MemoriesErasedTreachery (14 page)

Ewyn looked the younger man over. Up close, Calabria was bigger than he seemed from a distance. Taller than Ewyn --who wasn't--Calabria was a good-looking kid, oozing charm and personality. Ewyn didn't like him. Accepting the proffered hand, he said, "Anthony, we need to talk. No more bullshit."

Calabria walked back to his desk, dropped down on the chair, and stared up at Ewyn. "Sure. But I haven't been able to think of anything more than what I told the detective."

"No, Anthony, don't go there. You claim to have been close to Niki, so what happened. Why would she stop confiding in you if you were so tight? Either you lied about being close to her, or you're lying now."

Anthony lunged from the chair, stopping mere inches from Ewyn, fists clenching and unclenching. "Look, you little fa…" He stopped, his face reddening.

Ewyn tensed. "Little what?" Eyes narrowing, he snapped, "Go ahead…say it!" For a split second, something in Calabria's hazel eyes changed, rage replaced charisma, then gone in a flash. Hell. Just what Ewyn needed. A throw down with giant jock. He should have let Devin handle this.

"Listen," Anthony hissed and leaned closer. "I'm telling you, I knew everything there was to know about Niki-- about her dad, his business, his disappearance. He must be dead or he would have been at the funeral. There's nothing I
don't
know about the entire dysfunctional Calderone family." He smirked. "Including the truth about you,
Mister Kelley.
Despite what Niki said, no one has ever heard of you in connection with Niki's family. You are not a Calderone, and…"

"And?" Ewyn glared. "You're not who or what you claim to be, because I believe you know the reason why Niki disappeared for six months. But let me clarify a
major
discrepancy in your knowledge. It's crucial."

"Oh yeah…what?" he scoffed.

"I
am
a Calderone, to the bone. And, if you don't step off, right now, in keeping with family tradition, I have no qualms about kicking off in your ass."

"Hey!" The kid took a step back, but he remained belligerent. "You come in here calling me a liar, trying to intimidate me, threatening me. Considering the Calderone reputation, I could have
your
ass arrested. I know what I'm talking about, because I'm third year law--"

"Whoa! Color me impressed," Ewyn mocked, cutting off the tirade. "Nonetheless, as a member of those dysfunctional Calderones, you should consider what I'm capable of doing and choose your words wisely."

"You lay one finger on me…"

"I was wrong." Ewyn smiled, clearly envisioning Devin's smug, I-told-you-so, look.

"Excuse me."

"Devin wanted to handle this, but I talked him out of it, suggesting the Calderone name might have intimidated you. You've not only proven me wrong, but you've debunked your assertions about how well you knew Niki, the two of you being like brother and sister."

"Devin?" Anthony frowned.

"Uh-oh. Something else you didn't know about Niki's family, huh."

"Now listen…"

"Don't bother. You've told me all I want to hear. Devin will handle this from now on, and unlike the detective, he plays by a whole other set of legal rules." Ewyn snorted. "Be sure to
wow
him with your legal expertise." He turned toward the door. "See you around."

"Wait a minute!"

"What? You've remembered something." Ewyn glanced back, but kept walking. "If not, we have nothing else to say to each other."

"Mister Kelley, please."

Ewyn paused in the doorway.

"Listen. I'm sorry…really. It's not what you think," Calabria offered. "It's…I've been on edge since Niki died."

"Why?" Ewyn turned to look at him.

Calabria lowered his eyes and mumbled, "I feel responsible for her death."

"Really?"

"Yes!" he shouted. "Yes! We
were
like brother and sister." Then he calmed down and whispered, " I should have taken better care of her, been able to stop her from leaving. She seemed so agitated before she disappeared. At first, I assumed it was a hormone thing, because of the pregnancy, but then, I don't know. I suspected the baby's father had something to do with her unease, maybe harassing her." A sly look came into Calabria's eyes. "Rumor has it, the man is Black," he sneered. "I suspected Niki was contemplating an abortion, and considered it her reason for going--"

"Stop!" Blindsided by anger so intense, without thinking, Ewyn charged across the floor. He reached Calabria, but the apprehension in the kid's eyes pulled him up short. "Son of a bitch!" he snarled. To hear the bastard suggest Nicole would have considered an abortion--the fucker wasn't worth it. Gritting his teeth, he swung around, strolled toward the door, and paused on the threshold. He even managed a civil tone when he spoke.

"Again, your ignorance of Niki is obvious. To imply she'd contemplate an abortion because of the ethnicity of her child is further proof. Hell. A Calderone considering an abortion? Chalk it up to our arrogance, but the father's donation to the gene pool is immaterial, since Niki's child became a Calderone, the day of conception. Neither Nicole or the family would have given a shit what anybody thought."

"Mister Kelley, I think you misunderstood what-----"

"No doubt," Ewyn cut him off. "So, you have no idea where Niki stayed for six months, or who Kiera's father is?"

"No to both questions. I swear! She wouldn't tell me or anyone else about the baby's father, not even Jennifer. Caro claimed she didn't know either." He shook his head. "Believe me, if I had known where she'd gone, I would have gone after her, tried to help. I should have done more," he declared.

Ewyn stared.
What a crock of shit.
Calabria's entire alleged anguish dissertation, although well rehearsed, didn't ring true. Not when his derogatory attitude about Ewyn's sexuality, Nicole's character, and Kiera's paternity had triggered major warning bells.
Fuckin' bigoted ass wipe.

"So you didn't see Niki the day she died?"

"No. Evidently, she only came by to have her will witnessed, not to see friends. I stopped by their dorm and Jen told me I'd just missed Nicole." Calabria gave Ewyn a hard look. "Did Jenny tell you about the wills?"

Ewyn ignored the question. "Oh-kay. I won't take up any more of your time. If you think up anything else, I'd appreciate it, if you'd let my partner know," he mocked.

"Uh…sure. I'll keep going over every little detail since the day Niki told me she was pregnant."

"You do that. Here's Devin's card." Ewyn tossed it on a shelf next to the door. He refused to waste another minute listening to Calabria's crap. Except for his woe-is-me speech, the bastard hadn't said a thing he hadn't told Patterson, repeated almost verbatim.

Mentally kicking himself for not letting Devin deal with the kid, he stepped into the hallway, stopped and did a one-eighty. He reached into his pocket and pulled out an envelope. "Oh, yeah." He glanced at Calabria. "I'd been told you were close to Nicole and thought you might want these. I'm probably wrong." He tossed the packet of pictures on top of Devin's business card and strode away.

Ewyn reached his car, climbed inside, and sat there staring at Rockwell Towers until a car horn honked, snapping him out of his reverie. Someone wanted the parking space. He acknowledged the prompt, started the car, and drove back to the girls' dorm. Once he parked his car, he reached for his cell phone. He pressed #1 and waited.

"Hey, babe."

"Dev, you were right."

"Whoa! Say that again. Wait a minute, I want to record this."

"Hey!" Ewyn laughed. "Okay. I admit it. I get a little arrogant sometimes."

"Mmm-hmm…"

"Seriously, Dev. You don't need to get in Calabria's face, per se, but something isn't right with him." He stepped out of his car. "I'll tell you about it when I get home. Just wanted to give you a heads up before you left work. Maybe you can get someone started on checking him out."

"Didn't like him, huh?"

"Right up there with Patterson."

Devin chuckled. "How much longer will you be out there?"

He told Devin about Niki and Caro's roommates doing the majority of the packing and sorting before he arrived. "I should be out of here before rush hour."

"I'll start dinner. Be careful."

"I will. Love you, Dev."

"Back at you."

Ewyn closed his phone and headed inside. He met the movers on the stairs.

"Almost done with the first one, Mister Kelley."

"Good." Ewyn looked at his watch. "If you're not done before rush hour, go ahead and use those room reservations. Tomorrow will be soon enough to deliver the stuff. I'll alert the staff and someone will be available at your destination to show you where to store everything."

"Should we call first?"

"Sure. You have the number?"

"Oh yeah," Thornton replied. "Uh…Mister Kelly? About staying over, are you sure?"

"Yes. If your boss gives you any bull about it, tell him I said you're on my dime, and he can call me if he has a problem with that. And don't forget to take lunch."

"Yes, sir." Thornton grinned. "Will do. And thank you, Mister Kelley."

Ewyn continued up the stairway to Jennifer's apartment. He found the door closed, so he went to Carolyn and Kathleen's rooms, and found Kathleen in the bedroom folding linens.

"Kathleen." She jumped and swung around to face him. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you. I came to ask if you would have an early lunch with me. I know the perfect place--Dukes--if it's still there. My treat for everything you've done."

"Uh…" Kathleen hesitated. "It's not necessary. I mean…" Her voice died away and she snorted. "Who am I kidding? I'm a starving student, here on loans and grants. I need to take advantage of any freebies coming my way. So why not, and thank you. I'll wash, change, and meet you out front."

"Deal." Ewyn started to turn away then paused. "Did you tell Anthony that Niki's father wasn't at the funeral?"

Yes." Kathleen frowned. "But he initiated the conversation, and it was the only thing he asked about the funeral."

"Hmm, thanks." He went back to the other apartment, retrieved the box marked personal papers, and headed for the parking lot. After putting the box in his trunk, he wandered over to the moving van. "John. I'm taking the young lady to lunch. If she's not back by the time you've finished, make sure you close the doors to both apartments."

"Sure thing."

Kathleen was waiting by his car. They were about to pull out of the parking lot when he spotted Jennifer coming across the street, and opened his window. "Hey, Jennifer, you're just in time. I'm taking Kathleen to lunch. Can you join us?"

"Without a doubt." Jennifer grinned and shimmied out of the straps of her backpack while Kathleen stepped out of the car and climbed into the back seat. Jennifer tossed her pack to Kathleen and took over shotgun.

Chapter 10

Mmm, something smelled good.

Ewyn tossed his keys on the credenza in the foyer and sauntered into the kitchen expecting to see Devin, but the room was empty. Hearing the low murmur of music coming from their office, he headed there. Devin, barefoot and wearing nothing but sweat pants, sat hunched over his computer keying in data. Ewyn approached and Devin looked up.

"Hey, you." Devin pushed the chair back and Ewyn straddled his lap. Mouths merged. For several minutes, besides music, the only other sounds in the room were guttural moans and soft sighs. Devin withdrew, leaned back, hands smoothing down over the warm body in his arms, they settled on the curves of the firm round ass. "You look tired."

"I hate driving into Los Angeles."

"Tell me about it," Devin remarked. "But I have something I think will cheer you up."

"Good. I'm hungry. What's for dinner?"

"Not that." Devin swiveled the chair so he and Ewyn could see the computer screen. "Our neighbors are moving to South Florida and their condo was up for sale."

"Oh. So we'll be getting new neighbors." Ewyn scowled. "Why would that cheer me up?"

"Will you let me finish."

"Sure…wait a minute. What do you mean it
was
for sale? Someone bought it already?"

"If you'd let me, I'm trying to tell you.
We
bought it. My attorney negotiated the purchase. All we have to do is sign the papers…escrow, and it's ours."

"You're serious. That quick."

"Hey, money talks. They wanted a quick sale, we needed more room for Kieki, and I made them an offer they couldn't refuse," Devin teased. "I figured it was the perfect solution and everyone wins."

Ewyn threw his arms around Devin's neck, then stiffened, pushed away and glared. "I get to share the cost, right?"

Devin threaded his fingers through the ink-black curls and drew Ewyn's head forward. He ran his tongue across the pouty mouth, tracing the outline of the smooth lips before he took a quick kiss and leaned away.

"Yes, you get to share half the cost."

"Oh…okay, then. Because you know, I was ready to throw down over that." Ewyn grinned sheepishly. "Well hell, Dev. I'm still waiting for all those vacations you promised we'd take using my money, which is amassing at a rate I'll never spend in my lifetime. You rarely let me pay for anything, and my trust fund kicks in next year."

"Hey! We're going to Big Bear this weekend."

"Right. And how much money are we going to expend there."

Devin chuckled and gently turned Ewyn's face to the computer. "Just look at these floor plans. After I talked to my contractor, he emailed a few drafts, and I think this design best suits our purposes."

Ewyn scanned the screen.

"The other side of the wall behind our closets is the second bedroom over there," Devin said pointing to a corner of the screen. "Break through the wall in our bedroom…right about here, and we build a hallway to run adjacent to our closets between the two condos, wall off the bedroom over there from the rest of the condo…"

"Quite a large bedroom for a baby."

"Not so." Devin leaned over and scrolled to the next page. "Carlo is going to divide the room this way."