Читать книгу Shallow Grave - Карен Харпер - Страница 13

5

“Welcome,” Claire told Bronco and Nita as they came in the front door. “So glad to see you under much better circumstances.”

Bronco nodded. Nita carried a basket with a salad. Little did she know that she’d be going home this evening with a diamond ring. Surely she’d accept Bronco’s proposal. All they needed was more upheaval of any kind today.

Bronco and Nita had fallen in love when they’d first worked for Claire and Nick. They had known Bronco longer, ever since the first South Shores “murdercide” case they had worked together. They had hired Nita as Lexi’s nanny when their family was endangered, so they had been blessed to have both Bronco and Nita as aides and friends.

Bronco was a big, burly guy with the proverbial heart of gold, one who used to make his living hunting gators and the huge constrictor snakes that bred in the depths of the Everglades and, like other animals, were encroaching on civilization. Nita was a young widow, a pretty Hispanic woman who was cousin to another of Nick’s employees, his tech guru Hector Munoz, called Heck, who was just getting out of his car in the driveway with his girlfriend, Gina.

Bronco was telling them, “Nita said we should cancel since we all been through too much today—’course, next to the Hoffman family, it’s nothing. But it’s her birthday, and we can be happy as well as sad.”

Nick took Nita’s basket while Claire and Nita hugged. “I agree,” Claire told them. “I think friends need each other at times like these.”

Bronco looked so nervous. She hoped that was from planning to propose, not from the terror earlier today. Much too up close and personal, she’d seen Bronco snap under pressure once, and she didn’t wish that on Nita or herself again.

Nick took their guests to the great room, where Claire had laid out appetizers and wine on the big glass coffee table surrounded by the grouping of leather sofas. Lexi was still up, but she’d agreed Nita could put her to bed tonight, “just like the old days,” as if the almost-five-year-old were ancient.

Claire held the door open as Gina and Heck came in, Gina with the coconut cake she’d made for Nita’s birthday. More greetings and hugs all around. Both Heck and Gina were of Cuban heritage and looked great together, though Heck had been in the States much longer. Sadly, he was more in love with Gina than she was with him, but Claire prayed things would work out for them.

They didn’t know about Bronco’s surprise for Nita tonight, so maybe that would spur on Heck and Gina, Claire thought, though Gina was starting med school in Miami in January. Both Nick and Heck were helping to finance that. Gina was living with a friend of theirs who had recently moved to South Florida from Michigan, Liz Collister, and Liz’s elderly father who had Alzheimer’s. Gina helped to tend him in exchange for living there until she left for med school.

Claire kept an eye on her baking scalloped potatoes, which Lexi had helped her fix after they both took a nap earlier. It hadn’t really refreshed Claire because she kept seeing the cage, the tiger—all that blood. So how must it be for poor Brittany? At least, like she had Darcy, Brittany would have her brother’s support soon.

Claire steadied herself with her hands on the granite counter of the kitchen island before joining the others just in time to kiss Lexi good-night as she disappeared with Nita down the hall to get tucked in—after being promised that they’d save a big piece of birthday cake for her.

Claire sat on the sofa next to Nick and picked up a glass of sparkling water, forgoing the wine.

“Bad day to have someone lose his life when I’m just starting a new one,” Bronco said, digging into the taco chips and spinach dip. Although Nita had left the room, he kept his voice low.

Gina, bright as ever, tossing her long, black hair, picked up on that. “Are you two going to make a big announcement?” she asked, lifting her wineglass as if in a toast.

“Hope so, but don’t you let on,” Bronco warned. “Got the ring here,” he said, patting his jacket pocket. “After dinner. In the gazebo.”

“She’ll say yes,” Gina said. “You’re her perfect catch.”

Heck said, “Like a fish or one of those denizens of the Glades he catches?”

Before Heck could make things more tense as he always seemed to lately, Claire put in, “Like a good man is hard to find, and Bronco’s a good find.”

“Sure. That’s what I meant, right, boss?” Heck asked Nick. “So you gonna end up taking this BAA case, if it comes to charges?”

“I don’t think it will, not serious ones anyway. I was just on scene—sadly—so I wanted to help out if I could. I can’t imagine a case against the family. I think Ben Hoffman must have somehow been distracted and made a big mistake—a fatal one.”

“Or,” Gina added, “it might have been an intentional one, suicide, but I can sure think of better ways to die.”

“Don’t say that,” Heck said, reaching out to take her wrist. “I’m just glad things are improving for us, after we’ve all been through hell and back. I’m sure Nita and Bronco’s future plans will only make things happier.”

“I couldn’t have said it better myself,” Nick said, leaning forward and lifting his glass.

Nita came back to join them and sat on the end of the sofa next to Claire near Bronco’s chair. “I can’t wait until your baby comes and I am back to help you with both Lexi and baby too. So hard to wait for good things you want. And yet I’m so very sad for the Hoffmans, as they are in mourning. I—I understand that.”

Nick said, “You’re right, Nita. It’s a shock when the world shifts so suddenly, terrific or terrible, but tonight, we’ll focus on the terrific. Agreed? Here’s to your birthday, the future Markwood baby and whatever else great comes along.”

The clink of glassware was the only sound for a moment, as the six of them toasted quietly, each, Claire assumed, with his or her own thoughts of love and loss. She sent up a silent prayer that Ann, Brittany and her brother, Lane, would get through their family tragedy together, as well as the setback for the animal sanctuary.

You never quite knew what was coming next in life, she admitted to herself, even if you thought you had things all planned out. Nita, whose first husband had died young in a fall from a roof, had no idea she would have the opportunity to start a new phase of her life tonight. Claire had never fathomed she’d marry Nick when she’d testified as an expert witness against one of his clients. Meanwhile, the little things in life went on as well as the big ones.

A strange, yet shared, moment of silence followed before real life set in again. Claire got up to be sure the salmon steaks were marinated enough, with Nita and Gina coming into the kitchen behind her while the men went out onto the patio to tend to the burning coals in the barbecue pit.

* * *

Exhausted, Brit had fallen asleep on Jace’s lap. His arms ached from holding her, but he sat still in the desk chair, listening to muted animal sounds outside. Brit had said the detective had questioned Jackson, who was like an overseer around here, then let him go back to tending the BAA denizens, so at least someone else was on the property besides the one keeper from the Naples Zoo who had stayed behind to keep an eye on Tiberia. The tiger was still lethargic from being drugged.

To Jace, this kind of felt like being in the jungle, not that he’d ever been. He longed to get up and turn on more lights, to get Brit and her mother out of here, take them home. But they were waiting for Brit’s brother to arrive after being told of the tragedy. Brit had talked to Lane’s wife who said he’d be here soon.

And Jace was aching with an almost physical pain over his friend’s tragic and weird death. He felt a sudden kinship to Jackson, the ubiquitous guy who oversaw the place, since he’d known Ben much longer. Jace wanted to sit and commiserate with him sometime. Misery in losing a good friend could love company.

Ben’s death just didn’t fit with the man he knew, the man who had befriended him and thought enough of him that he’d introduced him to his daughter and encouraged their romance. Ben was long retired from what he’d done in the marine corps, but he was mentally sharp and physically well trained and basically still in shape.

Jace admired that Ben had been in an elite section of the service, spent time on the Fleet Anti-terrorism Security Team, known as FAST. He’d been part of a fast-deployment team, armed and combat trained, ready to be sent around the world if there were threats. Ben had served in Panama in 1989 and in Desert Storm before he retired. And the guy had been so proud of his banner in the den at their house that read MARINE GRUNT: NO BETTER FRIEND, NO WORSE ENEMY. For sure, in the few months he’d known Ben Hoffman, despite one big upheaval, the man had been no better friend. And a guy who was fit and had served in a FAST unit—why in hell hadn’t he gotten fast out of that cage and why had he gone in there in the first place?

Jace, still holding Brit, blinked back tears, then wiped them away with one hand when he finally heard fast footsteps, then feet on the metal treads to the trailer. The door burst open, and Brit’s older brother Lane stood there, in shirt and tuxedo slacks but no jacket. It was a shock to see someone so dressed up here—a loosened bow tie and long-sleeved white shirt with cufflinks, no less. It was strange that Lane didn’t resemble his parents or his sister. He was blond but long-faced with a thin nose, but that all kind of went with his artistic look.

Brit came instantly awake and got groggily to her feet. Jace stood too, steadying her as he leaned against the desk and she went around it. He expected the two of them to hug, but they stopped ten feet apart.

Brit said, “I can’t believe it took you so long to get here.”

“Since Dad was dead, the orchestra manager made the decision to tell me after the concert. After all, I am first chair and key to everything.”

He peered around Brit. “Jace. Brittany, I see you had someone to comfort you anyhow. Where’s Mother?”

“In the little bed in back. She’s sedated. The tiger was too. Shock, of course—for Mother.”

“Yeah, well, we’re going to help her through this, but this just goes to prove what I said more than once, and none of you listened to me. This kiddy zoo was ridiculous from the get-go.”

“Not now, Lane, please,” Brit said. “And keep your voice down.”

“I’m not going to let her blow any death benefit money from Dad’s will or insurance on spiffing up this grade-C sideshow, so I’m serving you notice.”

“Death benefit money? Life insurance? On Dad? If he had that, it must have been recent. Anyway, not now. Let’s just sign a truce to get Dad’s body back from the medical examiner and help Mother make funeral arrangements.”

Jace was no whiz at insurance policies, though he’d sure seen and known fellow pilots who needed them. He’d made out a will in his midtwenties in case he never came back from the Middle East, let alone when he became copilot on international flights and had a young family. But if Nick did go further with this case, wouldn’t a big insurance policy taken out recently on a soon-to-be-dead man seem suspicious?

Coming around the desk, Jace said, “Brit, unless I can help you with something, I’ll head out, now that big brother’s here. Sorry for your loss, Lane, whatever your feelings about the BAA.”

“I’m sure they told you I think it’s nuts. Well, they weren’t exactly behind me when I majored in violin in college, paid my own way, playing for weddings, gigs in an Italian restaurant, things like that. They could have been at the matinee performance today where I had the solo, since I’m now first chair, and this wouldn’t have happened. They could have seen Lane Benjamin Hoffman playing Leopold Hofmann’s Symphony in A major.”

“Mother and I were coming Sunday afternoon, while Dad oversaw things here...oversaw...” she got out before her voice broke and she collapsed in sobs. Jace held her again, glaring at Lane over her head.

“Well,” Lane said, “since you haven’t taken Mother out of here yet, I’ll take her home in my car. Come along if you want. She obviously needs someone with her tonight. I’ll stay there for a while, and you’d better try to help her instead of all your pets here, especially that killer tiger you were so enamored with. I can’t believe Dad went into that cage on his own, can’t believe it.” His voice cracked, and he clamped his hand over his mouth either to stop from saying more or to keep from sobbing.

Finally, Jace thought, this jerk was showing some emotion. He’d obviously been hurt either as a child or lately—or both. Yeah, he understood a son being let down and damaged by his father, knew that up close and personal, so maybe this guy wasn’t so bad, just grieving in his own way.

Lane lowered his hand and went on in a shaky voice, “Maybe Dad was just going to shove the food in and fell in—or the cat grabbed him, pulled him in. He wouldn’t be drinking on a Saturday morning, would he?”

“Of course not,” Brit insisted, and blew her nose. “I’ll go see if we can get Mother up and moving. She wanted to stay here rather than go home before, wanted to be here where they were living their dream.”

“Your dream too,” Lane said under his breath as Brit opened the door to the smaller room and tiptoed in, closing the door behind her.

Jace felt torn about Lane. He came off as a self-centered, snobbish SOB, yet maybe Brit had been Daddy’s golden girl. Lane hadn’t taken more than a few steps into the room. He hadn’t hugged his sister. He sounded much more angry than grieved.

And, Jace thought, as the two of them stared at each other, though he was no forensic psych like Claire or a law genius like Nick, hadn’t this guy just spewed out at least two things that would suggest Ben Hoffman’s death wasn’t an accident? That maybe Ann Hoffman—Brit too—had benefited from his demise financially, and Lane himself emotionally?

* * *

Though it had been a hellish day earlier, Nick broke out a bottle of congratulatory champagne to toast Bronco and Nita. Claire and Gina kept fussing over her engagement ring.

“Pretty, huh?” Nick overheard Heck ask Gina. “You want one like that?”

“Maybe someday,” she told him with a tight smile and a toss of her dark hair.

Nick liked Gina, their Cuban refugee. She was bright and perceptive, which he was used to in Claire. Gina had picked up on the fact that Claire was wavering with exhaustion and had taken over hostess duties, insisting Claire stay put and telling the radiant Nita this was her special night and she should sit still while Gina brought in the goblets for Nick to pour the champagne.

Then Gina put dishes in the dishwasher while Claire and Nick said good-night to the newly engaged couple.

“So romantic, so bonita in the moonlight by the gazebo he built,” Nita was telling them at the front door.

Nick had his arm around Claire’s waist, in a way propping her up. He had to get her late-night meds into her, get her to bed. But he should have known his sweetheart had insisted on walking Bronco and Nita to the door for a special reason. He wasn’t surprised that she brought up a plan they had discussed recently.

“Nick and I would like to offer our gazebo, backyard and home for the wedding, if you want,” Claire told them.

“Right,” Nick put in. “You two talk it over and let us know. Or, if you want to be married in a church, the reception could be here. Just if you want—no pressure either way.”

Nodding madly, Nita started to cry again. “Lexi, she can be a flower child,” she told them.

“Flower girl,” Bronco whispered, his arm around her waist. “It would be a great honor—a great gift to us, but we buy the food and drinks, sí? If you two would stand with us, best man and best lady of honor, it could be here. You both already been so good to us. We’ll say yes now, ’cause we got reminded today that life can be over fast, bad things hit people they don’t see coming. Joy in life comes to you, but maybe teeth and claws too.”

As Claire and Nick went back inside, Nick said, “Pretty profound from Bronco.” Heck and Gina were heading toward them, holding hands. They said their goodbyes, then, when they were finally alone, Nick told Claire, “Now let’s get you to bed.”

“You’ll take the case if they ask you, right? It will be cut and dried, obviously an accident.”

“Just don’t you get involved. Obviously is a dangerous word in the practice of law.”

“And for forensic psychs who need to rely on observations, not feelings. I’m just so tired I’m not thinking straight—obviously.”

He kissed her, locked the front door behind them and led her toward the master bedroom, thinking with relief that there could not possibly be another day like this one.