A Prayer for the Devil (25 page)

“Great, what are they?”

“Well, they want twenty-three thousand dollars in back payments and interest. And because he hasn’t had a job in such a long time, they also want a cosigner for the loan.”

Luke asked, “What’s the total amount that he owes?”

After shuffling papers for a second, Jim answered, “About a hundred fifty thousand.”

Realizing that he could easily pay off the entire amount himself, if anything happened to John, Luke said, “Let’s do it.”

Jim agreed to move forward with the bank and keep Luke informed. After thanking Jim, he joined the others in the family room.

When the nanny led the children out of the room for their afternoon nap, Luke took the opportunity to talk to Deb and Lori about going to the mountain house. He told them he was worried about their safety and that he would feel better if they were out of town for a few weeks. They finally agreed, and Deb said, “It might be fun to get away, after all.” They decided to give all of the employees time off with pay, while leaving a single security guard stationed at the front gate.

When Luke realized that he hadn’t heard from John for over an hour, he dialed his number.

“Hi, Luke, I was just about to call you.”

“Are you OK?”

“Yes, I’m fine. Just finished my second lap around the park. No sign of Star.”

Disappointed, Luke thanked him. Before hanging up, he asked for another favor. “John, when you get to Aaron’s office, can you please ask Margaret to call a local funeral home so we can get Blade buried as soon as possible? Just make sure it’s not tomorrow. I’ll be out of town for the day.”

When John questioned where Luke was going, he told him that he would explain everything after dinner that night.

Back on the computer, Luke carefully planned his trip to Greenwich. Mapping it out, he realized that the drive would take him a little over three hours. Thinking about the best way to find Trinity Russo, he found the addresses of all the local Catholic churches, the Greenwich Historical Society, and the Greenwich Architectural Review Committee. He thought about calling ahead of time, but he knew that people were suspicious of giving out information over the phone. He also
knew that if they saw he was a priest, he might be able to get more information.

At dinner, there was an undeniable tension in the air. Deborah had already told the staff that they would be on a paid vacation until after Christmas, so they were excited, but everyone else had one thing on their minds: Was Luke going to figure out who killed Aaron? And in doing so, was he putting himself and his family at risk?

While the table was being cleared, Luke motioned to John to follow him outside. As they walked around the house in the bone-chilling air, Luke explained why he was traveling to Greenwich in the morning. He told John that he would be leaving at five in the morning and planned on being home by dark. They agreed to call each other throughout the day.

After John drove away, Luke walked back into the house and saw Deb and Lori carrying suitcases up from the basement. Hastening to help them, he patiently waited until they were packed, and then he made several trips to load the luggage into Deb’s SUV.

THE NEXT MORNING, IT
was still dark outside when Luke walked into the kitchen to grab a bottle of water before getting in the car. When he closed the refrigerator and turned, he was startled to see Deborah standing in the hallway. He asked, “Is everything all right?”

She answered in her gravelly early-morning voice while rubbing her tired eyes. “Yes, everything is fine.”

“What are you doing up this early?”

“I just wanted to say good-bye and remind you to be careful.”

Luke smiled. “Thank you. You be careful also. I’ve already loaded the address to the Berkshires home in your GPS. I’ll call you later, but call me if you need anything.”

Anxious to get on the road, Luke walked toward the front door with Deb following. When he turned to say good-bye one last time, she hugged him without saying a word.

The sun had been out for an hour when Luke reached the Greenwich Historical Society office. Not expecting anyone to be there this early in the morning, he nevertheless climbed out of the car, stretched,
and walked to the door to see if the hours were posted. A sign read, “See you after the holidays.” Disappointed, he walked back to the car and headed to the second address on his list.

Before entering the office building, he already knew that this attempt to find Trinity was a long shot at best. On the directory next to the elevator, he saw the name for Design View Architects, the office where the review committee met. Knocking, he was surprised when a young girl opened the door. “Can I help you, Father?”

Luke smiled. “Well, I hope so. I’m looking for a lady named Trinity Russo; she’s on the Greenwich Architectural Review Committee.”

The girl went to her desk and began flipping pages. Looking up, she said, “I’m sorry, but they don’t meet again until next month.”

Not wanting to give up, Luke asked, “Do you happen to know if Trinity Russo is on the committee?”

She looked up and thought for a second. “I’m really not sure. Mr. Reilly would know, but he won’t be in until after ten.”

Luke thanked her and let her know that he might return in a few hours. She smiled.

He had only been in Greenwich for a half hour and was already down to his last lead—the one lead he hoped he didn’t have to use. He parked his car on the street and hurried up the stone steps into Saint Mary’s Church, realizing that the eight o’clock mass was probably almost over. He entered the beautiful building and quietly sat in a pew in the back and joined the mass in process. When he went up to receive Communion, the priest smiled, seeing his collar.

After almost everyone had left, Luke approached the presiding priest and introduced himself. He wasn’t surprised when the priest replied, “I know who you are, and I’m so sorry for your loss.” He introduced himself as Father Leo and motioned for Luke to follow him. His warm smile and caring eyes gave Luke optimism that he would help if he could. Entering the small sacristy in the back of the church,
they sat down to talk. “So what brings you all the way to Greenwich, Father Luke?”

Even though Luke knew this question was coming, he was unwilling to divulge all the details. “I was hoping that you could help me find someone named Trinity Russo, who may be a parishioner.”

Leo smiled. “Is she a friend of yours?”

“No, I’ve never met her.”

Realizing that Luke wasn’t telling him everything, but still willing to help, Leo asked, “What makes you think she’s a parishioner?”

“It’s a long shot, but I thought I would give it a try.”

Leo picked up the phone receiver from the table, but before dialing, said, “I can have the secretary check our records, but I feel obligated to ask you why you want to talk to her.”

Luke replied without divulging the real reason he was there. “I need to ask her a few questions about some work that her family’s company did in Boston.” Downplaying it, he continued, “No big deal, just a few simple questions.”

Leo dialed and asked, “Can you tell me if we have a parishioner named Trinity Russo?”

A few seconds later, he thanked the secretary and put down the phone. “I’m sorry, Luke, but we don’t have anyone by that name in our files.”

Luke thanked him and opened the door to leave, stopping when Leo said, “We do have a Trinity Lombardi, though.”

Realizing that she might have been married, Luke asked warily, “Can you give me her address?”

Reluctantly, Leo redialed the secretary and jotted down the information for Luke. After thanking him, Luke quickly walked out the door and headed toward his car, and Coachlamp Lane.

Turning onto the block, he wasn’t surprised to see the grandeur of the houses. If Trinity was working on beautification projects in Greenwich, she certainly might live in a neighborhood like this. Checking
the address one last time, Luke pulled into the long, curved driveway and parked.

The stately stone house was impressive. He counted four chimneys and three garage doors. He took a deep breath, checked his watch, and decided that she would probably be awake by now. After he rang the bell a few times, the door opened. A young girl, who must have been about eight, smiled and asked, “Can I help you?”

“I’m Father Luke from Boston. Is your mother home?”

She left the door ajar and walked away. Luke waited patiently until the door opened again and Trinity appeared. Seeing Luke, she started to cry and asked, “Is Vincent dead?”

Confused, Luke answered quickly, “No, I’m not here for anything like that.”

She wiped her eyes and quickly composed herself, asking, “Then how can I help you, Father?”

“I’m very sorry to bother you at home. I just wanted to know if you are Trinity Russo.”

She hesitated and answered, “Yes, Russo is my maiden name.”

“I have a few simple questions about your father’s building company. I was hoping you could help.”

“No problem, I’m happy to help, but I’m in the middle of cooking breakfast for my daughter. Would you mind coming in and waiting until I’m done?”

Luke followed her inside to a room that faced the backyard and was adjacent to the kitchen. While Luke sat and waited, Trinity finished making breakfast. Luke didn’t care if he had to wait all day; he was just happy he had found her.