by HELEN HARDT
I nodded. Again, I had no doubt.
The problem was, what Joe and I needed was him.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Brad
I knocked on Larry’s door in Grand Junction. He’d just finished his last year of college and was moving to Arizona for law school.
No answer.
This time I pounded. My father’s—my—forty-five was burning a hole through the holster. Or so it seemed. The piece seemed to radiate heat.
Yeah, it was my imagination, but still…
Finally the door cracked open.
“Open up, Larry,” I said.
“Steel.” The door revealed Theo, not Larry.
Great.
“Where’s Larry?”
“He’s gone.”
“Where?”
“Hell if I know. I got here a few hours ago, and he was gone. Probably out with that new chick of his. Gretel.”
“You mean Greta.”
“Whatever.”
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“Probably same thing as you. Looking for Larry.”
“What for?”
“I could ask you the same thing, Steel.”
“He has information I need.”
“Same here.”
“What does he have that you need?”
Theo grinned. “I’ll tell if you will.”
Right. Not going there. Instead—
I pulled out my pistol. I didn’t aim it at Theo, just held it, looking at it.
“What the fuck, man?” Theo inched backward.
“My father’s. Well, mine now, I guess. He was always armed. Now that I’m the owner of the ranch, I figured it wasn’t a bad idea.”
“What the hell kind of shit do you do on that ranch, Steel?”
I blew lightly on the nose of the gun. “I get what I’m after.”
“What’s this abou— Shit. You came to threaten Larry.”
“Why would you say that?”
“Because you’re thinking about threatening me. I can see it on your face.” Theo’s voice didn’t waver, but a bead of sweat appeared on his forehead.
Good.
“Why would I want to threaten you, Theo?”
“The drugs. You don’t like the drugs.”
“I like less that you and Tom lied to me at the beginning. But it’s just marijuana. That’s what Tom told me. He’s a daddy, by the way.”
“I heard.”
“Don’t you think the two of you should get on the straight and narrow? I mean, he’s got a kid involved now.”
“We’re on the straight and narrow.”
“Not if you’re dealing in drugs.”
“It’s a little weed, Steel. Nothing major.”
One thing about Theo—nothing worried him. He’d always been that way. He wasn’t an iceman like Tom. No, Theo was more complex. Somewhat sociopathic, even.
Why had I ever hung around these guys in high school?
I blew on the nose of the gun once more and packed it back in the holster. “Think about it. There’s a kid involved now.”
“We’re looking into a new venture, anyway,” Theo said, visibly relieved that I’d put the gun away.
“Yeah? Larry didn’t talk you out of this one?”
“Talk us out of what? What the hell are you talking about?”
No surprise. I’d already known Larry had been lying to me. “Who are you dealing with?”
“Why do you want to know?”
“Maybe I want in.”
Theo guffawed. “Good try. You already told us you wanted out.”
“Yeah, that’s before my old man died.”
“You’re saying you got out because of your old man?”
“I’m saying I’m sitting on a fucking shitload of cash, Theo. It’s all mine now. To do with as I please.”
His eyes widened. Mention a shitload of cash, and Theo always got interested.
“I need something in return,” I said.
“What’s that?”
“Tell me the truth.”
“About what?”
“About what happened to Sean Murphy.”
“We’ve been through that, Steel. I’m clean. You know it. I had nothing against the guy.”
“I believe you. I also believe you know what happened.”
“I don’t. Honest.”
I nodded. “Okay, we can play it that way. No cash will be coming your way for your new venture, then.”
“Fuck.” Theo walked over to Larry’s couch and sat down. “Who says we need your cash? Besides, if I knew something, I’d tell you.”
“Would you?”
“Of course. How long have we been friends? Six, seven years?”
Friends was a stretch, but I didn’t say it. “I’ve had the best PIs on this for months now, and nothing. Who do you know who’s that good at hiding something?”
“Only one person.”
“And she’s locked up.” I paced slowly around Larry’s small place. “Right?”
“Right. You know that.”
“Of course. I have witnesses who claim the same thing. Nurses and orderlies at Piney Oaks. Even her doctor.”
“It wasn’t her, Steel.”
“All the evidence points that way. True.”
“You’re not convinced.”
“When it comes to Wendy Madigan, I’ll never be convinced of anything.”
“She’s out of it. Trust me.”
Trust Theo Mathias? Good one. “How do you know?”
“I’ve visited her. Haven’t you?”
“Hell, no.”
“Really? You just turned your back on her? After everything?”
“I did. Once I met Daphne, I knew where my future was, and it wasn’t with Wendy.”
“Well, I’ve seen her. She’s doped up. Doesn’t even know where she is half the time.”
I nodded. I had no reason to disbelieve Theo, but I’d have to see for myself.
I had to visit Wendy.
The thought repulsed me.
I hadn’t come here to interrogate Theo about Murph or Wendy. I’d come to interrogate Larry about the gangster Theo and Tom were allegedly working with. Somehow, though, when I pulled my gun out, I got the distinct impression Theo knew something.
I could be wrong.
But I didn’t think so.
“When’s the last time you visited Wendy?” I asked.
“Actually, it was yesterday,” he said.
My eyebrows shot up. “Did you happen to visit her before my wedding?”
“Fuck it all, Steel. How the hell am I supposed to remember that?”
“You don’t have to. I can check the visitors’ log at the facility.”
“You haven’t done that already?”
“The PIs have. They didn’t see anything suspicious. But they wouldn’t consider you suspicious.”
“Do you?”
“Do I what?”
“Consider me suspicious?”
“Mathias,” I said, “you’ve been suspicious since the first time I laid eyes on you.”
He laughed then. He thought I was joking. I feigned laughter as well. Yeah, best to let him think I was being funny. That would work in my favor.
“I’ve got to go,” I said. “If Larry comes back, tell him I was here.”
“Will do.”
I left the apartment. Lucky I had a phone in my truck. I’d call Daphne and tell her I’d be spending the night in the city. I had something important to do come morning.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Daphne
“Miss Daphne,” Belinda said. “Phone for you. It’s Mr. Brad.”
“Please excuse me,” I said to Patty, Ennis, Mom, and Mazie. I rose and walked to the family room to take the call.
“Hello, Brad.”
“Hi, baby.”
“Is everything all right?”
“Everything’s fine, but I have to stay in the city tonight.”
My heart d
ropped. “Why?”
“An early morning meeting, but I’ll be home after that.”
“All right. Patty and Ennis are staying another day. Can you please be home for dinner tomorrow?”
“I will be. I promise.”
I smiled. “Okay. Thank you. I’ll miss you tonight. I don’t sleep very well when your arms aren’t around me.”
“I don’t sleep well without you in my arms either,” he said. “Only one night, baby. I promise.”
“Okay. I love you.”
“I love you too, Daphne. Kiss little Joe for me.”
“I will. Bye.”
“Bye.”
I returned to the table. “He’s staying in the city tonight,” I said.
“Oh?” Mazie lifted her eyebrows.
“Yeah. Says he has an early meeting.” I sighed. “But he promises he’ll be home for dinner tomorrow night, so you guys need to come back.”
Patty nodded. “Sure. Is that okay with you, Ennis?”
“Yeah, of course, love. This beef is fantastic. Even better than at your wedding.”
“It’s filet,” I said, “and Belinda broils it to perfection.”
“It’s truly amazing,” my mother agreed. “I wish we could get this kind of beef in Denver.”
“I’ll send a cooler full home with you,” I said. “And we’ll send you as much as you want after that.”
“My daughter, the beef queen!” My mother laughed.
“Mistress of Steel Acres!” Patty raised her wineglass. “Did you ever think, Daph, when we met last fall that you’d be here, with a gorgeous little boy, less than a year later?”
“God, no,” I said, “but I wouldn’t change a thing.”
Except having Brad around more. I’d definitely change that.
“You’re so lucky,” Patty gushed.
I smiled and opened my mouth to speak, when the doorbell rang.
“I’ll get it!” Belinda called.
A few minutes passed as we all continued eating.
“Telegram for you, Miss Daphne.” Belinda strode in and handed me a yellow envelope.
“A telegram?” Mazie shook her head. “Do people still send telegrams?”
“My parents got one when I was a kid,” Mom said. “That’s the last I remember.”
I held the yellow envelope from Western Union. “It’s already open.”
“I thought they stopped sending these a few years ago,” Belinda said.
“Who delivered it?” I asked.
“Just a kid. I didn’t recognize him.”
“Was he wearing anything that said Western Union on it?” Mazie asked.
“No. He looked about sixteen or so.”
I pulled out a folded piece of paper. It was plain white and didn’t say Western Union anywhere on it. A message was typed.
“It should be yellow,” Mom said, “to match the envelope.”
“You’re right, Lucy,” Mazie agreed. “I don’t think that’s a telegram at all. It’s a message using an old Western Union envelope.”
I unfolded the paper. It was typewritten.
Keep that baby close. Wouldn’t want anything to happen to him.
My neck went cold.
“Daphne, you’re white as a sheet,” Mom said. “What is it?”
My hands trembled.
“Daphne?” my mother said again.
“What is it, dear?” Mazie this time.
Finally, Patty grabbed the paper from my hand. She glanced at it, and her mouth dropped open. “Who sent this?” she finally said.
I couldn’t speak. I didn’t know the answer anyway.
“What’s it say?” Ennis asked.
Patty handed it to him. His mouth dropped as well.
“What?” Mazie asked. “What is it?”
Ennis handed the paper to her.
“Oh my God. Belinda!” Mazie called.
“Yes, Miss Mazie?”
“Who brought this?”
“I told you. A kid. A boy, teenaged.”
“You need to do better than that. This is a threat. A threat against my grandson!”
Belinda went pale. “What?”
Mazie thrust the paper at her. “See? Call the police, Belinda.”
“Yes, right away.” Belinda left the kitchen. A few minutes later, she returned. “They’re on their way.”
I couldn’t move. I simply froze.
Then I began reciting words to myself.
Remember, Daphne. Remember. Don’t lose time. This is too important. Don’t lose it. Don’t lose it. Remember Jonah. Remember little dove. He needs you. Don’t lose it. Don’t lose it.
Somehow, I kept it together. Kept it together for my son.
Brad wasn’t here for us. He was away on business. Needed to call him. But… Had he told me where he’d be? How could I get in touch with him?
Yes! His car phone. I knew that number. Frantically I dialed.
And of course he didn’t answer.
Why hadn’t I asked him where he’d be staying?
Why?
Why?
Why?
My mind turned fuzzy. Muddled.
No, Daphne. No. Hold it together. For your baby.
I breathed in, out, in again. I placed my hand over my mouth and inhaled once more. Hyperventilation. I just needed carbon dioxide so I wouldn’t pass out.
Couldn’t pass out.
Had to maintain composure.
For my baby.
For me and for my baby.
“Are you okay, honey?” Mom asked.
I nodded, my hand still over my mouth. The light-headedness began to subside.
Thank God.
Patty brought me a glass of water. “Drink,” she said.
I nodded again and took a sip. Then another. Mom and Mazie bustled around, checking on Jonah and me intermittently.
I was aware.
I might not be perfect at the moment, but I was staying aware.
Then a cry.
My baby’s cry.
I stood, went to him, picked him up from his bassinet, and hugged him to my breast. “Are you hungry, sweetheart?
“I’m taking him to the bedroom to feed him,” I told everyone. “Come get me when the police arrive.”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Brad
A couple of fifty-dollar bills to the night watchmen got me into Piney Oaks. Another hundred to the night nurse got me Wendy’s file and an escort to her room.
No wonder my old man had chosen this place. Everyone had their hand out. Money surely did talk.
“She has one of our only two single rooms,” the nurse said.
“No roommate?”
“No. The doctor insisted she be kept isolated. She’s asleep now.”
“I won’t wake her. I just need to make sure she’s medicated as the doctor said.”
“I assure you she is. I just administered her meds an hour ago. She gets them every six hours.”
“Orally?”
“Yes.”
I shook my head. “Are you sure she’s taking them?”
“Absolutely, Mr. Steel. I watched her swallow them.”
“I see.”
Good thing I brought a flashlight. I fully expected to find a stash of spit-out pills somewhere in Wendy’s room.
First thing I did was shine the light on Wendy’s face. I half expected to see a stranger, but it was Wendy. Definitely Wendy. I’d seen her asleep enough times to know what she looked like.
I only had a little bit of time with the file, so I fired up the flashlight and began reading.
Wendy Madigan
Sex: female
Age: twenty-one years
Two years of college completed, major in journalism
Intelligence quotient: 165
Yeah, she always was brilliant.
Next of kin: Warren and Marie Madigan, Snow Creek, Colorado
Medication: Valium, ten milligrams four times daily
Wow. That was a lot of Valium.
But Valium didn’t keep a person so out of it that she couldn’t function. Maybe it relaxed her enough that she wasn’t thinking about hurting me or anyone else.
But this was Wendy. I wasn’t sure I was buying it.
Diagnosis: antisocial personality disorder
What the hell was that? Apparently I had some research to do. Wendy had never struck me as antisocial. Maybe my father had paid Dr. Pelletier for that diagnosis.
I’d have to pay him a visit. The problem? The last time I saw him, my father had pointed a gun at his head.
Oh, well. He had an office here in the city. I’d pay him a visit tomorrow. I shuffled the files back together.
Time to search the room.
If I were a stash of sucked-on pills, where would I hide? I looked around the room, shining my light. I walked toward the door on the adjacent wall and opened it. Ah. A bathroom. Complete with a toilet—
Shit.
She didn’t have to hide her pills. All she needed to do was flush them. Damn! Had my old man arranged for her to have a single room? Having a roommate watching her every move wouldn’t have been a bad thing.
Of course…a stash of Valium had its own benefits. She could use it to her advantage. And Wendy would use everything available to her advantage. I checked the bathroom first because I could shut the door and turn on the light. The towels were the size of large washcloths.
This was a mental hospital. Large towels could be used to hang oneself.
No drawers and no cabinet. This was the barest of bathrooms. I pulled the lid off the toilet tank. I half expected to find one of those newfangled zippered plastic bags full of little white pills.
But nothing.
Not a damned thing.
I left the bathroom and turned the flashlight back on. Really, there was nowhere to hide anything. No drawers of any kind. No closet. These people had no freedom at all. Nowhere to stash anything that could potentially hurt them or another.
Which was a good thing.
I picked up Wendy’s file, left the room, and returned it to the night nurse’s station.
“Thanks,” I said.
“It’s nice to see you again. I know she appreciates your visits.”
