Best Kept Secrets (16 page)

Hot, salty tears leaked from her eyes. She whispered a name, urgently and repeatedly. She ground the heel of her hand over her lower body to relieve the pain of emptiness inside her womb, which had been a receptacle for his body, but never his love.

Fourteen

"Hey, what the hell, you two?" Junior exclaimed, dividing his puzzled glance between Alex and Reede. Then, buffeted by a gust of wind, he moved out of the doorway and urged them inside. "Come in. I couldn't imagine who'd come calling on a day like this. Reede, you ought to have your head examined for dragging Alex all the way out here."

He was wearing an ancient pair of jeans with the knees worn through, a cotton sweater, and thick white socks. It looked like he hadn't been up very long. In one hand he was holding a steaming mug of coffee; in the other, a trashy paperback novel. His hair was appealingly mussed. Stubble shadowed the lower half of his face.

Having recovered from the surprise of finding them on his doorstep, he smiled down at Alex. She thought he looked terrific and figured that most of the women in the world would agree with her. He looked lazy and rich, sexy and rumpled, comfortable and cushy. He invited snuggling, and his slow smile suggested that's what he'd been doing when they had interrupted.

"I didn't drag her out here," Reede said touchily. "It was the other way around."

"I was willing to come alone," Alex snapped.

"Well, I wasn't willing to let you become a highway statistic in my county," he shouted. Turning to Junior, who was bemusedly taking in their heated exchange, Reede said, "To make a long story short, I drove her out here because she was determined to come and I was afraid she'd kill herself

--or worse, somebody else--on these roads. So, here we are."

"Well, I'm damned glad you're here," Junior said. "I had resigned myself to spending a boring day here alone.

I've got a great fire going in the living room, and all the makings for hot toddies. Follow me." He set off, but turned and added, "Oops, Reede, you know how Mother is about having the floors tracked up. Better take your boots off."

"Fuck that. Is Lupe in the kitchen? I'm gonna try and sweet-talk her out of some breakfast." Giving no regard to Sarah Jo's floors, he tramped toward the back of the house as though he still lived there.

Alex watched him disappear through a doorway. "Did he say sweet talk!" she asked caustically.

"Oh, he's in a sunny mood today," Junior remarked negligently.

"You ought to see him when he's really pissed.

Leave Reede to Lupe. She knows how he likes his eggs. He'll feel better once he eats."

Alex let him help her off with her coat. "I hope this isn't too much of an intrusion."

"Hell, no. I wasn't kidding when I said I'm glad you're here." He threw his arm across her shoulders. "Let's--"

"Actually," Alex said, shrugging off his arm, "this isn't a social call."

"Business, huh?"

"Yes, and extremely important. Is Angus here?"

"He's in his den." His smile was still in place, but it had stiffened.

"Is he busy?"

"I don't think so. Come on, I'll take you back."

"I hate to tear you away from your novel."

He glanced dubiously at the torrid cover. "Doesn't matter.

It was getting monotonous."

"What's it about?"

' 'A legendary cock's sojourn through most of the bedrooms in Hollywood, both male and female."

"Oh, really?" Alex inquired, feigning interest. "Can I borrow it when you're finished?"

"Shame on you," he exclaimed. "I'd be corrupting the morals of a minor, wouldn't I?"

"You're not that much older than I am."

"Compared to Reede and me, you're a baby," he told her as he opened the door to the den. "Dad, we've got company."

Angus glanced up from his newspaper. In the span of several seconds his face registered surprise, irritation, then a smile.

"Hello, Angus. I hate to disturb you on a sleep-in morning like today."

"No problem. There's not much going on. We can't exercise racehorses outdoors when the ground's frozen." He left his red leather recliner and crossed the room to welcome her. "You're a bright spot on a gloomy day, that's for damn sure, hey, Junior?"

"I've already told her as much."

"But as I've told Junior," she hastened to say, "this isn't a social visit."

"Oh? Sit down, sit down." Angus waved her toward a tufted leather love seat.

"I'll just--"

"No, Junior, I'd like for you to stay," Alex said before he could withdraw. "This concerns all of us."

"Okay, shoot." Junior straddled the overstuffed arm of the love seat as though it were a saddle.

"I spoke to Judge Wallace again yesterday." Alex thought she saw both men tense, but it was so fleeting, she could have imagined it.

"Any particular reason why?" Angus asked.

"I wanted to have my mother's body exhumed."

There was no mistaking their reaction this time. "Jesus, girl, why in hell would you want to do something like that?"

Angus shuddered.

"Alex." Junior reached for her hand, laid it on his thigh, and massaged the back of it. "Isn't this getting a little out of hand? That's . . . that's gruesome."

"The case is gruesome," she reminded him as she eased her hand off his thigh. "Anyway, as I'm sure you know, what I asked for is impossible. My mother's body was cremated."

"That's right," Angus said.

"Why?" Her eyes were bright and intensely blue in the dim room. They reflected the fire burning in the fireplace, making them appear accusatory.

Angus resettled in his chair and hunched his shoulders defensively. "It seemed the best way to handle things."

"I fail to see how."

"Your grandmother planned to leave town with you as soon as everything was tidied up. She made no secret of it.

So I decided to have Celina's body cremated, thinking that Merle might want to take the, uh, remains with her."

"You decided? By what right, Angus? Under whose authority?

Why was it left to you to decide what would happen to Celina's body?"

His brows beetled with displeasure. "You think I had her body cremated to destroy evidence, is that it?"

"I don't know!" she exclaimed, rising from the love seat.

She moved to the window and stared out at the empty paddocks. Lights shone through the doors of various stables, where horses were being groomed, fed, and exercised. She had thoroughly researched Minton Enterprises. Angus had millions invested in this facility. Was he reticent because he had so much to lose if she won an indictment, or because he was guilty, or both?

Eventually, she turned to face the men. "You've got to admit, in retrospect, that it seems an odd thing for you to have done."

"I only wanted to relieve Merle Graham of that responsibility.

I felt I should because her daughter had been killed on my property. Merle was out of her mind with grief and had you to take care of. If what I did seems suspicious now, that's just too damn bad, young lady. I'd make the same decision if I had to do it again today."

"I'm sure Grandma Graham appreciated what you did. It was an unselfish thing to do."

Shrewdly, Angus looked at her and said, "But you wish you could believe it was entirely unselfish."

She looked him straight in the eye. "Yes, I do."

"I respect your honesty."

For a moment there was no sound in the room other man the friendly, crackling noise of burning firewood. Alex broke the awkward silence. "I wonder why Grandma didn't take the remains."

' 'I wondered about that myself when I offered them to her.

I think it was because she couldn't face the fact that Celina was dead. An urn of ashes was tangible proof of something she couldn't accept."

Knowing how obsessed her grandmother had been with Celina's life, his explanation was feasible. Besides, unless Merle came out of her coma and Alex posed the question to her, she had no alternative but to accept as truth what Angus told her.

He was absently massaging his big toe through his sock.

"I couldn't see storing her ashes in a mausoleum. I never could stand vaults and tombs. Goddamn spooky things. The very thought of them gives me the creeps. Went to New Orleans once. All those cement graves sitting on top of the ground . . . ugh."

He shook his head in repugnance. "I'm not afraid of dying, but when I go, I want to become part of the living again.

Dust to dust. That's the natural cycle.

"So it seemed fitting to buy a cemetery plot and have Celina's ashes buried in the soil she grew up on. Guess you figure I'm a crazy old man, Alex, but that's how I felt about it then, and that's how I feel about it now. I didn't tell anybody because I was embarrassed. It was so sentimental, you see."

"Why not just scatter the ashes somewhere?"

He pulled on his earlobe as he pondered the question. "I thought about it, but I reckoned you might turn up one day and want to see where your mama was laid."

Alex felt her spirit slump, along with her posture. Lowering her head, she studied the toes of her suede boots, which were still damp from walking through the sleet. "I guess you think I'm a ghoul for wanting to open her grave. Reede did."

Angus made a dismissive gesture. "Reede's trigger-happy when it comes to forming opinions. Sometimes he's wrong."

She drew a shaky breath. "This time he is. Believe me, it wasn't an easy thing to even consider, much less ask for.

I just thought that an extensive forensic investigation might shed some light ..."

Her voice trailed off. She lacked the will and conviction to continue. Yesterday she had thought that an exhumation might provide the physical evidence she needed. As it had turned out, she was no closer to learning the truth, and all she had to show for her efforts was the traumatic upheaval she'd put herself and everyone else through.

Angus's explanation sounded so damned plausible and guileless. Paying all the funeral expenses, making all the arrangements, had been an act of charity to alleviate her grandmother's grim responsibility and financial burden.

Alex earnestly wanted to believe that. As Celina's daughter, it made her feel good inside. As a prosecutor, however, it left her empty-handed and frustrated and more suspicious than ever that something had been swept under the rug.

"You ready to go back to town, or what?"

Reede was standing in the doorway with his shoulder propped against the frame, insolently maneuvering a toothpick from one side of his mouth to the other. He might have eaten breakfast, but his tone of voice let her know that his foul disposition remained intact.

"Yes, I'm ready, if you'd be so kind as to drive me."

"Good. The sooner I get back to work, the better. Somebody's got to ride herd on the crazy sons of bitches out driving in this."

"As long as you're out here, why don't you spend the day by the fireplace?" Junior suggested to Alex. "We could pop popcorn. Celina used to love that. Maybe we could talk Lupe out of a batch of pralines. I could drive you back later when the roads have cleared."

"It sounds wonderful, Junior, thank you, but I've got work to do."

He wheedled charmingly, but she remained adamant. The Mintons walked her and Reede to the door. She didn't see Sarah Jo. If she were even aware that she had guests in the house, she made no effort to present herself.

Angus looped Alex's arm through his as they made their way down the hall. He spoke softly. "I know this is difficult for you, girl."

"Yes, it is."

"Heard anything about your grandma?"

"I phone the nursing home every day, but there's been no change."

"Well, holler if you need anything, you hear?"

Alex gazed at him with genuine puzzlement. "Angus, why are you being so nice to me?"

"Because of your mama, because I like you, and mainly, because we've got nothing to hide."

When he smiled at her, Alex realized that it was easy to see where Junior had come by his charm. He and Reede were engaged in their own conversation. Alex overheard Reede say, "Ran into one of your old girlfriends last night at the Last Chance."

Her ears picked up at the mention of the tavern where she had an appointment later that day.

"Oh, yeah?" Junior was saying. "Who was that?"

"Gloria something. Forgot her married name. Curly black hair, dark eyes, big tits."

"Gloria Tolbert. How'd she look?"

"Horny."

Junior gave a dirty and masculine laugh. "That's Gloria.

Takes a strong man to keep her satisfied."

"You ought to know," Reede said drolly.

"Well, what happened last night, you lucky bastard? Did you leave a contented smile on Gloria's pretty face?"

"You know I never discuss my love life."

"That's just one of your traits that irritates the hell out of me."

Alex turned around in time to see Junior playfully sock Reede in the gut. His fist bounced back like he'd struck a drum.

"Is that the best you can do, old man?" Reede taunted.

"Admit it, Minton, you're losing it."

"Like hell I am." Junior took a swipe at Reede's head.

The blow was dodged just in time. Reede tried to catch Junior behind the knee with his boot. They fell against the hall table, almost toppling a ceramic vase.

"Okay, boys, cut it out before you break something,"

Angus said indulgently, speaking to them as though they were still in grade school.

Alex and Reede pulled on their coats and he opened the door. The frigid wind swirled inside. Junior said, "Sure you can't stay here where it's cozy?"

"I'm afraid not," Alex replied.

"Shoot. Well, good-bye then." He pressed her hand between his and kissed her cheek.

Father and son watched as Reede assisted Alex over the icy stone walkway to where his Blazer was parked. He helped her up into the truck, then went around to the driver's side god vaulted in.

"Brrr," Junior said, shutting the door. "Ready for a hot toddy, Dad?"

"Not yet," Angus answered with a scowl. "It's too early in the day to be drinking hard liquor."

"Since when have you taken into consideration the time of day when you wanted a drink?"