My Brother's Keeper (11 page)

“If you want ice cream, you better stay out of the cookies.”

Rudy scurried to his feet and shut the door. “I didn’t touch it.”

“Only because you didn’t find it.”

“I can never find the cookies. Why can’t I find them? I find everything else.”

“Because I’m really good at hiding them.” Ellis pointed to the dining room. “Go in there and sit. I’ll bring you a bowl of ice cream.”

“Can I get my own bowl?”

“If you’re careful.” Ellis waved a hand at the cabinet. “Go ahead. Just be careful and don’t drop it.” Ellis watched Rudy in his periphery while he got the carton from the freezer.

His brother opened the cabinet, lifted one of the bowls from the stack with exaggerated care, and set it on the counter. “There.”

“Good job, now go sit at the table while I fill it up.”

“Is Jon going to eat ice cream?”

“In a few minutes. He’s taking a shower.”

Rudy was halfway through his bowl of ice cream when Jon came downstairs dressed in a t-shirt and jeans.

He pulled out a chair with a black and blue hand. “Couldn’t wait for me, huh?”

“I had to eat it or it would get squishy,” Rudy said.

“So where’s mine? Or did you eat it too?”

Rudy spoke around a mouth full of chocolate chip mint. “Ellis put it in the freezer so it wouldn’t melt.”

“Hang on and I’ll get it.” Ellis stood.

“I can get my ice cream.”

“No, you sit.” Ellis retrieved the bowl from the freezer and set it on the counter. The cuts and bruises covering Jon’s arms and neck stood out in stark contrast against the white shirt. Jon said he loved him, but no words could describe the depth of that love in order for Jon to keep risking his life for them.

As many times as he had, the odds of him surviving had to be running out.

Cold washed over Ellis, He gripped the counter.

“You bringing that in here anytime soon?” Jon leaned against the doorway.

“Uh, yeah. I’ve just got to get a spoon.” When he turned back around, Jon was right in front of him.

Jon’s strong hands cupped Ellis’s face. “Where’s yours?”

“I didn’t want any.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah. I’ll just watch you and Rudy eat.”

“I don’t mind giving you some of mine.”

“I know.”

There was no doubt in Ellis’s mind the man he loved would give him anything and everything even if it killed him.

Jon sat on the couch, but only because Ellis insisted on cleaning off the porch alone. The empty jug of bleach and a bottle of dishwashing liquid sat beside the door. Every so often, water would slap the house as Ellis hosed the decking.

Disjointed sound effects and a squeaky mouse voice joined in. The glow of the TV set made lines of color on Rudy’s face.

“You should probably move back from the TV.”

“Ellis says I’ll go blind. But I haven’t gone blind because I can see.”

“Humor me. Scoot back.”

Rudy moved a few inches.

“A little more.”

He gave another few inches.

“Thank you.”

Rudy leaned forward resting his elbows on his knees, erasing distance.

Water hit the screen door making it slap the frame. Ellis’s fuzzy shape moved back and forth behind the curtain on the front door. How much of a fight would Ellis put up if he went out there and demanded the hose? Jon had a feeling he’d wind up soaking wet.

The phone rang.

“Telephone.” Rudy didn’t take his eyes off the screen.

Jon picked up the receiver. “Hello?”

“Do you want the good news or the bad news first?” George said.

Jon leaned back and stared at the ceiling. “I guess hit me with the bad news.”

“We can only hold Lenny for seventy two hours.”

“What? Why?”

“He has an alibi.”

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”

Rudy said, “No cussing.”

Jon got up and went into the dining room. “Who the hell gave him an alibi?”

“Some guys were at his place for a cookout and a few games of poker.”

“They’re full of shit. He was here. I saw him.”

“You saw a man in camo, with his face painted.”

“Jesus, George. Are you doubting me too?”

“Of course not, son. But Lenny has five witnesses who put him at his house the whole time. And one of those men is a retired judge.”

“So what? They think I made this up and beat two men with a baseball bat for the hell of it?”

“No. Obviously some men showed up at your home and you did what you had to do to protect it. But there’s only you to say Lenny was there and, because of the current situation, the DA is reluctant to challenge the integrity of a judge.”

“I thought the DA was on our side?”

“He is, but this is a small town and there are strong politics.”

“Then how do I know I won’t wind up in jail because of the same politics?”

“Billy looked at the evidence and decided you acted appropriately. Not to mention, you were a marshal. That gives you more credibility than the average citizen.”

“But not enough to put that asshole in jail?” Why the hell did it feel like he’d failed Ellis and Rudy?

“Do you want the good news now?”

Jon propped his shoulder against the wall. Rudy was back to sitting too close to the TV.

“Yeah. Hit me with the good news.”

“We identified the two men. Byron Pits and Dale Andrews. Both of them have mile long records for assault, robbery, even arson.”

“How is that good news?”

“Because they’ve been known to do stuff like this for money. Dale made it to the hospital alive but he’s in intensive care.”

“Do they think he’ll live?” The possibility created a tug-o-war between Jon’s conscience and his vengeance.

“They’re not sure. It’s still touch and go. You did a number on him.”

“Don’t remind me.”

“If he does and he wakes up, there’s a good possibility he’ll roll on Lenny. And if we find a money trail, we won’t even need his testimony.”

Jon was used to that when dealing with wealthy criminals who had powerful lawyers, but Lenny was a nobody. Just some piece of trash with a personality defect. How he controlled people and kept getting away with this shit just wasn’t…normal.

“What if he didn’t pay them?”

“What do you mean?”

Jon wasn’t sure. “What if they just did it?”

“Why would they do that?”

“For the same reason two deputies tried to kill me and a judge is lying to protect him? Maybe they did it because they wanted to.”

“That doesn’t even make sense.”

“Exactly my point. You said yourself, evil is like a disease. I’m starting to wonder if you’re not right.”

“I can’t say why those two deputies went along with Lenny or what a judge gains by giving him an alibi. But people like Dale and Byron are just as greedy as Lenny is insane. They wouldn’t have done this unless it was going to get them a paycheck.”

“I hope you’re right.” If Sheriff Marsh wasn’t, then the alternative was terrifying.

“We’re going to think positive. That we’ll be able to find proof of an exchange. In the mean time, the hospital has agreed to call me when Dale wakes up and I’ll be sure to get there before he can change his mind about giving us information.”

Or fall under whatever spell Lenny had over people.

“Will you call us?”

“I will.”

“What do you suggest we do in the mean time?”

“Pack Ellis, Rudy, and yourself up and leave town.”

Rudy was still in front of the TV, but on his stomach now with his chin propped on his hands. A big smile crinkled up his face. “Ellis said Rudy has a hard time with change. What if we can’t leave?”

“Then get a gun and make sure Ellis knows how to use it.”

“Do you want me to be there when you talk to him?” Jon said.

Ellis shook his head. “No, it’s okay.”

“You sure?”

“Yes.” Ellis leaned against the counter. How was he going to get Rudy to understand they had to leave? There wasn’t a way. He either would or he wouldn’t. Ellis feared the latter. “You know, we shouldn’t even have to do this. Why can’t they just put Lenny in prison? Why did they even let him out to begin with?”

“Friends who will lie for him, and a right to bail.” Jon put the last plate into the dish drainer. Suds clung to his arm all the way to his elbows.

Ellis handed him a dishtowel. “That man should have lost every right he had the first time he was arrested.”

“I’ve felt the same way many times. It always seems like the criminals have all the luck.”

“Well, they sure have something.”

“You’re right, they do. It’s the lack of a conscience. It makes them willing to do anything they can to keep from getting caught. No matter who pays the price.”

Ellis was beginning to realize that. He hugged himself.

“Does leaving affect your ability to testify in court? I mean, if he doesn’t give up and makes a plea bargain?”

“If they need me, I’ll come back.”

“Do you think they’ll want Rudy on the stand?”

Jon’s mouth thinned out. “I don’t think so, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility.”

“I’m not sure he could handle it.”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.” Jon slung the towel over his shoulder. “Would you mind if I stick around in the kitchen, in case you need backup?”

“Sure, go ahead.” Ellis laughed because the alternative was crying. He went into the dining room. Rudy had his eyes narrowed on the cookie in his hands. There was a stack of de-creamed cookie halves next to his glass.

Ellis pulled out a chair next to him. Rudy twisted the two halves and the cookie came apart, leaving the cream stuck to one side. He licked it and smiled at Ellis.

“Hi.” Rudy showed Ellis the cookie. “If I had an extra space next to ice cream, I’d put cookies there.”

“Do you think you can put the cookies down for a minute so we can talk?”

Rudy added two more halves to his stack. “Am I in trouble?”

“No. I just want to talk.”

“About what happened yesterday?”

“Sort of.”

“Is Lenny coming back?”

“I don’t know.”

“If he does, Jon will take care of it.”

Ellis glanced back at the kitchen. “Well, I’m hoping it won’t come to that.” Rudy folded his hands on the table. Black crumbs covered his thumbs and index fingers. Ellis put a hand on Rudy’s wrist. “I need to do something so Jon won’t get hurt again. Can you help me?”

Rudy shrugged.

“I want us to take a trip.”

“Where?”

“I was thinking maybe Florida. Somewhere there’s a pretty beach to walk on.” Rudy’s face remained blank. “You could swim in the ocean, and we could go to the shops to look at things.” Rudy pulled his arm from Ellis’s grasp.

“I don’t want to leave.”

“I don’t want to leave either, but we’ve got to.”

“No.”

“Rudy, please.”

Rudy pushed away from the table and stood. “I’m going to my room now.”

“Sit so we can talk.”

“I’m going to my room and I’m going to look at my baseball cards.”

“Rudy, sit.”

Rudy’s face turned red and his hands became fists. “But we can’t.”

“It’s only for a little while.”

“No.”

“I need you to do this for me. This one thing.” Ellis stood and put his hands on Rudy’s shoulders. “And I need you to not fight me. Please. Please, just this once. I need you to understand how important this is.”

“But we’re supposed to stay here.”

“I like our home too, but we need to do this.”

“But if we’re not here, how will Jon keep your clothes from being wrinkled?”

“Jon will go with us.”

“We’re not supposed to go. We’re supposed to stay. Right here. I promised. We stay right here.”

“It’s only for a little while. We’ll come back as soon as we can.”

Rudy dropped his chin.

“Please, Rudy. For Jon’s sake and ours.”

“Jon’s supposed to take care of you.”

“That’s right, and if he gets hurt again, he won’t be able to do that.”

“But if we go, we’ll get in trouble.”

“No, we won’t.”

Rudy looked at the front door. “How long would we be gone?”

“Just a little while.”

“Only a little while?”

“Yes.”

“And then we come right back?”

“Yes, Just a little while and then right back. I promise.”

Rudy held up his finger and thumb, leaving space pinched between them. “This little?”

“Maybe a bit bigger.”

Rudy doubled the width. “This little?”

“Yeah. That’s about right.”

“When are we going to go?”

Ellis would need time to get a few things arranged at the bank, pack, find a place to stay. “How about day after tomorrow?”

“Okay.” Rudy pointed to the stairs. “I’m going to my room now.”

“What about your cookies?”

Rudy’s brows came together. “I won’t need them.” He headed up the stairs and disappeared into his room.

A cold sweat broke out over Ellis’s skin.

“That didn’t go so bad.” Jon sat down at the table.

“No.”

“How come you don’t sound happier?”

“Because it went too well.” His gaze was drawn to the stack of cookie halves. A white imprint of Rudy’s lips stamped the edge of the glass of milk.

“You okay?”

“I don’t know.”

Jon caught Ellis’s hand and kissed his knuckles. “Talk to me.”

“You know I love you, right?”

“Of course.” The subtle smile on Jon’s face fell. He brushed a thumb under Ellis’s right eye. “Why are you crying?”

“I just need you to know that I love you.”

Jon held him. “I do, Ellis. I promise.”

Just for a couple of nights.

The darkness consumed Jon’s dark gray sedan, leaving behind only faint highlights to trace the shape in intermittent bursts.

Lenny was not done playing with his food and Jon had to have a way to protect Ellis and Rudy.

The night resonated with a metallic click. A sickly patch of light spilled from the trunk.

Jon took the gun out of the metal box. He cleared the chamber and checked the clip, then made sure the safety was on before inserting the two halves of the safety lock behind the trigger and securing it.