The Opposite of Dark (32 page)

“Thank you.” Lalonde cleared his throat. “I have more bad news, I'm afraid.”

She wasn't sure she could take much more. “What is it?”

“It seems that your mother lost control of her car on the Sea-to-Sky Highway between Squamish and Whistler. According to witnesses, she was speeding when she missed a curve and hit an oncoming truck. The impact sent her over an embankment. By the time anyone could reach her she was gone.”

“What?”

“She died. I'm sorry.”

The floor blurred around Casey.

“Are you there?” he asked.

“Yeah.” Anguish burned her throat. “Darcy and Theo are responsible, I know it.”

“They're responsible for many things.”

“Both my parents are dead because of their relationship with those two,” she said, struggling to stay in control.

“Charges will be laid, I promise you.”

But it wasn't nearly enough. Casey hung up and started to cry.

CASEY PARKED ON
McLean, just west of the community center's tennis courts. She stepped out of the car and scanned the area for Lalonde. No sign of him, but then, he and his team wouldn't be obvious.

She removed the tire iron from her trunk and hid it under the jacket she was carrying. Casey walked down a lane toward Britannia's parking lot. She felt shaky especially with the news about Mother and Rhonda's confession, but getting Summer back was too important to let emotion overwhelm her again.

To Casey's right, a concrete wall prevented her from seeing the tennis courts on top of a small hill. Buildings on her left partially blocked her view of Venables Street.

Darcy would either have to drive along this lane to enter the parking lot or turn off Venables onto Cotton Drive, a short road leading directly into the center's lot. Either entrance would be easy to watch from several vantage points, which was why she and Rhonda had agreed to arrive early.

The tennis courts were vacant. The rain had stopped, but the gray damp air chilled her. Casey stayed close to the wall and peered around the corner. The parking lot served Britannia Secondary on the south side, the ice arena and indoor pool on the east. No sign of cops yet. Between rows of parking stalls, a variety of bushes and small trees had been planted. Several bushes were large enough to hide behind if she crouched.

The lot was two-thirds full. Sports weren't the only events held at this complex. The center also offered activities for families, teens, and seniors, as well as a day care. If Darcy pulled a gun here, someone could get hurt.

Rhonda's station wagon was plainly visible. As arranged, she'd backed into a parking space fairly close to Cotton Drive. For now, the stalls on either side of her were empty. Behind the steering wheel, Rhonda didn't move. She was probably staring at Cotton Drive, waiting for the first glimpse of Summer. All of the other vehicles in the lot were unoccupied, yet this could change any moment.

Casey walked toward the bushes separating the station wagon from the vehicle behind it. She didn't try to make eye contact with Rhonda. Rhonda wasn't supposed to acknowledge her at all.

The largest bush was behind Rhonda's car and a little to the side. Casey knelt down and through a gap in the foliage, spotted the Cotton Drive entrance. If she scooted to the other side of the bush, she'd be able to see the lane entrance. Darcy wouldn't be driving his Porsche and he wasn't likely to approach Rhonda on foot. On the other hand, anything was possible with that freak. If he refused to get out of his car, their plan would collapse.

A green Jeep Cherokee entered the lot from Cotton Drive. The vehicle stopped a moment before cruising toward the station wagon. Blue eyeglasses and tight blond curls made Darcy easy to identify. Summer sat beside him. Darcy backed into the stall on Rhonda's right. It looked like he wanted a quick getaway too.

Casey ducked down and heard a car door open. Peeking through the gap, she watched Darcy step out. The left shoulder of his shirt was covered in blood. Judging by the scowl on his face, pain wasn't helping his mood. Leaving the driver's door open, he kept his gun lowered. From this angle, Casey couldn't see Summer's face.

Rhonda was supposed to keep Darcy busy examining the contents of each briefcase while Casey crept up from behind and struck him with the tire iron hard enough to knock him out. Casey started to move when a moist salty hand clamped over her mouth. She gagged and tried to suck in air. Someone began massaging her neck.

“Did you find the money?” Theo whispered.

As his hand slid away, Casey turned her head. She hoped Lalonde was watching this. “How'd you find me?”

“How do I always find you?”

Casey shook her head. God, she must have been too preoccupied to notice the tail.

“Where's the money?” he asked.

“Rhonda's about to give it to him.” Her voice was hushed as she watched Rhonda open the back of the station wagon. “She killed Gustaf Osterman—thought he was Dad.”

As Theo raised an eyebrow, Darcy began speaking again.

“You must have been shocked to learn of Casey's new-found wealth,” he said to Rhonda.

“There isn't a secret on this planet that could shock me right now.”

Casey spotted the pistol in Theo's hand.

“Open the case,” Darcy ordered, pointing to the one nearest him.

“I want Summer in my car first.”

“Do it!”

She opened the briefcase and Darcy examined the money. “Good, now pull all of them out and open each one,” he said. “I've worked too hard and waited too long to be cheated.”

As Rhonda did so, Theo whispered, “If they end up in his car, we're lost.”

Summer stepped out of the Cherokee. Darcy looked up at her.

“Darcy!” Theo jumped up.

Casey followed suit. “Summer, get down!”

Darcy spun around and aimed his weapon at Casey. “Try anything, Theo, and I'll kill her right here.”

Rhonda shoved Darcy, knocking him off balance. The gun fired. Rhonda screamed, but no one was hit. Darcy tried to regain his balance as Theo tackled him. The gun flew out of Darcy's hands, landing between the two vehicles. Summer scrambled into the station wagon while Rhonda grabbed the gun, then slid behind the wheel.

“I'll get help!” she shouted and sped away.

As Darcy and Theo fought, a woman and two toddlers approached a car on the lot's east side. The woman saw the brawl, then picked up her kids and ran toward the ice rink.

Theo wasn't holding his weapon. After a quick search, Casey found the gun on the ground, two stalls over. Why hadn't he used it? And where the hell was Lalonde?

She left the tire iron by the bush, picked up the pistol, and watched the men cling to each other as they fell into the bushes and rolled onto the asphalt. Darcy's glasses went flying. Theo knelt on his chest and struck his face while Darcy punched him in the abdomen. Theo gasped and recoiled. Darcy pushed him backward and started to stand, but Theo hauled him down again. Darcy swung at Theo who returned random punches.

Casey raised the gun. “For crying out loud, knock it off!”

The men slowed and finally collapsed. Darcy wheezed and coughed while Theo struggled to his feet. Sweat slid down his face. He stumbled toward the briefcases Rhonda had left behind while Darcy retrieved his glasses.

“Mother's dead,” she announced.

Both men said nothing until she'd finished repeating Lalonde's news.

“She wouldn't have died,” Darcy said, “if she hadn't wanted to protect you, bitch!”

Casey aimed the gun at his head. “Shut up!”

“You didn't deserve her. You treated her like shit!”

Theo picked up a briefcase.

“Put it down!” Darcy reached for the tire iron Casey had left by the bush.

He flung the tire iron at her. Before she could move, the bar struck her arm and she dropped the pistol. Darcy lunged for it, but Casey kicked the weapon out of reach. Darcy grabbed the tire iron instead.

“Lil thought you were special.” He held the weapon like a raised bat. “Said you were the last decent person on earth, but she didn't know the real you, did she, Casey?”

Casey stepped backward. Darcy moved closer. She turned to run, but the tire iron hit her back and she fell. As she tried to stand, Darcy tackled her to the ground. He climbed onto her back, wrapped his hands around her neck, and began to squeeze. She tried to pry his fingers loose but couldn't, and then the pressure stopped. Casey's forehead smacked the asphalt as she gulped down air. A moment later, Darcy was sliding off her back and slumping to the ground. Blood soaked the front of his shirt.

Casey looked up. Theo stood before her, holding the pistol. She nudged Darcy. No movement. She nudged him again. When there was still no response, she checked for a pulse on his wrist and neck.

“He's dead.”

A man darted coming from the pool building toward his Toyota. A senior stood by the ice rink and talked on his cell phone while he watched them.

“Why didn't you shoot when you had the chance?” Theo asked.

“Couldn't.” Casey wiped the sweat off her face with the back of her hand. “Glad you did, though.”

“It was either your life or his.”

“Thank you.” She looked around. Where were the damn cops? They had to nab Theo. “I need to know something, Theo, and I want the truth. After Darcy killed Dad, how long was it before Gustaf moved in?”

He looked everywhere but at her.

“I heard it wasn't long. A month maybe?” Casey went on. “You said you didn't condone what Darcy did, yet you were planning to get rid of Dad, weren't you? Let's face it, a month isn't long enough to undergo plastic surgery and perfect someone else's voice and mannerisms.”

He shrugged, “Doesn't matter now. It's over.”

“The truth is important to me. Anyway, your key witnesses are dead, and it'd only be my word against yours.”

“Marcus was going to destroy me, but I didn't want him to die. The plan was to let him change his identity and go underground, only Darcy grew impatient.”

Maybe he wasn't the only one. Casey fought the urge to hit him. “You needed to know if I really had the address book, so you either ransacked my hotel room or paid someone to do it. Did you pay the American kid to steal my purse?” She didn't bother waiting for a response. “I suppose I'm lucky you didn't steal the book in Paris.”

“I wanted you to feel you could trust me.”

“All because you needed my help finding the money.” She glared at him. “I wish my parents had never met you.”

“That night in Paris, you said the more truths you learned, the darker things became,” Theo replied. “You must feel completely blind now.”

Police cruisers raced into the parking lot. Theo grabbed two briefcases and started running. Casey doubted he'd make it out of the complex.

CASEY FOUND RHONDA'S
station wagon parked in its usual spot at the house. There were no police vehicles anywhere, no hint of the day's death and destruction. Sitting in her Tercel, Casey gently pressed the back of her hand against her face. Her skin felt hot, her body still weak from everything that had happened.

Thank god Theo had been caught only five minutes after he'd bolted. While she'd been giving the cops a detailed account of events, Lalonde showed up and apologized for having been delayed over a search warrant. Apparently, he'd arrived at the scene just as Rhonda was speeding out of the lot and decided to intercept her rather than stop Darcy because he'd been assured backup was there. It seemed there'd been a communication breakdown, however, and
VPD
officers actually had been sent to two serious traffic accidents, one of them fatal. An angry Lalonde had made it clear to the
VPD
officers that he'd expected better. After he told Casey that Summer was now at her grandmother's, she headed for home. Poor Summer. She could well imagine how deep that child's grief, confusion, and sense of helplessness must be.