Sins of the Father (31 page)

Sarah linked her arm
through Alicia’s and pulled her off the stool. “Come on, we’ll get
you ready for the interview and you can tell me all about last
night.”

When JJ spotted them
coming through the hall arm in arm he was instantly suspicious.
They looked like two schemers plotting some poor man’s demise.
“Jonathan Jukes reporting for duty, ma’am,” he said, offering a
quick salute.

“
You’ll be
glad to know that there’s plenty of left-over food in the kitchen,
and an endless supply of coffee. I have to go plot and scheme with
my friend here,” Alicia said, winking at him.

“
Ha!” He
shook off the feeling she could see right into his head. “Have fun.
You know where I am.”

Their light, feminine
laughter followed him as he walked towards sensory heaven. He was
only sorry the rest of his team couldn’t share the
goodies.

Chapter
22

The modest three-storey
building held many secrets, and for Brad, the memories which formed
his childhood. They shot at him, hitting with a force that took his
breath: his mother leaving in an ambulance; his father coming home
alone; his brother moving out; Helen moving in. Like controlling a
film inside his head, he pressed pause and centred
himself.

“
You okay?”
Potts asked, stepping around to join him at the curb.

“
I’m fine.
Let’s do this.”

They moved forward,
shoulder to shoulder, unconsciously closing in – joining
ranks.

Brad steeled himself when
he saw the door swing open. Then she was there, looking older than
he remembered, but every bit as cold.

“
Bradley, how
lovely to see you,” Helen said, her eyes sparkling in challenge.
“And who is this?”

“
I’m
Detective Potts, ma’am. I believe you were expecting me. May we
come in?”

“
Yes. Please,
come in.” She stood aside, her eyes never leaving Brad’s face.
“Make yourself comfortable, I’ll just grab another cup, I’m only
set for two.”

It was like a stage to
her; something she had in common with the crazy son of a bitch they
were hunting. It should have pissed him off, but he’d grown
accustomed to her games long ago. She’d known he would
come.

“
There’s no
need, ma’am. I’m good.”

“
Very well.”
She looked mildly disappointed. “Please, take a seat.”

“
As I said on
the phone, Mrs Morgan, I’m here to discuss an ongoing investigation
concerning your daughter, Alicia Gladstone.”

“
I think we
both know she hasn’t been my daughter for many years.” There was
ice in her voice now, set to chill. “Why don’t you stick to the
questions you came here to ask, and leave my relationship with
Alicia out of it?”

He’d touched a nerve,
that much was clear. “With all due respect, ma’am, this may be
happening because of your relationship – the blood connection. We
have reason to believe that a gentleman by the name of Paul Meeks
is involved.”

“
That sounds
like an accusation and I resent it.”

Brad ignored the warning
look from Potts. “Let’s cut the crap, Helen. We don’t have time to
waste on your misunderstood heroine routine.”

“
Now,
Bradley, is that any way for a son to speak to his mother?” she
answered sweetly, just to piss him off.

“
I’m no son
of yours and I never was. Unlike Alicia, I had a choice in
that.”

She laughed lightly. “So
you grew a backbone whilst you were gone.”

“
I’m just too
big for you to push around anymore.” Brad saw something cold flash
into her eyes before she controlled it.

“
Under all
that bravado you’re just the same lost little boy you always
were.”

“
And you’re
the same old Helen. I told the good detective here you wouldn’t
cooperate. We’re wasting our time.”

She only smiled and
turned to Potts. “Forgive the outburst, Detective, our Bradley was
always prone to hysterics. What is it you want to know?”

“
What can you
tell us about Paul Meeks?”

“
From what I
can remember he was an uptight workaholic who was stuck in a
loveless marriage. I relieved a little of his stress for
awhile.”

“
Is that
before or after you were linked to his son, John Henry Meeks?”
Potts asked, feeling distaste on his tongue.

“
Ah, poor,
sweet, Johnny, he was so needy. Like a little puppy, who followed
me around with those adoring eyes.”

“
So your
relationship with John Meeks had ended?”

“
Yes and no.
As far as I was concerned, it was over. But Johnny had a hard time
accepting it.”

Brad couldn’t help
feeling sympathy for the boy. The pieces were starting to fit
together. “Did Johnny know about his father?”

“
It’s what we
were arguing about the night of the accident. He was crazy. I
thought he was going to kill us both.”

Both men exchanged a
look. The lack of remorse for a man who spent the rest of his days
in a medical facility was astounding.

“
Did you see
Paul Meeks again after the accident?” Potts asked.

“
No, but I
didn’t expect to. I heard his wife left him and sold the
theatre.”

“
The
theatre?” Potts and Brad said together.

“
Yes,
Sommersville Theatre. It belonged to his wife but they ran it as a
family business. I think that’s why Johnny worked so hard to
impress his old man.” She threw a smug look in Brad’s direction.
“Alicia isn’t the only one who can bury her past. The Sommers were
one of the most influential families around. They couldn’t wait to
get rid of that theatre and wash their hands of the whole
business.”

“
Do you know
who took ownership of the property?” Detective Potts asked, itching
to be done with the questioning so he could leave.

“
I’m not
sure. They pulled it down a few years ago. I think it’s a car park
now.” Helen’s voice turned wistful. She showed more compassion for
an old theatre than she did for Johnny Sommers.

“
Well, thank you for your time, we appreciate it.” He was
already on his feet – the first man Brad knew who saw through her
act.
Maybe she’s losing her
touch
.

“
You’re
leaving so soon?” Her face held a petulant look. They were spoiling
her fun.

“
We have a
number of other leads to follow, Mrs Morgan. Thanks
again.”

Detective Potts moved
forward before she could object again. He’d almost made it to the
door before she rushed past him to pull it open. “If I can be of
any further assistance, Detective, don’t hesitate to call. And,
don’t be a stranger, Bradley,” she added, closing the door firmly
behind them.

The cheap shot made him
smile. She was definitely losing her touch. Beside him, Potts
sucked in a lungful of air and let it out on a long
sigh.

Brad chuckled, slapping
Potts on the shoulder. “Tell me about it, buddy.”

As they walked back to
the car in silence, Brad could almost hear the curtain twitching
behind him.

***

Alicia checked her
appearance in the hallway mirror. She would pass. Nothing fazed
Jerry. She turned when the bouquet of flowers caught her attention.
They were a lovely touch, and brightened the hallway with their
fresh and easy grace. It didn’t stop there. A team of people had
swooped in, each armed with a vase of flowers and knowing exactly
how to draw the eye, spread them around the west wing.

The mobile she’d carried
with her since Stuart’s visit chirped happily in her pocket. She
flipped the receiver, hoping it was him.

“
Listen very
carefully, and don’t alert anyone to this call.” The voice sent a
chill right down to her toes. He was no longer using a masking
device. His own voice sounded worse than the machine.

“
What do you
want?” Her eyes darted to JJ who, was pretending to read a
newspaper, despite being on full alert.

“
Can I count
on you, Alicia? Your friend’s life depends on it.”

“
What do you
mean?” She tried to keep the edge from her voice, but it was
difficult to pull off when she was full of disgust.

“
You’re an
actress, so start acting like one, or my new buddy Stuart here will
pay the price.”

She turned away so that
JJ couldn’t see her face. Actor or not, there was no way she could
hide the terror. “I’ve heard it all before.” She was surprised at
how level her voice sounded.

“
That’s
better. Now, very soon I’m going to be paying you a visit. You’ll
know who I am as soon as you see me, but you can’t blow my cover.
That is vitally important, Alicia. Do you understand?”

“
I’m not
stupid.”

“
Very good,
I’m impressed. Maybe you can act after all.” He gave a malicious
little chuckle. “Don’t be tempted to tell anyone about this call.
If I have any suspicions, I’ll kill him. If I don’t get my way,
I’ll kill him, so don’t even think about double crossing
me.”

“
I can follow
simple instructions.” She felt sick. With an effort, she tried to
loosen her shoulders. JJ was sharp; he’d know something was off by
her body language alone.

“
I’ll see you
soon, Alicia. Oh, and someone wants to talk to you.”

“
Al, don’t-”
Stuart’s urgent whisper was cut off when the line went dead. It
took a moment, but she willed back the tears and tried to inject a
little venom into her voice.

“
Listen,
Helen, I don’t care what you did to help, I don’t want you calling
me anymore. That’s not the point. Goodbye.”

It was a risk, especially
if JJ checked in with Brad, but she intended to do everything she
could to keep Stuart alive.

She turned back to JJ
with a bright smile. “Well, that was pleasant.” The eye roll was a
nice touch. “I need caffeine to calm my nerves. Do you fancy a
cup?”

JJ stood immediately.
“You know me - I never refuse coffee and the company of a beautiful
woman.”

“
Two
beautiful women,” Sarah said coming down the staircase.

“
Then that’s
three cups, coming right up.” Alicia couldn’t look at her friend,
not yet. She knew her too well and she wasn’t that good an
actress.

Sarah didn’t seem to
notice. She hung back with JJ, complaining that Betty wasn’t there
to take better care of them. Alicia knew she’d have to participate
– Sarah would be suspicious if not. But there were unshed tears
stinging her eyes and a burning ache in her throat. She didn’t know
how long she’d be able to keep it up.

***

As Alicia was busy
playing the role of her life, Paul Meeks was initiating the next
stage of his plan. The beauty of it was they all thought him
incapable of such measures. He’d plotted right under their noses,
and they were blind to such possibilities. They had absolutely no
idea what he was capable of, what the months of planning, and years
of hatred could do to a man. It wasn’t going to be easy. Burton
House was a formidable place. The security was tight, and the men
trained to protect the woman he had every intention of
snatching.

He pulled up to the gate
of the great house, almost giddy with excitement. To the men on
guard duty he looked like television personality Larry Edwards –
his own mother would struggle to tell the difference.

The excitement dulled a
little when they wasted precious time on their security checks. It
really wasn’t necessary; they were as clueless as the rest of them.
He pushed aside the urge to show them just how stupid and instead
wound down the window – his practised smile in place.

“
Good
afternoon, gentlemen. I believe Miss Gladstone is expecting me.” He
was ready for the suspicion that crossed the point guard’s face.
“My crew are right behind me, they got held up.” That was his first
card and relied on their ignorance, he had several more up his
sleeve if they turned out to be smarter than they looked. The real
Larry Edwards didn’t drive anywhere - he had an army of people
doing his bidding. They clearly didn’t know that.

“
No problem,
Mr Edwards, I’ll let the house know you’ve arrived.”

“
Much
obliged.”

He closed the window with
a snap, anxious to be on his way. It was a stroke of luck the
bodyguard wasn’t on site. The guy was usually glued to Alicia’s
side. Fortunately, for Paul he’d finally come unstuck. Brad Morgan
posed the biggest obstacle because he was under her spell. The poor
sap probably had it in his head her life was worth dying for. Paul
was almost sad it wouldn’t come to that.

He allowed himself a
moment to be impressed by the sheer size of Burton House. The
photographs didn’t do it justice. If he’d been a real visitor, he’d
have taken some time to admire the grounds.

He parked as close to the
entrance as he dared, making sure he could conceal the nasty
surprise he had in store. He was just stepping from the car when he
spotted Sarah approaching. The blast of excitement, a stunning
adrenalin rush, shot through his system. He was pumped.