Murder Deja Vu (37 page)

* * * * *

D
ana didn’t think she’d ever seen a grin as wide as Jeraldine’s when they entered the police station. The attorney rushed to Reece and checked the blood stain on his shirt.

“You okay, honey? We heard you went to the hospital.”

“I’ll be fine, Jeri.”

She drew Reece into her arms like a protective mother. Tears filled her eyes. “I wondered if this day would ever happen. What did Dr. King say? Something about free at last?”

“That’s what everyone says,” Reece said. “It hasn’t sunk in yet.”

Clarence waited his turn and pulled off a man hug. “You didn’t need me after all.”

“Not true,” Reece said. “We wouldn’t be at this place without you.”

“It’s all over, honey,” Jeraldine said. She pulled back, met Reece’s gaze with her own. “Nothing you could do about Carl. He made his bed.”

“I know. Doesn’t mean I feel good about that part.”

Reece’s smile seemed oddly strained, but genuine. His character didn’t allow him to forget Carl while he reveled in his freedom. Even though his brother had framed him for two murders and tried to kill him, Reece still empathized with what lay ahead for him. Because he knew.

At that moment, Dana’s heart almost burst with a mixture of joy and sadness for the generous spirit of the man. She loved Reece more than she could imagine loving anyone, except her children. But a mother’s love differed from the love between a man and woman.

Jeraldine completed the necessary paperwork, and a judge cleared Reece of all charges. Reece called Frank to tell him how things had worked out, and Frank invited everyone to his apartment for a celebration.

“I’ll bring out the good stuff,” Frank said.

* * * * *

F
rank looked better now than when Dana and Reece had first arrived in Lynn. The old man’s smile extended across his sunken face from ear to ear, and he found the energy to rise from his chair without help. Reece embraced him. Dana choked up and looked away before anyone saw.

“Good scotch, the best Russian vodka, and Lana’s cooking,” Frank announced. “What could be better?”

Laughter rang through the apartment. The people upstairs banged on their floor, a warning to keep down the noise. Frank yelled, “Shut up, we’re celebrating. Call the police if you don’t like it.”

Reece laughed like Dana had never seen. Later, Reece called Mark Cabrini, Steve Yarrow, and Jordan Kraus, filled them in, and thanked them for standing behind him. They were sad calls, considering Carl turned out to be the culprit.

Jeraldine and Clarence parted with more hugs, more words of getting together in North Carolina, more thanks. After they left, Dana phoned her sons. It was a long conversation of explanations and confessions and words of love. Tears came again, but this time she didn’t care if the whole world saw. Reece slipped his arm around her shoulders.

When the two of them were in bed, Reece said, “I can say it now because I’m finally free. I love you.”

“And I love you,” she said, “from the minute you called me a smart-ass.” Dana hadn’t mentioned what her sons told her about their father. This was Reece’s day, and she would do nothing to spoil it.

“Settled, then,” Reece said, pulling her close. “Let’s go home.”

Harold County, North Carolina

D
ana marveled at the sheer beauty of the rocks and stones and slate.

“What do you think?” Reece asked, stepping back from the fireplace wall.

“It’s more magnificent than I could have imagined.”

Reece wiped his hands on a rag and nailed her with those smiling eyes. “I don’t think I’ll have as many moods as I used to. Somehow, I can’t get into one when I’m around you. But if I do, kick me in the ass.”

He moved toward her. She loved the way he walked. Long strides, like a panther. He wore shorts and a T-shirt, his legs and arms muscled and tan. She loved everything about him, including the smile that curled his lips. He took her hand and pulled her to her feet.

“I never thought you could be more beautiful than that early morning on the dock when the sight of you made everything bad disappear. But today, the happiness inside you shines through.”

“Is this your way of softening me up to get me into bed?”

“No, I mean it.” Reece rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ve been waiting to tell you something.”

Dana’s heart sped up. Reece was in too good a mood for anything to be bad. Still, she couldn’t keep the tentative sound from her voice. “What?”

“Nothing bad. Something good, really. There’s this guy in Tennessee. He was the first one to hire me to build a fireplace. Before all this mess, he asked me to send him pictures of my house. He liked what he saw and asked if I’d design something similar on the property he bought in the mountains, not far from here. Then all this happened and, well, building a house wasn’t on my mind. I talked to him this morning, and it’s a go.”

“Oh, Reece. That’s fantastic.” Dana threw her arms around him and planted a kiss on his lips. “It couldn’t have come at a better time.”

“Of course, there are a few problems. My license has long expired.” He laughed. “Over twenty years expired. I’ll have to check on the state requirements, take the boards, I don’t know. But I’m excited.”

“And I’m excited for you. I—”

The chimes interrupted, but this time Dana recognized the sound of her own doorbell. “Who could that be?”

“I don’t know, but he’s not my best friend.”

Dana went to the door and peeked through the glass panels. “He’s mine. It’s Harris.” She turned to Reece. “And Sheriff Payton.”

Dana noticed the change in Reece’s demeanor. Some things would be hard to put behind him. A cop at the door was one of them.

“Mind if we come in, Dana?”

“No, no.” She nodded toward the sheriff and kissed Harris. “Come in to my new great room.”

“Good to see you, Daughtry,” Payton said. “Glad that mess is settled.”

“Me too,” Harris said.

The men shook hands. Reece said, “Thanks. Not as glad as I am. I heard you had something to do with it, Sheriff. I appreciate it.”

“Doing my job,” Payton said.

The men looked at the wall. “Beautiful,” they chimed in together.

Dana faced the work of art. “Isn’t it?”

“Might want you to look at my fireplace,” Payton said. “I doubt I could afford you, though.”

“We could reach an agreement,” Reece said, “as long as you didn’t think it was a bribe.”

Payton pursed his lips, hiding a smirk. “Hmm, depends. Gotta think about that.”

“Get to the point,” Dana said. “What about Robert?”

“We thought you should hear it before it’s announced, so you can tell the boys,” Harris said.

Payton took out a stick of gum, then shook his head and stuffed the pack back into his pocket. “The FBI arrested Robert this afternoon. They’re charging him with interfering with the judicial system, jury tampering, bribery, and inciting the murder of Lurena Howe. Probably some other charges too, when everything’s finished.”

Dana sank into a chair. She couldn’t catch her breath. Reece sat on the arm and rubbed her neck. From what her boys had told her, she expected something like that, but it still hit hard.

“Inciting the murder—so he could pin the murder on me?” Reece said.

“Yup. You were his ticket to the big game—the World Series and Super Bowl all wrapped up in your conviction for the murder of two women. He figured it’d buy him some high office, senator or the governor’s mansion. Unfortunately, he partnered with a man even more unscrupulous than himself, a guy named Harry Klugh. Minette didn’t know Klugh was really Chicago hood Victor Castell. And Castell would cop to anything as long as he didn’t have to face the mob he screwed over twenty years ago.”

“And you threatened Castell to get the truth?”

“I’m ashamed to admit that is a fact,” Payton said, showing nothing that resembled remorse. “Chicago still had a contract out on him. Castell had proof that Robert intimidated a juror in a trial because Castell did the intimidating. He also had a tape of Robert
suggesting
he make a witness recant his story, a witness who disappeared, though Castel wouldn’t cop to that murder. Don’t know why, exactly. We’ve got him for Lurena Howe. He claimed Robert prodded him to prove Mr. Daughtry and Rayanne Johnson knew one another in the biblical sense, and he didn’t care how Castell got the proof. Castell had a tape of that too. The man hedged his bets.”

“Suggesting, prodding. Sounds like Robert,” Dana said. “Then he could say someone misconstrued what he said.”

“That’s exactly what he did,” Payton said. “But he couldn’t talk himself out of tape recordings ordering Castell, a.k.a. Harry
Klugh
, to intimidate a witness or to conjure one up.”

“What’s your involvement, Harris?” Dana asked. “What did Robert have on you?”

“Something I thought I did a long time ago, but it turns out I didn’t.”

“Hit someone while you were driving drunk?” Dana asked.

Harris went rigid. “How did you know?”

“It didn’t take a genius. Robert obviously had something on you. I wanted to ask you a hundred times, but I figured if you wanted to tell me, you would. You never did. Then, of course, you stopped driving. Like I said, it didn’t take a genius.”

“I did hit someone,” Harris said. “But I didn’t kill him like I thought. Robert knew all along. He tracked down the guy and paid him not to pursue the accident. From then till now he had me in his pocket. ’Course, I had him too. I had a signed affidavit that Robert raped a woman. I think there were others. She didn’t want to put herself through what he’d do if she told.”

The hypocrisy that Robert had screwed around while claiming to be the saintly, cuckolded husband would have hurt if she cared. “Why doesn’t that part surprise me?”

“Well, that’s it,” Payton said.

“Not entirely, Sheriff.” Reece ran his hand around his neck, a gesture Dana now knew and loved. “I know you bucked the system. Going after your boss couldn’t have been easy.”

“No, it wasn’t. I jumped Robert’s head and went to the attorney general. I could hardly go to the district attorney to nail the district attorney now, could I? Besides, I didn’t think you were guilty. Neither did Harris. Sometimes your gut tells you more than what appears to be the facts. I’m only sorry you found out it was your brother who screwed you over. That had to be tough to swallow.”

Reece nodded.

“Gotta go,” Payton said. “I wish you two the best. I mean that sincerely.”

“Thank you, Sheriff,” Dana said.

“Mind if I talk to Dana alone?” Harris asked.

Reece took Payton’s arm. “Come on, Sheriff. I’ll walk you out.”

“Nice old pickup in the garage. You wouldn’t be interested in selling it, would you?”

“Never, Sheriff,” Dana said before taking Harris’s arm.

“Mind if I look it over?”

“I’ll show it to you,” Reece said.

Dana had an idea what Harris wanted to say. “Come on out back. We can sit on the deck.”

When they settled, Harris said, “I’m leaving Regal Falls.”

“I figured. There’s no reason for you to waste your talents here.”

“The
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
offered me a job. They like my work, and I think it’s about time I find out how good I am.”

“That’s fantastic, Harris. Just don’t—”

“I won’t screw up. I don’t start for six weeks. I’ve arranged to enter a program in Asheville. I can kick it.”

Dana leaned over and kissed her friend’s cheek. “I know you can. You can call me any time you need to talk. I’ll always be here for you, you know.”

Harris nodded. “I do. I’m happy for you, Dana, and it’s about time you’re happy.”

“I am. I never thought happiness looked like this.”

“You’ve always been my best friend. Robert never understood that. I know now you have someone who any fool can see loves you more than his own life, but I hope I can be your second best friend.”

“Always, Harris.”

Blowing in the Wind

R
eece took the call on the Saturday morning before Labor Day. He made plane reservations for two, then he and Dana packed a bag and drove to the Asheville airport where they boarded a flight to Boston. At Logan, they rented a car and drove to Lynn.

Lana answered the intercom and buzzed them in. “He asked for you. The home healthcare nurse said it’s not the end, but Frank didn’t want to wait until he couldn’t—” She swallowed her words, and her eyes filled with tears.

Reece took her in his arms, and Dana hugged them both.

“Goddamn it,” Frank called from the other room in a weak voice. “Stop that. Wait until I’m fucking gone before you sob over me, will you?”

Reece squelched his emotions, drew a breath, and moved to the bedroom. “That’s the Frank Vance I know and love.” He almost lost it when he saw his old friend lying in bed, pale skin covering his skeletal frame, looking like Death had already knocked on his door.