HIS OTHER SON (9 page)

           
While
they watched, fascinated, neither of them noticed a second figure keeping to
the shadows near the wall. It was dressed in a flowing white robe.

           
Ray
pulled Paula behind him, conscious she was shivering.

           
The
surface of the water closest to them broke and a dark haired woman in her early
twenties pushed out her head. Her hair was plastered to her face and the water
streamed over her shoulders, but Ray could see she was beautiful.

           
“Recognize
her?” he said to Paula. He hoped she might be a party guest, fooling around,
but he wasn’t confident she was.

           
The
woman hauled herself effortlessly out of the pool and stood, dripping, naked,
in front of them. She was slim but perfectly formed; breasts with droplets of
water like diamonds scattered around the dark nipples.

           
“She’s
no one I know,” Paula said.

           
Ray
glanced around. A white open fronted cabinet held towels and some magazines. He
grabbed a towel and threw it at the woman. “You’ll
be needing
this.”

           
The
woman let the towel hit her body, barely looking down as it
puddled
at her feet.

           
Paula
moved from behind Ray. This woman was irritating her. “This is my party, and
you’re not invited.”

           
“What,
neither of us?”

           
Ray
whirled round at the sound of the voice. A second woman, dressed in a white
robe, stood in the half shadows.

           
Paula’s
moment of bravado was gone; she edged closer to her uncle, feeling nervously
for his hand.

           
“Okay,
ladies,” Ray said.
“Time for you to leave.”

           
The
naked woman walked calmly across to her friend and took the robe she was
offered. She draped it over her head and shook it over her body, still wet from
the pool.

           
“We
are leaving,” one of them said. “But you’re coming with us.”

           
“I
don’t think so,” Ray said.

           
The
woman smiled. “Not you, sailor boy. Her.”

           
Paula
realized she was pointing at her and shrank against Ray, snuggling in as
closely as she could. If she could disappear inside him she would have done.

           
Ray
put his arm around Paula. “You can try.”

Stock picked up his cigar, took a long and satisfying
draw on it, and blew smoke in the general direction of the fat man.

           
“My
terms,” he said.

           
“I
shall have to discuss these with…”

           
“You’ll
have to get your orders from
Romodon
, I know that.
I’ve heard what
he
has planned. This is what I offer him. Cash,
substantial amounts, enough to make what he’s had out of me already look like
pocket change. That keeps my wife alive for another year, without suffering. I
want her to spend some time with Frank.”

           
“I
mentioned that this is not about money.”

           
Stock
continued as if the other man hadn’t spoken. “You won’t get my granddaughter.
Despite her parentage, and her selfish streak, I am oddly fond of her.”

           
“Dr
Romodon
…”

           
Stock
held up his hand. “I’m not naïve enough to believe I’ll have Frank
indefinitely.” He paused while he assessed Simon’s reaction. He could tell
immediately, by the creasing of the skin around his mouth, and the narrowing of
his eyes, that he was right.

           
Stock
knew what he had ventured into was as risky as anything he had ever done in his
life. Illegal certainly, but that had never bothered him before.
Certain to succeed?
Nothing in life was certain, and the
project he had undertaken was more than certain to fail. He had researched many
related subjects before he found the Church. He had been to Haiti, and found
voodoo. He had been to hidden parts of Africa, and seen things done that were
not of this world. Animals had been brought back to life in front of his eyes,
and he had gasped with wonder. When he went back after a few days, to see the
longer term effects of life after death, he had been disappointed on every
occasion. Nothing that had been resurrected remained alive.

           
“How
long will I have with him? Be honest with me, at least.”

           
Brother
Simon hesitated. He had known, as did
Romodon
, that
this man was not like many they had dealt with. Many
took what they were told at face value. So desperate were they for their loved
ones to be returned to them that they were blinded to reality. Stock was made
of harder material. Perhaps,
Romodon
had told Simon
one night, perhaps it was because he carried the burden of guilt for his son’s
death. “With all our subjects,”
Romodon
had said.
“You have to ask yourself, why they want our services. What is it that they hope
to gain?”

           
Simon
wondered if what Stock wanted was redemption. Release from twenty years of
painful guilt.

           
“Your
wife we can offer no more than six months. I am sorry.
Your
son?
No more than that. Again I am sorry it cannot be longer.”

           
Stock
bowed his head. It was more time that he had expected. More than he needed. “I
accept that. It’s worth it to me. And…it’s been twenty years.”

           
Simon
nodded. “The son you receive will be as he was when he passed over. You were
outlining your terms. If we cannot have the girl…”

           
“My other son.
Raymond. He’s young enough, fit, healthy.
Lives an outdoor life, even if he drinks and smokes too much.
He won’t fit the same purpose as Paula, but then you never intended for her to
join you did you?”

           
 
Simon smiled, the flesh of his face creasing
like a well-used bed sheet. “We will have a use for the soul of a healthy
enough man.”

           
Stock
smiled. “He’s here tonight.
By special invitation.”

Phil
Ryker
looked at his
watch. Anders had been gone a long time. He doubted there had been any trouble
kicking out some well fed socialites taking drugs. Sure, Anders might have
roughed them up a little, but he would have got them out of the house easily
enough. What worried
Ryker
was whether it had been
done with sufficient discretion.

           
He dialled
the number he had on his company cell phone and listened as the voicemail
kicked in for the ninth or tenth time. Anders voice sounded uncertain, as if he
was reciting the simple phrase about leaving a message.
Ryker
cut the connection without speaking.

           
The
party was still going strong, although quite a few people had left. There was
still a need for all the exits to be secure and the guests to be escorted to
their cars, He arranged cover on the door of the house and went in search of
Anders.

           
Inside
the house the noise was louder than he had anticipated. Several people were
clearly drunk, while others were still determined to dance until they dropped.
The band was playing, although he heard the singer give notice that the end was
near.

           
Ryker
knew which part of the house Anders had been directed
to, and he headed that way. It wasn’t long before he bumped, literally, into
Martin
Devereaux
.

           
 
“Watch where you’re…oh, it’s you.”

           
“Apologies,
Mr.
Devereaux
.”

           
“I
thought you were covering the door. Is everything in order?”
Devereaux’s
eyes darted from side to side as he spoke,
looking for important people he didn’t want to ignore.

           
“All normal.
I’m just doing an internal sweep. Checking
bathrooms and bedrooms, making sure no one has extended their invitation in
ways it wasn’t intended.”

           
Devereaux
allowed a look of distaste pass over his face,
before his carefully constructed façade of sophistication was restored. “I’m
not sure what sort of parties you’re used to attending,
Ryker
,
but my guests know how to behave.”

           
Ryker
nodded.
“Of course.
Excuse
me, but I’m off to check on the well behaved guests who were snorting cocaine
earlier,”

           
He
walked off before
Devereaux
could splutter a
response.

           
As he
began to climb the stairs he glanced back, just in time to see Caroline
Devereaux
standing next to her husband.

Caroline was annoyed, if her
body language was anything to go by. “Have you seen Paula yet?”

           
Devereaux
looked at her as if she was speaking a foreign
language. He was still smarting from his conversation with
Ryker
.
“What? No, I guess she’s off doing whatever spoiled eighteen year olds do these
days.”

           
“Which
is what exactly?”

           
“I
wish I could remember.”

           
Caroline
grabbed his arm and pulled him into a corner so they wouldn’t be overheard.
“There are three of those sisters with mother.”

           
“And
your master plan of getting your brother on board failed at the first hurdle.”

           
“He’s
always been a disappointment,” Caroline said, her voice full of as much venom
as she could muster.

           
“So
where do you think Paula is?”

           
“Someone
said they’d seen her with that
Rulski
kid.”

           
Devereaux
nodded approvingly. “That’s good. His father has
a lot of influence, he could help business.”

           
Caroline
crinkled her nose in despair. “Martin, they won’t be swapping study tips. What
do you think they will be doing?”

           
“But…she’s
just a…”

           
“She’s
not a kid any more. Wake up and look at her. She’s all grown up.”

           
Devereaux
smiled and nodded at some people who were walking
past. “I’ll have to circulate. People are leaving.”

           
“I’m
going up to see mother. It’s about time someone took control around here.
Father might be taken in by these fake holy rollers but I’m not. Dr Cooperman
says people often seemingly improve, even appear to recover, for a period of
time before…” Martin touched her cheek in a gesture of genuine affection.
“Father seems to think the Church is saving her life but all they’re doing is
fooling her into believing there’s hope.”

           
“Hope’s
not such a bad thing.”

           
Caroline
walked away from him. “I’m going upstairs. Can you send someone to find Paula?”

Ray positioned himself between Paula and the two
women. They were alert, like animals scenting prey.

           
“We’re
here to take the girl to her grandfather. That’s all.”

           
“Now
why do I doubt that?” Ray said.

           
The
two women exchanged glances and then moved away from one another. One advanced
towards Ray and Paula while the other began to circle around and behind them.

           
“Stay
close to me,” Ray whispered. Paula responded with a firm grip on his arm.

           
Ray
had been in several fights during his life. Working near the docks there were
often sailors ashore for a few hours who thought the best way to let off a bit
of steam was to beat up the local hippie types. When they saw how large Ray was
many of them backed off, realizing their error. The more foolhardy types saw it
as a challenge and ploughed on through.