The Way You Look Tonight (31 page)

Deborah's mind flashed back to Lieber in the parking lot. ‘I know where your husband is,' he'd said. Now she understood what he meant. ‘Artie Lieber knows you killed Steve, doesn't he?'

‘As I said, he's been spying for days,' Pete said resentfully. ‘Yes, he followed Steve out here. He knows what happened. I saw him, when it was too late. There's not much he can do about it since he came here to kill Steve himself. That's why he was following Steve around in the first place. But I'm not afraid of him. He can't go to the police with some absurd story about the respectable Peter Griffin killing his best friend.'

‘He came to me,' Deborah said.

‘And you ran.' Pete started that damnable snickering again and Deborah's skin crawled. ‘He had the information that could have saved your life and you ran from him. Oh, it's too rich!'

Rage bloomed in Deborah. She stood up and faced the flashlight. ‘You son of a bitch! You killed all those young women and tried to frame my husband. Then you killed
him
. You ruined Emily's life. What happened to Eddie King, Pete?'

‘Eddie is resting peacefully on a hillside outside Wheeling,' Pete said matter-of-factly. ‘I'm afraid I indulged myself and tortured him for a couple of days before I finally finished him off. Once, when it looked as if Emily might be getting better, I told her exactly how Eddie had died. I described those glorious two days of torture
so
graphically, I sent her into the abyss forever.'

Deborah felt sick. ‘And now you're going to kill me.'

‘That's right. Steve is buried in this barn. I'll bury you right beside him.'

‘He's here?' she faltered. ‘He's in here?'

‘Where else? You didn't think I'd drag him home and bury him in the yard, did you?'

‘I don't know what you might do,' Deborah said in a dead voice. ‘I don't even know why you want to kill me.'

‘Because you found out too much. I tried to keep you from going to Wheeling,' he said petulantly. ‘But you had to have your way. You dumped the kids on me and hit the road with your lover. I wasn't a bit surprised when you called and said you were spending the night. What I didn't expect was that you'd find Jeannie. I never dreamed my old bat of a grandmother would remember her name. I didn't even know Jeannie was back in town. But after talking with her, I was sure you knew too much.'

‘I didn't know
anything
,' Deborah said furiously. ‘I guessed that Eddie King had been Emily's husband. That's it.'

‘Oh well, maybe I jumped the gun,' Pete responded carelessly. ‘But you had to be eliminated anyway.'

‘Eliminated?
Why?
'

‘Because you were just like the rest. Oh, I used to rather admire you. So loyal to Steve, so self-effacing. A good mother. And then Steve disappeared and your true colors showed. You moved Joe Pierce into your house the very night Steve disappeared. He wasn't your husband, but you treated him like
family
. Any fool could see that you were sleeping with him. It made me ill, especially Christmas Eve when you were all decked out in your dangling earrings, acting as if
he
was your husband. But I knew you'd get a nice surprise later that night when the music box came. Do you know that “The Way You Look Tonight” was my mother's favorite song? That music box was hers. My father gave it to her. And then Kim whispered to me that she'd found some pretty rings down in the basement and was going to give them to you Christmas morning. I'd hidden the jewelry there the night of your Christmas party. But Kim finding it and presenting it to you as a present was a delight I hadn't counted on. And then there was the doll. You were so busy fluttering over Joe and your friends you didn't even notice me take it and go out to the kitchen, then into the garage.'

Deborah wanted to scream at him that he was crazy, but something held her in check. She didn't know what because there was no way she was going to leave the barn alive, but she still clung desperately to her last few minutes of life.

‘Don't you think anyone is going to suspect what happened to me?' she asked.

‘Why should they? They'll simply think Steve got you.'

‘What about my children? Where
are
they?'

‘I told you. They're…hidden.'

For the first time uncertainty had crept into his voice, and Deborah pounced. ‘I said it before. You don't
know
where they are. You weren't expecting them to be gone when we went upstairs. What were you going to do if they'd been there?'

‘Say that they were sleeping peacefully and send you home. Then I would pay a call and kill you.'

‘But they weren't there.' She paused, her memory zeroing in on Pete's expressionless face when he looked into Adam's room. ‘Adam wasn't there, either, was he?'

‘Of course he was.'

‘No, he
wasn't
. He ran away with the children, didn't he?'

‘So what?' Pete shouted. ‘So what if he did?'

‘Pete, what are you going to tell
him
? He must know something is wrong. That's why he took the children.'

‘He's my son. He loves me. I'll simply explain things.'

‘Explain that you
murdered
me?'

‘Explain that things got out of hand. That you were making wild accusations. That you tried to kill me and in trying to get the gun away from you, I accidentally shot you.'

His voice quavered and Deborah knew he was frightened. He didn't
know
what he was going to do. He'd simply started on a course of action and was now following through, willy-nilly, without the faintest idea of how he was going to handle the resulting questions.

‘Pete, do you want your son to know you're a murderer?' Deborah demanded. ‘Do you want him to know you killed all those young women? That you killed
Steve
?'

‘Dad?'

With the flashlight shining in her eyes, Deborah hadn't seen Adam, whose voice came from the direction of the open barn door. Pete spun around and croaked, ‘Son! How did you get here?'

‘I drove the Ram Charger.'

‘But you don't have a license,' Pete said inanely.

Deborah took a step forward and Pete swung around again, pointing the gun at her. ‘Don't!'

‘Dad, what the hell are you
doing
?'

‘Get out of here, Adam,' Pete said.

‘
No!
' Even though Deborah was glad help of some kind had arrived, she ached for the devastation Adam must be feeling.

Pete spoke in a kindly tone. ‘Son, I want you to get in the Jeep and I'll drive you home as soon as I'm done here. It's a very bad night and I'm surprised you didn't wreck getting here.'

He's gone completely over the edge, Deborah thought. He no longer possessed the cunning of The Dark Alley Strangler. But that didn't mean he wasn't still a killer. She stood very still.

‘You killed my mother,' Adam said in a voice that sounded as if it were being wrenched from him.

Pete made an attempt to laugh. ‘Why would you say something like that?'

‘Oh,
God
, Dad,' Adam went on in that agonized voice which shot to the core of Deborah and twisted painfully. ‘You told me that whole big story about her and another man.'

‘It was true.'

‘Maybe. But it's not like you to tell me all those details – finding her in bed, saying you hadn't had sex with her for a long time. That's not the kind of thing you'd tell
me
. You overdid it. You were nervous because I wanted to go find her. For a couple of days I thought about how weird you were acting. I also thought about you telling me a friend of Mom's in Montana was sending me the cards and letters. But I remembered
you
had a friend in Montana. Jim Lowe. I called Jim and he admitted he'd been sending the cards for
three
years, not two, like you said. And I wondered why you told me that for the first year she was in Montana,
she'd
sent the cards, when Jim said she hadn't. And then I realized she'd probably never been there at all.' Adam's words picked up speed as he became more agitated. ‘You also said you hired a private investigator to find her. I went through your canceled checks for the year Mom disappeared. There were no checks made out to a PI agency, or even a person I'd never heard of. There was
no
search because there was no one to search
for
, was there?'

‘Adam, your imagination is running away with you,' Pete said almost primly. ‘I must insist you get in the car now.'

‘I saw you take Kim's doll into the kitchen. I couldn't figure out what you were doing. Then I heard you call Deborah in Wheeling earlier this evening,' Adam rushed on. ‘I heard you tell that lie about Barbara being murdered. I hadn't been sure about Mom, but after I heard you make that call, I
knew
.' A choking sob escaped him. ‘I
knew
you were trying to get Deborah back here to
kill
her. You kept prowling around. I couldn't use the phone to warn her or call the police. Finally, right before Deborah came, I sneaked the kids out the back door.'

‘Oh, thank God,' Deborah moaned. ‘Are they all right?'

‘They're fine.' Adam hesitated. ‘Dad, after I got the kids out, I did call the police.'

There was a moment of silence. Then Pete muttered, ‘Goddammit!' and fired a shot. Deborah heard the bullet whizzing in the air before pain seared down her arm. She screamed and fell to the ground, clutching her arm. Blood oozed from a spot below her shoulder.

‘Dad, stop it!' Adam yelled hysterically.

‘Don't lie to me!' Pete blazed back at him. ‘You did not call the police.'

‘I
did
.'

‘Then where are they?' Pete demanded.

‘They're coming.'

‘No they aren't,' Pete sneered. ‘It's my guess you took those children to Barbara's, told her to call, and took off. You probably remembered about this place while you were driving around, but the police don't know about it.' Adam was silent and Deborah knew Pete was right. ‘Good try, son,' he said cockily, indulgently. ‘But it won't work.'

Suddenly Adam rushed forward. With amazing dexterity Pete dodged him and Adam fell, landing beside Deborah who cried out as his weight came down on her injured arm. Adam pulled himself off, muttering a choked, ‘I'm sorry' as he scrambled back to his feet and stood in front of her.

‘Adam, stop these ridiculous heroics,' Pete said. ‘Get out of the way.'

‘I'm not going to let you kill her like you did my mother,' Adam sobbed.

‘I
have
to kill her. You can see that. But it will be our secret.'

‘Jesus, Dad, are you
nuts
?'

‘Don't speak to me that way!'

‘You're a murderer!' Adam ranted. ‘I loved you so much and you're a filthy rapist and
murderer
! How could you have killed all those women? And Steve? How could you have killed
Mom
?'

‘Your mother was a whore and a very bad influence on you. I did what was just, and now I'm getting very tired of this carrying-on from you.
Very
tired.' His voice had taken on a dangerous edge. Could he be pushed to the point of killing his own son? Deborah wondered. She was afraid he could.

‘Adam, move away from me,' she said steadily.

‘He'll
kill
you.'

‘Better just me than both of us.'

‘She's right, son.'

‘You wouldn't kill
me
, would you?' Adam asked incredulously, his voice throbbing with anguish.

‘Move.
Now!
' Pete ordered.

Adam stood motionless for a moment. Then he lunged at his father again. This time he caught Pete around the legs and they both went sprawling. The flashlight rolled away and Deborah could see nothing. She heard only grunts, then Adam crying out in pain. Her heart froze. ‘Adam!' she called wildly. ‘Adam, are you all right?'

‘He's…fine,' Pete answered breathlessly.

‘Adam?' Deborah persisted. ‘
Adam?
'

The boy groaned and she felt a wave of relief. At least he was alive.

Against the veil of snow visible through the open barn door she saw a shape rise from the floor. From its height, she knew it was Pete. She didn't dare try to stand – he'd think she was going to run – but she couldn't help scooting backward.

‘My dear, you look like a crab scuttling along the beach. And it isn't going to do any good, Deborah,' Pete said. He trained the flashlight on her, then the gun. ‘You've disappointed me, and you've for ever tarnished my son's image of me. I can't forgive you.'

‘Pete,
please
,' Deborah begged. ‘I have two small children.'

‘And they have grandparents, just like I did. They will be fine, and hopefully Kimberly will not grow up to be a slut like her mother. Sorry, but you've brought this on yourself.'

He aimed the gun. She'd always been told that before you die, your life flashes in front of you. It didn't. She was aware only of the cold earth, the musky smell, the silhouette of Pete against the snow. He cocked the gun—

A shape appeared behind him and leaped. With a shout Pete went down again. The figures grappled. Light flashed as the gun fired. Then they were still.

Deborah cowered, too stunned to move. At last one of the shapes stood. ‘Deborah?' Joe asked anxiously. ‘Are you okay?'

‘Just dandy,' Deborah breathed before she fainted.

‘Does it hurt, Mommy?' Kimberly asked, admiring Deborah's bandaged arm in its sling.

‘Not much, sweetie,' she lied.

It was eight in the morning, and sunlight bounced off the snow to shine brightly through the living-room windows. Deborah found it unbelievable that only four hours ago she'd been scrambling around on the floor of the barn, begging for her life. Now she sat on her couch, surrounded by Barbara, Evan, Joe, Scarlett, and the children. Adam was in the hospital with a mild concussion and a sprained wrist. Deborah inwardly cringed to think of Adam's real pain, which would come when he'd recovered enough to assimilate the truth about his father. She only hoped the boy was as strong as he seemed to be. At least Pete wouldn't go on trial for the murders of all those people. In the scuffle between him and Joe, a bullet had gone through his heart.

Back at the barn, police were digging up Steve's body. The thought made Deborah almost dizzy with grief and horror. Poor Steve, who'd been lying under the cold ground since Sunday afternoon. She hadn't really accepted his death yet, but she knew that soon reality would hit her in thundering waves. Right now, however, she felt relatively calm and wildly thankful that the children were safe. She hadn't told them about Steve. That would come later, after they'd settled down from the excitement of their secret flight to Barbara's where they'd stayed until an hour ago. Deborah would tell them about Steve this evening, when she'd figured out how to do it as gently as possible.

After they'd finished studying her arm, Kim and Brian rushed into the kitchen to fix Scarlett her breakfast. ‘Barbara doesn't even have
dog
food,' a disapproving Kim had whispered loudly to Deborah. ‘That's because she doesn't have a dog,' Brian chimed in with a roll of his expressive eyes.

‘I promise to get some,' Barbara laughed, ‘just in case I have another unexpected visit from Scarlett.'

With the children gone, the adult conversation turned back to the events of the previous night. ‘I still can't believe Lieber brought you back to Charleston,' Barbara told Joe. ‘He saved the day.'

‘Before you get sentimental over him, remember he was only trying to clear himself of Steve's murder,' Joe said. ‘He came to Charleston with the intention of killing Steve himself. He says he couldn't go through with it.' He shrugged. ‘Maybe he's telling the truth, or maybe Pete just beat him to it. Anyway, he knew he'd be the number-one suspect, and he didn't stand a chance telling his story to the police, so he was trying to convince Deborah so she'd divert the FBI's attention to Pete. Otherwise, Lieber would most likely have ended up in jail for the rest of his life.'

Deborah looked down. She could barely comprehend the number of malevolent forces surrounding her husband the last few days of his life: Pete and Artie Lieber wanting him dead; the FBI thinking he was a serial killer. And Emily. Always his beautiful sister, irreparably damaged because he'd left her alone for a couple of hours.

As if sensing her falling mood, Barbara said brightly, ‘Who would have believed Mrs Dillman could survive this?'

‘Fred told me she woke up last night,' Deborah said. She smiled. ‘She told the doctors she'd been attacked by Pete Griffin and that the children and I were in danger. They didn't believe her, but she was absolutely right.'

‘That's amazing,' Barbara said. ‘I hope even if my memory's not quite up to par, I'm as resilient as she is when I'm her age.' She smiled fondly at Evan and looked at the new ring on her left hand. ‘Especially since I'll have a young husband to keep up with.'

Evan grinned. ‘Honey, when you're Mrs Dillman's age, I'll be eighty-five. I don't think I'll be too hard to keep up with.'

Later, to the children's delight, Barbara and Evan left to pick up breakfast for everyone at McDonald's. As they drove away, Joe threw Deborah a wry look. ‘Two days ago I thought those two were finished. Now they're engaged.'

‘Barbara said they reached a crisis point. Evan had a choice to make, and luckily he made it in her favor.'

‘I think we'd better wait a while before we see whether or not Evan's decision was lucky for Barbara. I don't think he's absolutely sure of
what
he wants.'

‘I suppose we'll have to just hope for the best.' Deborah looked out the window. ‘The night of the Christmas party Steve said any romantic pairing was a risk.'

‘He was right.'

Deborah sighed. ‘Joe, I can't believe Pete murdered him. He's gone.' She snapped her fingers. ‘Just like that, Steve's gone. I'll never see him smile again, never hear him complain that the children watch too much television, never watch him tending his plants.' She shook her head. ‘I'd come to hate our annual Christmas party – it was so much work – but right now I'd give a party every night if he could be with us again.' Her eyes filled with tears. ‘Oh, Joe, none of this seems possible, and I feel so awful that I've been sitting here smiling and talking like nothing has happened.'

‘You've been through too much to absorb it right now,' he said gently. ‘But I know you loved him.
He
knew you loved him. And don't feel guilty because you're functioning in a mild state of mental shock. You have to right now, for the kids' sake Unfortunately, the pain will hit later.'

‘I know.' She frowned. ‘What I don't know is how to tell the children.'

‘Need some help with that chore?'

She looked at his tired face, at the slightly bloodshot eyes and the scar standing out more prominently than usual. ‘I think we've imposed on you enough already.'

Joe sat down beside her on the couch and looked earnestly into her eyes. ‘Do you remember when you asked if I was happy, and I told you I wasn't happy or unhappy?' She nodded. ‘That was a lie. I hope Steve can forgive me, but I've been happy this week, here with you and the children, in spite of the circumstances. I loved playing games with them, the four of us eating dinner together, even skulking through back yards with you in the middle of a snowstorm.'

‘Oh, Joe,' Deborah faltered, feeling guilty and sad and pleased all at the same time. ‘I don't know what to say.'

‘Just say you won't shut me out now that the threat to your life is over.' His voice softened. ‘Please, Deborah. I'd like to help if I can.'

She looked down at her hands for a moment. ‘We need you. Kim and Brian and I need you.' She met his eyes and smiled. ‘I won't shut you out, Joe. Not ever.'