The Bell Tower
Page 32
Hammond glanced back at the gravestone. “My real father?” He smiled sadly. “I never met him. He died in Vietnam.”
“What was his name?”
“Peabody. George Peabody. He could have been a pillar of the community.”
“Peabody?” Adam frowned. “I knew an old lady by the name of Peabody, back in those days. She used to come into Max Goldman’s furniture store and give him a hard time.”
“Yes, she would have done that.” Hammond smiled.
“You know her?”
“I should.” He smiled again. “She was my great aunt.”
Adam wanted to laugh out loud. He thought of how Max had treated the grumpy Miss Peabody, with such respect and deference. And all this time, without knowing it, Max and the old lady were tied at the hip. There was something almost comical about it.
Flashes of electricity off to the west lit up the sky. The breeze that would have marched ahead of a coming storm lay limp and dormant for the moment, but it was only a temporary respite. Rain would be coming soon.
Hammond smiled and took Adam’s arm and together they walked to the end of the path and out the gate, where Genero was waiting beside the car.
Adam made the introductions, explaining only that the man beside them was a local district attorney, although he had a feeling that Genero, with his sometimes uncanny ability to look beyond the obvious, had already half guessed the truth.
“Tell me,” Adam said, “If you were following me all day, you must have known I’d come back.”
“I did.”
“How did you know?”
Hammond reached into his pocket and took out a business card, which he handed to Adam. “About six months ago, this man showed up in Canelius asking questions. Said he was a private detective named Grohmeyer. Nice man, but completely misguided. I was one of the people he spoke to, and when I realized what he was talking about, I figured it was just a matter of time before you showed up too.”
“But how did you know I was here?”
“This is still a small town. People talk. Let’s just say your presence did not go unnoticed.” He held the car door open for Adam, who climbed in the passenger side and rolled down the window.
“Well, it’s been an interesting visit,” Adam said. “I don’t suppose we’ll be seeing each other again.”
“Oh, I’m not sure about that,” Hammond said with a faint smile. “After all, we’re family, aren’t we?”
Adam nodded. “With any luck, I guess there will be a next time.”
“For your sake, I hope so,” Hammond said.
“For my sake?”
“Of course. It’s still a novelty. You have to get used to it.”
“Get used to what?” Adam said, momentarily puzzled, even as the measure of his time in Canelius – at the helm of the Bell Tower, those luxurious early days with Susan before it all went wrong, the impenetrable meeting with Simon Denning at the Paradise Lounge – was slowly turning round on itself, twisting and unraveling, gingerly revealing once indecipherable truths, presenting fleeting glimpses of tentative meaning. For a moment, it seemed, the skies brightened every so softly.
“Having a stepson,” Hammond said simply. “That’s the real key.”
Table of Contents
Foreword
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28