Cusp of night, p.20
Cusp of Night, page 20
“I’m not sure it matters.” Collin blew out a breath. “Tomorrow, I plan to call David Gregg and give him the whole story. If my brother is dangerous, I can’t risk him harming someone else.”
Admiration bloomed in her heart. “But your father…your mother.”
“They’ll have to live with their sins, but I won’t be part of them. I told my father that before I left.” Reaching across the table, he closed his hand over hers. “Sorry I got you caught up in my mess.”
“It’s my mess, too.” Her fingers twined with his. “It’s been from the moment that car crossed lanes and sent me into the Aether. I’m convinced Lucinda has led me here.” She thought of Henry Hode. Of Leland and Althea. “I’m sorry your family isn’t what you thought they were.”
“Not even close.” He grinned, but this there was a flicker of wry humor in his eyes. “Let me pay the bill, then let’s get out of here.”
Maya gathered her purse. “Where are you planning to go?”
“I was hoping I could crash at your place. Amethyst Hall is huge, but I have no desire to go home. Your couch looked pretty good the last time I checked.”
She smiled. “You’re lucky I have a spare toothbrush.”
* * * *
Collin rolled over, trying to get comfortable. He must have been out of his head, thinking a Victorian sofa could be comfortable. He should have grabbed a hotel room, but the thought of being alone in a square box had been downright depressing. At least Maya understood what he was going through.
Flinging his feet to the floor, he stood and stretched. The living room was just down the hall from the parlor, two entrances from the front door. Upstairs, Maya slept soundly. Or, at least, he believed she did. It was nearly three in the morning and there’d been no chimes or tinkling bells. No cold spots to announce Lucinda’s presence.
His mind was still in overdrive, too muddled for him to sleep. How many years had he traipsed to the columbarium and stood before the plaque marked Ford Horatio Hode thinking he was visiting his little brother’s remains? He’d done it on the sly knowing his parents, especially his mother, wanted nothing to do with the memorial. Now he understood her motives. Thinking about what she and his father had done made his stomach churn.
His dad wanted him to help Yancy comb the streets for Ford, hoping Collin would find him before the police did. Yancy had been looking for days without success, the failure probably the reason Leland had threatened to fire him. Collin’s father wanted his youngest son swept under the rug, hustled back to Wickham before anyone grew wise to his crimes.
But a girl had died. Graham was injured.
When Collin spilled the truth to David Gregg, the Hode empire would crumble. His parents might not face criminal charges, but their reputation would be in ruins. A small part argued he should alert them before going to the police. The warning would give them a chance to prepare and counter fallout. But the moment he thought of Ford, his reservations vanished. His brother had had no such luxury.
Collin sat on the edge of the sofa and pulled on his shoes. The house was still, draped in shadow, bands of moonlight angling through the windows. When he and Carole divorced, he’d done some of his best thinking at night, most of it while roaming the grounds at Amethyst Hall. Since he couldn’t sleep, he wandered outside.
The air was warmer than he’d expected, underscored by moisture from the river. Crickets chirped in the stillness, a natural serenade to offset the sporadic hum of a car on the North Bridge. Without daytime traffic clogging its lanes, River Road was eerily deserted.
Collin crossed the street, his gaze on the black bulk of Amethyst Hall jutting above the Chinkwe. Despite the hour, the lamps illuminating the path paralleling the river remained lit. He would have followed the trail regardless, but the mustard glow made it easier to see. After a time, the North Bridge fell away behind him. As he neared the Old Orchard Truss Bridge, his pace gave way to a jog. News reports indicated Graham had been found somewhere nearby. The cops had probably gone over the place with a fine-toothed comb, but it was worth checking out.
Collin veered from the path, angling toward the river. The ground sloped in a gradual incline then bottomed out in a nest of weeds and cattails. Without streetlamps to guide his way, it was almost impossible to see. A distant string of city lights created a haze on the horizon, the river a gaping maw on his right.
He picked through the reeds, the sound of rushing water growing louder the farther he advanced toward the bridge. What had Graham been doing down here in the first place? Now and then the cops had to chase kids from under the arch, but the weeds had grown too high for even the most ardent pot-smoker. Collin was nearly up to his waist in bulrushes, his shoes slipping on river stone, when he decided to turn back. It was too dark to see, not to mention the place was a breeding ground for ticks and jiggers. As he started to turn away, he noticed a depression in the reeds closest to the arch where it dug into the shore. The grass had been compressed, as if something large and heavy had flattened it.
“Hey. What are you doing down there?”
The beam of a flashlight hit him in the face. Collin raised a hand to shield his eyes and stared up the embankment. A uniformed patrol officer glared down at him.
“Come on up here, kid. Don’t you know better than to be skulking around in the weeds? Haven’t you heard there’s a monster on the loose?”
Despite all he’d been through, Collin laughed. “Coming.” He didn’t know if the cop was trying to put a scare into the “kid” he’d caught, or if he truly believed in monsters. Either way, it had been a good many years since he’d been mistaken for a teenager.
As he drew abreast of the officer, the cop lowered his light.
“What the—” Recognition dawned on the young officer’s face. He didn’t look much older than a kid himself. “Mr. Hode? I thought you were…” His voice failed as embarrassment took hold. “I mean—”
“It’s okay.” Collin held up his hand. “I know it’s the middle of the night, and I’m wandering around in the dark. Sorry to put you out.”
“What were you doing down there?”
“Just going for a walk.”
“In the weeds?”
“I thought I heard something and went to investigate.” A good enough lie. He wasn’t ready to tell the cop about Ford. “I didn’t expect to find anyone out here.”
The cop squared his shoulders. He had a long face and short-cropped brown hair under his crisp uniform cap. “People are pretty shaken up about the Fiend. I mean…the monster.”
He wanted to tell the kid—the cop couldn’t have been more than twenty years old—there was no monster. Instead, he simply nodded.
“We’re doing more patrols,” the cop explained. Together, they walked back toward the path. “I thought I’d check around here because this is where Graham Kingston was found.”
Collin shot him a surprised glance. “Aren’t you worried about the monster?” The kid had more guts than he’d given him credit for.
“Nah. This’ll stop him.” He tapped the pistol holstered at his waist.
Collin swallowed, thinking of his brother. “I hope it doesn’t come to that.” Giving the cop a parting wave, he headed back the way he’d come.
He was almost to Maya’s brownstone when a silver Chrysler made the turn from Chicory to River Road. Collin watched from the shadows. A few seconds later, Len Kovack rounded the corner and jogged up his front steps.
It might have been coincidence, but the woman who’d picked Collin’s mother up from the hospital drove a car exactly like the Chrysler.
* * * *
“Thanks for seeing us, Graham.” Maya smiled as she settled into the chair closest to his bed. Ivy was seated on the opposite side, and Collin stood by the window.
“No problem. I’m glad for the company and there’s plenty of room.” Graham swept his arm to indicate his spacious surroundings. “I don’t know how I qualified for a private room, but it rocks.”
Maya exchanged a glance with Collin. His father had probably finagled the upgrade, a token to appease his guilt and make up for the harm Graham had suffered. She’d worried what she’d find when she walked into the room, but Graham looked better than expected. He sat with the upper half of the bed raised, long legs stretched under the blankets, a pillow stuffed behind his back. Scratches covered his face, and the flesh beneath his left eye was bruised. His right wrist was bandaged, the fingernails of both hands ragged and broken. A one-inch gash angled over his chin, stitched from left to right.
“It’s been a non-stop parade of people—family, friends, cops.” He winced when he shifted, then eased against the pillows. “The cops warned me not to say much about what happened, but I don’t care. Ivy said it’s important I talk to you, and I’d like someone other than family on my side.” He slanted a glance at Collin. “Your name carries clout.”
“Everyone’s concerned about you,” Collin said.
Graham snorted. “Only to a point. I get the feeling most people think I hurt Tina. I hope you’re not one of them.”
“Not by a long shot.” Collin eased onto a chair positioned at the foot of the bed. Bracing his legs apart, he laced his hands between his knees. “Everyone at Hode Development thinks highly of you and your dad. I know you wouldn’t hurt her.”
“Thanks.” Graham lowered his eyes. “It’s hard for me to think of her as…” His face contorted. “I was so messed up trying to get away from that thing, but I was the lucky one. I’m still here.” Falling silent, he gnawed the inside of his cheek. “I heard you were the one who found her in the river.”
“Yeah.”
“Shit.” Graham scrubbed a hand over his eyes. A roadmap of scratches lined the back of his knuckles.
Moved by his misery, Maya shifted uncomfortably. She’d phoned Ivy first thing in the morning to see if Graham was up for company. Though she hadn’t told her friend everything, she’d admitted Collin wanted to question him about the night he and Tina disappeared. It was almost dinnertime when they’d finally finagled their way to his room. Even then, they’d had to wend through multiple nurses’ stations before seeing Graham. His family had instilled rigid measures to keep nosey reporters from hounding their son.
“I wish I could remember what happened,” he said. “The whole thing is hazy.”
“Someone said you’d been drinking.” Maya hoped she didn’t sound judgmental.
“Yeah, I was.” He balled a handful of blanket, working the cotton between his fingers. “Tina brought a Thermos of cinnamon schnapps, and I hit it hard. Right before she got there, I’d worked up the nerve to ask Brook out. When she turned me down, it was a kick in the gut. I wanted the booze to bury my mood, and I acted like a jerk.”
“I hope you don’t tell Brook that.” Ivy’s mouth flattened in a thin line. “You’ll give her a swelled head. Besides, you can do better.”
“Thanks.” A flush of color appeared on his cheeks, his grin sheepish.
“What happened after you left the festival?” Collin asked.
In the hallway, an aide passed the door pushing a cart loaded with food trays. The squeak of wheels intruded, tangled with the rich aromas of brown gravy and seasonings. Sound and odor faded as she moved farther down the corridor.
“We went for a walk. We were gonna hang out by the Old Orchard Truss Bridge. Where the ruins cut into the shore. You know where I mean?”
Collin nodded.
“I guess I was pretty drunk. I remember sitting on the bank. Tina yelled for me, but I thought she was screwing around.” His voice caught, his fingers fisting tighter. “If only I’d gotten off my lazy ass and helped her.”
“Don’t do that to yourself, Graham.” Ivy gripped his wrist. “You had no idea there was something out there.”
He squeezed his eyes. Nodded. “I think I passed out. I just remember lying on my back and that thing standing over me.”
Maya tensed, aware of the concentration on Collin’s face.
“The news reports said you called it a monster,” he noted.
“What the hell else could it be?” Graham’s eyes nearly boggled from his head. “It was huge. A Philistine, like Goliath. And its face was freaky, squashed in on the side. I know it wasn’t the Fiend, but it had to be a monster. It had blue skin and yellow nails.”
“Did he…it talk?” Collin asked.
“Talk?” Graham stared blankly.
“Did it say anything?”
“Hell, I don’t know. Maybe.” He pawed his hair. “I was screaming my head off. I can’t believe no one heard me. It hit me and the blow damn near killed me. After that, I was only half-aware of what was happening. It dumped me in a cave. Tina was there, too, but she wasn’t moving. There was blood in her hair like maybe she’d fallen and banged her head. Either that, or the thing hit her. When I called her, she didn’t answer. I think she was already dead.”
Maya winced.
“Do you know where you were?” Collin asked.
“No. The place was mostly dirt and stone, like a cutaway of some kind.” Crossing an arm over his chest, Graham palmed his shoulder, rubbing as if to ease pain. The crescent moon tattooed on the back of his hand was severed down the middle by a red gash.
“When I woke up, I was soaking wet, almost like the thing had dragged me through the water.” He scrunched his mouth to the side. “The place had a damp, marshy kind of smell, and I swear I heard traffic. You know the thump a tractor trailer makes when it hits the North Bridge? I’d lie there in the dark and count those thuds.”
“You were near the North Bridge?” Maya was surprised to think he’d been so close. There were a few islands on the river, but the police would have combed them all after Tina’s body was found.
“I don’t know.” Graham fiddled with the patient ID on his wrist. “Could have been the South Bridge for all I know. I just remember hearing that thump. It was dark inside the cave, or whatever it was. No light, even at night, so it was hard to see much of anything. I remember packets of food. Freeze-dried stuff like you’d take on a camping trip. Jerky and bottled water.”
“Like someone was living there?” Ivy asked.
Graham nodded. “Most of the camping stuff looked new. A few pieces still had price tags. I could feel them.”
“All those break-ins.” Maya cast Collin a glance. The seemingly insignificant robberies abruptly made sense.
His eyes narrowed. “You were missing for days, Graham.”
“I know.” He chewed on his lip. “I just don’t remember most of it. Tina was gone when I woke up again. I was stoked, thinking she’d gotten away. Now I know better.” Dropping his gaze, he smoothed the blanket over his legs. Once, then again, as if trying to find an outlet for his nerves. “It doesn’t make sense. The thing kept me there, tied up for no reason.”
“Did he…did it” —Collin corrected himself for a second time— “Are you sure it never said anything?”
“Not that I could understand.” He shrugged, his mouth pulling down. “Sometimes it tried, but its voice was garbled. I guess because its face was mashed in. When it got close, it smelled weird. Like medicine. I mean…it had to be human, right? Like a mutation or something.” Eyes wide, he looked to Ivy for confirmation. The sound of trays clacking together intruded from the hallway.
“It had to be horrible,” she agreed.
“The thing was a living, breathing freak-show. I’m talking straight-on nightmare.”
Maya flinched. All through the discussion they’d been referring to Ford as it, unable to share his identity. It had to hurt Collin to hear his brother described in such a degrading manner. She stole a glance, but his expression was neutral.
“How did you end up back at the Old Orchard Truss Bridge?” he asked.
“I don’t know.” Graham shrugged, bony shoulders hunching up near his ears. “I passed out again. I remember the thing carrying me, tossing me around like a sack. There was water—I was freaking shivering—but the whole thing feels like a dream. It must have dumped me where it found me. That’s the only thing I can think of. I know the cops think I made everything up.” He looked between the three of them. “Have they found anything down there?”
“Not yet.”
Before Collin could say anything more, a perky blonde bustled in carrying a tray with a domed dinner plate and a can of ginger ale. “Good evening, Mr. Kingston. I hope you’re hungry.” Flashing a smile, she set the platter on a rollaway table. “It’s nice you have so many visitors.”
“We were just leaving.” Collin stood as the girl rolled the table closer to Graham’s bed.
“You don’t have to leave.” She seemed apologetic that dinner had interrupted the visit.
“It’s fine.” Collin managed a smile, then waited until she left. He shifted his attention to Graham. “I appreciate everything you told me.”
Maya had been around him enough to detect his distraction. “You’ve been so helpful,” she said to Graham. Sensing the visit coming to an end, she stood. “Dinner smells good.”
“Passable.” Ivy pulled the dome off the plate revealing a slab of Salisbury steak, a lump of mashed potatoes and a spoonful of green beans. “Since I’m staying for the evening, looks like I’ll be hitting the cafeteria.”
“I wish I could, too.” Graham wrinkled his nose. “But I guess I can’t complain. After freeze-dried shit and jerky, almost anything is gourmet.”
Collin grinned and clapped him lightly on the back. “Take care of yourself.”
“Was I of any help?” Graham shot him an expectant glance.
“Plenty.”
“I still don’t understand why it was so important you hear all of this stuff.” Graham picked up his fork. “Was it because of Tina? Because you found her?”
“Yeah.
Maya’s gaze darted to Collin. Neither of them would admit Tina was only part of it.
