Damned (Shaye Archer Series Book 7)

by DeLeon, Jana

  “I think it goes deeper than that. I’m only surmising here, but based off the research Jackson and I have done in the last couple days, I believe that the death of Bernard’s brother might have been the catalyst that sent him spiraling.”

  “His brother died shortly after Bernard’s fall, but how would that matter?”

  “His brother was a drug addict. Their mother enabled him and he used her. When he died, I think it might have set something off in Bernard. The way his brother had wasted his life. The way your mother covered for him, becoming part of the problem. His father went to prison for vehicular manslaughter when both boys were young. He was drunk when the accident occurred. He died in a prison fight.”

  “So the potential for the girls to become single parents, and the accident…”

  Shaye nodded. “I think his mind created the voice of God so that he could deal with the things now that he couldn’t deal with then.”

  “Do you know how he found the two girls?”

  “We can only guess. A review of the clinic records showed that Bernard picked up a prescription for sleeping pills around the same time that Hailey Pitre got her birth control.”

  “So he could have overheard them talking. And she would have given her birth date to pick up the prescription, so he knew she was underage.”

  Shaye nodded. “Sunny Trahan worked a corner near a homeless shelter that St. Mary’s donates to. Bernard dropped off a donation to the shelter the night before Sunny disappeared.”

  “Did he hold both of them in the tunnels?”

  “Yes. The forensics team has found DNA there for both girls.”

  “And no one ever heard them or saw Father Bernard go in and out.”

  “He was very smart about things, and the tunnel system is vast. Bernard left those layouts in Malcolm’s room to help with his frame-up, but they were very revealing. The place where Bernard held the girls and brought you and Malcolm is under an old delivery dock. He could drive his car between stone walls, and no one would be able to see him lift a body in or out of his trunk.”

  Nicolas recalled how easily Bernard had lifted him from his chair. “He was strong. The girls were light, but still, to carry Father Malcolm and me down the stairs, then all the way down the hall.”

  “He didn’t. I’m pretty sure he dragged both of you down the stairs. Bruising on your body would indicate as much. And since he knew how easy it was to get someone around in a wheelchair, he had the chairs ready to push you from the living quarters to the area of the tunnel near the delivery dock.”

  “He thought of everything.” Nicolas frowned. “But I still don’t know how he made the confession and left without anyone seeing him.”

  “Because one of the tunnels is right below the confessional. He simply opened the door to the confessional to make you think he was leaving and while you were scrambling to rise, he slid back the panel on the side wall and left. The footsteps you heard were him descending the stone steps. Not footsteps in the hallway.”

  He stared at her, shaking his head. “It’s still so hard to believe. It seems so impossible, and yet…”

  “And yet.”

  “I saw Colby earlier. The nurse said he insisted on being wheeled in here. He apologized for letting me be kidnapped. Can you beat that? Like any of this was his fault. If I couldn’t see what Bernard was how in the world could Colby have done so?”

  “He couldn’t, but he’s an honorable and somewhat stubborn man. He doesn’t like for people to get injured on his watch.”

  “I saw the look on your face when you saw Bernard holding the gun,” Nicolas said quietly. “You were expecting someone else. Who?”

  “Malcolm.”

  Nicolas stared. “Malcolm? Why?”

  Shaye explained to him all the reasons she’d zeroed in on the other priest. His ties to religion, his proximity to all the things that had happened to Nicolas, his discomfort with Colby, and his mysterious, disappearing background.

  “How can you make your background disappear?”

  “By legally changing your name and the judge agreeing to seal the records. It’s like witness protection. You essentially become someone else.”

  “Malcolm was in witness protection?”

  Shaye smiled, recalling how she’d felt when Malcolm had explained his secrecy. “Nothing like that. His father is quite famous. Country and western singer Chance Malcolm.”

  “That explains his taste in music. He often played songs by his father. He also has an excellent singing voice.”

  Shaye nodded. “Malcolm had a tough time in high school with people trying to get close to him to get at his father. So when he decided he wanted to become a priest, he knew he had to become another person in more ways than one. It was the only way he felt he could devote his life to his beliefs without worrying about being hounded by the press or fans. So Chance Malcolm Jr. became Malcolm Warner. Warner is his mother’s maiden name. He said he made his last name his first because he knew everyone would call him Father Malcolm, and it would be easier to respond to.”

  “And that way, not everything was different.”

  “I’m sure that’s part of it too.”

  “What about Colby? You said Colby felt he made Malcolm nervous. Was there any truth to that?”

  “Yes. Colby had done a bodyguard stint for Malcolm’s father when he was in town for a concert. Malcolm was backstage and was afraid Colby would recognize him.”

  “What are the odds of my hiring the one person who might give away his secret?”

  “I have a favor to ask you. Malcolm gave me permission to tell you the truth, but he asks that you keep it private. He would like to continue his work as a priest without issue. Well, as soon as all the furor from this has died down, anyway.”

  “Of course I will keep his secret. It’s the good kind.” He sighed. “I suppose Malcolm will leave as soon as he is able. Not that I blame him. I can hear the distance in his voice when we talk.”

  “And you? Is your job in jeopardy?”

  Nicolas shook his head. “I was surprised, really. I told the elders everything, including betraying the confessional. But I think in the end, they’re more concerned about the reputation of the Church than one lowly priest.”

  “I suppose so,” Shaye said, but the cynical part of her figured they were more concerned that without his collar, Nicolas would tell the entire world the whole truth.

  “I think, though, that I am going to leave on my own accord.”

  Shaye stared at him, more than a little surprised. After everything Nicolas had gone through, she’d figured his profession was the last stable thing he had and that he’d want to hold on to it.

  “It surprised me too,” he said. “But sitting here has given me time to think about things. A lot of things. For so many years, I did what I was told. I learned and I followed ritual, and I was okay with that. Until something challenged that belief system.”

  “The confession.”

  He nodded. “Don’t get me wrong. I don’t disagree with the requirements of the vows. I simply don’t think I’m capable of keeping them. I’ve learned that justice on this earth is more important to me. I’m not patient enough to wait for the hereafter. Justice and a clear conscience. And I couldn’t reconcile my silence with what I knew was right. Others can and they are the ones best left to the job.”

  “So what will you do?”

  “The luxury of a trust fund is not having to do anything, I suppose. But like you, I don’t think I’d find that life rewarding. Your mother came to visit me yesterday. Did she tell you?”

  “No. We haven’t had a chance to sit down and talk yet.”

  “She’s a remarkable woman. There’s an energy and kindness surrounding her that can almost be seen. She has a calling.”

  “She thinks so, and I would agree. She certainly saved my life.”

  “And you’re not the first or the last. I asked her about her project and she said something that interested me. She told me they�
�d need adults to live in the building designed to house the children. Some of the children would be there temporarily. Others would be there longer. All will need a solid adult influence.”

  Shaye smiled, unable to imagine a better role for Nicolas. “And you’d like to be that influence. I think that would be wonderful.”

  Nicolas leaned over and placed his hand on hers. “I don’t think I ever thanked you properly so I’m doing it now. Thank you, Shaye. For saving my life. You have a calling as well.”

  Shaye knocked on the door of Jackson’s apartment, clutching a bottle of champagne. He opened it and gave her a wide smile, then pulled her inside for a kiss. After running off from him in the tunnel, Shaye had expected him to be angry with her. But his relief had been so great with how everything had turned out that he’d finally admitted she’d made the right call. She knew how much it had cost him to let her run after a madman and not follow. The amount of faith he had in her and his respect for her abilities made her love him even more. It was one thing to give lip service to those words. It was completely another to prove that you meant it, especially when the situation was life-and-death.

  “Are we celebrating?” he asked when he caught sight of the champagne.

  “I think we should. The list of things to be thankful for is getting pretty long. I’m not even sure one bottle is going to cover it.”

  “We’ll just have to toast in compound sentences.”

  She laughed as she followed him into the kitchen and waited while he poured them each a glass of the sparkling bubbly.

  “What do we toast first?” he asked.

  “Success. Nicolas is safe. Bernard will never hurt anyone else. Colby is recovering nicely. And you pulling a background check for me will remain a secret since Malcolm wasn’t our bad guy.”

  “I can definitely drink to all of that.”

  They lifted their glasses and clinked them together, then took a sip. Shaye looked at him and couldn’t help smiling. She felt that way a lot around Jackson, even when things were tough. There was something about his presence. She didn’t need protecting, but she knew he’d do it anyway, and that gave her a warm, cozy feeling. He challenged her without disrespect and made her a better investigator and person.

  For weeks now, her mind had returned to a single thought that she’d been dwelling on. Something that once caused her great fear and panic but had turned into something different. Something slightly scary but also exhilarating. Finally, she’d made up her mind. The time was right.

  “What shall we toast next?” he asked.

  “Us,” she said before she could lose her nerve. “And I’d like to stay the night. With you.”

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