Zachary explained to Kenzie about Burton needing someone to stay with him for a while after being in the house and, while he could hear tones of disbelief in Kenzie’s reply, she didn’t argue. They both worked hard, and sometimes that meant overtime, night surveillance, or having to break a date to take care of something urgent. While choosing not to stay with Burton wasn’t likely to cause any harm, only Zachary could decide whether it was important enough to take time away from Kenzie.
“You’re off tomorrow, right?” he asked. “We can spend some more time together tomorrow. Maybe go out to brunch together.”
Kenzie liked her pancakes and eggs.
“No,” she sighed. “I’ve been called in for tomorrow. Ernie is down with the flu.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t know. Well… maybe I should come home, then. I’ll tell my client—”
“No, go ahead and have dinner with him. The guy’s been through a big, emotional thing. You and I will still see each other tonight. And we’ll get some more time together over the weekend.”
“Are you sure? You’re not upset?”
“No. A little disappointed, but you aren’t going to be that long. You don’t anticipate it taking all night?”
“No. I’ll make sure he knows that I have somewhere else to be once we’re finished eating. Who knows if he’ll even eat.”
“Oh?” Her voice was curious.
“I haven’t seen him eat yet. Only drink.”
“Oooh.” This time, she understood. “Well… be careful. Who knows what the guy could do if he goes on a real binge after an emotional experience like that.”
“He says it doesn’t affect him, and I haven’t seen him act drunk, even with the amount he’s consumed. So I think it will be fine.”
“Still be careful. You never know. Even someone who is used to drinking a lot can get belligerent or violent.”
“Yeah. You’re right. I’ll be careful.”
“Okay. See you tonight.”
19
Burton did, as it turned out, eat some of his calories in solid form. He ordered a burger and fries once he and Zachary had sat down together and had a chance to peruse the menu. Zachary ordered a small steak and a baked potato with sour cream. Burton looked surprised at that.
“You’re such a skinny dude, I thought you’d order a salad.”
Zachary shrugged. “I lost some weight recently. I’m trying to put it back on.” He didn’t have a lot of appetite due to some of his meds, but it was better later in the day when they started to wear off and he wasn’t so nauseated. Small amounts of calorie-dense foods were his best bet to get back up to a healthy weight.
“Have you been sick?” Burton inquired.
“Sort of, yeah.” Zachary didn’t bother telling him it was mental health related. He had a feeling Burton would just scoff at that.
Burton nodded his understanding.
“So how are you feeling?” Zachary asked. “Now that you’ve had a little time to process.”
“I don’t know. I don’t really want to talk about it. I just don’t want to be alone.”
“Fair enough. Did you call your parents? Are you going to tell them about it?”
“No. I suppose I’ll tell them sometime, maybe. If it comes up. I’m not rushing to do it. Wouldn’t make much sense right now anyway. I don’t really know anything, just where I lived. They won’t care about that.”
Zachary nodded. They watched the games showing on the various TVs mounted around the lounge and didn’t talk much. When their food arrived and they dug in, Zachary brought up his next question.
“Is that it, then? When you came to me, it was to find your house. Now we’ve found it. Are you satisfied? Ready to go home?”
Burton considered this. “I guess… yes. That’s all I really wanted to do. We’re not going to be able to find my biological parents. Social services won’t give any identifying information.”
“I could find more. We have your name and address. There is plenty I can do with that.” He was, after all, a private investigator. That was what he did.
“Oh.” Burton was quiet. He took several big bites of his burger, chewing slowly, thinking it through. It was a lot to take in at once. It had been a big step for him to see the place where he had once lived and to find out his name. He was still integrating that experience. Zachary didn’t want to dump him if he were still interested in finding out more, but he didn’t want to push Burton into anything either. They were emotional decisions, and he didn’t want to be accused later of taking advantage of the situation.
“You think that’s enough to find my biological parents, even though they don’t live there anymore?”
“Yes. Enough to find out their identities. And I’m pretty good at finding people once I know who I’m looking for.” Not everyone, of course. Sometimes people took great pains to hide from those who might be searching for them. But were Burton’s biological parents hiding from him? Probably not. Had they been involved in something that would have required them to completely change their identities? Most people couldn’t manage to leave their old lives and identities behind. Even people who went into WITSEC didn’t always choose to stay there, finding it too difficult to be completely cut off from everyone and everything they had known.
He could find Burton’s parents.
He was pretty sure.
Even Heather, with her brand new skip-tracing skills, would probably be able to find them. It wouldn’t take that much skill. Just access to the right databases.
“You think I should find them?” Burton asked.
“I’m not going to tell you whether you should or not. It’s totally up to you. The answer is going to be different for everyone. Depends on the circumstances. If you’re happy with what you have and just want to walk away, then you can do that. There’s no reason you have to go further. But if you want to, you can.”
“When do I have to decide?”
“No particular time. You can come back to it in a few years, if you want to. The longer you wait, the greater the chances that they will be gone, but…”
“Gone?” Burton asked, frowning. “Gone where?”
“Sometimes when people go looking for their parents, they find out it’s too late. They already passed on. Sometimes just a few months or a year before they started searching. If you wait for your adoptive parents to die before you take up a search, like some people do, then the chances are much higher that your biological parents could be dead as well.”
“Oh. Well, my adoptive parents are still in pretty good shape. I think I’ve got a few years.”
“Remember that they are wealthier and have better access to good health care. People who live in neighborhoods like the one you saw have shorter lifespans.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“You can wait if you want to. You don’t have to jump into anything.”
Burton nodded. “I think I’ll at least sleep on it. I don’t think I’m going to look for them, though.”
“Okay. No problem. Just wanted to make sure that I knew what your thoughts were.”
Zachary kept an eye on the time so that he could get home to Kenzie.
“You look like you’re falling asleep over there,” Kenzie commented, digging her toes into Zachary’s leg. She was sitting lengthwise on the couch reading a book with her feet against his leg, and he was sitting facing the TV, though he wasn’t sure what was on it anymore. His mind had been wandering and his eyes slowly shutting.
“I’m awake.”
“Not for long. And you only got a couple of hours of sleep last night. You want to head to bed?”
“Only if you’re ready.”
She hesitated.
“I can stay up for a while,” Zachary assured her. “I’ll at least watch the end of this show.” He glanced at the TV to see what was on. “Uh…”
“Top Gear,” Kenzie told him with a smile. “Are you into fancy cars now?”
Zachary cleared his throat. He looked
at the time on his phone before saying that he just hadn’t changed to the program that he wanted to watch yet. It was twenty minutes into the show. “Well…”
“Admit it. You were sleeping.”
“Not actually asleep… but maybe… daydreaming a bit,” he waffled. He looked at the TV screen, remembering one of the children he had met during his investigation at Summit Learning Center. What had his name been? It took Zachary a minute. Ray-Ray. He wondered how the little guy was doing. Hopefully, better now that he had been pulled from the abusive program. He smiled.
Kenzie kneaded his leg with her toes. “Just a few minutes longer then,” she said. “I don’t want to have to carry you to bed.”
Zachary grinned at the mental image. But Kenzie did help with moving dead bodies around at the medical examiner’s office and he had been surprised at how easily she had shifted Luke’s weight when he had been unconscious. She probably could carry him a short distance. But he wasn’t about to test the theory.
He looked down at his phone to take a look through his social networks. Maybe that would keep him alert until Kenzie was ready to put down her book.
It didn’t work. He awoke with a start, his whole body going rigid, ready to defend himself or run for it. Kenzie laughed. She moved beside him, pulling her feet back and turning her body to put them on the floor.
“You okay?”
Zachary looked around, blinking, getting oriented. He tried to shake off the cobwebs. “Sorry. I guess… I did fall asleep.”
“You dropped your phone. I think that’s what woke you up.”
Zachary looked down and found it on the floor at his feet. “Oh. Yeah.” He picked it up, then rubbed his eyes. “Sorry. I’m awake, now.”
“Well then, walk yourself to bed. I’m going to brush my teeth and then I’ll be in.”
“Okay.”
She waited.
Zachary moved rustily. “Did something happen?”
“What do you mean? You just fell asleep.”
He shook his head, unable to escape the feeling that something important had happened and he had missed or forgotten it. He must have been dreaming and, like the night before, the vestiges of the dream, the feelings it brought, had stayed with him.
He turned his phone on and looked down at the screen. Maybe it was something he’d been reading before he fell asleep and dropped it. Something had just stuck in his brain. But nothing in the feed on the screen was familiar. Probably it had reset when the screen powered off, or Zachary had drifted off while scrolling and hadn’t seen what was next. He pressed his home button and saw that he had a message. Tapping it, he saw it was from Rhys.
It was a gif of Marge Simpson talking to her sleeping husband. “Homer, are you up?”
Zachary looked at Kenzie. “Go ahead. I’ll just be a minute. It’s Rhys.”
“Get into bed first, in case you fall asleep again. Then all I have to do is pick your phone up.”
Zachary agreed and shuffled to the bedroom, trying not to wake his body up too much, and yet to be alert enough to talk with Rhys for a minute before bed. He would probably fail at one of them, either waking himself up too much to go back to sleep, or unable to stay awake for the conversation with Rhys. More than likely, he would be unable to go back to sleep. He got comfortable and messaged Rhys back.
Up for a few more minutes. Are you okay?
Rhys sent a thumbs-up. Zachary waited to see if there was more. A few seconds later, Rhys sent a picture of Kenzie.
She’s here. Just getting ready for bed.
Another delay while he waited to see what else Rhys wanted to talk about. Since he had initiated the conversation, Zachary had to assume that he had a reason to want to talk.
Then a picture of a black actor whose name Zachary couldn’t remember, with the caption “I was just wondering…”
Zachary typed a question mark and waited for Rhys to say what he was wondering about. Zachary had given Vera the names of the therapists that Dr. Boyle had suggested, so Rhys wouldn’t be wondering about that. Something else about his flashbacks? How to manage the emotional stress? Admitting that he needed more help and should probably be admitted to the hospital?
Rhys sent another picture, and Zachary found himself looking at Luke’s face again. Clearly, Rhys was having difficulty moving beyond the shooting.
Luke is okay, he assured Rhys. You don’t need to worry about him. He has recovered.
Rhys sent back an image of a dog nodding eagerly.
Yes. He’s okay. It’s true.
There was only silence from Rhys. Zachary watched the screen, waiting for something further. Finally he tapped out another message.
Are you okay, Rhys?
A large green checkmark appeared on the screen.
Zachary was still puzzling over the conversation when Kenzie returned from the bathroom and climbed into bed.
“How is he?” she asked.
“He says he is okay.”
“You don’t sound sure, though.”
“Yeah. I’m not sure if I’m missing something. He sounded like he was concerned about Luke, but he… I don’t know. The responses just don’t sound right. Like I’m missing the point.”
“Well, it’s an easy thing to do, with the way that Rhys communicates. Do you want me to take a look at it and see if I can think of anything?”
Zachary considered. He scrolled back through the short conversation, but didn’t see anything there that Rhys would be embarrassed about him sharing with Kenzie. He handed her the phone.
It only took a few seconds for Kenzie to scroll through it. She considered for a moment, looking up at the top of the opposite wall where it met the ceiling. After a few minutes of silent contemplation, she looked back at the phone. She scrolled back farther, which Zachary knew meant she was into the last conversation he—and she—had had with Rhys. She handed him the phone back, frowning slightly.
“You’re not getting it either?” Zachary guessed.
Kenzie shook her head. “Well… I’m not sure. I have a thought, but it’s a little out of left field.”
Zachary shrugged. “If it might help…”
“I noticed he hasn’t asked you about how Madison is. He only asks about Luke.”
Zachary nodded. “Yes… that’s true.”
“He originally came to you about Madison, because he was concerned with her well-being, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then why isn’t he asking about her? Making sure that everything is okay with her and she hasn’t gone back to the life or gone off the rails somehow?”
“I don’t know. He’s asking about Luke because he’s the one who got shot. It was seeing him all bloodied up that triggered Rhys’s flashbacks to Grandpa’s shooting. So that’s what’s stuck in his mind, what he’s constantly worried about.”
“Unless that isn’t what he’s worried about. Or asking about.”
“What, then? He’s worried that Luke might get Madison away again? We engineered everything so that Luke would never know where Madison had gone, and that she didn’t know he survived. Luke couldn’t lure Madison away again.”
“No, that wasn’t what I was thinking.”
“What, then?”
“I wonder if Rhys had a crush on him.”
Zachary’s mouth dropped open. “What?”
Kenzie shrugged. “It’s a possibility.”
“But Rhys isn’t…”
“You don’t know. He’s at the age that people are figuring themselves out, deciding what they are attracted to. Just because he’s never said anything to you to indicate he might like boys, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t.”
Zachary stared down at the phone in his hand. That put a whole different perspective on things.
“What do you think?” Kenzie asked.
“Maybe.”
She seemed surprised at his acquiescence. “Maybe?”
Zachary nodded slowly. “When we get together, sometimes I ask him whether he has a girlfr
iend. You know, he teases me about you, and I ask him about his love life. Just one of those things that guys do.”
Kenzie nodded.
“And he’s always been very adamant. No girlfriend.” He imitated the X gesture that Rhys would use and shook his head. “It’s never ‘maybe’ or anything to indicate that there’s a girl that’s caught his eye, even if he’s too shy to pursue her. Until Madison.”
“And that might not have been romantic interest. She was missing and he was concerned about her.”
“And he’d been watching her with Noah—with Luke. Because he was interested in Madison, or because he was interested in Luke?”
Kenzie shrugged. “You can’t tell unless you ask.”
Zachary looked back at his phone, scrolling down to the bottom of the conversation. “I don’t know if I want to do that. It’s not any of my business. And I don’t want to start a deep conversation right when we’re going to bed.”
“Then tell him you’ll talk to him tomorrow. Or drop in on the weekend. Then you can ask him when it’s a better time for you.”
Zachary blew out his breath. “You don’t think that would be rude?”
“Ruder to just ignore him. And you really do need to get to sleep. You’ll just fall asleep mid-conversation if you try to pursue it tonight.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
Zachary tried to think of how to compose his message so that it sounded casual but not like he was disregarding Rhys’s feelings or not wanting to talk to him.
Falling asleep, Rhys. Can we talk tomorrow? I’ll check to see how Luke is and let you know.
He got a big smiley face back from Rhys, which made him feel better.
Okay. Goodnight.
Rhys sent him back a picture of a snoozing kitten. Zachary shut off his phone and put it on the nightstand.
Kenzie wanted some time to snuggle, which gave Zachary the opportunity to relax his body and to try to get back into the right frame of mind to go to sleep. His brain worked on the possibility that Rhys was interested in Luke, examining it from every angle. He couldn’t find anything that would disprove Kenzie’s theory, and Rhys’s response to Zachary’s promise that he would check on Luke in the morning had been… very large, yellow, and smiley.
He Never Forgot Page 11
