Fate and Destiny (27 page)

Doug rose from his
barstool, shaking hands with Frank, and throwing a long glance at
Nancy. She smiled at him, tipping her head coyly.

“
The spare room at my
place is all ready. Just come on by when you’re
finished.”

Doug nodded with a purpose
instead of the usual mindless head tipping.

“
I will.”

As soon as Doug, Matt, and
Doreen were back in the truck, an endless flow of words erupted out
of Doug. Even Doreen couldn’t get a word in. From what Matt could
gather, Frank offered Doug a job on a road crew and Nancy
volunteered the use of her spare room for Doug’s use rent-free as
long as he wanted it. The excited chatter continued after the truck
pulled into the parking lot at the station, finally ebbing as they
entered the lobby. Sawyer glanced up at the jingle of bells,
quickly returning to the pile of paperwork on his desk as he
realized who the visitors were. 

Hats and coats hung up, the
group moved into the office area. Doreen was off duty and had no
reason to hang around the station. No reason other than James
Sawyer. Matt shook his head, laughing as Doreen sat on the edge of
Sawyer’s desk, distracting him.

“
Doreen, you know he has
work to do. Isn’t it time for you to go home and irritate someone
else?”

“
I will, I just need to
update Sawyer on a couple of police related matters
first.”

“
Okay, Doreen, but don’t
waste his time. Sawyer, any calls or faxes come in?”

Matt checked his computer
for email. He scanned for any updates on Destiny’s case. Nothing
new there except junk emails and messages from various friends and
family. He would read them later after Doug made the call to
Charles.

“
Nope. Nothing new. It’s
been quiet. I did let Brunetti make his call though. That finally
shut him up.”

Sawyer went back to the
file on his desk, attempting to ignore Doreen.

“
Did he say anything
interesting?”

Sawyer looked up, glanced
past Doreen to Matt.

“
I didn’t hear most of it.
Right after he got on the phone, Gerrity delivered a couple of
drunks who got into a fight over at the Dip n Sip. I booked them in
and when I got back there, Brunetti was off the phone and waiting
to be taken back to his cell.”

“
Okay. Doug and I will be
in the interview room making a call.”

Nodding, Sawyer shifted his
attention back to the paperwork on his desk as Matt and Doug exited
through the back door into the holding area. Matt didn’t miss the
brief glance Sawyer passed over Doreen. She confused the hell out
of the officer. Matt made a note to have a talk with Doreen about
Sawyer. She needed to either make it a relationship or find a new
victim to play her games with.

All of the equipment was
hooked up from their previous attempt and there were only a few
minutes before the time to make the call.

“
Okay, Doug, you remember
our goals right?”

Doug nodded confidently,
smiling at Matt. “Yes Sir. I need to get him to say something about
Destiny or Marcus so he will get arrested and Destiny can go
free.”

“
Here we go.”

For a moment, Matt wished
he was as confident as Doug appeared. Although they now had
evidence of Charles’ motive in the killing, Marcus’ will could also
show a motive for Destiny to fabricate evidence.

The phone rang three times
before it was answered.

“
Doug, how are things?
Talk fast. I have a meeting here in Vegas.”

The cheery greeting muddled
Doug for a moment, his confidence dipping. The line also contained
a lot of static, unlike the clear call made earlier.

“
Things are good Mr.
DeMont, but I didn’t find Destiny’s body. What do you want me to
do?”

“
It seems I no longer
require your services to help in finding my father’s killer. If
anything, it has come to light that you and your sleazy cousin were
involved in assisting Miss Fisher in killing my father. Lenny is
already in jail and shortly you will be there with him, both of you
charged with the murder.”

Charles was cheery and
matter of fact. His voice didn’t waver or dip as he made the
accusations. Matt had not practiced this particular situation with
Doug. Alarm bells sounded through Matt’s mind as he intently
listened to the conversation through the static.

“
Charles, I didn’t have
anything to do with killing your father. You did it! You killed him
and tried to kill Destiny to cover your ass.”

Doug was teetering on the
brink of panic. The fears hidden for the last few hours swelled
back to the surface. He kept his eyes on the sheriff who made
calming motions with his hands, moving them in a gentle arc like a
music conductor.

“
I would never harm my
father. I loved him. I’m sure you wouldn’t understand since you
didn’t have one. You, Lenny, and that girl murdered my father then
ran from here, trying to hide. The police will catch up with all of
you, and that girl may not be dead now, but she will be
soon.”

The voice through the phone
line became ominous, threatening, dropping octaves, each syllable
enunciated slowly and clearly.

Doug wasn’t sure what to
say. Something was wrong with the entire conversation, but he
couldn’t figure out what it was. Matt stared at Doug, frowning,
questioning Charles’ sanity without making a sound.

“
You killed your father
for the money. I helped you carry him out of the house after you
hit him.”

Doug knew he was
incriminating himself but he could think of no other way to help
Destiny.

“
You made me kidnap
Destiny and wanted me to kill her but I didn’t do it!”

Laughter rolled out of the
receiver.

“
Doug. You simpleton! Do
you honestly think anyone will believe someone like you over
someone like me? You are an oaf. Dumb and confused. You helped
Destiny do those things, not me. You ran off with her. Probably
some love triangle between the three of you. Thought you could
steal Dad’s money, kill him, and get away with it. I have proof it
was the three of you. Money in her bank straight from the casino
account.

“
Eyewitnesses saw the
three of you conspiring. All of you will die in prison for this. Or
at least you and Lenny will. I have the feeling Destiny is already
dead anyway. I hired you and Lenny to find my father’s killer, not
knowing you were involved the whole time. I—”

Commotion from the other
end interrupted Charles. Matt and Doug leaned in, staring at each
other, eyes wide as the sounds of a scuffle emerged from the phone.
A dog barked and someone yelled in pain. The hair on the back of
Matt’s neck prickled, instinctively, he rose from his chair,
already heading towards the door when a woman on the other end of
the phone line screamed his name. The line went dead. Matt and Doug
were already on the move, running down the hall.

Racing past a startled
Doreen and Sawyer, Matt shouted orders.

“
Doreen! Call for backup
to get out to Andrew’s place then cover the desk. Sawyer, get your
gear together and follow me up there. DeMont’s at the
cabin!”

27.

As soon as Sammy, Doreen,
and Matt left, Andrew and Destiny sat on the bed side by side. The
lamp in the corner turned on so they could read every word of
Marcus’ will. Destiny finished the first page and passed it over to
Andrew so he would stop reading over her shoulder. Shadow lay on
the floor in front of the fireplace, softly snoring after lapping
up boxes of lasagna he discovered all over the room. Slices of
apple pie rested safely in the refrigerator.

Shadow’s head popped up as
something outside drew his attention. Disturbed from his peaceful
slumber, he laid still, rigid and tense, ears pricked, listening
for a repeat of whatever woke him up, tickling his canine
senses.

Engrossed in their reading,
neither person on the bed noticed Shadow tensing, ready to pounce
before the dog actually jumped from the floor, barking and growling
threateningly as the front door exploded in. Before either person
could move, Shadow lunged across the room at the intruder, his
flight stilled in midair as the man at the door pulled the trigger
on the pistol gripped in his hand. Muscles and tendons relaxed as
the bullet threw the dog backwards with a startled yelp, landing in
a furry pile on the floor between the kitchen and the living
room.

Reacting at last, muscles
able to move, Destiny jumped from the bed, screaming Shadow’s name.
Barely on her feet, Andrew rising alongside her, they both froze as
the gun swung around to point at them. Registering what was
happening, clicking each piece into the proper place within her
mind, Destiny looked at their assailant. Clothes disheveled, hair
askew, a wild look about him, but Destiny knew in a heartbeat who
it was.

“
Charles.”

The one word a whispered
curse as she stared at the man holding them at gunpoint.

“
I hate the snow, Destiny.
Why didn’t you just keep your nose out of my business? It was all
rightfully mine anyway. My father didn’t miss a dime of that money
until you started digging around.”

Charles stood calmly,
carelessly, except for the pistol pointed directly at Destiny. The
gun didn’t waver, locked tightly in his grip.

“
Sit back down. Get
comfortable. I’m expecting a call soon that will lock my alibi in
place. It seems that the idiots I hired to get rid of you obviously
didn’t do their job. I knew something was wrong when Doug called
and said Lenny was in jail. I was on my plane and on my way here
within ten minutes of that call. My original plan was to find him
and have him lead me to you. Then kill both of you, or set him up
for killing you. Whatever worked. Then I got this call from Lenny
wanting me to bail him out. Nice huh? He’s been named an accomplice
and he’s sitting in jail. Anyway, he was kind enough to let me in
on the family situation around here and tell me exactly how to get
here. Of course, he thinks I’m here to bail him out.”

Charles giggled like a
hyena.

“
Such a fool! Anyway, I
had to hurry up and get here before Doug called me again. I have
the feeling Doug and that sheriff are trying to trick me into
talking. I’m not that dumb. Lenny, Doug, and you two are the only
ones who can ever put the blame on me for killing the old
man.”

Charles’ voice varied
between high pitched to low, At times, almost
whispering.

“
It was an accident you
know. I lost my temper and hit him too hard.”

Charles shrugged, a twinge
of regret passing over his face. Despite the increasing cold from
the doorway, beads of sweat dripped down Charles’ face.

“
He died right there on
the floor.”

The hand holding the gun
wavered slightly, dipped. Charles kept his eyes on them, but his
attention drifted.

“
I couldn’t call the
paramedics. There was too much evidence in the house. I couldn’t
hide everything without knowing what you had or where you were. I
called Lenny and told him to bring Doug to help me carry him. I
told the hospital people I stopped by the house with Doug and Lenny
and we found him sprawled at the bottom of the stairs. I told them
we panicked and only thought of getting him to the
hospital.”

While Charles talked,
distracted within his own memories, Destiny covertly looked around
the room. The rifle hid under the bed they sat on. Andrew’s gun was
still in the coat pocket by the front door. The only weapon nearby
was the fireplace poker and she would be shot before she could
reach out and grab it. Shadow laid on the floor, motionless, a red
puddle forming around his head. Destiny’s gaze moved back to
Charles. She couldn’t let go now. Weakness from her might bring
Charles back to the present and draw his attention. She needed him
distracted.

From the corner of her eye,
she glanced at Andrew, his gaze caught in hers for a moment. She
motioned towards the fireplace tools with her eyes. Andrew shook
his head slightly. The tools were too far away and could only be
used within arm’s reach. She would receive a bullet before she
could swing it. Slowly, carefully, his hand inched towards hers
until he gently grasped her fingertips, squeezing
slightly.

Caught up in his own
speech, Charles remained standing in the room between the shattered
doorway and Shadow’s limp form.

“
It was only after you
were gone that I figured out I couldn’t get the information off the
computer. You locked it up nice and tight didn’t you? That laptop
was useless too. You, those idiots, and the computers are the only
proof existing that could ever tie me in with the murder of my
father.”

Charles’ focus cleared as
he remembered the people on the bed.

“
It seems you two have a
nice cozy little thing going on up here. I’m feeling generous. I’ll
make a deal with you Destiny. You tell me how to get into the files
on the computers, and I will let your boyfriend here live. You
don’t tell me, I simply destroy the computers and you both die. It
may look a little suspicious when I get the computer out of there,
but it’s worth the risk. Especially since the police think you have
everything on your laptop and they can’t seem to find it. So how do
I get in, Destiny?”