Sleep No More (32 page)

His heartbeat was a painful drumming …

Agony.

He screamed!

His heart exploded!

*   *   *

IT HADN’T LASTED LONG ENOUGH.

Stella gazed at the slumped body of Pierce in profound disappointment. If she’d known that there would be no lingering pain or humiliating distress, she might have chosen a different drug. Oh well, it was supposed to be safe and foolproof as far as the actual death factor was concerned.

She turned away and picked up the gold robe and slipped it on again before she went toward the bed. She picked up her cell and dialed the number she’d programmed into the phone. “It’s done. I’m ready for you.” She hung up the phone.

She dropped down on the bed and settled back against the headboard. She might as well be comfortable though she doubted she’d have long to wait. She turned up the volume to watch the commentary from the TV hosts on the news story about Hans Gelber while she listened for the knock on the door.

*   *   *

HER CELL PHONE WAS RINGING,
Eve realized drowsily. She’d better get it before it woke Joe.

But Joe was no longer beside her in bed. She sat up straight as the knowledge came home to her. Stop panicking. It was after eight in the morning. He’d probably just gone to the bathroom or downstairs to get breakfast. Or maybe it was him on the phone.

She grabbed the cell from the nightstand and punched the button. “Hello.”

“Kendra Michaels. It took you a while to answer. Did I wake you?”

“Yes.” She rubbed her eyes. “But it was time. I didn’t mean to sleep this long. I haven’t been getting a lot of rest lately. Why are you calling, Kendra?”

Kendra was silent a moment. “Curiosity. I don’t like leaving anything undone. It nags at me. Did you find your sister?”

“Yes, she’s with us now.”

“And how is she?”

“How would you expect her to be? Bewildered, suspicious, scared, brave, angry. I keep thinking of Sleeping Beauty and what she must have faced when she woke. Even if I help Beth through this nightmare, she’ll still have a hell of a lot with which to contend just coping with a life she’s not prepared to face.”

“Even if she gets through?” Kendra asked impatiently. “I thought that finding her would be the difficult part. Why the hell else did you make me come up there and help you? I gave her to you, now it’s your job to straighten out the rest.”

Eve smothered a smile. That rude demand was so typically Kendra. “I’m doing my best. There have been a few obstacles in the path.” She quickly filled Kendra in on everything that had taken place since she had left, and ended with, “But as Beth says, we’ll work our way through it.”

“It doesn’t sound as if you’re doing very well.”

After putting their scant progress into words, Eve could only agree with her. Every time they took a step forward, they were stopped in their tracks. “We have Gelber’s disc. That may lead us somewhere.” She changed the subject. “How is Justin?”

“Good. Breakthrough. I’m working with his parents on the follow-up.”

“Fantastic.”

“Yes, it is.” She added, “Yes, I am.”

Eve chuckled. “No doubt about it.”

“And since I’m so fantastic, it would be very clever of you to try to persuade me to come and help wrap this up for you.”

Eve’s smile faded. “Clever isn’t right. Four murders in the past couple days. You never bargained for that when you agreed to help us. Beth was just a missing person.”

“Who turned out to be a victim of attempted homicide. I’m having problems turning my back on her.”

“You shouldn’t. Beth’s my problem. Concentrate on Justin, Kendra.”

“I am. He doesn’t need me right now. You’d be a good fill-in.”

Eve couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re impossible.”

“I have that reputation.” After a moment, she added, “I don’t like it that Drogan got so close to you. One bad break, and you might have been one of those victims.”

“I don’t need you to guard me. I’m not alone, Kendra.”

“Shit happens.”

“Not with Joe around.”

“If you told Joe I’d offered to come, he wouldn’t turn me away. He wouldn’t worry about how right or moral it was to throw me into the mix if it would deflect attention from you.”

“He’d worry.” But she couldn’t argue that Joe would do exactly as Kendra was guessing. “No, Kendra.”

“Okay. Just tell him that I called,” she said. “And say hello to Beth for me. I’d like to meet her sometime. I’m curious about the chemistry between you.”

“You’re curious, period. You remind me a little of Beth in that way. She has a voracious appetite for learning everything, seeing everything.”

“Understandable. I was the same way after I gained my sight. I was no Sleeping Beauty, but I had my own garden of thorns to fight my way through. Just watch that she doesn’t tear herself to pieces trying to do too much, too soon.”

“That’s the least of my worries right now. The next move is just keeping her safe from Drogan. Thanks for calling. Bye, Kendra.” She hung up.

Too much, too soon.

She could see Beth racing through experiences as she had those downhill slopes, and crashing or burning.

But as she had said, preventing that was low on her priorities at the moment. Forget it. Kendra’s call had made her even more uneasy, and she had to put it behind her.

She swung her feet to the floor as she called Joe’s cell number. “Where are you?”

“Newell’s room, working on the disc. I thought I’d let you sleep.”

“I just woke up.” She paused. “Kendra called and woke me. She didn’t like the idea that Drogan was so close. She offered to come if we needed her. I told her we didn’t need her.”

Joe didn’t answer.

“We can’t put her in the line of fire, Joe.”

“Do you hear me arguing?”

“No.” But Kendra’s prediction about his response had been uncannily accurate. She changed the subject. “Anything more on the news about Gelber’s murder?”

“Yes, Helmer was found dead in his car on Mulholland Drive with his wrists cut.”

Eve inhaled sharply. “Another death.”

“A dagger was found on the seat beside him, and you can bet it will be the one used on Gelber.”

“So the police are going to close the case?”

“Not yet. But it’s heading that way. Everything has been handed to them on a silver platter.”

Clever. So clever. She didn’t want to dwell right now on the timing and efficiency involved in Gelber’s murder.

“Has Newell managed to do anything with Gelber’s disc?”

“It’s gradually coming together. At least some of the pieces.”

She jumped to her feet. At last, something positive in this dark scenario. “I’ll shower and be right there.”

*   *   *

IT WAS ABOUT TIME,
Stella thought with annoyance, as she heard the knock on the door. She had been there for hours with nothing to do but look at Pierce and stare at that dumb TV set.

She jumped to her feet and moved toward the door. “I called you over three hours ago. I don’t like being kept waiting.” She threw open the door. “I did your dirty work for you, didn’t I? I deserve a little consideration.”

“Be quiet.” Nelda Avery came into the room and slammed the door. “You deserve what I choose to give you. And what are you doing opening that door to anyone who knocks, dressed in that slut’s outfit? Didn’t it occur to you that you’d attract attention and be remembered?”

“That’s not supposed to matter. You promised to get rid of the body. Did you take care of the check-in records?”

“No, do you think I’d handle that myself? It will disappear from the computer banks by noon, and the credit-card check-in will be gone as soon as opportunity presents itself. Drogan arranged to have one of his cohorts pretend to be a motel cleaner and remove Pierce in one of the laundry baskets.”

“It sounds risky.”

“It’s efficient. I don’t take chances.”

“Don’t you? Then why contact me to get rid of Pierce? Why not Drogan?”

“Drogan has his hands full right now. I’ve been keeping him very busy. I couldn’t wait. Everything I’ve worked for is beginning to fall apart. Pierce was bungling the entire situation. I had to make sure that no one was left to talk.” Her lips twisted. “According to my reports on you, I thought you might be willing and able to take care of Pierce.” She moved across the room to stand before Harry Pierce. “He looks … distressed.”

“What did you expect?” Stella raised her brows. “That’s what happens when you die like he did. Did you expect him to be happy?”

“I wasn’t complaining, merely commenting. Pierce gave me a good many headaches over the years and a positive migraine lately.” She glanced coldly at Stella. “And I don’t give a damn if it was a painful death. I just had to make sure you’d done what I told you to do. Every report I had on you indicated that you were something of a wild card. I’m pleasantly surprised. It appears that you’re more intelligent than anyone gave you credit.”

“It was probably a man who gave you your report,” Stella said. “You should fire him. Men always think with their dicks and can’t see beyond tits and asses.” She smiled. “But you know that, don’t you, Nelda? You’ve used men all your life. We’re a lot alike.”

“I didn’t give you permission to call me Nelda.” Her tone was icy. “And we’re nothing alike. All you have to do is look in the mirror to realize how wrong you are.”

“Of course, I’m young, and you’re old.” She gazed at her critically. “Though you look pretty good, considering. You must have had work done. It doesn’t surprise me. You know that sex is a weapon.”

“That just shows you how different we are,” Nelda said with contempt. “You start off with sex, but you learn other ways of control.”

“Maybe when you lose the edge. Sex is easier.”

Nelda looked away from her. “Did you establish an alibi?”

“Of course, there’s a young male nurse I’ve been sleeping with for the past two weeks. He’ll do anything I ask him to do.”

“Until you drop him.”

Stella shook her head. “That would be dangerous. I figured that I’d let you take care of him when I’m ready to get rid of him. I know you’ll be willing to tie up that little loose end for me. You wouldn’t want to risk me becoming a suspect.”

“No one is going to suspect you. Not if you did everything I told you to do.”

“But you have to make sure that it’s going to continue like that,” Stella said softly. “Because you’re such a careful woman, and the stakes are so high, aren’t they?”

“They’re high for you, too.” Nelda took an envelope from her purse and threw it on the bed. “There’s the proof of the electronic transfer I arranged into your bank in Grand Cayman, plus your airline tickets to Fiji. You have the very generous fee I gave you to rid me of Pierce together with those two cashier’s checks you stole from him. That means you have close to $2 million to stash in an offshore bank.” She paused. “Theft. And you’ve just killed a man.”

Stella’s gaze narrowed on Nelda’s face. “You think that’s a hold on me that will keep me quiet. It might, and it might not. I’m very smart, and there are ways to get around most crimes. You found that out, didn’t you, Nelda?”

She stiffened. “I thought Pierce was too shrewd to talk to a bimbo like you. Are you telling me that I was wrong?”

“Oh, he didn’t talk to me. He was too busy screwing me. But that doesn’t mean I couldn’t find out what I want to know,” Stella said. “I like secrets, but only when they’re mine. Beth Avery was the big secret that caused Pierce to jump through hoops. Of course, I had to find out what was so valuable that you’d give Pierce such a huge payoff all these years. Wouldn’t you?”

Nelda didn’t answer for a moment. “Yes.”

Stella threw back her head and laughed. “Gotcha. I knew we were alike when I watched you pulling Pierce’s strings.” She dropped down on the bed and drew her leg beneath her. “I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed him shaking in his shoes at the prospect of just talking to you. He liked to play domination games with me, pretending I was you.”

Nelda’s lips tightened. “Oh, did he?”

“But in the end, you and I always won,” she said softly. “Because we were stronger. A man like him couldn’t really touch us.” Her hand was stroking the satin of her robe on her thigh. “No man could.”

Nelda’s gaze was fastened on the hand sliding over the satin. She jerked it away with an effort. “I told you to get dressed. I’m bored with chatting with you. You have to get out of here. You’re taking a private jet out of Burbank at five thirty this afternoon.”

“You’re not bored. I’d never bore you.” She tilted her head. “And there’s a chance that you wouldn’t bore me … at least for a little while. You’re a beautiful woman, and you’ve taken good care of yourself. You’re strong enough that I’d have to fight to keep you from making a slave of me.”

“Go get dressed.”

“Why? You like me like this. I see how you’re looking at me. I knew the minute you walked in the room that I was right about you. You didn’t have to come here. You could have sent someone. You were curious about me.”

“I wanted to be sure you’d done what I’d told you to do.”

“And you were curious to see if Pierce’s toy was worth playing with for a while.” She smiled. “And you found that she is. I can make you very happy, Nelda. I’d be a challenge, and I know so many ways to please you.”

“You’re ridiculous. I didn’t come here to audition a slut.”

“Not until you found out how worthwhile I’d be in your life. Men are too easy for you. I’d never be easy.” She got to her feet in one sinuous movement. “Now I’ll go and get dressed. When I get back from Fiji, I’ll come to you. I’d give you a demonstration. Right now, but you might be a little tense with Pierce staring at us. Personally, I think it would be a kick.” She headed for the bathroom. “I could show you a lot of ways that you’d never—”

“Why?” Nelda’s gaze was narrowed on her. “You have enough money to set yourself up very comfortably. You don’t have to be anyone’s whore. Certainly not mine.”

“I don’t have to do anything. It’s always been my choice.” She paused at the bathroom door. “Why? Because you’ll always be worried that I might be caught, that I might talk if I walk away from you. That would mean I’d always be in danger. But if I walk toward you and become part of your life, then I become valuable.” She smiled. “Oh, and I can make myself very valuable to you. You’d never want me to leave you.”