Authors: Stephanie Bond
3 Men and a Body (32 page)
blame you. How could he not let us know all this time that
Mom’s al right?”
Wes watched his sister struggle for an answer, and in that
moment, he despised his father for putting her through
everything she’d endured.
“Come sit,” she said, pul ing up her legs to make room on
the couch. “I want to tel you something.”
Wesley sat, concerned about the serious tone of her voice.
“Part of the reason I went to Florida with Coop was
because Dad’s fingerprints were found at a hotel in
Daytona that had been robbed.”
His heart jumped. “What? When did this happen?”
“Just before we left. Jack told me about it. He was going
down to investigate. I wanted to go, but he said no. When
Coop asked me to ride along with him, it seemed like the
perfect chance to look around myself.”
“So you went to the hotel when we were in Daytona?”
“Yes, and I should’ve told you. You had a right to know. I
guess I just didn’t want you to get your hopes up. And
frankly, I was afraid he was the person who had robbed
the hotel.”
“Did you or Jack find anything?” Or Liz. Wesley realized
that she’d known all along and hadn’t told him, either. No
wonder she’d missed the file he’d stolen—she was
probably adding new material.
“No, we didn’t find anything. But…” Carlotta moistened
her lips. “But when we stopped at the rest area on the way
back home, Randolph came up to me at the vending
machines and started talking.”
Wes jumped off the couch. “Dad? Dad just came up to you
and started talking?”
“Yeah. He was in disguise, but it was him.”
“Where was I?”
“Guarding the van,” she said dryly.
He jumped around the living room excitedly. “Why didn’t
you tel me? Why didn’t you yel for me?”
She looked away, then back. “I asked if I could, but he
didn’t want me to.”
He stopped jumping. “He didn’t want to talk to me?”
“He said not yet.”
“What else did he say?”
“He said he’d been keeping tabs on us.”
“How’s Mom? Did he mention Mom?”
“He said she’d been…sick…off and on.”
“But she’s okay?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“What’s he been doing? Where do they live?”
“All he would say is that he’s been gathering evidence to
prove his innocence, and that he’d contact us again soon.
We didn’t even get to say goodbye. When all hel broke
loose, he just vanished.”
Wesley clapped his hands. “This is fantastic!”
She smiled, a genuine smile. “Yeah, it is.”
“I’m going to make a big dinner,” he said, pacing the room.
“What sounds good?”
“Anything that I don’t make,” she said, laughing. “Surprise
me.”
“You got it.”
She winced. “But first—do me a favor? Get a Percocet for
me out of the bottle on my bedroom dresser?”
“Sure thing.”
Wesley loped into her room, so happy he couldn’t even be
mad at Carlotta for not tel ing him sooner. She had her
reasons. He picked up the prescription bottle and glanced
at it to make sure it was Percocet. Then he noticed the
refil s: two. He unscrewed the cap and removed one of the
six tablets for Carlotta…and two for himself. One he
swallowed, and one he stuck in his pocket.
It was just to celebrate, that’s all. It wasn’t as if he was
hooked, like those celebrity morons…
37
“Breaking news in the continuing saga of the Kiki Deerling
murder investigation.”
Carlotta turned up the volume.
“The medical examiner’s office in Atlanta, where the body
was taken after it was exhumed for a ful autopsy, is
reporting that there were no traces of heroin or any other
drug found in the young woman’s bloodstream at the time
of her death. Repeating, there were no traces of heroin or
any other drug in Kiki Deerling’s body.”
“Good for you, Kiki,” Carlotta murmured.
“The cause of death has been ruled asphyxiation by
strangulation, the manner of death, homicide. Sources tel
us that the D.A. in Palm Beach County, Florida, wil be
charging Kayla Deerling with her own sister’s murder.
Kayla Deerling is also charged with the attempted murder
of a woman who visited her Atlanta restaurant, a potential
witness in this case, by sprinkling rat poison on the
woman’s chocolate torte. And conspiracy to murder pop
singer Matt Pearson, her sister’s ex-boyfriend, who
reportedly witnessed Kiki’s murder.
“All this in the wake of not one, but two body-snatching
schemes, one by Kiki Deerling’s publicist and a known
Atlanta drug dealer to get rid of the body in an alleged
attempt to thwart an autopsy, and one by Pearson himself
in an alleged attempt to secure an autopsy to prove that
Kiki was murdered. Folks, it’s going to take a long time to
sort this one out. Stay tuned.”
“I don’t think so,” Carlotta said, then clicked off the TV.
She stood and stretched, sighing at the pain that stil sang
out from different parts of her body. It would take a while
for all the cuts and bruises to heal, but at least her arm
hadn’t been broken again.
At the sound of a car pul ing into the driveway, she went
to the window. Peter had said he might stop by on his
lunch hour—to talk. Two words that always put a crimp on
her intestines.
But instead of Peter’s Porsche, it was Jack’s sedan. Her
double-crossing heart gave a little lift. Jack emerged from
the car and she opened the front door, smiling widely.
Damn, did he have to look so devilishly handsome today?
“Hel o, Detective.”
“Hel o. Good to see you up and about.”
“I’m a fast healer. I should be back to work in a few days.”
“That’s very good news,” he said matter-of-factly.
“Because the more vacation you take, the more work I
have to do.”
“You sure know how to sweet-talk a girl, Detective. To
what do I owe this pleasure?”
He climbed the steps to stand on the stoop, then held up a
piece of paper. “One phone tap, cancel ed.”
She frowned and looked at the paper. “But is it my phone
tap that was cancel ed?”
“You don’t trust me?”
“No more than you trust me,” she said, verifying the
phone number and signatures before she gave him a
smile. “Thank you.”
He turned and walked back down the stairs. “You’re
welcome.”
“Is that a new suit, Detective?”
He shrugged. “Uh, you know, just something hanging in
the back of my closet.”
“Looks nice,” she said. “And the tie—not bad.”
“Thanks.” As he approached the car, the passenger door
opened and a woman stood up.
In a word, she was stunning. Tal , slim, kil er curves, and
bushels of wavy caramel-colored hair around a heart-
shaped face. “Jack, we just got a call over the radio. We
need to get back.”
“Okay,” he said, then turned. “By the way, Carlotta, meet
Detective Maria Marquez, my new partner.”
“Nice to meet you,” Maria said, then disappeared back
into the car before Carlotta could form a sensible word.
Jack gave an extra little wave, then climbed into the car
and backed out of the driveway.
Carlotta was stil standing there several minutes later
when Peter pul ed into the driveway. Lift, heart, lift, she
commanded.
“Wow, standing at the door. I hope that means you’re
happy to see me,” Peter said when he walked up.
“That’s exactly what it means,” she said brightly. “Come in.
Do you want some iced tea?”
He checked his watch as he walked into the living room.
“Actually, I need to get back to the office ASAP.”
“Okay. Sit down. What did you want to talk about?”
Peter hesitated, then smoothed his hands over his knees.
“Wel , you know I’ve been traveling to New York a lot
recently.”
“Yes.”
“I’ve been offered an assignment there. If I take it, I’l be
moving to Manhattan for a year.”
Her heart started to beat faster.
“To be honest, I don’t want to leave,” he said. “But I also
don’t want to stay in Atlanta and not be with you.”
“Peter, what are you saying?”
He reached for her hands, folding them into his. “I’m
asking you to give me something concrete to go on here. I
want us to start dating. I want to see you several times a
week, heck, maybe even a couple of times a day. I want
you to sleep over.”
She waited, her vital signs clicking higher.
“You asked for space,” he said. “And if you stil need more
time, then I’l go to New York. I’d rather stay here…but it’s
up to you. Just say the word.”
Stay close to Peter…he’s in a position at the firm to help
me…I need him…he’s the only person there I can
trust…then we’l all be together again.
She was torn down to her soul. She did want more time to
sort through her feelings for Peter, but how could she do
that if he was in New York? And what about the other two
men bouncing around in her heart?
But her father had said he would contact her through
Peter, and that wouldn’t happen if Peter was out of town.
And wasn’t reuniting their family the most important
thing, for Wesley’s sake?
All she had to do was say the magic word.
“Carlotta? Tel me what you want me to do.”
She closed her eyes briefly, feeling as if she was making a
deal with the devil—her own father. “Stay, Peter…stay.”
