“Deep ponderings for sure, my friend, and one that has valid arguments from each side.”
As much as I enjoyed Ron’s company, I was in no mood for small talk. I wanted to get back upstairs to Audra, so I cut to the chase.
“What brings you by, Ron?”
He cleared his throat. “Well, I checked your jacket this morning, and did you know that you have over three months of unused vacation? So, I believe, that it is high time you take one. Consider yourself on vacation, and don’t come back until you whisk that girl of yours away to some tropic locale once she’s up to it. You need some sea air and saltwater. You are looking kinda rough.”
Before I could respond, Ron was up and out of his seat. He smiled a bit, but I noticed it didn’t mask the look of concern behind his light brown eyes. I started to protest, but he held up his hand.
“I mean it, Ronson. You’re officially on vacation, which means no coming in to work, no calling in to work, and certainly, no working on any cases. Understood?”
My fears that my emotions would come out if I spoke too many words took over, so I responded, “Thanks, Ron.”
With that, he was gone.
I knew exactly what Ron meant. He didn’t want me anywhere near this case, which I knew he was right about. To say that I was emotionally wrapped up in the outcome of it would be the understatement of the century. Besides, it was pretty much an open and shut one anyway. Piper and Kevin were behind it all, and of course, Olin was dead. Ha, the “trial of the century, part two,” as the news liked to put it, would never happen. The nightmare was over, and all that was left to do was for someone to put the finishing touches to the write-up in a pretty report. My contribution would not be necessary, although I had already given my statement to the Feds. The worst part about this whole nasty situation, other than the fact that the woman I loved was in a room upstairs still in a coma, was that I had no one to release all my rage upon. There would be no arrest, no trial, no watching the person that tried to kill Audra brought to justice. Divine justice had already been doled out upon Piper, Kevin, and Olin, which left me with nothing but a mind full of anger, and no one to take it out on.
Although I wasn’t sure exactly how the events unfolded, I knew that Nick was behind the death of Olin, and for that, as much as I hated to admit it to myself, I envied him. The side of me that wore the badge knew he should have to answer for killing him, but that side was being quieted by the raging bull that felt the need to protect the woman I loved. She had suffered enough at the hands of others, so I needed to learn to let the anger subside and embrace the fact that there was no one left to hurt her anymore.
The donut was gone and the coffee was tepid at best. I sort of zoned out for a while as I stared aimlessly out the glass into the crowd of reporters. Vacation—I wasn’t quite sure how to handle that since I hadn’t taken any time off from work since Kathryn’s funeral. If I were to be honest with myself, the truth was that I never wanted time away from work that would allow my thoughts to focus on the emotional pain I felt. It was easier to wrap myself up in the pain of others. But since I had my Audra, a vacation and time spent alone with the love of my life was the perfect plan. And after she recuperated, I would do the thing I swore I would never do again—ask a woman to marry me.
That thought sent a strange mixture of cold chills down my spine while simultaneously warming my heart. I glanced at my watch and decided I had been gone long enough for Chas to have finished with Audra and stood up, my eyes sweeping my surroundings once more to ensure a clean getaway from the reporters. My eyes settled upon one face in particular and the message they conveyed back to my brain made me doubt my sanity. Perhaps I was actually dreaming all this and still at Audra’s bedside.
Because I was staring at the face that I could not be looking at.
The face of Olin Kemper.
I was frozen in my spot, unable to comprehend what I was looking at. It couldn’t be him, he was dead. He walked right past the glass, oblivious to my ogling, and I blinked several times, hoping this crazy apparition or dream would disappear. Staring hard and heavy, I realized my feet were moving again, following right behind him on the other side of the glass. When I realized that he was the wrong height and age to be Olin, it dawned on me that he must be his son. My God, he was the spitting image of his father, down to the hollow blue eyes.
My heart was pounding in my chest and my blood raced through my veins. Fully awake and on high alert, I moved quickly and left the cafeteria, just in time to see his figure stepping into the elevator. I glanced up and noticed that he was heading to the fifth floor, which was where Nick was.
I bounded for the stairwell and took the stairs two at a time while my mind searched for answers. Why in the hell would Olin’s son be in Summerset? If he came to identify the corpse of his father, which was a distinct possibility, that didn’t explain why he was at the hospital and heading to the floor of the man that killed him. But that didn’t make sense. How in the world would he know that Nick killed Olin?
Unless somehow, he did know, and wanted to avenge his father’s death.
Out of breath by the time I flung the door open to the fifth floor, I burst into a sprint and saw him enter Nick’s room. Just as I reached the door, I heard an unfamiliar voice say, “Nick, glad you are awake. I came here to offer you a proposition I don’t believe you will be able to refuse.”
Something in my gut told me to stand still and listen, sensing no immediate threat to Nick’s safety. I forced my breathing to slow down and strained my ears to hear just what sort of offer this eerie replica of Olin was proposing to Nick.
What I heard made my blood boil and gave me an outlet to vent my rage.
DISCONNECTED. THAT WAS THE best way to describe it. I felt like my brain had somehow detached itself from my body and was floating around in space. I couldn’t feel any part of my body—no sensation of pain, touch or temperature. I could hear undecipherable sounds and then—voices whispering in the background—but the words were nothing more than a jumbled mass of noise. I was in the dark, unable to see where I was or sense how I was moving through it, although the sensation of movement was with me. Brief flashes of light would surround me, but I still felt nothing. I had no concept of time, no idea how long I had been there, and only a vague sense that my name was Audra and that I had somewhere to go. I just had no idea where that someplace might be.
One sweet, soft voice began to become clearer. Child’s laughter soon followed.
“Audra. Audra. Come here, Audra. We have something to tell you.”
The voice sounded so soothing, so comforting, so full of love, yet I had no idea how to find the source. The gentle, tinkling laughter of a child burst all around me, and as it did, light begin to form in front of me.
“Follow the light, Mommy. Come see us!”
“I…I don’t know how. Where are you?”
Instinctively, I recognized the voice of my son. Memories came flooding back as the light around me became brighter. If I was hearing his voice, then I must be dead and was being reunited with him! The joy I felt illuminated my way, and the will to see my son spurred me on.
As the light fully engulfed me, I became aware of my surroundings, realizing I could actually see and feel. I was standing on a carpet of thick, green grass, surrounded on all sides by immense, snowcapped mountains underneath a clear, blue sky. The smell of wildflowers and the sensation of the sun on my face overwhelmed me as I realized I could feel.
“There you are, Mommy! I knew you would come.”
I turned to the sound of the voice behind me, my heart bursting with love and pain at the same time, my legs unable to hold me up as I collapsed in front of him.
His pale, blonde curls framed his cherubic face, his eyes the same dark blue as his father’s. His nose and cheek bones were exact replicas of my own. He ran, squealing with delight, and jumped into my lap, knocking us both over into the soft grass.
“Hi, Mommy! I have missed you so much! Gina tol
d me you were coming for a visit, but I didn’t believe her,” he said, releasing hundreds of kisses across my face.
His voice was the sweetest thing I had ever heard.
Tears flowed down my face in a steady stream as I held my child in this dream, or realm, or wherever I was, for the very first time. At this moment, I didn’t care where I was or how I got there. All I cared about was staying with my son.
“Have I ever lied to you before, Jesse?”
The voice that spoke was melodic and full of love. I opened my teary eyes and just stared at the beautiful woman that sat atop a huge, black horse. Gina Milligan stared right back, her eyes almost glowing in the sun.
“No, Gina, you have never lied to me before. And she is just as beautiful as I imagined! Mommy, we have the same color hair.”
Alive. Dead. Dreaming. Hallucinating. Heaven. I wasn’t sure what was happening, but surely didn’t care. I was with my son and holding my baby boy for the first time, even though he wasn’t a baby anymore. Then it dawned on me that Gina called him Jesse, which was the name I picked out, and that he was roughly around the age he would have been had he lived. My heart sank then, thinking that all this was just some wonderful dream. Instant clarity of the fact that my body was actually in a hospital bed and that I was in some sort of coma-induced dream state made the tears explode faster from my eyes.
“Mommy, don’t cry,” Jesse said, his small hand reaching up to wipe away my tears.
I closed my eyes and held on tighter to Jesse’s small frame. If I hung on hard enough, maybe I could stay forever with him.
Gina alighted off her horse and came over and sat next to us in the grass. Her eyes really were glowing as love and compassion shone behind them.
“Audra, it’s going to be all right. Shhh…stop your crying and listen. This isn’t a dream or some hallucination.”
Her soothing voice instantly caused my tears to dry for some strange reason. Although I hadn’t loosened my grip on Jesse, he had maneuvered around and sat perfectly still on my lap, his hands intertwined around my arms.
“Yes, Mommy. This is real. Time to listen. Gina has a message for you.”
Gina smiled, and the aura around her became soft hues of pastel colors. I found myself entranced by her voice.
“Audra, God sent us here, in a form and scenery that you could comprehend, to tell you a few things. You see, we are all connected. My death may have been untimely to those left on earth, but in Heaven, time is, well, irrelevant. It is impossible to explain to a finite mind about infinite things. Try looking at it this way. I went to Heaven first and waited for Jesse to come along so I could take care of him. You saved my mother from dying before her time and have become a part of her life that gives her great joy. In turn, she has become of great importance in yours. Are you seeing the connection?”
I nodded, enthralled with her words.
“You have doubted in the existence of not only life after death but God as well. Not many are afforded the opportunity that you are experiencing at this moment, Audra. God took pity upon you when you cried out to Him at my mother’s house. He knows your heart and felt your remorse. Your journey on earth isn’t over yet, so God sent us here to give you strength and hope—strength to cope with the coming hard times and hope that the life you live on earth isn’t the only one. It is now time for you to release yourself from the guilt you carry for Jesse’s miscarriage, for now you know he is safe with us. You must also let go of the anger inflicted upon you by others and embrace the loving salve of forgiveness.”
I hugged Jesse closer to me and buried my face in his silky hair.
“But I want to stay here…with Jesse.”
“You will be able to, one day. But for now, Steve needs you. You have unlocked the hurt in his soul, allowing him to live and love once again.”
“Mommy, Jesus said that you will be here with me forever when the time is right. Don’t worry. Gina will continue to watch over me until you get here. Steve needs you. I will be fine.”
Even though I was hanging on for dear life, Jesse managed to escape my grasp. Suddenly, he was sitting with Gina on top of the horse and my arms were already aching for him. I felt sadness and heartache, but at the same time, I felt this overwhelming sense of peace surround me. I felt the ground move underneath me and realized that it was the thundering of the horse’s hooves as it galloped away with Gina and Jesse, and then they all disappeared into thin air.
Faintly, over the pounding of the hooves, I heard my son say, “God says it’s time to go back, Mommy. Take care of Steve.”
And then I was in blackness once again, feeling completely lost.
IF I WERE A smoker, the first thing I would have done after the flight was smoke a cigarette. Years of flying usually made me oblivious to turbulence in the air, but that trip was straight out of some epic horror movie. I just knew that we would crash into the woods and explode into an orange ball of flame, or worse, perhaps I would live and slowly die of starvation, lost forever in the cold snow of Montana or the vast desert of Arizona.
Luck was with the pilot and he landed us all in one piece in Phoenix. I had been travelling for almost twenty-four hours to get back home, and I was exhausted. I was stuck waiting for Hertz to find me a rental car, so I made a beeline for the airport bar and slung back two heavy shots of tequila. I tried calling Nicole’s phone again, only to be greeted by her voicemail for the umpteenth time. I was going out of my fucking head with worry. The news reports kept listing her as alive, but what if they were wrong? Nicole never went anywhere without her phone. She had no family for me to call and check in with, and besides, even if she did, I am sure that they wouldn’t tell her ex-lover what was going on. I decided to call Carl.
“Eric Jennings, why am I not surprised to hear from you?”
“Hey, Carl. I would ask you how things are going, but that would be rather stupid, don’t you think?” I chuckled at that, trying to ease the tension between the two of us.
“If they get any worse, I am planning on taking the wife and kids to Hawaii, permanently. It has been a zoo here for the past three days.”
“I don’t even want to know, Carl. What I do want to know is if you have heard from Nicole? Is she ok?”
“Funny you call now and ask me that question. I just spoke to her about twenty minutes ago. They are releasing her from the hospital. She called and asked me to send someone to pick her up. Apparently, taxies aren’t a much needed commodity in Summerset, so she has no way to get home.”
I let out a huge sigh of relief. Just knowing she was healthy enough to be released from the hospital so quickly meant that her injuries weren’t life threatening.
“Have you already sent someone after her?”
“Well, no, not yet. I am sort of, um, finding it difficult to, well, find someone willing to pick her up. I was actually contemplating going to get her myself since it would give me a chance to be away from the phones here for a while. The reporters are driving me bat shit crazy.”
I laughed out loud at that. Apparently, Nicole hadn’t changed her attitude one iota in the months I had been gone. Come to think of it, she probably became even nastier. No wonder Carl couldn’t find someone willing to be in the close confines of a vehicle with her for hours.
“My car is almost ready, so I will go get her. What’s the name of the hospital again? I will need it for the GPS.”
“Mercy General. Gee thanks, Eric, I guess. So goes my hope of escaping the news media for a while.”
“That bad, huh?” I said as I scribbled the name of the hospital down and then began searching for the address. Smartphones came in quite handy sometimes.
“Oh, Eric, remember how bad it was when the Sprigg and Olin nightmare hit? Well, this debacle makes that one seem like a parade of Boy Scouts. These network journalists are horrid!”
“Well honestly, Carl, can you blame them? I mean, Jesus Christ, look what happened? Three partners dead, two in the hospital and the trial of the century halted
. My God, they will be feeding on this story for months.”
Carl groaned. “I know they will. And you are right. I still can’t believe what happened, and I am not sure I ever will. We thought we only worked with one monster. Turns out, we were surrounded by them. I mean, we all knew Piper was unstable, but who knew that Kevin had it in him? My God, what a crazy turn of events.”
“Crazy turn of events? More like an enormous cluster-fuck. I just can’t believe it. Seems completely surreal, you know? I still can’t wrap my head around the entire situation. Is what is being reported on the news stations really true? Did Piper kill some scientist and steal snake venom?”
Carl sighed heavily, his voice full of sadness.
“Yes, it’s true. Apparently, she drugged him then let the snakes loose and ran after snatching the venom. Then she stalked Robert like he was some random prey…it just makes me…”
I had worked with Robert for years but wasn’t what one would consider fond of him, but I knew that he and Carl were very close. Through the phone line, I could hear the emotion in Carl’s words.
“I know, man, I know. Guess it just proves that none of us really know another, huh?”
Carl snorted. “No, we really don’t.”
I tried steering the subject away from Robert. “So, I guess for the interim, you are running the show now, huh?”
There was a long pause before Carl replied.
“Yes, I am. Not the position I ever wanted to be in and especially not under these circumstances. Audra’s still in a coma, and I have no idea when, or if, she will return. I’m hoping that once Nicole returns, she will take things over. God knows I don’t want this mess in my lap.”
Audra is reaping what she’s sown, I thought to myself.
“Looks like only the two of us escaped this little game unscathed, hey Carl?”
I was trying to lighten this grim conversation just but it backfired on me.
“Game? Game? Really, Eric? This isn’t a game. People are dead!”
Eviscerating the Snake - The Complete Trilogy Page 42
