The Forgiven

by Amanda Stevens

  “I’m shy.”

  “Why would a woman who looks like you be shy about her body?”

  Her gaze met his in the darkness. “I’m inexperienced. I’ve only been with one other man.”

  He looked surprised. “The boy who got you pregnant? I say boy, because I certainly wouldn’t call him a man,” he said scornfully. Then he gave her a reproachful look. “That was a long time ago, Naomi. A long time to be celibate.”

  “I’ve...had other things on my mind.”

  His voice grew sober. “I know.” He reached under the cover to take her hand and then lifted their entwined fingers to his lips. “You’re an extraordinary woman, Naomi.”

  “No, I’m not. I’m a survivor, that’s all.”

  “Any man would be lucky to have you as the mother of his children.”

  Naomi was deeply moved. A tear coursed down her cheek, and he thumbed it away. “Hey,” he said softly. “I didn’t mean to make you cry. This is not a night for sadness.”

  “I’m not sad,” she sniffed. “I’m just emotional. There’s a difference.”

  “Then let’s get more emotional, shall we?”

  She smiled shyly. “I thought you’d never ask.”

  They were lying side by side, and he drew their bodies together, until they were touching so intimately Naomi could hardly breathe. But this wasn’t like the other times she’d known. The few times. There was no fumbling. No hurrying. Alex took his time with her, arousing her body in ways she’d never even imagined.

  He stroked her, whispered to her, kissed her long and deep until she grew hot and shivery all over. A strange tension began to build inside her, and she clutched Alex’s shoulders as he moved over her. And then they were moving together, the tension growing tighter and tighter...

  She whispered his name on a heated plea.

  “Let it happen,” he murmured.

  And it did, a glorious release that lifted Naomi from her everyday world and dropped her, for one brief instant, into paradise.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Taryn came back on Sunday afternoon. She’d gone straight upstairs to her room when Alex had first brought her home, but later Naomi saw her walking across the backyard toward a greenhouse.

  Since Alex was working in his study, Naomi thought it might be a good opportunity to try to get to know Taryn a little better. She was anxious to spend some time alone with her.

  Located just beyond the pool, the greenhouse was a massive structure with a pointed roof made of heavy glass panels that could be opened and closed by a system of pulleys and cranks. Stepping inside was like walking into some remote, tropical jungle.

  Plants and flowers grew in profusion, but what caught Naomi’s attention, what held her enthralled, was the profusion of orange-and-black monarchs that swarmed the clay pots of heliotrope, snapdragons and lantana. Wire mesh cages suspended from the ceiling housed the more exotic varieties of butterflies.

  She saw Taryn at the back and, hoping she wouldn’t mind the intrusion, Naomi started toward her. Taryn’s attention was rapt as she stared into one of the cages, and as Naomi approached, she saw the source of the girl’s fascination—an adult butterfly crawling from a newly split chrysalis.

  Taryn glanced up, acknowledging Naomi’s presence.

  Naomi smiled. “I hope you don’t mind. I wanted to see your butterflies.” She turned, gesturing with her hand. “This is incredible. I’ve never seen anything like it. You’ve done all this by yourself?”

  Pride flashed in Taryn’s dark eyes, before she tossed her dark hair and shrugged. “The greenhouse was already here when we moved in, but Dad had some renovations done for me.”

  “How did you ever learn to raise butterflies?” Naomi asked in awe. “I know enough to plant butterfly bushes and trumpet vines in my backyard to keep them coming back year after year, but this!” She lifted her arms as a half-dozen or so monarchs landed on her bright yellow shirt.

  “They like yellow,” Taryn said. “And red. Are you really interested in learning about butterflies?” she asked skeptically.

  “Absolutely.”

  “Most people just plant nectar sources in their backyard, if they want to attract butterflies, like your trumpet vines, but you also need host plants where females can lay their eggs and the caterpillars later can feed.”

  “What do caterpillars eat?”

  “Milkweed attracts monarchs and swallowtails. Others, like the Elfin and painted ladies, like clover, parsley, Queen Anne’s lace.” She named a few more, then held out her hand and a tiny blue butterfly landed in her palm. “Butterflies taste with their feet. I bet you didn’t know that. And they drink nectar through a strawlike structure called a proboscis.” She blew gently on the tiny creature, and its wings lifted into the air.

  Naomi was mesmerized. “When did you become interested in growing butterflies?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve just always loved them.”

  “Look, Mama, they came back. Just like you said they would. Aren’t they beautiful?”

  Naomi’s eyes filled with sudden tears and she glanced away. But Taryn didn’t seem to notice as she busied herself with one of the cages.

  “May I ask you something, Taryn?”

  “About butterflies?”

  “No. I want to talk to you about our conversation at the restaurant last week,”

  Taryn glanced up, her gaze shuttered. “You mean the night you told me that you and my dad were just acquaintances? That there was nothing going on between you? Oh, don’t worry,” she hastened to add. “I don’t care that you married my dad. I really don’t. It’ll keep him out of my hair.”

  “So you can do what?”

  Taryn turned back to the cage. “Whatever I want.”

  “Like finding your mother’s killer?”

  She whirled, her gaze accusing. “I bet you couldn’t wait to tell him about that, could you?”

  “It wasn’t like that,” Naomi said. “I didn’t want to break your confidence, but I thought it was something he should know about.”

  Taryn gave Naomi a defiant look. “It doesn’t matter. He can’t make me stop.”

  “What do you mean?” When Taryn didn’t answer, Naomi said anxiously, “You mentioned you had someone helping you. Will you tell me who it is?”

  Taryn hesitated. “If I tell you, you’ll just report back to my dad.”

  “Would that be so bad?”

  She shrugged. “He’s not going to stop me, and neither are you.”

  Alarmed, Naomi took Taryn’s arm. “Why don’t you let me help you?”

  She brushed off Naomi’s hand. “How can you help me? You didn’t even know my mother.”

  “I never met her, but I feel we’re...connected.”

  “Because of my father?”

  Because of you, Naomi wanted to tell her. “I know of a private investigator,” she said. “I think he can help us.”

  “How could he help?” Taryn said scornfully. “Don’t you get it? The evidence isn’t out there.” She spread her arms, waving toward the glass walls of the greenhouse. “The evidence is in here.” She tapped her finger against her temple. “All I have to do is find the key.”

  “The key to what?” Naomi asked helplessly.

  “My suppressed memories. I know a woman in the Quarter who can help me unlock them using hypnosis.”

  “Hypnosis?” Naomi started to put her hand on Taryn’s arm again, but then thought better of it. “Hypnosis can be dangerous unless you’re dealing with a trained professional. A therapist. It’s not something you should be messing around with.”

  “I’m not messing around. This isn’t a game,” Taryn said angrily. “Besides, she’s already put me under several times. I’m a very responsive subject, she says. She’s even given me a posthypnotic suggestion so that each time it will get easier and easier to induce a trance.”

  “Did...you remember anything?” Naomi asked almost fearfully.

  She shook her head. “Not yet. She says I
won’t remember until I’m ready. I can’t force it. But I think I’m getting close.”

  * * *

  THAT EVENING Alex, Naomi and Taryn sat down to their first meal together as a family. Naomi was so nervous she could hardly sit still. She’d cooked a simple dinner of meat loaf, mashed potatoes and homemade biscuits, and she’d set the table in the kitchen, rather than the dining room, hoping the more casual atmosphere would help calm tensions.

  But the moment all three sat down, an awkwardness settled over the table. Naomi and Alex tried to keep the conversation flowing, but Taryn picked sullenly at her food. She said nothing throughout the meal, and when Naomi caught her eye from time to time, Taryn would flash her a defiant look, as if she were daring her to tell Alex about the hypnosis.

  The dinner was so strained that Naomi was almost relieved when the phone rang. Alex must have felt the same way because he jumped up to answer it before anyone else could.

  “This is Alex DeWitt.” He listened for a moment, then said in a tense voice, “Where are you?” Another silence. “I can be there in twenty minutes.”

  He hung up and walked back over to the table. “Sorry. Something’s come up. I have to leave for a while.”

  Naomi stared up at him in consternation. “What’s wrong?”

  He shrugged, but there was something in his eyes she didn’t like. “Nothing’s wrong. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  Taryn slanted him a sly look. “What happened? Ventura stock plunge a few points and everyone at headquarters is threatening to jump?”

  He tweaked her nose. “Don’t be so cavalier. Ventura stock is going to put you through college.”

  “I told you I’m not going to college.”

  “I thought you’d decided to go to law school,” he reminded her.

  “I think I might like to be a cop.” Her gaze met Naomi’s. “Or a hypnotist.”

  Alex rolled his eyes as he turned to leave. Naomi followed him out to his car. “Alex, what’s really going on? I can tell something’s wrong.”

  He opened the car door but stood for a moment, gazing down at her. “Nothing’s wrong. There’s just something I have to take care of.”

  “Something I should know about?”

  He hesitated. “I’ll tell you all about it when I get back.”

  Thunder rumbled in the distance, and Naomi shivered. “It’s going to storm.”

  Alex searched the sky. “I should be back before it hits. Just stay inside and keep an eye on Taryn for me, will you? Make sure she doesn’t try to sneak out.”

  “Do you think she might?”

  “I don’t think so. I came down pretty hard on her the last time she went someplace without my knowing. But just the same...”

  Naomi wrapped her arms around her middle as the thunder boomed closer. “I’ll take care of her. But Alex...” She caught his arm. “Hurry back, okay?” She was suddenly very apprehensive about her and Taryn being alone in the house with darkness and a storm approaching.

  “I’ll probably be back within the hour.” He bent and brushed his lips against hers. “By bedtime for sure,” he murmured.

  * * *

  MICHAEL DONNELLY WAS WAITING for Alex in the lobby of the Place d’Armes Hotel on Royal Street. The two men had never met, but Alex recognized him immediately, and Donnelly seemed to know him.

  They shook hands, then went into the bar for a drink. The place was almost deserted. Rain splattered against the windows, and Alex could see lightning flashes over the city. He thought about Naomi and Taryn home alone, and suddenly he couldn’t wait to get back to them.

  “You’ve got some information on Ray Beauchamp?”

  The man opened his briefcase and pulled out some papers. “I didn’t have a lot to go on except for that story you said someone had told you about his father being a New Orleans cop who was executed for several murders. So I spent some time down in the morgue at the Times-Picayune. Turns out that story was true. He was executed back in 1960. And your source was right about the kids, too. Two girls and a boy. I don’t know who arranged it, but somehow they were allowed to witness the execution. Something went wrong. His clothing caught on fire. It was a really bad scene, and the kids were pretty traumatized, as you can imagine. The oldest girl was around eighteen, the other girl ten, and Ray was eight.”

  How in the hell were kids that age allowed to witness an execution? Alex wondered. Either a lot of palms had been greased, or else someone was just plain sick. “Were you able to track down the sisters?”

  “Not exactly.”

  Something in his tone made Alex glance up sharply. “What does that mean?”

  “I wasn’t able to track them down, but I found out what their names were back then. The older one’s name was Willa Beauchamp.”

  “Willa,” Alex repeated softly. The name tugged at a memory. And then he had it. Naomi had mentioned her on the first night Alex had gone to see her at her hotel, when she’d told him how she’d come to believe that Taryn was her child. The woman who had disclosed the information about the baby swapping had worked at Eden Memorial Hospital fifteen years ago.

  “I see you recognize the name, too,” Donnelly said.

  “The nurse from the hospital in Eden was named Willa.”

  Donnelly nodded. “Willa Banks. She was also responsible for one of the recent kidnappings in Eden.”

  “You think it’s the same woman?”

  The detective’s expression turned grim. “That’s why I called you. I don’t think there’s any doubt about it.”

  “And the other sister? Do you know her name?” Alex asked anxiously.

  “I’ve got it right here. Her name was—”

  A clap of thunder exploded overhead, shaking the rafters in the bar and eliciting startled squeals from a couple of women who sat near the window. They both scurried away from the glass.

  Donnelly shoved the paper across the table toward Alex, and he stared down at the name.

  Oh, my God.

  * * *

  TARYN WENT STRAIGHT UP to her room after Alex left, and Naomi lingered downstairs just long enough to clean up the kitchen and start the dishwasher. She gazed out the kitchen window, watching the storm clouds move in from the Gulf. A particularly loud clap of thunder rattled the window and Naomi jumped.

  It wasn’t even eight o’clock yet, but darkness had fallen early because of the storm. With nothing to do but watch the lightning, Naomi went upstairs to the master suite and tried to settle down to watch a weather report on TV. This is not good, she thought. This reminded her of that night fifteen years ago when she’d been home alone and had gone into labor. She felt the same sense of unease building that she had that night.

  Walking over to the window, Naomi glanced up at the black, roiling clouds, punctuated by jagged streaks of lightning. A narrow balcony ran the length of the house, and several sets of French doors opened onto it. Naomi started to step outside, but then thought better of it. Instead, she checked to make sure the latch was secure.

  She was so on edge that when the phone rang, she gave a startled little gasp. Then she hurried across the room to answer it.

  “Naomi?”

  “Alex?”

  “Listen to me, Naomi, and just do as I say. You and Taryn have to get out of the house.”

  Naomi’s heart started to pound. “What? Why? What’s wrong?”

  “Just do it! Get Taryn out of that house!”

  “Alex—” Naomi broke off as her breath caught in her throat.

  “What?” he demanded. “What’s wrong?”

  “I thought I saw someone on the balcony outside the bedroom.”

  Alex swore. “Listen carefully, Naomi. Go into Taryn’s room and lock the door. Don’t let her leave, and don’t let anyone inside. I mean anyone! Do you understand?”

  Naomi didn’t bother to answer. She hung up and whirled toward the door. Racing down the hallway, she rapped once on Taryn’s door, then opened it and stepped inside. “Taryn, we have to—”
/>
  In a flash of lightning, Naomi saw that Taryn’s bed was empty. She was gone!

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Lightning strobed again, and then Naomi saw her. Taryn was curled in a corner, knees drawn up, arms wrapped around her legs. Naomi was beside her in a flash.

  “Taryn? What’s wrong? Are you afraid of the storm? Listen, honey. We have to—”

  “I want my mama.” The voice was tiny, shrill, like a little girl’s.

  Naomi’s heart stopped. “What?”

  “Please. I want my mama. I’m scared.” Taryn knuckled her eyes as if she’d been crying.

  “Taryn—” Naomi didn’t know what to say. Without thinking, she reached a hand and pushed back Taryn’s hair. “It’s all right. It’s all right,” she crooned.

  Taryn’s eyes were closed, and for a moment, Naomi wondered if she was dreaming or sleepwalking. But as she studied Taryn’s expression in the flashes of lightning, a chill seeped through her. There was danger all around them, danger in this house. But the look on Taryn’s face stole Naomi’s breath. She couldn’t move.

  “Taryn? Can you hear me?”

  No response, but her eyes moved rapidly beneath her lids, as if she were in a very deep sleep.

  “I want my mama.” The voice was very soft, very high.

  The chill inside Naomi deepened. She didn’t think Taryn was sleepwalking, but her behavior was very strange, almost dreamlike. Could something, the storm perhaps, have triggered the posthypnotic suggestion she’d mentioned earlier? Was she in some kind of hypnotic trance?

  If so, how do I bring her out of it? Naomi wondered desperately.

  She touched Taryn’s arm. “Let me help you up. We may have to go—”

  Taryn drew away frantically. “No, please don’t! Don’t make me go! Mama said not to! Don’t go anywhere with a stranger!”

  Naomi went very still and then her heart slammed into her chest, beating double time. She said very softly, “Where are you?”

  “Hiding.”

  “Hiding where?”

  “My secret place. No one can find me here.” Taryn looked momentarily confused. “How did you find me?”

  Naomi’s heart was pounding so hard she couldn’t answer. But she didn’t have to. Taryn wasn’t talking to her.