The Devil To Pay (Hennessey.) (147 page)

His eyes slanted sideways at Lando, ‘I knew time was running out, I knew they would find Desi eventually. I thought then that she knew more than it turned out she actually did, and I still needed answers. So I planned to take Miss. Faraday where I did and get those answers. I meant to explain to her, tell her everything, beg her to trust me, then when she had talked make her as comfortable as I could until it was safe to bring her to you. As it turned out I did wind up hurting her, although I swear that was not my intention, scare her yes, physically hurt her, no. I will always regret that.'

‘How did you know
I
wouldn’t call the cops or the feds? Or Glissando.'

Hennessey regarded him, a small smile playing around his lips, ‘I just did. What were the chances do you think of you being there at her cabin the exact same time I was? I wondered at the time what you were doing there. I thought you might have been just passing. But when she talked about you and how you’d helped her when she was lost I began to realise that you had been checking up on her. That you weren’t quite as unconcerned or uncaring as you appeared. That you
were
interested.’

Lando sent him a clear warning look and Hennessey added quickly, ‘as an ex- cop and n
eighbour, why wouldn’t you be?’ Lando narrowed his eyes not believing that that was what he’d meant by “interested.” ‘I believed that if I explained nicely, pleaded with her, begged for her help, even offered to take her with me she would have complied eventually. After all, all I’d done up until then is kidnap her and beat up Maxwell and I could have explained all that. But I hadn’t reckoned on Desi telling her about me...which is something I never could have envisaged.

She called me Chirtoff; apparently it’s Russian for devil. She saw me as a stone cold killer;

I knew then no matter what I said to convince her that I meant neither her nor Desi any harm

she would never have believed me.

If the chances of her trusting me before were infinitesimal they were zero after that.

She would have dug her heels in and remained suspicious and s
ceptical…and scared, which she did. So I resorted to the original plan and tried to terrify her into submission.’ Lando grimaced but said nothing and Hennessey continued, ‘I intended to apologise later and explain my intentions; I believed that when she’d calmed down she would see why I had to do it.’

He caught Lando’s look
, ‘yeah, not one of my better ideas. But all I got was an earful

about how sick and twisted and damned I am. She’s indefatigabl
e, and I knew she would rather die than betray Desi, her fortitude and courage made me…ashamed.

So when Glissando called and said he didn’t want me to kill her that he wanted her instead,

I knew I had to bring her to you. But right then she was exhausted and in no fit state to travel so I let her rest. And okay, the way I did it was not one of my better moments, but I was afraid if I left her unrestrained she would try to escape and wind up dead. Rather a few hours of discomfort than dead in the swamp. And I knew too well her fighting spirit, I wasn’t about to underestimate her again.’ He looked shame-faced now, ‘but I don’t deny I behaved

like a barbarian. I knew she had seen what name Desi had in her pa
ssport, I still had hopes that I could break her,’ he gave a self derogatory laugh, ‘huh, was
I
wrong.

‘So that was true what you told her, that you intended to transfer her funds into another account for
her
?’

Hennessey nodded, ‘t
hat’s the second reason I set her up to look as if she was involved with me. I know she’ll never believe that but it
is
true. She’s stubborn; she would probably have just gone to the police or gone home and one day Glissando might have discovered she was not in fact dead. I thought if I had all her cash I could persuade her to let me take her somewhere safe.

I thought if the money plan didn’t make her run and hide then th
e thought of spending the rest of her life in prison might. She wouldn’t like it; she’s the kind that would hate to run from her problems, she would put her faith in the justice system, but it was an added incentive. I intended to bring her to you for safekeeping until I could come for her. I knew you would help her, protect her. Then of course that plan backfired too when she escaped.’ He gave a wry smile, ‘that woman just keeps messing up my plans.’

‘Yeah, she sure is a pain in the ass ain’t she?’ Said Lando sarcastically.

Hennessey chuckled, ‘well anyways, she made it to your place, God knows how but she did. She’s quite something that Adela Anne Faraday.’ He shook his head, ‘but fuck, Lando, I can’t tell you what those hours were like waiting for her, not knowing if she would make it, hoping against hope that she would but not really believing it. And knowing that if she didn’t it I would be to blame. I would have done what Glissando wanted me to do and killed her, unintentionally yes, but her death would still have been down to me.’

‘You got that right.’

Hennessey did not smile at Lando’s bluntness but nodded in agreement. ‘I’ve not been that scared since I was a kid.’

Lando’s eyes swung to his and there was something in the other man’s that caused Lando to frown, but he did not ask what he meant.

Hennessey said, ‘I sometimes wonder how I would feel at this moment if I had done Glissando’s bidding, how I would be feeling right now. Pleased with myself? Disgusted? Sickened?’

‘The pertinent question is, how
do
you feel?’

Hennessey looked into the other man’s eyes as he said earnestly, ‘relieved, Mr. Lando.
Relieved beyond measure.’

Lando looked at him oddly but said nothing and Hennessey looked away and his voice very low said, ‘
I admit, she blindsided me. I’ve never admired a woman as much as I admire her, and I know no matter how long or short my life may be, I never will again.’ He looked at Lando and finished softly, ‘that’s my loss, my deep regret.’

Lando’s stomach turned as it always did when reminded of Hennessey’s and the woman’s relationship.’

He said bluntly, ‘why
did
you beat up Maxwell?’

Hennessey seemed surprised by the sudden change of subject and hesitated. When he did answer it was through gritted teeth, ‘he called her a whore.’

Lando’s eyebrows shot up as he demanded, ‘why?’

Hennessey shrugged, ‘I told him he was jealous of my friendship with her, which he was. I told him I would be leaving in the morning so he'd better keep his filthy hands offa her or else I'd come back and make him pay. He said who was I kidding, she was fair game. And her relationship with me proved she was a woman of loose morals. Easy. A whore. I just saw red.’

‘You can say that again.’

Hennessey’s head snapped up, ‘don’t tell me you wouldn’t have done the same thing, Lando, you with your temper. You beat a guy to death for kicking your
dog
.’ Lando’s eyes flashed but Hennessey added, ‘or did you?’

Again Lando didn’t answer but his eyes now sent a clear warning which Hennessey chose to ignore. ‘Maybe you
did
do it for your dog, but if my guess is right, which it usually is, you did it because of “The woman,” because of what they were gonna do to her…or had already done. I saw your face when I mentioned having the stun gun at her breast, you looked fit to kill.’

Through clenched teeth Lando said, ‘what I did and didn’t do, and why I did it is none of your concern, Hennessey. But never speak to me again about my motives for killing someone; you’re the
last
person I should be debating ethics with.’

Hennessey held up his hands in surrender, ‘all right. But you don’t have to answer my question, you would have done the same thing and you know it.'

When Lando just glowered at him he held up his hands, ‘okay, okay, no need to get all aggressive.’

Lando remained silent so Hennessey said, ‘anyways, that’s why I did what I did to Maxwell. She didn’t deserve that, she’s no whore, on the contrary, she’s the exact opposite of a whore.’ He gave the other man a meaningful look as Lando looked first confused then as the light began to dawn
, incredulous. ‘Yeah, shocked the hell outta me too. Who’d believe it in this day and age.’

Lando’s expression changed from surprise to accusation but Hennessey said rather mischievously, ‘I admit I showed her the delights that only being a woman can bring. But I assure you, she was as virtuous when I left her as the day she was born.’

He grinned at Lando’s dumbfounded expression and the latter knew he was telling him that she had not given herself to him; she had not given her most precious gift to a killer.

Or maybe he was telling him that he had not taken it from her, either by force or by artfulness. He also knew that would be one of the things that would prevent him from being with the woman. In that case he would have been right. But it was not the only thing, not the only thing by a long way.

He wanted to get off this subject so said, ‘one thing, Hennessey before I leave and never see you again. Why didn’t you just kill Glissando when you first decided not to kill the woman and help the girl? As you’ve said it seems like so much trouble to go to, all that subterfuge and cloak and dagger stuff. Killing Glissando would have solved both their problems.’

‘Yeah, wouldn’t it just. But where would the fun have been in that.' Lando pursed his lip and looked exasperated. Hennessey laughed, ‘I keep telling you, I have principles, I had taken his money. And anyway, just think what kind of reputation that would have given me, an assassin who kills not only his target but his client too. I would never be trusted again.’

At Lando’s severe expression he said, ‘okay, poor joke considering. But seriously, he was my best source of information about others like him, other crime bosses,’ his smile was wry, ‘an information conduit if you like. I was greedy, I wanted everything, Desi freed, Miss. Faraday safe from Glissando and the information Glissando was supplying me with. And of course, the money. But when my plans went wrong I knew Glissando had to go. Now the contract is completed, not the way Glissando would have liked obviously. The method was the same, only the outcome was different.' He grinned, "Hoist by his own petard," shall we say.'

He gave a deep sigh, ‘I know she’ll never believe me now, not after what I did to her. I just hope this doesn’t undermine what confidence she had or gained while she was here. She’s felt unwanted, unappreciated and unloved all her life. I think I made her see that she was none of those things, but now, well, now she may believe that I lied about that too, that everything single thing I said was a lie. It wasn’t. But it might damage her confidence and belief in herself to the extent that it never recovers and that would be a damn shame.’

Lando studied his face and thought that he was either the best liar he had ever heard or he was genuinely concerned about her and her state of mind. He said, ‘I’m sure she’ll survive, when she gets home she can put all this behind her.’

‘You think it’s that simple?’

Lando shrugged as if unconcerned although this contradicted his real feelings, he was concerned for her state of mind too; she had seen so much, so much violence and bloodshed. How would she get through this? She was strong minded but was she strong enough? But first of course she had to survive the surgery and then go through weeks of rehabilitation. Hennessey was right; it was her mental state that would require the most work.

He said, ‘I’m gonna get back, see if there’s any news.’

He made to rise but Hennessey put a hand on his arm, ‘one more thing before you go, Mr. Lando.’

Lando looked down at his arm and the hand that gripped it. Hennessey immediately withdrew his hand a rueful smile on his lips. Lando sat back down and Hennessey said, ‘there’s something I want to tell you, it’s apropos to what we talked about back at your cabin. That time you got angry but at risk of being hit again I wouldn’t feel right not saying it again.’ He ignored Lando’s warning look and his tone rather gentle went on ‘Lando, don’t let what happened to your wife prevent you from having what I know you want, what will be good for you, even if you don’t know it right now.’ Anyone else would have backed off at the deadly look in Lando’s eyes but not Hennessey, ‘you killed one woman by mistake but you saved another, one cancels out the other. As Miss. Faraday said, “All debts are paid.”

Lando rounded on him his expression dangerous and his eyes almost wild, ‘don’t you dare speak to me about debts being paid. Just because you’ve found some kind of redemption for all your crimes by saving Leyton and the woman doesn’t give you the right to hand out absolution to others.’ He almost spat the words in Hennessey’s face, ‘you,
you
an assassin, a paid killer, preaching to others about guilt and redemption. You make me sick, Hennessey, and I swear to God if I ever see you again I won’t make the same mistake I made last time, I’ll hand you over for the cold blooded murderer you are. If I don’t kill you myself first.’

There was no amusement on Hennessey’s face; indeed he looked very grave as he absorbed Lando’s words.

Lando stood up and began to walk back down the aisle. Hennessey caught him up and stood in front of him blocking his way saying, ‘okay, you’ve made your feelings plain, no more talk about you and the woman. But do one last thing for me.’