A Bad Day for Sunshine--A Novel

by Darynda Jones

  “Just remember what happened when Pandora opened that pretty little box.”

  “What does that mean?”

  He didn’t answer. Nor did he open at first, preferring to glare at her instead. Then his lips parted, just barely, and he waited.

  She didn’t dare ask him to open wider. She was about to get his DNA without a warrant. Score one for the home team.

  When he refused to give her better access, refused to part those sculpted lips any farther, she took hold of his chin and gently lowered it. She inserted the swab and ran it along the inside of his cheek.

  He never took his eyes off her, and she began to tremble, but why? Why in God’s name did Levi’s nearness make her tremble? Did he really affect her so powerfully?

  He could, she supposed, if she were twelve. She didn’t want him to be the one. To be Auri’s father. Because that would mean the worst thing in the world. It would make him the worst kind of person in the world.

  But he wasn’t. She’d seen his kindness again and again.

  The thought that he could do something so savage made no sense. Yes, he was a Ravinder, but he was so different from the others.

  A scream came from the lobby. “I did it!”

  Sun looked out and saw Hailey at the front desk.

  “Please, I need to speak to the sheriff. I did it.”

  “Son of a bitch.” Levi raked a hand through his hair.

  “What is she talking about?”

  “Nothing. She’s crazy.”

  When Sun motioned for Anita to let her back, Levi changed his mind. “Fine, I did it. I killed him.”

  “What?”

  “I killed him. Kubrick. That was all me.”

  “Why? Did he abduct me? Were you partners?”

  “Partners? In the abduction and rape of a seventeen-year-old girl?”

  “I’m just trying to understand.”

  “You’re going to think what you’re going to think. Nothing I say will change that.”

  “Bullshit.”

  “You’ve made up your mind, Vicram. And even if you haven’t, the fact that you need a test to prove I’m an honorable person pretty much leaves us out in the cold.”

  “I did it!” Hailey said as she ran back to them.

  “Hailey, what the hell?” he asked, his tone like a razor blade.

  “Shut up. I killed Uncle Kubrick.”

  Levi crossed his arms over the expanse of chest he carried around. “Okay, how did he die?”

  “What?”

  “How did you kill him?”

  “With … I—I shot him. With a gun.”

  He smirked at Sun, then asked Hailey, “What kind of gun?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t remember. It was a rifle.”

  Levi deadpanned her. “Will you arrest me already?”

  “Why?” she asked him, wondering if he knew. “How’d he die?”

  He stepped closer and bent down until their mouths almost met. “I stabbed him through his cold, cruel heart.”

  Sun felt like he’d just stabbed her through the heart as well. She nodded to Quincy, who took him to processing.

  “Wait,” Hailey said, trying to grab ahold of Levi’s arm as Quincy handcuffed him. “What just happened?”

  Quincy escorted him to processing.

  “You and your brother were playing a game. He won.”

  “Please, Sunshine, let me confess. I was … he did it for me.”

  “Don’t listen to her!” Levi shouted as Quincy escorted him away.

  Sun waited for him to get out of earshot, then asked Hailey, “What do you mean?”

  “I—I can’t explain.”

  She sat at her desk. “I need more than that.”

  Hailey took a seat across from her and closed her eyes.

  Sun recognized the shame immediately. She knew it all too well from her time at Santa Fe PD.

  “He—Uncle Brick hit Jimmy.”

  Sun stood and took the seat next to her. By the look on her face, he’d done it more than once. “Hailey, I’m so sorry.”

  “He’d been verbally abusive to him for years. I did everything I could to keep them apart. But I didn’t know he was hitting him. We just thought … he falls a lot, you know?”

  Sun nodded and gave her time.

  “Then Levi found out, and—” She filled her lungs, the breath shuddering through her. “A judge will look kindlier on someone like me killing him rather than my brother. The family needs him. If Levi goes to jail and Uncle Clay takes the reins of the business, Jimmy will have nothing when I’m gone. Clay will run it into the ground. Or just turn it over to his connections in the South.”

  “Hailey, I can’t just—”

  “Brick was a piece of shit, Sun.” A sob retched from her throat, and Sun took her hand. “In more ways than one.”

  “I’m sure he was, but—”

  “He broke his arm.” Another sob escaped her. She covered her face for a solid minute, struggling for control of her emotions. She swallowed hard, then continued, “That day. The day Levi went after him. Uncle Brick yanked Jimmy off the tractor so hard he broke his arm.” She covered her face again, overcome by guilt. From behind her hands, she said, “He was three.”

  Sun’s vision blurred with a wetness that was stinging the backs of her eyes. Disabled kids were so vulnerable to bullying and abuse. She knew the statistics. The heartbreaking, mind-boggling statistics.

  But what now? On the one hand, none of this had anything to do with Sun’s abduction. On the other, Levi had killed a man. For all the right reasons, sure, but unless it was self-defense …

  “We’ll figure something out, okay? I promise.”

  Maybe she didn’t lose her sixth sense in the move, after all. Levi was good. She knew it. She could feel it to the marrow of her bones. But that wouldn’t be for her to judge. She would have to leave that to the DA, but she’d damn well make sure they knew the particulars of the case.

  After Hailey left, Sun buckled down. No more distractions. They had to find out who’d abducted Sybil before he tried it again.

  24

  Being an adult is like folding a fitted sheet.

  Don’t worry. We can help.

  —SIGN AT DEL SOL MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES

  Sun had Principal Jacobs get Auri personally. He brought her to the front where Sun waited, the look on her face one of concern until she saw her mom.

  “What’s going on?” she asked.

  “I need to talk to Sybil, but I’d like a friendly face there. You up for it?”

  Auri almost jumped into her arms. “Totally. Thanks, Mom.”

  They drove to the urgent care center and met up with Marianna and Forest St. Aubin.

  “I hear we have you to thank for finding her,” Forest said to Auri.

  She shook her head. Quite vigorously. “It was a group effort.”

  They pulled Auri into a group hug. She let them.

  “Do you think she’s up for some questions?” Sun asked them. “Our guy is still out there. She could have seen something or heard something without even knowing it.”

  They glanced at each other, then Mr. St. Aubin nodded. “Just not too long?”

  “I promise. You ready?”

  Auri nodded and seemed to mentally brace herself as they went inside her room.

  “Sybil?” Auri said softly. The blinds had been pulled and the lights turned low.

  A tiny figure in the bed shifted. “Auri?” she said, her voice hoarse.

  Auri rushed forward. “Sybil, I’m so glad you’re okay.”

  “Auri!” Sybil latched on to her, and they hugged for a solid ten minutes. They both cried, and Sun sent up a quick thanks for having a kid like the one he’d given her.

  Their reunion gave Sun a chance to check out the room. If their suspect could get Sybil out of a home with state-of-the-art security and through a window in the laundry room with no one the wiser, he could possibly get her out of the hospital window. The facility was only a one
-story. Otherwise, she would have her moved to the second floor or higher. The windows didn’t open, but could they be opened with a tool of some kind?

  She was trying to think of any possible way the suspect could get into the room.

  The quickest and surest way would be to wait until the guard went to the restroom. If there wasn’t another guard around, they would put a nurse in charge of keeping people out, but nurses were busy people. And emergencies that could call a nurse away from his or her post happened.

  The truth was, Sybil was far from safe. They needed to move her as quickly as possible.

  “How do you feel?” Auri asked her, breaking their hold. “Do you feel like it’s over?”

  Sybil released a sad sigh. “I don’t know. I don’t think I’ll believe it’s really over until my birthday passes and I’m still alive and breathing, which could happen thanks to you.” Tears sprang to her eyes again.

  “Thanks to my mom,” she said, gesturing toward her. “Do you remember her? You met last night?”

  A line formed between Sybil’s delicate brows. “I think so.”

  “It’s okay, sweetheart.” Sun stood beside her daughter. “You had other things on your mind.”

  She smiled shyly.

  “So, I got your letter, and I’ve studied your diary. I hope that’s okay.”

  Auri helped Sybil to sit up and got her more comfortable. “It’s okay. Is that how you found me?”

  “We found your note,” Auri said. “The drawing you taped under your desk at school before winter break.”

  “You found it?”

  Auri nodded. “You knew I was coming.”

  She shrugged, like it was no big deal. “Everyone knew you were coming. Your mom won the election.”

  “But you knew I was coming and you left the drawing for me. The note to me in your letter led me to it.”

  “Clever girls,” Sun said.

  They brightened.

  “Would you mind if I asked you a couple of questions?” she said, treading carefully.

  “Sure. I’m okay.”

  Sun took in every aspect of her demeanor as they spoke. Every gesture. Every word. Every tone in her voice and direction in her gaze. Not because she didn’t believe the girl. Far from it. But sometimes people don’t tell the whole truth because they are embarrassed or they don’t think it’s important.

  She lifted a plastic bag. “Sybil, do you recognize this button?”

  She took the evidence bag that contained the button they found at her house. “Yes,” she said, thinking back. “That’s from a backpack I used to have when we lived in Chicago.”

  “Like this?” She showed her the picture Anita had found.

  “That’s it.”

  “But you lost it? Any chance that button had fallen off and was still in your things?”

  “I don’t think so. The backpack was pretty new, and that button held one of the pockets closed. I think I would’ve noticed if it came off.”

  Sun took a quick note, but Sybil added, “Oh, and I didn’t lose it. It was stolen. Right out from under me.”

  Sun stopped writing. “Stolen? From where?”

  “I was at the park with some friends, and we were all sitting on this bench. We all had our backpacks either under the bench or beside our feet. I was sitting on the end, and the backpack was right beside me one minute and gone the next. Nobody was around or anything. Just the usual joggers and stuff, but nobody stopped to talk to us. And none of the other kids saw anything, either. We all kind of freaked out.”

  “I bet you did.”

  That was what Sun needed to know. The last time she’d seen the backpack and the chances the button ended up in her possession. That meant her abductor had been stalking her for a very long time.

  If he was brazen enough to steal her backpack in broad daylight with a group of kids looking on, what else was he brazen enough to do? Was he a chameleon? Could he blend? Become invisible?

  This guy was right under their noses. She could feel it.

  “Did you see or hear anything else?” she asked her.

  “Yeah,” Auri said, “you’d be surprised at how the smallest detail will lead to something big.”

  The two girls were holding hands like they’d been best friends for years. It warmed Sun’s heart but also broke it. She wasn’t planning on staying in Del Sol long enough for them to get to know each other much better. She was close to solving her abduction. She could feel it.

  “I know this is going to be hard to believe, but everything I put in my letter is what I saw and heard. I really don’t have much else. He hardly talked, but when he did, his voice wasn’t really deep. It was just normal.”

  “What about an accent? A speech impediment of any kind?”

  She shook her head. “I’m sorry. I didn’t notice anything like that.”

  Marianna came in then, carrying a new pitcher of water. “How’s it going?”

  “Good,” Sybil said. “Have you met Auri?”

  “Well, your dad and I just about smothered her, if that’s what you mean.”

  The girls giggled. Marianna poured Sybil a fresh glass of water, then went around to the other side of her bed. “Are you cold? Do you need another blanket?”

  “I’m fine, Mom.”

  Mari tucked a strand of hair behind Sybil’s ear and encouraged her to lie down.

  “Can Auri stay? Just for a little while?”

  Auri offered them both pleading looks as well, and Sun had to admit something awful. She didn’t want to put Auri in the line of fire. If the suspect did come back, if he somehow managed to get to Sybil, what would he do with Auri if she got in his way?

  “I don’t see why not,” Mari said. “But just for a little while. You need to rest.”

  “Please, Mom,” Auri begged.

  “I guess you can miss a couple of more classes today. I have to go back to the office for about an hour. I’ll swing by to pick you up when I’m finished there. How’s that?”

  The girls looked at each other and giggled in excitement. Sun had never seen her daughter get so excited about being friends with anyone before, and she wondered if she’d missed that part of her life as an insanely busy parent, or if Auri had missed that part of her life as the daughter of a law enforcement officer.

  Sun watched the two for a minute, marveling at a little dimple Sybil had where her ear met her temple. An adorable attribute for an adorable girl, and Sun remembered reading a story about them in college. In some folklores, the rare dents were considered very lucky, and it was said that the bearers would gain great wealth throughout their lives.

  She hoped so. Sybil could use a little luck after the life of fear she’d led.

  “Sybil, if I send one of my deputies over later, do you think you can try to remember everything the suspect said to you? No matter how small?”

  “Sure.” She said the word, but the last thing Sybil wanted to talk about was her abduction or the man who perpetrated it, and it shone through in the tone of her voice. Sun understood all too well.

  “Thank you, sweetheart. I’ll be back,” she said, doing her best Arnold Schwarzenegger impersonation.

  Auri rolled her eyes, and they giggled.

  * * *

  Auri and Sybil had a lot of catching up to do. Auri told her new friend everything that had happed to her since she’d started school, including the broadcast news bit, and Sybil told Auri about her own run-ins with the infamous group Lynelle and the Lackeys, Sybil’s euphemism. Auri liked it. It had finesse. Spunk. And alliteration. Cruz would be proud.

  “One more time.”

  Auri exhaled loudly and flung herself back on the bed. Sybil had insisted she crawl on the bed with her so they could watch a rerun of The Vampire Diaries, but they ended up talking the whole time instead. “Dude, I’ve already told you seven times.”

  Sybil counted on her hands. “Nope. You’ve only told me six times.”

  After a soft laugh, Auri told her friend once more about
the first time she saw Cruz reading in class and how captivated she’d become listening to his poetry.

  “I was captivated by him, too, only it had nothing to do with his poetry.”

  “Right?” They giggled again and were still giggling when a nurse named Jessie, if his nametag was to be believed, came in with sodas and sandwiches.

  He offered them a smile. “A little bird told me that you both like Orange Crush.”

  They looked at each other.

  “You like it, too?” Auri asked, surprised.

  “It’s my favorite.” She popped the top on her can and looked at Auri. “It’s like we were meant to be.”

  “I agree.”

  “These are ham and cheese, but I can get something else if you’d like.”

  “No,” Sybil said, “these are great. Thank you.”

  “Enjoy.”

  When he left, they naturally had to talk about how cute he was.

  “Nursing is an excellent profession to go into,” Sybil said. She took a bite, then added, “He should go back and become a physician’s assistant. They make even more money.”

  Auri took a huge swig of the orange stuff. “I thought about going into medicine.”

  “You changed your mind?”

  “Yeah. I think I’m too much like my mom. I think I need to go into law enforcement.”

  “Really?” Sybil said, shifting to face her better. “That’s fascinating. I don’t think I could do something like that.”

  “Why? You’re good with puzzles. That’s half the battle.”

  “Yeah, but I’m not good with people.”

  “You’re good with me.”

  Sybil beamed at her. “I am, aren’t I?” She took another bite, then said, “Okay, really, one more time.”

  Auri gave in and, after a moment, had her friend sighing in puppy love bliss. Then she sobered. “I’m so sorry about everything that happened to you.”

  Sybil shrugged and ducked, trying to play it off as no big deal when it was anything but. It had haunted the poor thing her entire life, and now it was almost over. This deep fear she’d been waiting for. Auri couldn’t imagine how she felt, and she didn’t pretend to.

  “Do you feel better about it now? Will the dreams stop?”