An Unexpected Song (16 page)

“No,” she whispered. “Hold me.”

His hand tenderly brushed through the thickness of her loosened hair lying on the pillow. “I shouldn’t … You need to sleep.”

She shook her head and held her arms out to him. “Hold me.”

He stood up and slid onto the narrow hospital bed beside her, his arms clasping her close. Her hair was caught beneath his shoulder and his cheek was pressed against her cheek. Then, incredibly, she felt something warm and moist on her temple.

“No,” she murmured, her arms tightening around him protectively. “Don’t be sad. I’ll take care … of you.”

“Will you?” His voice was unsteady as his lips tightened. “I think that should be my job, love.” His lips brushed her cheek. “Don’t worry, just go to sleep. You’re going to be fine.”

She wanted to tell him she had to worry if he was in trouble. Didn’t he know that was what love was all about? Perhaps he didn’t know. He was so guarded and alone. In her own hurt and unrest she hadn’t realized how sad he was in his loneliness.

“Stay with me,” she whispered. She was too tired to help him now, but as soon as she woke up she would take care of him.…

“I’ll stay,” he said thickly. “I’ll stay, love.”

*    *    *

Jason was gone and Eric was sitting in the chair beside her bed when she opened her eyes again. Disappointment surged through her.

“It’s okay.” Eric swiftly leaned forward and clasped her hand. “Don’t be afraid.”

“Why should I be afraid?” Her throat felt dry and her stomach hollow. Otherwise she felt entirely well. Then a thought occurred to her and her gaze flew to his face. “Jason’s all right, isn’t he?”

Eric nodded. “You’re the one who had to have her stomach pumped.”

That’s why her stomach felt so odd and her throat so sore. She reached up and rubbed her temple as the memory of those last moments before she collapsed came back to her. “The wine … it was bad.”

“The wine was poisoned.”

Daisy’s gaze flew back to his face. “Poisoned!”

He nodded. “You’re lucky you had only a small sip. Any more and nothing Jason could have done would have been enough.”

“I don’t understand.” She moistened her lips with her tongue. “Kevin thought you sent me the wine.”

He blinked. “Lord, no. It was Cynthia. For once she slipped up. Since you grew up in Europe, she knew you’d be knowledgeable about wines, so she had to choose one that would be sure to tempt you. That Chateau and vintage was rare enough so that the police had no trouble tracing it to her as the purchaser.”

She shook her head dazedly. “Why? I don’t even know her.”

“Unfortunately, she considered you to be in her way. That was all that was important to her.”

She looked at him blankly. “That’s crazy.”

“Exactly,” he said simply.

“She’s unbalanced?”

He nodded. “But not in any detectable way. She’s what the psychology books refer to as a sociopath. She’s totally without understanding or feeling for the suffering of other people. All she relates to is her own feelings.” He paused. “And she has no conscience.”

“You make her sound like a monster.”

“Oh, she is.” He smiled bitterly. “A very clever monster. The quintessential bad seed. When she began to realize she wasn’t like other people, she began to study all the books on abnormal psychology to get information she could use to protect herself. She intended to do exactly as she wished and not pay the price. But to do that she had to know what was considered abnormal in a normal world. Cynthia’s been given batteries of psychological tests and come out smelling like the proverbial rose. As I said, she’s a very clever monster.” His hand tightened on hers. “That’s why we tried to protect you.”

She sat up in bed, gazing at him in bewilderment as the pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place. “You’ve all been lying to me. You weren’t afraid I’d be bothered by reporters.”

“Jason didn’t want to worry you. He figured you had enough on your plate with the rehearsals.” He shrugged. “So we decided to protect you without your knowing it.”

“You both treated me as if I were a helpless idiot.” She shook her head. “Maybe I was an idiot, a blind idiot. Don’t you think it’s time I was told what this is all about?”

“That’s why Jason asked me to come here. What do you want to know?”

“Everything,” she said curtly. “Start at the beginning.”

“My father married Cynthia’s mother when Cynthia was sixteen—”

“Not that far back, I meant—”

“You said the beginning. That’s where it started for Jason.”

Jason had married the monster when he was scarcely more than a boy. What must his life have been like after making a mistake like that? “You’re right. Go on.”

Eric started again, “Jason was different then.” His lips twisted. “You couldn’t imagine the difference. He was still absorbed in his music, but he was more open, trusting. He reached out to life. He had just gotten a scholarship from Juilliard and was wild with joy.” He paused. “Then Cynthia appeared on the scene. She was even more beautiful than she is now. Younger, and she appeared to be so vulnerable.” His lips tightened. “And a damn good actress. She was never out of character. Always the gentle, fragile little sister. She never paid much attention to me, but she formed an attachment for Jason and followed him everywhere.”

“I can’t see Jason putting up with that.”

“I told you he was different.” He frowned. “There’s something you have to understand about Jason, one of his prime drives is the desire to protect. Cynthia picked up on that right away and used it.”

“He fell in love with her?”

He shook his head. “He was too much in love with his music at that time, and besides, Cynthia screwed up. She played so much on his protective side that by the time she decided she wanted to
get him into bed, he thought of her as a little sister and would no more have touched her than he would have committed incest.”

“But he married her.”

“Because she got herself pregnant,” he said bluntly. “She came to Jason crying about this creep who knocked her up and then deserted her.”

“She lied?”

“No, not entirely. Cynthia always covered herself. She was pregnant all right, but Lord only knows who the father was. She convinced Jason she’d kill herself if her mother and stepfather found out she was pregnant.” His lips twisted bitterly. “It was a smart move. Jason knew the mess would hurt not only her but the family, so he took steps to prevent it. He told everyone the baby was his and he eloped with Cynthia.”

She murmured, “What a quixotic gesture in this day and age.”

“But not unusual for Jason, not the man he was then. He worked day and night to support both of them and still keep up his studies at Juilliard. Cynthia had a little girl and named her Dana. Jason was crazy about the kid.” Eric stopped. “Too crazy. Cynthia began to resent Dana.”

“Her own daughter?”

“Dana was a tool that had served its purpose, and babies can be troublesome and messy.” He looked down at Daisy’s hand, which he was still holding. “The baby fell down the stairs and was killed when she was two.”

“No.” Daisy’s eyes widened with shock. “You’re saying …”

He nodded. “Cynthia appeared heartbroken and
Jason was nearly crazy with grief. No one suspected the death wasn’t an accident.”

“I can’t believe it.” Daisy felt sick. “No one would kill a helpless baby. Maybe it was an accident. She couldn’t—”

“Cynthia admitted it.” Eric interrupted. “A few months after the baby died, the marriage fell apart. Jason had no reason to stay and was going to leave Cynthia. She fell into a rage and told Jason she had killed the kid because she was jealous of the attention Jason gave her.”

“What did he do?” Daisy whispered.

Eric’s lips twisted. “As we both know, Jason isn’t exactly tame natured. If she hadn’t run out of the apartment, I think he would have killed her. Instead, he went to the police.” His expression turned bleak. “They questioned Cynthia, but she convinced the police Jason was bitter because she was divorcing him. Then he tried to commit her to a mental institution and, after two weeks of testing, the psychiatrists turned her out with a clean bill of health.”

“No!”

“She knew all the answers and the responses. She was so persuasive that by the time she left the hospital they had issued a report to the police that it was Jason who had the potential for being unbalanced and possibly had a persecution complex.”

“Dear God!” Daisy exclaimed. “What did he do?”

“What could he do? He had a choice of killing Cynthia and being tried for murder or trying to get on with his life. It wasn’t easy. Cynthia dogged his footsteps, begging him to go on with the marriage. No matter how harshly he rejected her, she
wouldn’t believe he meant it. He moved to California and tried to lose himself. She found him.” He paused. “And then the accidents started.”

“Accidents?”

“He had a beagle he loved. The dog ate rat poison. His secretary’s car’s brakes failed and she went over the cliff. She was in the hospital for over a year. His best friend had a boating accident and drowned. At first Jason thought he was some kind of jinx. Every time he grew close to someone they were either severely hurt or died a violent death. Then, gradually, he realized what was happening.”

“The police.”

“Accidents. I told you she was clever. Whenever he went to the police, that damn report surfaced saying he had a potential for paranoia. She cut him off, isolated him from anyone or anything he cared about. If it had been a personal attack on him, he could have dealt with it, but he couldn’t risk hurt to anyone he cared about. He was afraid to let anyone close to him.” He touched his chest. “Even me. Finally, he bought several hundred acres in Connecticut, built Eaglesmount, and devoted himself to his work.”

“I can’t believe it. He’s been living in a nightmare all these years. Why didn’t someone help him?” She glared at him accusingly. “Why didn’t you help him?”

“I told you how protective he was. I tried to convince him I didn’t care about the risk.” He flushed. “But then I met Peg and the kids came and I—”

“So you let him stay in his prison. You let that woman—”

“I didn’t know what else to do. I couldn’t let anything happen to Peg.”

“And he couldn’t let anything happen to you or the rest of his world. Stalemate.” She gazed at him in disbelief. “You all let her terrorize you.”

His lips tightened. “May I remind you she almost killed you?”

“And what did Jason do about that?”

“He went to the police and this time they came up with a link to Cynthia. The wine.” He paused. “And then he went after Cynthia. She’s disappeared, but both Jason and the police are looking for her now. He said to tell you not to worry. I’m to take you home and keep you under wraps until he finds her.”

“No.”

“What?”

“I’m not going to hide away from that … that tarantula,” she said flatly. “I have a show to do tonight.”

“You have an understudy.”

“That’s
my
role.”

“You’re not well enough to perform tonight.”

“Watch me. Desdemona was delicate anyway. It might even enhance my characterization.”

“I can’t let you do it. Jason would kill me if I let you expose yourself.”

“Then you’ll have to take your chances. It’s about time someone besides Jason did.” She tossed aside the cover and swung her legs to the floor. “I’m not letting Jason build me an Eaglesmount to hide away in, and I’m not going to let him continue to live like that either.”

“And what are you going to do?”

“The first thing I’m going to do is to get out of here and go to the theater. I can rest there until
it’s time to go on. You can either help me or let me go alone.”

“You’re weak as a kitten.”

“I’m stronger than you think.”

“Yes.” He studied her thoughtfully. “I believe you are.”

“You’ll help me?”

“Do I have a choice?” Eric asked ruefully. “I can’t have you collapsing on the way to the theater.”

“I won’t collapse. Her lips set determinedly. “It would give that viper a victory—and she’s not going to win one more battle.”

Jason was waiting in her dressing room when she finished her performance that night and jumped to his feet the moment she walked into the room. “Are you all right?”

“Other than feeling like a wrung-out dishrag, I’m fine.” She strode over to the vanity and sat down. “And I don’t think my performance suffered.”

“I don’t give a damn about your performance.” His hands clamped down on her shoulders. “I couldn’t believe it when Eric told me you were on stage tonight. You’ve made yourself into a blasted target.”

“Eric said she was clever. I didn’t think there was a chance she’d take pot shots at me while I was onstage. Did you find her?”

“No, but I’m still looking for—”

“Good.” She began creaming the stage makeup off her face. “But I think we need to act more aggressively. If she won’t let herself be found, then we’ll simply have to tempt her out into the
open.” She looked at his reflection in the mirror. “And we’re not going to do that by hiding me out on Long Island.”

“Really?” Jason’s hands tightened on her shoulders. “I can hardly wait for you to unveil your master plan.”

“No master plan. I just intend to lead the normal life I usually lead and let her come to me.”

“Bait,” he said hoarsely. “I’ll be damned if I let you do it. You don’t know her. She’ll—”

“I know she’s a monster and that she’s made your life hell.” She met his gaze in the mirror. “And I know I’m not going to let her do it any longer. I want her behind bars, where she belongs, and I want you free.”

“I’ve been fighting this battle since I was twenty years old. They won’t jail her without hard evidence.”

“We have the bottle of wine.”

“Which means we have a chance. We need more evidence.”

She shrugged. “Then we’ll get more evidence.”

“Leave this to me. She’ll kill you.” His face was pale. “She almost did it last night.”

“Because I wasn’t on my guard.”

“It doesn’t matter. You don’t know what she is. She’s like a—” He stopped, searching for a word. “I
can’t
lose you.”