Descent (A Stone Mountain Mystery Book 1)

by Kristina Stanley

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I know about my mother. You had no right to hide her from me.”

  Lisa sank into the nearest chair on her porch and lowered her eyes. She sat still for a moment, picked ice off the wicker armrest and then squared her shoulders and faced Nora. “Tell me what you found out.”

  “I know I had a brother. I know my mother killed him. I know she’s still alive and rotting away in prison. How could you tell me she died?” Tears streamed down Nora’s cheeks. She was lost. She stepped farther away from Lisa.

  “Who told you this?”

  “So it’s true?”

  “Yes. How did you find out?”

  “Constable Miller. He thought I knew.”

  “Oh, Nora. I’m so sorry. Can you let me explain?”

  Nora’s throat closed, causing a pressure that made it difficult for her to speak. Her life’s foundation cracked underneath her. “I can’t deal with this. It’s too big a lie.”

  “Please…”

  Nora ran to her car, and without looking at Lisa again, shoved the car into reverse and peeled away.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

  Kalin eyed The Goddess, resisted the urge to bolt, and even through angry eyes, she could see the woman’s beauty, could see what Ben saw in her. Chica pushed at her legs, but Kalin ignored her.

  “Well, hello,” The Goddess said from her place at their bedroom door.

  Kalin held her breath.

  Ben swiveled and faced Kalin.

  Time stopped.

  An ache started at the bottom of her stomach and exploded into full out pain by the time the sensation reached her chest. She might die on the spot from a broken heart.

  Ben took one step toward her. “It’s not what you think.”

  Kalin raised her hand with her palm facing Ben. Her arm trembled. “Don’t.”

  “Get dressed and get out of here,” Ben said to The Goddess.

  The Goddess pouted, but Ben wasn’t looking at her. His eyes focused on Kalin. “Please listen, just for a minute. Please.”

  Kalin heard the panic in his voice and lowered her hand. She didn’t trust herself to speak, so she remained silent.

  “I’ve only been home for a minute. Vicky was waiting when I got here. Nothing happened.”

  “She’s almost naked.” Kalin heard the anger in her voice but didn’t care.

  “That’s how I found her. She’s trying to break us up.”

  The Goddess leaned against the doorframe and put one hand on her curved hip. “You don’t think she’s going to buy that, do you?”

  Ben didn’t answer her. “Kalin, I’m not lying. I love you. I would never do anything to risk us.”

  Kalin wanted to believe him but couldn’t. She let tears fall, not caring if The Goddess saw. She could have Ben. They deserved each other. Kalin turned to leave.

  Ben dropped to his knees. “Kalin, don’t go.”

  Kalin’s throat closed, and she couldn’t speak.

  Ben’s jacket lay on top of Chica’s leash, and Kalin stooped to move it out of the way. She was going to take her dog. Ben couldn’t have Chica. Kalin’s stomach cramped, and she wanted to throw up. How could Ben do this to her? She loved him. Her brain didn’t want to believe, but her eyes told her what had happened. A band tightened across her chest, and if she didn’t get out of the room soon, the sob that was building would burst out.

  And then a smile crossed her lips. His jacket was cold. He couldn’t have been inside for long. Ben had told the truth.

  She walked past Ben and put her nose inches from The Goddess’s. “You can’t have him.” She leaned a little closer and felt The Fallen Goddess’s breath on her cheek. “You heard him. Get. Out.”

  * * *

  Jeff held his fist inches from Nora’s front door. He was jittery, and he shouldn’t be. They had a past together. She used to love him. She could love him again. So what was he worried about?

  Before he worked up his courage to knock, Nora opened the door.

  She wasn’t wearing her usual cargo pants and black boots. Instead, she wore black jeans and a peach sweater. He didn’t know she owned anything peach. If anyone had asked him, he would have said she wouldn’t wear that color. She was all darks. Even her hair looked under control. He wanted to reach up and pull a strand wayward. Somehow, she looked terribly sad.

  “Oh,” she said.

  “Are you going somewhere?”

  Nora glanced over his shoulder. “I am. What’s up?”

  “Can I come in?”

  She shook her head and stepped outside beside him. “I’m meeting someone in town.”

  “Can I tag along? I’ve got nothing to do.”

  “I, um, I’m going out for dinner.”

  Jeff’s temper started to build. McKenzie died two weeks ago, and she was already going out with someone else. “Who with?”

  “No one you know.”

  “You need to stop this,” he said.

  “Stop what?”

  “Why do you keep trying to push me away?”

  “We’re friends. I’m not pushing you away.”

  “Yes, you are.”

  “Don’t yell at me. I’ve had a bad day. I need to think about my future, and there’s nothing wrong with me going out for dinner.” Nora pulled the door closed and twisted the key in the lock.

  “We’re meant to be together. I am your future. Please don’t go on a date tonight. I need you.”

  Nora lowered her head and spoke softly. “It’s never going to happen between us. We were high school sweethearts. That doesn’t mean we’re meant to be together. I think you should find someone else.”

  “I don’t want someone else. I want you.”

  Nora walked to the side of her car and hesitated.

  Jeff followed her. “Don’t go.”

  “You’ll be okay.” She touched his cheek and smiled. “Really, you will.”

  Jeff watched her car fade down the road. He could chase her, but what would that do? The bastard McKenzie had started all this. The guy was dead, and Jeff still hated him.

  On his way home, he drove through Holden and by the Irish pub. Nora sat at a window table with Ian Reed. She’d lied to him when she said he didn’t know the person she was having dinner with. He pulled to the curb, left his motor running and got out. He stood on the sidewalk until he was sure Nora had seen him and then returned to his truck. He slammed the gear shift into drive and took off. Ian Reed. What the hell did she see in him?

  Jeff returned to a dark house and was glad he didn’t have to face anyone. He left his truck in the driveway. With no one home, he could use the front door.

  Once inside, he noticed Donny’s bedroom light on at the back of the house. He hovered in the hallway and listened to yelling.

  “You brought this on us,” his dad said.

  “I didn’t do anything,” Donny said.

  “You killed McKenzie, you dumb fuck. If you were going to do it, you should have been smarter.”

  “I didn’t kill him.”

  “How do you think I felt when Miller came to my place of work? In front of the guys. He came there to question me. Like a criminal. That’s what I felt like.”

  “It’s not my fault,” Donny said.

  “Yeah, it is. Miller wouldn’t have come there if you hadn’t killed McKenzie. He asked about your keys. Who had our garage door combination. Blah, blah, blah. He couldn’t hide that he thought you did it.”

  “But I didn’t.”

  “He went to see your mother at the hospital. You’ve embarrassed her in front of the other nurses. Can’t you do anything right?”

  “I told you, I didn’t kill him.”

  “Stop lying to me.”

  A fist crunched against bone. Jeff scrambled into the room and grabbed his dad’s forearm before he could hit Donny a second time. His dad turned on him.

  “Stay out of this. It’s between your brother and me.”

  “Say his name, you bastard. His name is
Donny. Say it,” Jeff shouted.

  His dad raised his fist. “You watch your language.”

  Jeff took in Donny’s bleeding nose. He saw his dad’s fist. The darkness of rage took over. He released the first punch. He kept punching until his mother’s screaming penetrated his haze filled brain.

  His dad lay in a heap, his blood soaking into the carpet.

  Donny remained in his wheelchair and cupped his hand underneath his nose, trying to contain his blood.

  His mom stood in the doorway, eyes wide, holding onto the doorframe as if she might fall over if she let go.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

  “Ian?” Nora said when she opened her front door. Her smile turned to a frown when she saw Donny’s face. “What happened to your nose?”

  “Nothing. Have you talked to Jeff tonight?”

  “Yeah. He’s in a state.”

  “Then you know what happened.” Donny followed Nora into her living room. The fireplace crackled.

  Nora slumped onto her couch and pressed her fingers into her forehead. “I didn’t expect Jeff to show up here.”

  “Something happened here?”

  “He arrived right before I went to dinner with Ian.”

  “Why were you having dinner with him?”

  Nora gave him an exasperated glare. “I needed to talk to him about something.”

  “What time did Jeff show up?”

  “Around six thirty. I told him we would never be a couple and then he followed me to the restaurant and found me there with Ian.”

  Donny closed his eyes. “Jeff’s had a bad night.”

  “Did something else happen?”

  “He beat the shit out of our dad.”

  “Because of me? I don’t get it. Jeff was upset with me, but—”

  “I guess he came home angry, and then when he saw my dad punch me, he snapped.”

  “Your nose,” Nora said.

  “It’s the first time my dad’s hit me, and Jeff walked in right when he landed the punch. After the fight, Jeff took off, and I went to the hospital. I’ve left him a bunch of messages, but he’s not answering.”

  “This has been a horrible day.”

  “I need to find him. I don’t know where else to look.”

  “What about Lisa’s?”

  “I went there already. The house was dark, and she’s not answering.” Donny paused before asking, “Are you dating Ian now?”

  “We went to dinner. That’s all.”

  “Why do you have to pick guys that would upset Jeff the most?”

  “What does that mean?”

  “You dated McKenzie. I know he’s dead, but he was an asshole. Did you know my dad beat Jeff every time McKenzie got a faster time?”

  Nora recoiled into the couch. This was a Donny she’d never seen before. He gripped the arms of his wheelchair with such force she thought he might bend the metal.

  “First you choose the guy who paralyzed me. He’s the reason Rachel killed herself. I don’t understand why him. And now Ian. He’s not much better than McKenzie. He treats girls like crap. Jeff’s a good guy. Are you the type who likes nasty men? Is that what you’ve turned into?”

  “What are you talking about? Steve had nothing to do with Rachel dying.”

  “Are you kidding me?”

  “You’re not making sense.”

  “He dumped her at the party. Right before the car crashed, they were fighting. It was like they’d forgotten I was there. McKenzie wanted nothing to do with her or her baby. She pleaded with him and grabbed his arm. He shoved her away, and she yanked him back. He lost control and crashed into the tree. And Rachel lost her baby.”

  Nora felt as if Donny had punched her in the stomach. She moved away from him and backed into the hearth. “Rachel was pregnant? Why didn’t you ever tell me? I had a right to know.”

  “I had my own problems, and Rachel asked me not to. I promised her.”

  “You and your family are all liars. You deserve each other.” Nora chose her favorite photo of Donny from the mantel, tore it from the frame and tossed it into the fireplace.

  The veins on Donny’s neck expanded and turned a gruesome red. “I’ve never lied to you. I kept Rachel’s secret. That’s different.”

  “No, it’s not. You hurt me by hiding that. Just like Lisa hiding what happened to my mom. I hate all of you.”

  “What does this have to do with Aunt Lisa?”

  “You’re lying about Rachel. She would have told me if she’d been pregnant. I can’t believe not one person in my life is honest. My life has turned into one big lie.”

  “Rachel didn’t want me to tell anyone. McKenzie humiliated her. She blamed herself for the accident. She thought it was her fault I would never walk again. She killed herself because of me and because she lost the baby. How could I repeat her secret?”

  “Because it would have helped me.”

  “Not everything is about you. Why can’t you love Jeff? Ian is nothing.”

  “Ian is the father of my baby.”

  “I thought McKenzie—”

  Nora was being cruel, but couldn’t stop herself. “You thought wrong.”

  * * *

  After Donny left, Nora spent half an hour trying to decide what to do. She’d never seen Donny lose his temper before. He could barely speak after he found out Ian was the baby’s father. Spit sprayed from his mouth as he yelled at her. The conversation had gotten out of control.

  She shouldn’t have been so positive about Ian being the father. She could have said it was only a possibility, explained what happened with Ian, but she’d been too angry to think about Donny’s feelings.

  If she’d known about Rachel, she never would have gotten together with Steve. Donny should have told her. Just like Lisa should have told her about her birth mother.

  Nora called Donny and left a message. Somewhere in her mind, she became aware that she was shaking. She needed to calm herself. The turmoil inside her couldn’t be good for the baby.

  She went to her kitchen, opened the fridge and found the dark chocolate. She began her ritual of making hot chocolate from scratch. The acrid stench of burnt milk filled the kitchen. This isn’t going to work. She tossed the burnt pan into the sink. She was desperate to talk to someone, and she’d lost Lisa tonight.

  “Kalin. It’s Nora. I’m sorry to call so late. I need to talk.” Nora had started smoking when she’d smashed her knee and had quit two years ago, but now she would have given almost anything to have a cigarette.

  “Hang on a sec.” Kalin sounded as if she’d been asleep.

  Nora heard muffled sounds and could imagine Kalin getting out of bed and moving to another room. Ben was probably asleep beside her, and Nora felt a spasm of jealousy that Kalin was in a great relationship while her own family was falling apart. She paced from the kitchen to the bedroom, waiting for Kalin to come back on the phone.

  “You sound odd. What’s wrong?” Kalin asked.

  “Donny was just here. We had a big argument.” A sob burst from Nora before she could control it. She held the phone away from her mouth, not wanting Kalin to hear.

  “Do you want me to come over?”

  “No. I’m fine. I just need to talk.”

  Nora told Kalin about Jeff showing up at her house, her dinner with Ian, the fight between Jeff and his dad, and her argument with Donny. She left out that her birth mother was alive and in prison. That she’d walked out on Lisa without letting her explain. That she had no idea if she should contact her birth mother or not. That her heart was broken from so many sides, she didn’t know if she’d ever feel anything again.

  “I can’t believe I fought with both Donny and Jeff in one night. I’ve ruined everything.”

  “I’m sure that’s not true. Jeff will have to accept you’re not in love with him. It’s not your fault he came over uninvited. Give him some time and then explain what happened with Ian.”

  “I’m more worried about Donny. It was like someone else was sitting
in front of me. If you’d asked me yesterday, I’d have told you Donny would never yell at me.”

  “Maybe being hit by his dad set him off,” Kalin said.

  “I don’t know. He lost it when I told him Steve wasn’t the father.”

  “Why would that make him mad?”

  “That’s the weird part. You’d think he’d be happy the baby wasn’t Steve’s.”

  “Maybe he’s just upset it’s not Jeff’s baby,” Kalin said.

  “That doesn’t make sense. I don’t understand it. He totally scared me.”

  * * *

  Jeff sat with his Aunt Lisa in the atrium at the back of her house. She couldn’t seem to sit still and watered flowers while Jeff told her what happened. Snow sat heavy on the glass roof, making the room feel as if it were closing in on him, and he understood her need to move.

  The doorbell rang, and Lisa dropped the watering can, letting the contents spill onto the tiled floor.

  Jeff grabbed a cloth and wiped the spill. He hoped Nora hadn’t come over too. He didn’t want to talk to her in front of Lisa.

  “I’ll see who it is.” Lisa poked her head out of the atrium and looked through the window that framed the front door. “It’s Donny.”

  “I thought he might come looking for me. I shouldn’t have left him there.” Jeff took a long swallow of his beer and rested the bottle on the side table.

  “Your mom was there. I don’t think your dad would touch him again.”

  “I hope you’re right.”

  Lisa let Donny in and led him into the atrium. He glanced at Jeff without saying anything.

  “How’s your nose?” Jeff asked.

  Donny touched the bandage on his face. “Broken. It’ll heal.”

  “Beer?” Lisa offered, and Donny shook his head.

  “What happened after I left?” Jeff asked.

  “Mom went right to his side. Crying. She didn’t even ask if I was okay.”

  “You’re kidding.”

  “Nope. She glared at me, and then helped him get to the bathroom. I left them there.”

  “She’ll never leave him,” Jeff said.

  “Maybe she will.” Lisa set her glass of white wine beside a potted cactus. She’d poured the drink but hadn’t taken a sip. “Remember the night you went to a movie with Ben, Kalin and Nora, and you asked me to go with you? I had a long talk with your mom. I offered for her to move in here. With both of you, if you want.”