Sara's Song

by Fern Michaels

  They made the rest of the trip to the hospital in silence, each woman busy with her own thoughts.

  “Be calm now, Sara. This is not life-threatening. Carly will be home by tomorrow evening. I’m staying with her throughout the evening. I already told the Hawk, and he said it was all right. Something is bothering that man. I never saw him so jittery. Guess the holiday contributions aren’t coming in as fast as they should. He wanted to know what it would take for me to come back to work. I gave him the finger. Okay, here’s the floor. Pinch your cheeks. You’re too white. Carly will pick up on it.”

  “She’s been fighting the sedative,” the charge nurse said. “Don’t stay too long, Sara. She needs to rest.” Sara nodded.

  “I’m sorry about the car, Sara. I know how much you loved it. The brakes just gave out. Was anyone else hurt?” Carly’s voice was so sleepy-sounding, so groggy, Sara could barely make out the words.

  “No one else was injured. You’re going to be fine, Carly. Nellie said you can come home by tomorrow evening.”

  “What did the doctor say?”

  “Who cares what some doctor says? If Nellie said you can go home, then you can go home. Right now, though, you have to stop fighting the sedative and go to sleep. Nellie’s going to stay.” A murderous look in her eye, Sara brushed at Carly’s damp curls plastered to her forehead.

  The moment Carly drifted off to sleep, Nellie said, “I already checked the chart and spoke to Dr. Olsen. I know you’re itching to be off to do something, so go to it. Everything here is under control.”

  “Can I borrow your truck, Nellie?”

  “Sure. Take it easy now, Sara. Think things through and deal with this with your head and not with emotion.”

  Sara nodded. “It was supposed to be me in that car, Nellie. Not Carly. I’ll be back after I ... I have something to do.”

  “Sara, be careful. All of this . . . this . . . that wasn’t what I meant when I told you to get a life. These people, they’re way out of your league.”

  Sara sucked in her breath. “If you were a betting woman, Nellie, who would you put your money on, Nellie, me, or them?”

  “You, kiddo. Win, Place, and Show.”

  “Okay. I’ll be back. If I end up in jail, will you bail me out?”

  Nellie nodded, her eyes sparkling.

  “Kick some ass, Sara,” Carly mumbled from the bed.

  Outside in the fresh air, Sara took great gulps of the misty night air to steady her nerves before she climbed into Nellie’s ancient pickup truck. She drove slowly until she felt comfortable with the heavy-duty truck that was almost as old as its owner. Nellie loved this old truck. Right now Sara loved it, too. She made one stop at the house for her father’s gun.

  Sara was halfway out the door when she turned around and headed for the phone. She dialed Dallas’s number from memory. A strange voice responded on the other end of the line. “This is Dr. Killian. I’d like to speak to Mr. Lord, please.”

  “This is Tom Silk, Doctor. Adam left about fifteen minutes ago. He should be back in about forty-five minutes. Would you like to leave a message?”

  “No.” Sara broke the connection. She looked at her watch. Most people were in for the night by ten o’clock. Where would Adam Lord go at this time of night? To Benton Memorial to check on his handiwork? To the police station? If he went to either place, that would tip his hand. No, he probably went to talk to his accomplice. Lawyers who were sworn to uphold the law wouldn’t dirty their hands with something as serious as this.

  Sara crumpled then, sinking down into the depths of the new sofa. Somebody had tried to kill her. Somebody who didn’t care if she lived or died. Didn’t that person know how precious life was? Red-hot anger rivered through her. She didn’t stop to think. She barreled through the door and out to Nellie’s truck. She dumped the gun and the heavy black shoulder bag on the passenger side of the seat. Her first stop was the police station, where she demanded to see the investigating officer in charge of Carly’s accident.

  At the end of her long tirade, she eyeballed Detective Luzak, and said, “I’m going to tell you something, and I don’t want you to put it down to female hysteria. I’ve had this feeling for the past few days that someone is watching and following me. I want that to go on the record. This was no accident. I just had my car serviced a month ago, and new brake pads were installed at that time.” She rummaged in the black bag till she found the service report from the Jaguar dealer and a copy of the police report from yesterday. “These two incidents are related. The person who broke into my house tampered with my car. My sister could have been killed. What are you going to do about it, Officer?”

  “I’m going to go to the lot where your car was towed. I’ll check it out myself, Dr. Killian. I go off duty at eleven, and the lot is on my way home.”

  Somewhat mollified, Sara said, “The morning will be time enough.”

  “I’m off duty tomorrow. I’d just as soon do it this evening. I’ll call you as soon as I know anything. If what you say is true, then I’ll come back here and follow through. Be grateful the air bag saved your sister’s life.”

  “I am grateful, Officer. You have no idea just how grateful I am. My sister is the only family I have in the world.” The sob in her voice did not go unnoticed by the kindly detective.

  “I’ll call you the moment I know something, Dr. Killian.”

  Back in the ancient truck, Sara took a deep breath. Without thinking, she reached for one of the cigarettes Nellie always kept on the dashboard. Coughing and sputtering, her eyes watering, Sara puffed furiously on the menthol cigarette.

  She needed a game plan. If she sat here long enough in the police parking lot, surely an idea would come to her. She continued to puff on her cigarette, her eyes smarting as the smoke billowed up around her head in the close confines of the truck cab. She did her best to relax, hoping some workable plan of action would come to mind.

  Adam poured himself a cup of coffee and carried it to the table, the dogs swarming about his feet. He took the time to tussle with each one of them, Izzie watching from her position by the back door.

  “You look done in, Adam,” Tom Silk said as he sipped at his own coffee, one eye on the gate monitor above the kitchen door.

  “It’s been a long day. I had meetings with this . . . idiot from Benton Memorial. I was at the courthouse for hours. It’s never easy when someone dies, but when that someone is your brother and Dallas Lord, everything is compounded a hundred percent.

  “This place is like a prison fortress. There are no words to tell you how much I hate being here. I see Dallas everywhere. Sometimes I think I hear him. I get this eerie feeling that he’s actually here in the house. Is that weird or what? Earlier today I swore I smelled his aftershave. Izzie was sniffing, too.” Adam shivered to make his point.

  “Are you going to go ahead with your plan to turn this place into another Graceland?”

  Adam frowned. He bent over to pick up Dallas Six, who cuddled in the crook of his arm. “Your tone of voice tells me you don’t approve of shrines.”

  “I imagine it would be a monumental undertaking. Who’s going to oversee something of that magnitude? Do you just turn it over to someone and then walk away? This is just my opinion, but somehow I don’t think your brother would want that. If he did, why would he lock himself away up here. Why would you want to tamper with something that had its place in the sun?”

  Adam rubbed at his temples. “I guess I feel like I owe it to Dallas. So much happened in our lives that he couldn’t deal with. I always wanted to do the right thing. I’ve come to realize doing the right thing sometimes wasn’t right for Dallas if you know what I mean. One day I think Dallas would want a shrine, and the next day I know he wouldn’t.” He held out his coffee cup for a refill. Tom filled his cup and his own as well.

  “Did you return Dr. Killian’s call?”

  Adam looked at his watch. “It’s late. I’ll call her in the morning.” He stared across the table at Tom,
who was peering at the monitor. Izzie growled. The six pups raced to her side, their plump little bodies wiggling with anticipation, their tails wagging furiously.

  “I think you better take a look at this, Adam. Now, that’s a kick-ass truck if I ever saw one. Were you expecting company? Man, that truck looks solid. That sucker even has a running board. I saw this old movie once where Rommel and his desert rats were mapping out strategy with a truck just like this one. It’s just sitting there. Maybe it’s someone casing the place. Do you want me to call the cops?”

  Adam walked over to the door to get a better look at the monitor. “What the hell! That looks like . . . yeah, it does look like Dr. Killian.”

  “I think you’re right. Should I release the gate?”

  “She didn’t ring the buzzer? Maybe she just wants to sit out there. Where do you suppose she got an ancient vehicle like that?”

  “Maybe it belonged to her great-grandfather. I don’t believe she just drove up here to stare at those gates and neither do you. Uh-oh, she’s backing up. Oh, jeez, now she’s going forward. No, no, she’s backing up again. She’s going farther down the drive.”

  “Shit! She’s doing that to get up speed. She’s going to ram the gates! Open the damn things! Quick!”

  Tom was too late. Both men watched the shower of sparks that shot upward as Nellie Pulaski’s ancient truck plowed down the gates and roared up the driveway.

  “Son of a bitch!” Adam swore as he ripped open the door, Izzie and the pups in hot pursuit. Tom Silk brought up the rear. Humans and dogs skidded to the side when the heavy-duty truck ground to a halt. A section of the gate that was attached to the side of the truck fell to the ground with a loud crashing sound.

  Nine pairs of eyes watched as Sara Killian leapt from the truck, gun shaking in her wobbly hand. Izzie howled her displeasure. Sara cupped her right hand with her left hand to steady the gun. “Try and kill me will you, you sneaky bastard. Well guess, what! I’m alive and I’m standing here. I’m the one with the gun. You move even a muscle and it’s all over. My sister could have been killed! She’s in the hospital. Is that damn song worth my life or my sister’s life? No, it is not. Fear and intimidation are not going to work on me, Mr. Lord.”

  “What are you talking about? Is that gun loaded?”

  “You’re damn right it’s loaded. Watch this, you son of a bitch!” Without a moment’s hesitation Sara fired off three shots, nipping Adam’s bare toes. Tom Silk danced backward as Izzie and her pups ran for cover. “The next one will get you right between the legs. I’ve got two more clips so don’t . . .” Sara grappled in her mind for a word Carly would use to make her point. “Don’t piss me off. You know what, you’re right. I do have the song. Guess what else, you bastard. You aren’t getting it! All you people do is lie, cheat, and steal. What you did to my car is attempted murder. Don’t even think about trying to tell me you didn’t do anything. I damn well know you did. The only trouble is, my sister was driving my car. My baby sister. I’ve looked out for her all her life, and I have no intention of letting some lowlife shark like you change things. I will not tolerate it! Do you hear me?” A second round of shots filled the night air.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She looked after her baby sister all her life just the way he’d looked after Dallas. That must mean something.

  “Oh, yeah, right. Like I’m really going to believe you. I don’t. I’m reporting you to the police, and you can pull your dumb act on them and hope they believe your story, because I certainly don’t. Now, I’m going to tell the whole world about that damn song. How do you like that, Mister Lord? Your big mistake was messing with my sister. I told you not to move. Do it again, and you’ll be bleeding. I know just where to shoot you. I know just how much blood will pour out. I won’t lift a finger to help you. In case you forgot, I’m a doctor.”

  “Listen to me. I didn’t do anything to your car, nor did I do anything to your house. I did not have anyone do it for me. I’m truly sorry about your sister. I can account for my whereabouts the day of your break-in. Now, put that gun away before you shoot someone.”

  “Don’t tell me what to do,” Sara said. She wavered then, aware of how her legs were trembling and her hands were shaking. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the damage the gates had done to Nellie’s truck. Another bill. Tears welled in her eyes, but the gun in her shaky hands remained at attention. Everything caught up with her then. A sob ripped out of her throat as her knees crumpled. Within seconds the dogs surrounded her, yipping and yapping as they tried to lick at her tears and cuddle into her arms. Izzie stood sentinel until she saw Tom Silk move to the side. Only then did she nuzzle her neck, forcing Sara to stroke her silky head.

  “Who do these dogs belong to?” Sara gasped.

  “Me,” Adam said.

  “You!” She made the single word sound like he was the devil from hell.

  “Do you find that strange?”. What he found really strange was that Izzie and the pups seemed to love her. Maybe it was. a female thing. Suddenly he felt jealous. He snapped his fingers for Izzie to come to his side. The spaniel lifted her head, stared at him, but remained where she was.

  “Of course I find it strange. Dogs are supposed to be shrewd judges of character. Call your dogs. I need to call the police.” Sara stared at the gate panel and winced. “I’m not paying for that gate either. We’ll call it square for what you did to my house.”

  Adam watched as Sara maneuvered until she was on her knees, the gun in her left hand. Tom reached out an arm to help her, but she waved him off with the gun. He backed away immediately.

  “When are you going to get it through your head that I had nothing to do with your robbery? Stop playing Annie Oakley and let’s go into the house and have some coffee and talk about this rationally.”

  “I’m calling the police. I want them to know where I am. Just in case. Coffee will be fine, Mister Lord. I’m partial to Irish Cream.”

  His hackles rising, Adam said, “We can handle that, can’t we Tom?” Just in case. What the hell did that mean?

  “Yeah. Yeah, we can handle that.”

  The gun steady in her hand, Sara said, “I’ll go in last. I’d appreciate it if you’d quiet those dogs. This whole thing is giving me a headache.” She felt like Gumby, Carly’s favorite childhood toy, as she walked into Dallas’s kitchen. She had one bad moment when she remembered how Dallas had tried to impress her with his spaghetti dinner. It all seemed like so long ago. She needed to sit down. The headache was fast becoming a reality.

  Sara chose a seat behind the table that would allow her to watch the two men and the dogs. If Adam Lord was telling the truth, she had nothing to fear. If he was lying, she’d just made the biggest mistake of her life by coming indoors with these two men. They were bigger and stronger and could overpower her in seconds.

  “How would you like your coffee, Doctor?” Tom asked, his eyes on the gun in Sara’s lap.

  “This isn’t a social visit, gentlemen. Black. Strong and black.” She wondered if she were losing her mind. What sane person would do what she’d just done and then sit down and have coffee with someone she felt was trying to kill her?

  Tom backed toward the kitchen sink. Adam sat down across the table from Sara. Elbows on the table, he cupped his chin on top of his closed fists. If his gaze was uneasy, it was because of the gun in Sara’s lap. He listened to the drip of the coffee going through the filter before he spoke. Sara held up her hand for silence as she rummaged in the black bag for her cell phone. First she called the hospital and spoke to Nellie. Satisfied that Carly was sleeping, she then called Detective Luzak. She listened, her eyes narrowing.

  Adam watched in disbelief as Sara’s arm came up to the table level. The gun was pointed dead center with his heart. Perspiration beaded on his brow as he heard Sara say, “Please Detective Luzak, I want you to repeat what you just said tc me to Mr. Lord. By the way, I’m sitting at his kitchen table. Yes, Dallas Lord’s house in the canyon
. I’ll stop by in the morning to pick up your report for the insurance company. Just a second, and I’ll put Mr. Lord on the phone.”

  Adam reached for the cell phone, his eyes never leaving the gun pointed at his chest. He listened, anger raging through him. He thanked the detective, ending the call before he snapped the phone shut. He slid it across the table. “I didn’t do it, Dr. Killian. The only thing I am guilty of is trying to buy the song from you. If you had told me the truth from the begining, we wouldn’t be sitting here now as adversaries.”

  “You could have had someone do it for you. People like you don’t dirty their own hands. I don’t trust you. The song is worth millions of dollars. People kill for a lot less.” She gulped at the coffee. It was so hot her eyes started to water. It was the best coffee she’d ever tasted.

  Adam leaned across the table. “I’m getting damn sick and tired of hearing you and your sister refer to me as quote ‘people like you.’ You make me sound like I sprouted from hell. I’m as normal as you are, as normal as Tom here. I am not an attempted killer nor do I know anyone who is.”

  Sara held out her cup for a refill. “Those are just words. Instead of worrying about a song that doesn’t even belong to you, maybe you should be trying to find the person or persons who are trying to kill me and trying to frame you at the same time. If what you say is true, and I don’t for one minute believe it is.” She snorted, a very unlady like sound. Dallas Six hopped onto her lap and started to lick her face. Her face softened, and she smiled at the fat puppy, tweaking him behind her ears. “Your brother would have loved this little dog, Mr. Lord.”

  She’s pretty, Adam thought. Strange feelings coursed through him. If his brother had been in love with her, he could understand why. The sudden urge to gather her close and whisper that things would be okay made him blink. He watched as she finished the coffee and held out her cup a third time. Was it his imagination or were her eyes getting glassy? He turned in time to see Tom pour Irish whiskey into the cup before he added the coffe. He mouthed the word, NO, but it was too late. Sara held out her hand for the coffee cup. Tom shrugged and handed it over.