The Cin Fin-Lathen Mysteries 1-3 (18 page)

“Michael, you may have to sit down.”

“Why?  Has Donald passed on?”  He reached over and squeezed my
hand.  “Don’t fret yourself none.  Us older fellers are used to our friends
passing on.”

“Donald was killed at Bathgate.”

“In the bombing?  With Angela?”  He looked confused.

“No, after the war.  We just found his body in the bog
behind the school.  Hold on, there’s more.  Bathgate wasn’t bombed.  It’s still
standing.”  I held on to his hand.  “Angela didn’t die.  She’s still alive.”

“Still alive?  Why didn’t she come and be with me?”

“Michael, look at me.”  I waited until I had his eyes. 
“Your brother came and told her that you were dead.  Killed in action.  She
became very ill and her family had to put her in a hospital, where she stayed
for two years.  She has lived all these years at Bathgate, single, mourning
you.”

“I must go to her.  Why did Maurice lie to us?  I have to
talk to my brother.  I have to go to Angela.  This is too much...”

Father Michael moved quickly to help his namesake keep his
balance.  In doing so he saved his life.  Father Michael’s shoulder exploded
spraying blood in my face.  Someone was shooting at us.

“Get down!”  I dropped to the ground, and between Michael
and me we pulled Father Michael close to the rose bushes.  The shot must have
been fired from across the garden to have hit him that way.  I heard a whizzing
sound as a large bloom overhead exploded.

“Why is someone shooting at us?” Michael asked.

“I was hoping you could tell us that.”

“I dunno.  Give me your purse.  We have to stop this
bleeding.

I gave him my purse, and I started to crawl around the rose
patch to get a look at who was taking potshots at us.  It was Bruno.  He was
boldly standing in plain sight, his rifle had a silencer on it and a scope, a
scope that was aimed at me!  Before I could move I heard a whack and saw a
soccer ball fly at Bruno.  The ball hit his shoulder causing the rifle to fly
out of his hands.  Before he could recover, my daughter ran screaming at him.

“Not my mother you freaking...”

I didn’t catch the rest because I was on my feet running.

Noelle got to Bruno first and plowed into him.  She threw
all her weight and hit him in the stomach knocking him off his feet.  Then she
reached down and grabbed the rifle and flung it wildly away, nearly
decapitating me with it in the process.

Bruno was on his feet and grabbed her before I reached
them. 

“Stay away you!  I’ll break her bloody neck.”

I looked at Noelle, and she wasn’t scared.  Before he could
react Noelle dropped her weight and broke his grasp.  She then twisted her body
throwing a sidekick into his solar plexus.  He landed hard on his back.  Noelle
knelt over him raising her hand in a palm heel striking position.

“Move one inch, and I will send your nose into your brain,”
she said viciously.

Bruno’s eyes darted around, but he kept still until he
spotted something and shouted.  “Help me! I am being mugged!”

I turned around to see a constable come running.

He pulled his truncheon out.  “Hold it right there, don’t
move.”

Before I could speak Bruno was babbling.  He claimed we were
muggers, robbing him because he was old and weak.  The constable reached over
and pulled my daughter off Bruno.  He sat up.

“Constable, this man was shooting at us.  A priest is
wounded over there.”  I pointed at the rose bushes.

“They’re more of them hiding.  They’ll jump you.”  Bruno was
on his feet. 

The constable reached for his radio.  Bruno pulled out a gun
from his jacket.  He started walking backwards aiming his gun at the constable.

“Just like a child’s game.  Rock, Paper, Shears,” he said as
he distanced himself.  “Gun beats radio...”

He didn’t see what we saw.  In his arrogance he didn’t see
Billy walk into the garden behind him.  Nor did he see Billy calmly walk over
and pick up a gardening implement.  He was still laughing over his “gun beats
radio” comment when Billy whacked him on the head.

“Gun beats radio you bastard, but shovel beats gun.”  He
dropped the shovel to catch Paz as she launched herself at him.

“My hero!”

“Now, could you please get on that radio and call for an
ambulance and backup?” I said coldly.

I ran back to the Michaels.  Michael Sherborn had isolated
the Father’s arm and pressed a handkerchief and a pair of my, never know when
you’ll need them, cotton underpants into his shoulder.

“He’s still bleeding.  The bullet tumbled on its way out.”

“Here let me spell you.”

I got to my knees and carefully replaced the gardener’s
hands.  Michael’s blood was warm.  “Has he come around?”

“No he hasn’t, not a peep.  What happened over there?”

“My daughter took out the sniper with a soccer ball and a
karate kick.  Then one of London’s finest let him get away.  But don’t worry,
one of Cornwall’s finest saved the day.”

“How?  Is Billy a karate expert too?”

“No,  just handy with a shovel.”

“He used my good shovel?”  Michael shook his head. 
“Probably dented it with the crook’s hard head.  Who was the shooter?”

“Bruno Vanchencho.”

“Don’t know him.  Sounds Russian.  Why would he be trying to
kill the Father here?”

“Michael, he wasn’t trying to kill the Father, he was trying
to kill you.  Father Michael just got in the way.”

Michael sat back with a thud.

I put my hand on his shoulder, “Don’t worry, he tried to
kill me the other day, and I’m just fine.  Angie, er, Angela, he tried to kill
her three times, and she’s still in one piece.”

“How?  Why?” he said rubbing his head.

“The why, I haven’t quite figured out yet. The how, well,
Angie he hit on the head, shot in the head, and tried abducting. I got in the
way of that one.  Me, he just shot me full of Valium and threw me in the bog
with Donald.”

“Miserable bastard.”

Noelle and Paz ran over.  When they saw all the blood, Paz
turned green but managed not to faint.  The line of curse words she kept
spouting seemed to work like medicine.  Noelle relieved me holding the Father’s
wounds. 

“The emergency people are almost here.  Michael’s aunt Diane
called with the forensic information about the bullet, and Paz told her to go
to University Hospital.  She knew Father Michael had been shot and told the
aunt that they would most likely bring him there.”  Noelle looked down at her
hands.  “Are these your panties?  Oh they are.  Oh gross.”

“They were clean.”

Noelle and I took turns applying pressure until the
paramedics arrived.  Father Michael was taken to the hospital.  Noelle rode
with him, telling me I had to stay and straighten everything out.  Before she
left I held her and said, “You saved my life, that’s twice.”

Her eyes were full of tears.  “I couldn’t let him hurt my
Mommy.  I just saw red.  Besides if you died, you would have left me with Alex
and Dad and the evil stepmother.”  She got in the vehicle with Father Michael
and they sped off to the hospital.

Paz was walking around Michael Sherborn looking menacing.  I
grabbed her before she could do any harm.  I brought her up to date on the
information.  Her face fell, and she walked over and hugged the old man, blood
covered and all.

“What did I do to deserve this?” he said helplessly.

“You loved her all your life.  She loved you all hers.  It
is so damn beautiful,” Paz exclaimed.  “She doesn’t know.  Cin, she’s headed
into Maurice’s office in less than an hour.”

“Where is she now?” Michael asked.

“At her flat.  I don’t know where that is?  Cin?”

“The police will know.  Hold on, let me see if I can get us
out of here.”

Sergeant Moore eyed Constable Green as he took down my
statement.  They had taken in Bruno, and they were very pleased to have him. 
Between the Met and Interpol he had seventeen warrants.  I promised to come in
for further debriefing and wouldn’t leave London or the country until I had. 
Paz walked over and gave him the address where we would be staying.  His
eyebrows raised, and he seemed more cooperative than before.  I asked him to
contact Chief Superintendent Browning and tell him that Bruno had been caught. 
I looked at my watch.  We had twenty minutes to catch Angie before she left.

After explaining as much as I could to the Sergeant, he let
us go after I surrendered my passport.  I guess trust only goes so far.

As we hurried toward the exit and the tube, Peter, who was
summoned by Paz, greeted us. He had a cab waiting.  He looked around us.

“Noelle went to the hospital with Father Michael,” I
explained.

“Is she all right?  Paz, you didn’t tell me Noelle was at
the hospital.”

“She’s fine, she dished out a load of hurt, and you should
have seen her.  Besides if I told you she was there where would you have gone
first?”

“To the hospital.”

“That is exactly why I didn’t tell you.  Now drop us off at
Angie’s and then go over and play knight in shining armor,” Paz was very direct
and her accent refined.  Noelle was right; Paz had been using a phony accent.

We arrived in one piece.  Peter waved off the money I tried
to give him for the cab.  This penniless musician wasn’t looking so broke to
me.  We stood on the sidewalk.  Michael was shuffling his feet. 

“I don’t know what to do,” he spoke to the ground.

“Wait here. I’ll come and get you.”  I looked at Paz and
Billy.  “Watch him.  And try to clean him up a bit, he’s covered in blood.” 

I walked up the stairs and rang the bell.  Constable Davis
answered.  She held open the door saying the sergeant had warned her we were
coming.  I looked back at the others.  Billy had taken off his shirt and given
it to Michael, whom Paz was, after spitting on a tissue, trying to clean.  I
walked in and found Angie in a little tiny kitchen.

“Angie.”

She turned around looked at me.  “What did you do!”

I raised my hand. “Let me explain.  First of all, it isn’t
my blood it’s Father Michael’s.  He’s at the hospital...”

“Well, let’s go then.”  She tried to push past me.

“Sit down, Angela Bathgate!”  I was surprised at my harsh
tone.

She sat down.  I pulled another chair close to her, and I
sat down in front of her. 

“Now listen, we will see him soon, but there is something
else I need you to listen to.  It is very important.”  I waited. She settled
back.  “We found out last night something very disturbing.  Something we
couldn’t share with you.”

“That Bobby has been trying to kill me!  That little...”

I almost laughed at that point.  I raised my hand until I
sobered up.  “Quit talking, let me finish.  We found out that Michael Sherborn
is alive,” I said it fast and watched her face. 

Her eyes went wide.  A mixture of emotions crossed her face,
happiness, anger and confusion.  “Did Michael shoot the priest?”

“No.  Bruno shot him.  Noelle and Billy saved the day.  We
don’t have to worry about Bruno anymore.”

She relaxed a bit.  “Where has he been for the last fifty
some years?”  I saw her steel herself.  She wouldn’t let the tears fall.

“According to Michael, Maurice told him when he came back
from the war that you had been killed by a bomb that destroyed Bathgate.”

“Why?”

“We’re going to find out why.”

“Where?  Where is Michael?” she asked softly.

“Here.”

She got to her feet and smoothed her hair. 

“You look fine.”  I turned.  “Constable Davis, could you ask
the others to come in?”

She left the room, and I heard her open the door and call
down the steps.  There were footfalls pounding into the house.  Michael
Sherborn flew into the room.  He didn’t stop, he ran right up to Angie and
scooped her up in his arms and showered her with kisses.

“Angela, my heart, my soul.  I have been dead without you.  When
Maurice told me, I didn’t hear the music anymore.  I didn’t want to have
anything to do with the music.  He took me to see your grave.”

“My grave?  Why did Maurice do this?  What did we do to
deserve this?”

Michael stroked her face.  “I dunno, but we’re together
now.  Let’s concentrate on now.  We have been robbed of years, but let’s not
let him take these moments.”  He held her tenderly.

I turned around and herded the wet-faced constable, a
snotty-nosed Paz and Billy who was failing at the strong, silent act.

“Let’s give them some privacy.”

We headed out and sat on the steps.  Constable Davis filled
us in on what she was told before we arrived.

“Your meeting with Maurice Sherborn has been postponed two
hours.  Chief Superintendent Browning wants to interview Bruno before he risks
letting you in to see Sherborn.  He flew in fifteen minutes ago.  Not at all
happy at the priest being shot.”  She eyed me.