Evil Never Dies (The Lizzy Gardner Series Book 6) (23 page)

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

Two days later, Lizzy walked out of the doctor’s office and headed straight for her car. She had an appointment with a real estate agent in Loomis. She’d seen the house on the Internet six months ago, had even shown it to Jared. He’d liked it, too. It was run-down and not very big, but it was set on ten acres. She’d only seen the pictures online, but if the house was even half as cozy and quaint as it looked to be in the pictures, she would make an offer. Jared had left her a tidy sum, including the proceeds from the sale of his house. She would sell the business, too, and would be able to live comfortably if she stayed within her means.

She couldn’t live with Kitally and Hayley forever, especially now that she knew she was going to have a baby.

After she drove up the long dirt road to the house, she stopped the car and realized the place was even better than she’d imagined. The house had been built in harmony with its natural surroundings. There were fruit trees and plenty of shade trees—a relaxed country setting. There was a pond and a rickety old barn in the foreground. It was hard to believe no one had scooped up the house months ago.

The agent greeted her at the door, took her on a leisurely tour. There were two bedrooms and a smaller room without a closet that could be made into an office if she ever felt the need. Overall it was small, just as she knew it would be, but the high ceilings and open floor plan made it feel airy and spacious. She and the agent turned on faucets and discussed water wells and the two inches of irrigation water she would get during the summer.

When they were done, Lizzy told her she wanted to make an offer. There wasn’t any furniture, so they stood at the kitchen counter and drew up the papers. The agent said she would be in touch.

Lizzy’s next stop was the cemetery. The place was beautiful and well kept. In the distance there was a funeral taking place—mourners dressed in black, heads down. Lizzy walked past rows of grand headstones. She stopped to view one weathered sandstone marker that appeared to be as old as time. “1892, Corrie Perrelman, beloved wife, mother, and sister.”

Jared’s grave marker was a good long walk from where she’d started out, but the headstone was clean and the grass around his marker had been mowed recently. She stood there, taking it all in. It was a peaceful day. Blue skies dotted with a few puffy white clouds. After a moment, she took a seat on the grass close to his marker. “I put an offer on that house I showed you,” she said. “The one with the acreage in Loomis. You liked it, and you said something about how it would make a good place for our kids to run around.” She hadn’t meant to cry, but the tears rolled freely as she talked. “We’re having a baby, Jared. You and me. Isn’t that a kick in the pants?”

She used a sleeve to wipe her face. “I want to thank you for everything. For bringing me back to life and for this child I’m carrying inside me.” She took a moment to breathe before she added, “I screwed up, Jared. I thought I could take the law into my own hands and dish out some vengeance, but I was wrong. I want you to know that I’m going to do everything I can to get the girls back on track. And this baby of ours,” she went on, her voice wavering, “is going to be brought up surrounded by love.” She brushed her fingertips over his headstone. “Everything’s going to be OK.”

Against her will, the image of Wayne Bennett rose up in her mind, and she prayed what she’d just said was true.

When Lizzy walked into the house a few hours later, there was lots of chatter. Hayley and Kitally had returned.

Betty Ackley, the woman Kitally had been working with at Shady Oaks, sat on the couch, fussing over the baby. Kitally and Hayley were there, too. Female names for Salma’s baby were still being tossed out there, everything from Alicia to Zoey, as Salma passed around another Pakistani dish. This one was called besan ladoo. The minute Salma saw Lizzy enter the room, she rushed over to greet her. “So? When is the due date?”

Lizzy frowned. “How did you know?”

“I was the one who told Hayley and Kitally that you were pregnant. It was so obvious.”

The room grew quiet until the only noise was the low rumble of a motor outside. Through the window, Lizzy saw Gus pushing a lawn mower through overgrown grass and weeds.

Hayley looked at her and said, “So, what’s the verdict?”

“It appears everyone knew I was pregnant except me. Looks like we’re having a baby.”

They all let out a cheer of some sort. Kitally rushed over to give her a congratulatory squeeze. “When are you due?”

“September 5.”

There was a lot to celebrate that day. They had all played a part in putting away the Sacramento Strangler. For now, citizens of Sacramento could breathe easier again.

And that wasn’t all. Kitally, Betty, Gus, and the others, had all gathered at the house for a reason. Shady Oaks Nursing Home was going out of business. Stacey Whitmore with Channel 10 News was covering the story.

Kitally hit Pause on the remote and then ran to the back door and called Gus inside.

Once everyone was present, Hayley picked up the remote, hit Play, then turned the volume up. “Stacey Whitmore here, reporting from the Shady Oaks Nursing Home in Orangevale.”

The reporting had been prerecorded.

Behind Stacey Whitmore, Shady Oaks was crawling with FBI agents.

“Look,” Kitally said, “they’re bringing Dixie out in handcuffs. She’s being arrested along with the owners and two other orderlies.”

“After the sudden death of Gus Valentine’s wife,” Stacey Whit
more was saying, “a tip from a resident of Shady Oaks
prompted Gus Valentine and an investigator to do some snooping around. What they found prompted state officials to look into the matter. When investigators reviewed the medical records of Helsie Valentine, they determined she had died of ailments often related to poor care, including dehydration and an infected ulcer. Officials have since concluded that former resident Mary Branham’s demise was hastened by the inappropriate administration of antipsychotic drugs, which can have lethal side effects for seniors.

“The owners and five of their orderlies have declined to speak. The criminal case is ongoing. Health care regulators have already taken action, restricting Shady Oak’s medical license. The federal government is likely to move to fine the home’s owners upwards of half a million dollars.”

Kitally held up a fist and gave Gus a knuckle bump.

“You did it, kiddo.”

“
We
did it, Gus. You, me, and Betty.”

Wayne Bennett was hardly recognizable. Detective Chase stood at his bedside and took notes. He tried not to look at the man for too long, as it was hard not to wince at his swollen mess of a face. Bennett had been at Sutter General for days now, but this was the first time the man was able to talk.

“If you don’t arrest Lizzy Gardner,” Bennett was saying, “I’ll have every one of your boys scrutinized. They won’t be able to bet on a
Monday Night Football
game with their friends without getting written up. Do you hear me, Chase?”

“Do you have any proof that Lizzy Gardner was responsible for what happened to you?”

“I saw her with my own two eyes. Is that proof enough, Detective?”

“I thought you said your face was covered by a ski mask.”

Bennett tried to give him a winning smile, but he failed miserably. One of his eyes was swollen shut. His nose had been taped, and his upper lip had been sliced through and then patched up with stitches and tape. His signature flash of straight white teeth was nowhere to be seen. “It was her! I recognized her voice,” Bennett said. He pushed one of the buttons on his bed and told the nurse to get him a painkiller and make it quick.

He looked back at Chase. “I have security cameras. I’m sure I’ve got all the proof you need, Detective. Just don’t make the same mistake you made in DC.”

“What’s that?”

Bennett grimaced in pain. After a moment, he said through gritted teeth, “I know everything about you, Detective. I know why you were demoted, and what good did it do? You knew Mark Falcon owned the police station, but you went after his son anyhow.”

“His son was bad news.”

Bennett chuckled. “Yeah, I know. So why was he let out after serving two months of a six-year sentence?”

Chase kept quiet, let Bennett have his say. What Bennett said was true, but Chase knew he’d done the right thing. He’d do it again. He’d done all he could do to make sure Falcon’s rapist son got a fair trial and was put away. The kid needed to be taught a lesson. But Falcon’s son was released too soon, and Chase was demoted for his efforts. He had refused to play office politics, and that had landed him here in Sacramento.

“You refused to violate your own sense of morals, and for what?” Bennett said. “You have a lot to learn, Detective. If you want to impress the higher-ups, you’re going to have to impress me first. The guy with the money gets the last say. I’m that guy.”

“Are you finished?”

The nurse came in and was about to ask for privacy when Bennett shut her up and told her to just give him the damn shot.

She folded the sheet over and did as she was told.

Chase saw a crisscross of deep red welts across his ribs, stomach, and legs. It appeared every part of him had been left with a mark. Even Bennett’s face would more than likely be left with permanent scars.

There was something very satisfying about seeing how the creep had been brutalized, but at the same time he worried about Lizzy. If she was responsible, and even if she wasn’t, Bennett was going to make her pay for sticking her nose in his business.

Chase had seen enough. He headed for the door.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“I’m going home.”

“We’re not finished here, Detective.”

“Oh, yes we are. If you have anything more to say, you give me a call and I’ll send someone over.”

“Get your ass back in here,” Chase heard the man call out as he walked toward the elevator.

Lizzy wasn’t surprised when she heard from Detective Chase. He told her he had some questions for her, but he wanted her to meet him at his house. He told her lunch would be served, and that she should arrive prepared to eat.

She figured it was about Bennett. She didn’t have to play detective to discover Bennett was in the hospital with multiple contusions, a fractured wrist, and some internal bleeding. Nothing that couldn’t be fixed. Once Bennett was released, she and the girls would be on red alert. She continued to work with the prosecutor, Grady Orwell. Until Bennett was locked up, nobody was safe. Nobody.

Lizzy arrived at Chase’s house right on time. When he opened the door to let her in, she couldn’t help but smile at his appearance. Over a pair of beige slacks and a button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled to his elbows was a full-length white apron.

“Looks like you’re doing some serious cooking.”

“Cooking is serious business. Come on in.”

Lizzy followed him inside. Everything looked the same as the last time she was here: single-hole golf course where the dining room table should be, television on in the other room. Detective Chase headed for the kitchen, where he slipped on an oven mitt, opened the oven, and pulled out crusty Italian bread covered in bubbling cheese and tomato sauce—operating entirely with one hand, as he still wore a sling on his left arm.

“How’s the arm?”

“It’s been better. It’ll get there. Time to heal is all it needs.”

“Smells good,” she said.

“Today we’re having eggplant and mozzarella melt. I hope you like garlic butter and eggplant Parmesan.”

“It looks delicious.”

He’d set places for them in front of stools at the kitchen counter. He poured them both a tall glass of cold milk and then sat down next to her and dug in.

She took a bite. “Delicious. Where did you learn to cook?”

“Mom. She’s Italian. Best cook in all of New York City.”

After she’d finished about half of her open sandwich, it had become clear he wasn’t in a hurry to have a conversation about whatever he had called her here to talk about.

“So, what’s this about? Why am I here, Detective?”

He washed his last bite down with half a glass of his milk and then used his napkin to wipe his mouth. “OK, I’m feeling better now. I needed that.”

She waited.

“It’s about Bennett.”

“What about him?”

“I was called to the hospital to take the report. Apparently he was attacked after arriving home from work. He said there were three people working on him, but he only heard two voices. Both female.”

“Hmm. Interesting.”

“He was beat up pretty bad. Fractured nose, broken wrist, lacerations deep enough to require over a hundred stitches.”

“Why are you telling me this? I can’t say he didn’t deserve it.”

“You already know he’s a very powerful man.”

“He’s a child molester and a rapist, and you and I both know he killed Miriam Walters, otherwise she would have turned up by now. I’m sure you’ve heard about Olimpia Padula? The girl in his program who drowned in the bathtub?”

“She was a drug addict. It happens all the time.”

“Chase, listen to what you’re saying. Did you ever talk to the girl?” Lizzy shook her head. “I did. Olimpia hadn’t taken drugs since she was fifteen. She went straight. She worked hard. Hard enough to be accepted into Bennett’s program for honor students.” Lizzy tapped a finger on top of her head. “Use some logic. You don’t do
that
well in school if you’re doing drugs. And that’s not all. As he did to so many others, Bennett sexually assaulted Olimpia Padula, but this promising young woman was willing to testify against him.”

He sighed.

“It’s your problem now, though. I’m closing up shop. I’m done.”

That got his attention.

“Don’t look so glum. You should be thrilled that I won’t be causing you any more trouble.”

“Why now?”

“Because I’m pregnant.”

That seemed to take the air out of him.

“Jared and I are having a baby. I’m four months along.”

Detective Chase looked dumbfounded.

“I think I might have been every bit as stunned as you look right now when I found out.”