I toweled off in the bathroom, then stepped into Dan’s bedroom. I didn’t have much choice but to put most of my dirty clothes back on. I did borrow a T-shirt and sweater from Dan’s dresser. I hoped they would keep me from smelling too bad.
When I emerged, Dan was sitting at his desk, his books and laptop opened. But he didn’t seem to be doing any work. It looked like he was waiting for me to come out, like he wanted to talk.
“How are you doing?” he asked.
I knew he was probing, hoping to get insight into the deeper regions of my mind and soul. But who had time to go there?
“I’m fine,” I said.
“Crazy night,” he said.
“Is there more coffee?” I asked. “Or do you have tea?”
He stood up and went to the kitchen. He came back with coffee and two buttered pieces of toast. “I thought you’d be hungry.”
I was. I ate the toast so fast the crumbs flew like wood chips out of a chain saw. Dan watched me eat. Ordinarily that bothered me—it bothered me when anyone did. But today I didn’t care.
“I can make more,” he said. “Or eggs.”
“This will do for now,” I said. “They’ll be here soon.” I wiped my face with a napkin. “Thanks for letting us stay here last night. I know it’s crazy, me just showing up like that.”
“With a half sister I didn’t know you had.”
“It’s not boring around here,” I said. “Does that count for anything?”
“Not really.”
“Well, I do appreciate it,” I said. “You’ve been great.”
I downed the rest of the coffee. I needed the caffeine buzz.
“You seemed to be getting along well with Beth,” Dan said.
“Yeah,” I said. “We were thrown into the deep end together last night. But I guess being someone’s sibling is the same thing. You’re just thrown in with that person, and you have to figure out a way to make it work.”
“She’s going to make your life pretty full,” he said.
“It’s already full,” I said. “I have no idea what I’m doing at school. I have no idea what’s going to happen with Ronnie. For all I know, the cops are coming to the door with an indictment against him.”
“I understand,” he said. “I’m not trying to get you stirred up.”
“You’ve been a champ, Dan. Really. I couldn’t have made it through any of this without you.”
The doorbell rang. I went and opened it, but only after looking through the peephole first. I wondered whether that paranoia would last the rest of my life.
I let Richland and Post in. They both nodded at me and then at Dan. They looked somber and serious, which only set my mind to racing. I introduced them to Dan, but Richland explained they had met him the night before at the hospital.
“Right,” I said.
We all sat down. Richland asked, “Where were you last night?”
“Finding my long-lost half sister in Reston Point.” I nodded toward Detective Post. “I’m sure you told him about that, right? Elizabeth Yarbrough. The woman named in the will.”
Richland nodded as though he knew all about it, his big head bobbing almost comically. I hoped he appreciated the openness and transparency of his female partner.
“Is this woman around?” he asked. His hand rose in the air. “This half sister of yours?”
“She just left,” I said. “She went back to her house.”
The two detectives didn’t say anything.
“She had a family function,” I said. “A soccer game for one of her grandkids.”
“Do they play soccer games on Sunday?” Richland asked. “My kids always play on Saturday.”
“Hell,” I said. “I don’t know.” I had become more protective of Beth, even though I barely knew her. I didn’t want them to suspect her of anything, even though I could tell their detective radar was buzzing.
“We’ll have to talk to her soon,” Richland said. “And we will. But can you give us an idea of what you found out from her?”
“What I found out from her?” I asked. “Everything. I found out everything. A lifetime of stuff.”
“Care to share any of it?” Richland asked. “It might help bring some clarity to things we’ve been working on.”
“Is Ronnie okay?” I asked. “I haven’t seen him since yesterday.”
Post said, “He’s okay. No worries there.”
“Really?”
“Really,” she said. “Just give us a quick rundown of what you were doing last night. It’s important we know this.”
So I did. I told them about finding Elizabeth with the help of Neal Nelson. They didn’t look happy about that. I went on and told them about Beth’s story. The porn movies and her forced exile from Haxton, then coming back and eventually reconnecting with both Gordon and Mom. I shared her theory that Gordon had been blackmailing Mom, and when she cut the money off, he ended up killing her.
“I’ve seen the bank records,” I said. “She was giving money to somebody. And I can assure you it wasn’t me.”
Post and Richland didn’t look surprised by anything I told them. It seemed I was merely confirming what they already suspected.
Richland asked, “So you didn’t know this Elizabeth Yarbrough woman existed until your mom died?”
“Not until I saw the will.”
“And you believe she’s your half sister?” he asked.
“She looks a hell of a lot like Mom. And me. And she knew a lot about Mom. If she’s not my half sister, she’s doing a good job convincing me.”
“Right,” Richland said. “And did she indicate the nature of her relationship with Gordon Baxter? Where do they stand now?”
“Just what I told you,” I said. “She was trying to get back in touch with Mom, and he was holding them apart to try to get money.”
“That’s what she said?” Richland asked.
“That’s what she told me.” I watched their faces. “Gordon knew where Beth—my half sister—was. And he told Mom he knew, but doled out the information in exchange for money. Look, my mom didn’t suffer fools gladly. I know that about her. It would be tough to take advantage of her. But this should tell you how much she wanted to see her daughter again. She was desperate. I feel terrible for my mother having to go through that.”
They didn’t say anything. They seemed to want me to say more.
“Are you wondering if I believe Beth?”
Richland shook his head. “Has she asked you for money?”
“No. I just met her yesterday. Besides, she’s getting money. A third of the estate. There’s life insurance. What are you getting at?”
Richland remained quiet for a moment, as if he was absorbing everything. Then he said, “Okay, we wanted to let you know where everything else stood, especially as it relates to your brother.”
“Okay,” I said.
I looked at Dan. He was sitting on the arm of the couch, his eyes focused on the cops. I felt alone and scared. I noticed how my hands shook as I tried to tuck a strand of my still damp hair behind my ear. I looked at the front door. I thought about running through it—just get up and go and not hear whatever was about to come.
Richland said, “We spoke to the doctors at the hospital this morning, and they seem to think it’s possible your brother could be released in a day or two. His vital signs are back to normal, and they want to get him to eat something today. If that goes well…”
He broke his sentence off. I leaned forward, waiting for the rest. What else was there? I looked back and forth between the two detectives.
Post smiled a little. “This is good, Elizabeth,” she said. “Our investigation has shifted its focus. We now believe Gordon Baxter is a person of interest in your mother’s death. We’re actively trying to locate him right now. Your story helps to fill in a few gaps we had.”
I wasn’t sure what I expected. Ticker tape. A choir of angels. They were telling me the most important news I had ever heard—Ronnie wasn’t a suspect in Mom’s death anymore. And not only that, his health was coming back. He was going to be okay in more ways than one.