The Deception (40 page)

"Thank you, Grandma Nell. That's good to know. So is my father awake yet?"

"Not yet, but we'll let you know as soon as he is." She stooped to give her a final kiss on the cheek. "Welcome home, Carrie."

She left the shoebox behind as she stepped out of the room.

G
eorge switched on his police scanner as he merged onto the Interstate and headed toward Tucson. The rush-hour traffic seemed heavier than normal, adding to their sense of urgency.

"We know he left the courthouse sometime between four and five," he said. "If he's bound for Tucson, like Carrie says, then he shouldn't be that far ahead of us, assuming he hasn't come to his senses and turned back."

"Somehow I doubt that," replied Steve. "I just hope he hasn't gone off the road somewhere. I want this to end well."

"So far I'm not hearing anything on the scanner about any accidents between here and Tucson, so no news is good news. I'm more concerned about us arriving and him not being there."

"From what I understand, it's a very special place for both of them. She even said that's where their baby was conceived. If it was me, and Heaven forbid, something happened to Allie, I'd probably be drawn to the place where we'd shared our most special memories."

George's car crawled along the crowded sections of the freeway. Precious time slipped by before the traffic began to speed up. Once they were finally out of the city, he hit the accelerator and sped along the Interstate, weaving in and out of traffic at nearly ninety miles per hour. Steve was in for a white-knuckle ride.

"Relax. I used to be a cop, remember? We're trained in high-speed driving."

Steve leaned back in the passenger seat and listened to the scanner. He prayed that once they arrived, Alex would be there.

* * *

Allie went to the cafeteria
while Carrie visited her grandmother. By the time she returned, Penelope had left and Carrie appeared to be resting comfortably.

"Any news, Allie?"

"Nothing so far. Remember, they say, no news is good news."

Carrie picked up the
TV
remote and started channel surfing.

"I'm so sick of all this wall-to-wall news coverage. I got shot by a psychotic bitch, end of story. Can't people just leave it alone?" She switched channels, suddenly stunned by what she saw on the screen. "What the hell is she doing in the middle of this?"

A reporter was interviewing Louise Dickenson. Carrie turned up the volume. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Louise had followed Maggie Andrews from the crime scene and had photographed her. Some of the photos appeared on the screen, as the reporter mentioned that the photos helped break the case. Louise was milking it for all it was worth. Carrie felt like throwing the remote at the television set.

"I don't believe it. That woman's been exploiting me since I was eight years old. After today, I thought I'd be rid of her for good, but now she's exploiting me again. What is she? A human cockroach?"

For the first time that afternoon, Allison laughed. "You might be onto something, Carrie. Seriously though, she did you a big favor by following Maggie and taking those photos."

"Trust me, Allie, she didn't do it for me. She did it for herself. Not once during that interview did she express any concern for me or the other victims. Alex had her pegged back when we were kids. It's all about Louise, period."

The nurse came back to take her vitals. "You seem to be doing much better. You're blood pressure is starting to go back down on it's own. Are you still having any pain?"

"A little, but not like before."

"That's encouraging and I think you're on the mend. I'll be back to check you later. With any luck, we'll be able to disconnect your
IV
sometime in the next few hours."

As she turned to leave, she noticed two people entering the room. They were a pretty middle-aged woman with long red hair, and a tall young man with dark hair and deep-set blue eyes.

"Sorry, visiting hours are almost over."

"It's okay, we're family," replied the woman as she approached Carrie's bedside and extended her hand. "I'm Julia Fields. I'm Jonathan's wife, so I guess that makes me your stepmother. This is our son, Daniel. He's your half brother."

"I see." Carrie wasn't sure what to say. She quickly introduced them to Allison.

"I know this must be awkward for you," said Julia. "We've always known about you, but you probably don't know a thing about us."

"Jonathan--I mean my father, told me a little the day he came to my office. He told me about being a recovering addict and he mentioned you and your son. He said you were his inspiration for staying clean and sober. He also asked me about my father. Not knowing who he really was, I gave him an earful."

"I remember it well," said Julia. "You told him you thought he'd abandoned you."

"And this is where it all gets so confusing. Why didn't he ever come looking for me?"

"He did. Once he arrived in Arizona, and saw you on a
TV
commercial, he flipped. He thought you were being exploited."

"He was right about that." Carrie looked at Allison. "I just didn't know it at the time."

"He managed to track you down, then you mother warned him that if he ever came anywhere near you, she'd go after him and he'd end up in jail. She was terrified of his former associates. She was afraid they'd come after you."

"I see. So where are they now?"

"Dead and buried, years ago, or so we've heard. As you've already been told, once he got off probation and changed his name, he never looked back. In fact, he now spends a lot of his time working with other addicts trying to go straight."

"Which leaves us as your typical, all-American dysfunctional family," added Danny with a grin.

"You two are definitely related," said Allison with a smile.

"Anyway, I'm here because your father's awake and he would like to see you. Are you ready?"

"I think so."

"Danny, would mind calling the nurse?"

Danny walked to the nurse's station, while Allison helped her with her robe and slippers. He returned a minute later with the nurse. They helped her out of bed, and she held her brother's arm, while Julia pushed her
IV
pole. She glanced back at Allison as they stepped out.

"I've got your phone right here," she said, holding it up. "You go visit your father. If I hear anything, I'll come get you."

Danny escorted Carrie into the next room. Jonathan looked up as she approached his bedside and embraced him. She started crying as the rest of the family stepped back. Finally, Jonathan told Danny to bring her a chair so she could sit next to him. Penelope handed both of them a tissue as Carrie sat down and took his hand.

"Are you all right, Cara Mia?"

"I'm fine, thanks to you. Are you all right?"

"I'm okay. I suppose if I still had my left kidney I'd have a problem, but someone relieved me of it the night I was stabbed in that parking lot. I'm told the bullet went through me and grazed you before hitting the building across the street. Luckily, no one inside was hurt."

"I can't believe you did what you did." Carrie squeezed his hand. "You saved my life."

"I did what any parent would do. I put your life ahead of my own."

"So why didn't you tell me who you were? That day last fall, at Alex's office, when we were first introduced, I said you looked familiar and I asked if we'd ever met. You said no."

"I know, and I'm sorry. It just wasn't the time or place. I was going to tell you that day at your office. Then that letter arrived, so I had to take care of you."

"I know, and my ranting about how I'd been abandoned by my father, and that he--you, were dead, probably didn't help either. I'm so sorry. I had no idea."

"It's not your fault, Cara Mia. What's done is done. I'm not blaming you, because right or wrong, your mother did what she did thinking she was protecting you. What matters now is where we go from here."

A nurse came in to check on Jonathan just as Allison stepped in to announce that Carrie's dinner had just arrived.

"We'll have to finish this conversation later, Kevin," said Penelope. "Right now, she needs to eat and then you both need to get some rest."

"I'll take her back, Grandma," volunteered Danny. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and walked her back to her room, waiting until she was back in her bed before stepping away.

"Any word on Alex?"

"Nothing yet," replied Allison. "They haven't been gone long enough to have made it all the way to Tucson."

Carrie quietly ate her meal. After she finished, she settled into her bed. The day had finally caught up with her and she soon fell into an exhausted sleep. 

A
fter Carrie went to sleep, Allison began flipping through the channels, while she anxiously waited for Steve's call. Her heart skipped a beat, when she finally heard her phone ring, but her excitement turned to disappointment, when the caller
ID
indicated it was an out-of-state number.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Allison. This is Catherine Montoya. My husband and I just landed in Phoenix, but we're having trouble reaching Alex. Do you know where he is?"

"Sorry, I don't. Alex is missing, Mrs. Montoya."

"What do you mean he's missing? I just spoke to him a few hours ago. We heard about Carrie, so we told him we were on our way. He said to hurry up and get here because he needed us. Do you know if he's claimed the body?"

"I guess you haven't heard. The media got it wrong. Carrie wasn't killed. I'm with her at the hospital."

Allison could hear her talking to her husband. She waited for her to come back on the line.

"Thank goodness, but what happened?"

"She was shot, but fortunately, she wasn't seriously injured. They're keeping her here at the hospital for observation. She thinks she knows where Alex might have gone, so Steve and George McCormick are out looking for him."

Once again Allison waited while Alex's mother passed the information along.

"We're at the rental car counter right now. As soon as we're done, we'll come straight to the hospital, if that's okay. What hospital is she in?"

"Sonoran Southwest," replied Allison and gave them the room number. "There's a police officer guarding the door. Call me as soon as you get here. I'll come down to the lobby to get you."

"Thanks, Allison. At least it's not that far from the airport. We should be there in about twenty minutes or so."

* * *

George and Steve had exited the Interstate and were on the road leading to the Double-Diamond. It was after dark and so far they'd seen no sign of Alex. They were within a quarter mile of the resort entrance, when Steve spotted a car off the side of the road.

"Look! It's a white Camaro."

George pulled over in front of the Camaro. Steve leapt out, racing to the driver's side door. The windows were tinted and he couldn't tell if anyone was inside. He peered through the windshield. The car appeared to be empty. He tried both doors, but the car was locked.

"Damn it! Where the hell could he be?"

"Wait a second," said George. "I'll get my lockout tool."

He stood by as George rushed back to his car. Quickly, he inserted the tool, carefully unlocking the driver's side door. He slowly opened it as Steve looked inside.

"Oh my God."

Alex was curled up in the backseat. His face was pale, his eyes were closed and he wasn't moving. Steve called out his name several times, but there was no response. His heart was in his throat as he pushed the seatback forward and felt along Alex's neck for a pulse.

"He's alive, but he's not responding." He began shaking Alex's shoulders. "Come on, buddy, say something. Please. C'mon Alex, talk to me." He heard Alex softly moaning. "That's it, that's it, c'mon, wake up and talk to me."

"Is he all right? Do you need me to call nine-one-one?"

"I don't know, George, maybe. He's hardly responding. What if he's overdosed on something?"

"Keep talking to him while I search inside the car."

Steve stepped aside as George thoroughly examined the inside of the car.

"They're dead," mumbled Alex. "They're dead. They're dead. They're dead."

"I don't see any empty pill containers or booze bottles," said George. "He's probably gone into shock, but it looks like he's trying to come out of it. Give him another minute or two. If he doesn't wake up, then we'll call the paramedics."

Alex slowly opened his eyes. It took him a moment to focus.

"Steve? What the hell are you doing here? Go away."