by S. K. Hardy
“Thank you. You don’t know how much I appreciate you being there and taking care of her.”
“We’ll get her through this, Darrell. It’s just going to take some time. I plan on lighting a fire under the police’s ass when I get there,” he added in a chilling voice. “They can just abandon this idiotic idea that you killed Tina, and start looking for the person responsible.”
“Yeah, they’d just love to see you,” Darrell said sarcastically. He told Lorenzo about the detectives’ interest in the Pattels.
Lorenzo immediately dismissed the policemen’s concern as inconsequential. “I’m not worried. We’ve always been on the authorities’ radar. It’s nothing I haven’t dealt with before.” Sensing there was something Darrell was holding back, Lorenzo asked, “What is it? What aren’t you telling me?”
The corner of Darrell’s mouth lifted in a quick half-smile. “Think you gettin’ to know me, huh?”
“Yeah. Maybe a little. What’s up?”
“Remember how Tina told us she wanted to tell us something about Joseph and Isaac?”
“Yeah. I asked Pop about it, but he just blew it off, said it was a last ditch attempt by Tina to cause trouble.”
“Did you expect him to say anything else other than that?” Darrell said with disdain.
“Why?” Lorenzo asked hesitantly. “Did you find out something?”
“No, but now, I just…” Darrell swallowed a pang of regret. “I wish I had let her explain. She kept saying it was something we should know. Something that would change everything, and that they would do whatever it took to stop the information from coming out. ”
“Wait. Are you saying you think my–our– father and Uncle Joseph had something to do with Tina’s death?”
Darrell heard the disbelief in Lorenzo’s voice. For some reason, it rubbed him the wrong got damn way. “You don’t think it’s strange that one minute Tina is desperate to tell us a secret she says Isaac and Joseph have guarded for decades, then a few months later she’s dead?”
“Darrell, I know you don’t have the highest opinion of my father, but–”
“Lorenzo, come on! She left town because of them.”
“After she sold her own son and tried to auction off her other one!” Lorenzo snapped harshly. “D., it’s tragic what happened. It is. But let’s not go whitewashing things. Tina was far from innocent. Who’s to say she wasn’t feeding you another bunch of lies like she did before?”
Darrell’s voice was deadly cold. “Whether she was or wasn’t, I’m telling you now, it ain’t gon be nice if I find out your father and uncle had something to do with her death.”
Lorenzo kept his voice even as he tried to reason with Darrell. “I know you’re upset. You might not believe me, but so am I. Be that as it may, you can’t just ignore everything we found out about her, or ignore the way she’s treated you your entire life.”
“That doesn’t mean I wanted her dead!” Darrell’s chest heaved. He was angry, but mostly with himself. He couldn’t get over the fact that he should’ve handled everything differently. Maybe if he had…
Darrell shook his head. He couldn’t think about that right now. Instead, he directed his anger towards Lorenzo. “Isaac Pattel is nothing to me, you understand what I’m sayin’? Nothing. If he and his brother are responsible for this, they will pay for it. I promise you that.”
“And you think me or my cousins will just stand aside and let that happen, D.?” An underlying layer of steel threaded its way through Lorenzo’s voice, but there was also pain. He’d come to love his brother as much as he did the rest of his family, but what Darrell was talking about doing…
“So even if it turns out to be true, it won’t change your position?”
Lorenzo’s answer was a simple one. “He’s my father. I would do no less to protect you if I had to.”
“But not your own mother.” Darrell’s laugh was harsh and bitter. “A Pattel through and through, huh?”
“Always, brother.” It was something he would never apologize for.
Lorenzo’s tone left little doubt that he meant it with everything in him. It also held a hint of sadness. They’d been kept apart all their lives, robbed of the chance to grow up as brothers, and it looked as if things would remain that way. They both knew something had just changed between them, and if Darrell’s suspicion turned out to be true, there was no way they would be able to bridge the gap that was slowly widening, because neither of them were giving in when it came to this. The words etched on his and the chests of the other Pattel men were more than just meaningless tattoos. Family would always be put above all else. Darrell clearly didn’t want to acknowledge it, but he was apart of that family now as well, which meant the Pattels would close ranks and protect him whether he wanted them to or not.
“When are you bringing my sister home?”
Lorenzo heard the distance in Darrell’s voice. “We should make it to Vegas around ten in the morning. Look, Darrell–”
“You plannin’ on stayin’ for the funeral or are you goin’ back to New York?” Darrell asked sharply.
Lorenzo’s temper exploded. “What in the hell do you think? Tha’ fuck kinda question is that?”
“I don’t know where your head is, Renzo. Tina may have been many things, but never once did I wish for something like this to happen to her. Can all of the Pattels say the same?”
“Got dammit, D.!”
Darrell hung up in the middle of Lorenzo’s angry rant. Heart thumping in his chest he paced the length of the room, trying to calm down, trying to block out the image of Tina lying on that slab in the morgue.
Grabbing the back of his neck, he closed his eyes tightly. The last couple of times he’d seen her, he’d been so damned angry. And yes, cruel. That was the worst part. The last words he’d said to her had been mean and ugly and threatening. Now it was too late to take them back.
CHAPTER 47
Jerra stood staring out the window in her bedroom clutching her cell phone while thinking about the call she needed to make. There was no way around it. It was something that had to be done, but that didn’t make it any easier.
Knowing she couldn’t put it off any longer, Jerra went over to sit on her bed. Taking a deep breath to steady her nerves, she dialed Justin’s number. It was a call she dreaded making, but Darrell was right. The detectives would no doubt check on her story. She needed to talk to Justin before that happened.
“Hello? Jerra?”
Hearing his voice, Jerra cleared her throat. She wasn’t surprised that Justin knew that it was her on the line. Out of habit, he always checked his caller ID before answering. “Justin, hi. I, uh, I’m so sorry to be calling you this late.”
“No problem. You know I keep crazy hours. Is everything okay?”
“No. Not really.”
His voice sharpened with concern. “What’s wrong?”
“Darrell’s mother was murdered. We found out earlier this evening.”
“My God,” Justin whispered. “I’m so sorry, Jerra. Please give my condolences to Darrell as well.”
“Thank you, I will.”
“Is there anything I can do, anything you need?”
“Yes, but probably not in the way you mean. Justin…the police think Darrell had something to do with his mother’s death.”
“What?” Shock could clearly be heard in Justin’s voice.
“We just got home from the police station a little while ago. By the questions they asked, they’re definitely looking at him as a suspect.”
“Damn.”
“I…” Jerra swallowed then just jumped in with both feet. “They wanted to know where he’d been at the time the murder was estimated to have happened. I told them we were both home, but…”
“But what?” Justin’s voice was cautious.
“He was home alone.”
“Okay,” Justin said slowly, then waited.
“She was killed two nights ago, between the hours of 7 p.m. and 2 a.m. I…
I told them I came straight home after work, and that I was here around six that evening.”
Nothing but absolute silence met her admission as Justin made the connection. The two of them had still been working at that time.
“Did…did you hear what I said?” Jerra asked haltingly when he didn’t comment.
“I heard you. I’ll take care of it.”
“It’s just that everything happened so fast. I brought the questioning to an end, but when they asked him for an alibi, it just…slipped out.”
“Jerra–”
“I know I’m too close but I wasn’t going to let Darrell go in there alone.”
“Jerra, I said I’d take care of it.”
Jerra sat stunned when she realized what he meant. “You…you will? You’ll back me up?”
“Of course. Quite frankly, I’m a little put off by the fact that you doubted I would.”
“Oh thank God,” Jerra whispered in a rush, weak with relief. “Thank you so much, Justin.”
“I have to ask so that I’ll know how to proceed: Do you think Darrell had anything to do with his mother’s death?”
“No! Absolutely not!”
“Why do the police think he did?”
“Darrell’s relationship with his mother has always been very tumultuous, especially towards the end. The last couple of times he saw her, they argued. It was bad. A witness who heard them gave statements to the police. But it’s more than that…”
“Tell me.”
“My husband found out recently that his father is Isaac Pattel.” Jerra didn’t have to ask if Justin knew the name. Practically everyone had heard of the Pattels.
“He…Isaac Pattel is Darrell’s father?”
“Yes.”
“And the detectives are obviously aware of this…”
“Yes. In my opinion, the bastards don’t care about Tina. Once they made the connection between Darrell and the Pattels–”
“His guilt or innocence became irrelevant. If they can pin his mother’s death on him, they have leverage. They can dangle the possibility of a deal in front of him if he gives them information that will help them nab the Pattels.”
Jerra nodded, relieved that he had come to the same conclusion. “Exactly. The feds have been after the Pattels for decades. This would be a feather in the department’s cap if they were able to assist in any way. They’ll try to use Darrell’s relation to that family as a bargaining chip.”
Justin was quiet for several long moments before he responded in a brisk tone. “This is what we’re going to do. I know it isn’t the ideal time, but I’m coming over first thing in the morning. From what you’ve said, these detectives are going to be like anxious hounds hot on the trail of a fox, so you and Darrell don’t have the luxury of taking time to mourn just yet. I’m sorry.”
“No, I understand. You’re right.” Jerra hesitated then said, “I…I’m so sorry to drag you into this. Just in case things…well…I’ll have my resignation ready when you come by in the morning.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Excuse me?”
“When and if I see there’s a need for us to have that particular discussion, I’ll let you know. Until then, sit tight.”
“But what about the Abrams case?”
“Let me worry about that.”
Jerra sighed with relief. “I know I sound like a broken record, but I can’t thank you enough.”
“I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Oh, wait! I just remembered something else you probably need to know.”
“Alright, what?” Justin’s tone had a slight edge to it.
“Do you remember Lorenzo Coleman from law school?”
“Of course. We’ve run into each other a couple of times throughout the years. Why?” Justin asked suspiciously.
“Well, Coleman is his mother’s maiden name. That’s what he went by in law school. His legal name is…Pattel.” Jerra heard Justin exhale through the phone. “Isaac is his father as well, and Tina was his mother.”
“You’re kidding me, right? So Lorenzo and Darrell are…”
“Brothers.” Jerra finished for him. “They just discovered this a couple of months ago.”
“Son of a bitch,” Justin muttered under his breath. “Anything else?”
“No. That’s all.”
“I’d say that’s damn well enough.”
“I’m sor–”
“Jerra, enough with the apologies. I would’ve been insulted if you hadn’t come to me for help.” When her silence greeted him over the phone, his voice gentled and showed his concern. “Everything will be okay.”
“Justin, what…what if my mother-in-law’s murder is connected with the threats I’ve received from working on the case? That would mean I’m responsible for Tina’s death.” Jerra finally admitted her fear.
“It doesn’t do any good to speculate. More than likely it’s completely unrelated. ”
“Or maybe it’s not. It’s not so farfetched. Remember that judge who presided over the case is DC? She received numerous threats from some crazy stalker who’d been following her rulings. He ended up killing her mother and her husband. What if something like that happened to Tina? Justin, I couldn’t live with myself if–”
“Jerra, stop. Take a deep breath and calm down.”
“But–”
“No buts. We’ll figure this out. I promise. Let’s just concentrate on one thing at a time, okay? Now, go be with your husband, I’m sure he needs you right now. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Okay. I owe you one, Sullivan. See you in the morning.”
After they hung up, Jerra sent up a silent prayer of thanks that at least one thing was going their way. Seeing a movement out of the corner of her eye, she turned her head and saw Darrell standing in the doorway. He’d long since pulled his white dress shirt out of his black pants. The first couple of buttons were undone and he’d rolled the sleeves up past his forearms.
“Hi. I was just getting ready to come downstairs to find you. That was Justin. He agreed to back up my story.”
Darrell nodded slowly. “I heard.”
“He wants to stop by in the morning to discuss a few things if that’s okay. It’s only because the detectives seem so determined to–”
“It’s okay, baby. I understand.” Darrell walked into the room and kneeled in front of her. He ran a tender hand over her hair then brought it down to rest on her stomach. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m okay. Just worried about you.”
Gently rubbing her stomach, Darrell shook his head. “Don’t be. I’m fine. Just need you to take care of yourself. I don’t want anything happening to you or my baby.”
Leaning down, he kissed her belly through the material of her dress before laying his head in her lap. “Thank you for being there for me tonight.”
“Of course,” she said, caressing the back of his head. “Have you talked to Lorenzo? How’s Gabby?”
“Not good,” he said quietly. “Lorenzo had his doctor give her a mild sedative.”
“Poor Gabby,” Jerra whispered as tears came to her eyes. “Are they coming tomorrow?”
“Yes.”
Not knowing what else to say or do, Jerra simply held him. He would talk to her when he was ready. While still smoothing his hair, she placed her other hand on the side of his face, wishing there was some other way to comfort him. Men as a whole were taught to suppress their feelings and keep their emotions in check. Society conditioned them to exhibit strength in times of tragedy or loss. Darrell was a prime example of that, more than likely having perfected it when he was a child left all alone in the world. She had to let him deal with this in his own way.
He stirred on her lap but didn’t lift his head. Jerra knew he had to be feeling a multitude of emotions right now, everything ranging from sadness to confusion to anger. She’d caught a glimpse of the bleakness in his eyes before he’d gone to his office. He probably had no idea why he felt sadness
for a woman who, for all intents and purposes, he barely knew. That was the part that made him so angry. He didn’t want to care, but he did.
“We’ll get through this, baby. I promise,” she whispered. “I promise.”
She heard his breathing deepen. “I can’t help but feel I should’ve done something. I should’ve tried to fix it.”
“Darrell…”
He shook his head. “This is my fault,” he said, his voice choked and hoarse. “She’s dead because of me.”
“No!” Jerra placed her hands on either side of his face, and lifted his head and made him look at her. Her heart shattered when she saw his eyes bright with unshed tears. “Don’t say that; don’t even think it. It’s not your fault.”
“You didn’t hear the way I talked to her, the things I said.” Darrell pulled away and sat beside her on the bed. Wiping his face with his forearm, he leaned forward, placing an elbow on his thigh and stared down at the floor. “I was just so angry. Especially when she…”
“When she what?” Jerra asked when he grew quiet.
“When she kept comparing me to him. The look on her face…it was like she couldn’t stand being in the same room with me because I reminded her of him.”
“Baby, I’m sure that’s not true.”
“Yeah, it is. It’s always been that way. I just don’t understand how a woman hates her own child because he reminds her of the man she chose to be with.”
“Your mother loved you, Darrell. No matter what happened the last time you saw her, you have to know that.”
Darrell turned his head to look at her. Reaching for her hand, he interlocked their fingers and squeezed. “I don’t know what I’d do if I ever lost you,” he stated in a quiet voice.
Jerra’s voice was an emotional whisper. “If it turns out I’m the reason why she was killed I’ll never forgive myself. And you probably won’t either because…because you told me to excuse myself from the case.”
“Baby, stop. Stop.” Darrell stood and pulled her up. Wrapping his arms around her, he kissed the top of her head. “Don’t do that. Please.”
“Darrell–”
