. “I’m a little old to be going through this
again.”

“Did you give the doctor the date you
believe you conceived, Mrs. Orion?”

“Yeah,” I said. “Unless contraception failed
after that one reckless event, we’re certain that it was early in
January.”

“Well, that seems to jibe with my
measurements. I’d estimate that you’re about ten weeks pregnant
based on the size of the babies. That would put your due date about
28 to 30 weeks from now. Late September, early October. We have to
go with the 40 week due date officially, but twins seldom go to
term. Better have that nursery ready by the end of September,” she
paused and grinned, “Congratulations.”

She printed the traditional snapshot of the
ultrasound image and handed it to Johnny.

“Thank you,” he said. “Thank you so
much!”

I laid there silently watching him while the
tech cleaned the gel off my belly. His eyes gleamed with joy while
he stared with an awestruck expression at the little
photograph.

“Would people think I’m nuts if I got this
professionally framed?”

“I would think you’re nuts, but when has
that ever stopped you?”

Johnny grinned. “Wanna see it?”

I stared at the two tiny blobs on the
photograph while he enthused about his belief that one of them
looked slightly larger than the other. Pondered if that meant one
was a boy and the other a girl.

“It’s not unusual for one twin to be bigger
than the other, Johnny, regardless of gender.” Crevan and I were
about the same size, at least in height, as adults.

“Neither one of us is exactly petite,” he
said. “Do you think they’ll be tall like you, even if they’re
girls?”

“It would seem to be in the cards, or at
least the gene pool.”

“We want to know in advance what we’re
having, don’t we? I mean, it’ll make decorating the nursery
easier.”

“Or we could go with neutral colors,” I
said. “Even if they’re boys, there will be no NASCAR theme in my
house.”

He laughed again. “I can see you going for a
basketball theme. A Boston Celtics nursery.”

“It sure as hell wouldn’t be the
Lakers.”

“Spoken like a true east coast girl.”

“You can get dressed now, Mrs. Orion. Dr.
Harvey will be in to talk to you in a few minutes, just as soon as
I show her the ultrasound results.”

“Thanks, Joan.”

“Don’t forget to stop at the desk and make
your next appointment before you leave.”

I saluted and smiled. My mind continued to
race. How much more circumstantial evidence would I need to
convince me that Gillette told the truth? Hopefully none would come
crashing down on my head between now and the time Maya had the
mitochondrial DNA results. Given my labile emotional state, I
wasn’t sure how many more surprises I could endure.

“Helen?”

I looked up at Johnny.

“Are you going to get dressed?”

“Oh. Yeah. Sorry.”

“Are you upset about this?” He waved the
photograph in front of me.

Good question. The actual news might’ve been
as exciting to me as it was Johnny if not for the growing suspicion
I carried about Gillette’s vague taunt.

“I wasn’t expecting this. Am I upset about
it? No. A little blindsided perhaps, but not upset.”

He offered his hand and pulled me upright on
the exam table.

“I’m probably excited enough for both of us.
I just feel so…” he thumped one fist over his heart. “This is the
most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. Look at them, sweetheart. Our
love made these little babies.”

“Your impatience and refusal to pause long
enough to get a condom made them.”

“I needed you. Not in two minutes. Right
that second.”

“I remember. I was there too, you know.”

“You weren’t complaining then, Helen.”

“And I’m not complaining now. Let’s just not
romanticize this to make it feel like it was planned.”

His wounded expression stabbed at my heart.
I hardened it. My reminder was the absolute truth. If planning had
entered into this equation, I would’ve never become pregnant. Now I
had as many as thirty weeks of double the agony ahead of me.

“Is that how you really feel?”

I rolled my eyes – at least internally. “Of
course not. I’m… hormonal. Doubly hormonal truth be told. There’s
no crime in the fact that this pregnancy was an absolute, unplanned
accident, Johnny. It happens to very careful people. It might’ve
happened even if
we
had been more careful. There’s no way to
know.” I paused and reached for his hand, gave it a little squeeze.
“Could be that the whole thing is your fault, being such a virile
bastard.”