“Hello father,” he whispered. “I’m not surprised you’re calling me.”
************
CHAPTER THIRTY
It was after his normal dinnertime before Derek reached the small town of Alexandria Bay, New York. Finding the resort was easy, though the summer tourists made navigating the small Alexandria Bay streets a challenge.
He checked into the resort and was told how fortunate he was that they had a cancellation and that he would be getting a river-view room with a balcony.
“The views of the seaway are spectacular,” the desk clerk insisted.
“Awesome,” Derek said. “And can you tell me how close my room is to the McClury’s? They’re good friends.”
“Let me check,” the clerk said as she fumbled her fingers across the computer’s keyboard. “We just installed a new server, and I am not super familiar with it yet.”
Minutes passed.
“You are on the fourth floor, and your friends are on the third. You’ll probably be able to see each other from your balconies.”
“Great, and thanks again for the upgrade,” Derek said.
Derek quickly made his way up to his fourth floor balcony room, dropped his overnight bag onto the king-sized bed, and walked out onto the balcony. It took Derek only a few seconds before he spotted Doctor Stanley Mix and his wife, Michelle. The couple was sitting on their balcony, and though Derek’s balcony was a hundred feet away, he could clearly see that Stanley didn’t look well.
He could see that Stanley was completely bald by the afternoon sun reflecting harshly off his head. His shirt was baggy and revealed his bony shoulders beneath its cover. Michelle was leaning towards her husband, elbows on her thighs and a smile filling her face. He couldn’t hear what they were saying, but whatever the topic of their conversation was, Derek was certain it had nothing to do with Alexander Black or any of the O’Connells.
Derek made his 8:00 call to Ken, but received only Ken O’Connell’s voicemail. He was glad that Ken hadn’t answered as he was unsure what he was planning on telling his client.
The next morning, Derek sat on his balcony and watched Michelle Mix sitting alone on her balcony, crying. Derek made sure that Michelle wouldn’t notice him as he sat in quiet confusion, watching. As he sat observing them, wondering what he would tell his client if Ken answered the scheduled 8:00 a.m. call, he saw Michelle stand quickly and move into their room. It was several minutes before he saw motion. Slowly, even more slowly than Derek expected, he watched Michelle help her ailing husband out on to the deck and into one of the lounge chairs. After Stanley was seated, Derek watched as Michelle caressed his face and kissed him on the forehead. She held his hand as she spoke to him, with a smile flooding her face. She then turned towards the room, help up five fingers, smiled again, and disappeared into the room.
Derek quickly moved into his room, put on his sneakers, and headed down to the lobby of the resort. He felt he needed to see Michelle and hopefully speak to her before checking in with Ken O’Connell. Though he had no idea what he would say if given the chance to speak with her, he felt she deserved to know who he was, who we worked for, and what his charge was.
Once in the lobby, Michelle was easy to mark. Though in her fifties, she possessed a comfortable elegance. Her shiny, dark hair and well-conditioned body made her look much younger from a distance. But as Derek drew close and could see the effects of her husband’s illness etched on her face, he knew that cancer affects loved ones as hard as it affects those stricken with the disease.
“Michelle Mix?” he said when he was close enough to Michelle but far enough away from others to hear. “My name is Derek Cole, and I’ve been hired by Ken O’Connell to verify your location. I want to let you know that I’m going to tell Mr. O’Connell that you checked out of this resort before I arrived.”
Michelle’s deep eyes just stared back at Derek’s. She said nothing, but nothing needed to be said.
“I’ve checked in under the name Robert Mendelsohn and have reservations for another night. I know your husband is ill and weak, but I am willing to help you two move into my room. I’ll take care of checking you out.”
“Why are you doing this?” she said as tears reluctantly filled her eyes.
“You don’t deserve what my client wants to put you through. Honestly, I don’t know what your husband deserves, but whatever it is that he does deserve, I think he is already experiencing it.”
“Will Ken believe you?”
“He will. I can be a very good and convincing liar.”
“My husband is hungry. Can we move after he eats?” she asked, revealing how vulnerable she felt her position was. She recognized that all Derek need do is to contact Ken O’Connell, let him know that he’d found them and within hours, the little time Stanley had left in this world would be spent in a living hell of embarrassment, police questioning, possibly being arrested, and who knows what else. Michelle knew what Derek was offering was her only chance to spend the rest of her husband’s days with him in relative peace.
“Of course,” Derek answered. “And I would like to fill you in on what has happened over the last couple of days.”
“No offense, Derek, but I don’t really want to know. I know that Alexander Black escaped from wherever Straus held him captive, and I know that he’s killed several people.”
“I’m not sure who did the killing, actually.”
“I hope I’m not being rude, considering all that you are offering to do for my husband and me, but, please, I don’t want to know.”
“Fair enough,” Derek said. “Bring up your breakfast, enjoy it with your husband. Then, move your things to room 421,” he said as he handed over the credit-card style room key. “If you need help moving your things, tell me now because I am leaving as soon as you head up to your room.”
“No,” Michelle said, shaking her head. “I’ll be fine. But how long is your room reserved for?”