Chapter Eleven
CAM
Breakfast consisted of a quick stop at a donut shop where we picked up coffee, with ham and cheese croissants.
I slid into the backseat of the Camaro and drank my coffee, after shoving the pastry in my face since Mars wouldn’t let me eat in the damned car.
He drove to Shady Grove, parking at the back of the lot where I was assured the earpiece would pick up the conversation between the agent and Mr. Ranger.
“Michaels?” Mickey asked. “We see you driving in.”
“Is that you, Mickey?”
“Yep. Hey, Beth. I’m here with Mars and Mrs. Demarco’s son, Cam. We’re in Mars’ black Camaro.”
The headlights on the Beemer flashed briefly. “I see you.”
“Who’s that with you?”
“I have Kindness with me.”
“Good,” Mickey said. “We weren’t sure who Candy was going to send, but I’m sure Mars will agree we feel better now that we know it’s you two.”
I wondered if they worked with the two women in Los Angeles. If they did, maybe that would mean they’d take my mom to L.A. I hadn’t asked, but it would make sense. Clearly the agents were capable, if the relief in Mickey’s voice was anything to go by.
Mars was unusually quiet. Yesterday he’d been quite talkative, but today he just seemed like he was lost in his own thoughts.
I hadn’t meant to upset him by sending him away as abruptly as I had last night, but thinking back on it, I had to conclude he brought some of that on himself.
We’d both gotten off, shared some incredibly intimate kisses, he’d said it was a one and done, then I’d pretty much kicked him out of the room.
Then the phone call to Josiah which had been awkward with Mars.
So, yeah. But I’d been quiet myself, lost in worry over how this operation would go with my mom, and fear of how Josiah would react once he learned his plans were blown all to shit.
“You ready?” I heard the agent say.
“Yep,” came a soft voice.
I watched as the front doors of the car opened at the same time.
The two women who stepped out looked as different as night and day.
One was tall with a blonde ponytail sitting high on the crown of her head, and the other was short and slight, Asian heritage, with long, straight, black hair that hung halfway down her back..
They were dressed in jeans and casual tees with tennis shoes.
They looked just like who they were supposed to be, a daughter coming to pick her mother up for a short vacation and a friend tagging along.
A brief look in our direction before the blonde gave a slight nod, then turned and walked into the facility.
“Here we go,” one of them said. I was pretty sure it was the agent Mickey had referred to as Beth.
“Good luck,” Mars said.
“Should be easy peasy,” the other agent replied.
I listened as they approached the front desk first.
“Good morning,” the receptionist said.
“Good morning. I’m Beth Michaels, here to visit with my mom, Mary Demarco, and pick her up.”
“Oh, I see. Well, I don’t know if she’s finished with breakfast just yet. Our residents usually get an early start here, but it is Sunday, so she might be in the chapel.”
“That’s fine. We can wait.”
“Oh…okay.” I heard the clicking of keys. “I need to check with Mr. Ranger, our administrator. He’s not normally here every Sunday but let me check his schedule to see if he’s planning on being in the office today.”
“Thank you.”
My heart began to race. I hadn’t thought about whether Mr. Ranger would be at the facility.
I thought it might make things easier if he wasn’t since the only other person who could sign off on someone checking a resident out was the head nurse.
I knew her and liked her demeanor the few times I’d talked to her.
She wasn’t condescending and judgmental like Mr. Ranger.
She was generally pleasant and seemed to like my mom a lot.
I listened to the receptionist placing a call and then another.
When she finally spoke again, I felt relief wash over me.
“I’m sorry, but Mr. Ranger isn’t here today. And we don’t have you listed as family.”
There was a short pause before the agent spoke again. “My brother. Didn’t he call in and explain this? Cam usually takes her on day trips but since he’s out of town, I thought it was a good time for me to come.”
“I see…well, this seems irregular.” There was a long pause. “And no, we didn’t get a call from him that I’m aware of. Let me call Bernice Guerra. She’s the charge nurse.”
“I really appreciate that. We’ll wait.”
“Can I have your names, please?”
“Sure. I’m Beth Michaels and this is my roommate, Kindness.” There were footsteps and then finally, Beth spoke again. “She went to get someone.”
I unmuted my earpiece and cleared my throat. “Hi…uh…this is Cam Demarco…um…Ms. Guerra is nice. She really likes my mom,” I said.
“It’s nice to speak to you, Mr. Demarco. It would’ve been nice to meet you earlier, but the soonest we could get to Vegas was this morning. We came straight from the airport.”
I cleared my throat again. “Um, yeah, thanks for doing this, Special Agent Michaels.”
“Please, call me Beth.”
“Okay, Beth,” I said.
“It’s our pleasure,” the other agent said. “I’m Kindness, and it’s nice to meet you, Mr. Demarco.”
“Nice to meet you too,” I said. “I really hope this works.” I was getting nervous, hoping Josiah’s guys wouldn’t turn up and make trouble before the agents got my mom out of there. “How long do you think this will take?” I asked.
Mars turned around in his seat to look at me. He offered an encouraging smile. “Won’t take long if the charge nurse cooperates.”
I nodded, feeling like there was a lump in my throat.
“She will as long as she doesn’t smell anything wrong about a sudden sister I haven’t mentioned.
” I gnawed on my lower lip. “You don’t think I should just go in and—” I stopped talking when Mickey turned around in his seat. Both men shook their heads.
“Beth’s already said you’re away,” Mickey said.
I nodded quickly. “And there is that.”
Mars frowned just a bit. “Don’t fuss, Cam. It’s gonna be all right.”
I leaned back in the seat trying to relax, realizing I’d been tense as a bowstring. “Yeah, okay.”
“She’s coming back and another woman is with her,” Beth said, quieter this time.
Mars and Mickey turned back around but not before Mars gave me an encouraging smile.
I listened to the receptionist introducing the two agents.
As they explained why they were there, I briefly wondered why they were using their real names.
As FBI agents, I figured when they went undercover they changed all that.
I balled my hands into fists in the backseat as they exchanged pleasantries and Bernice Guerra asked them to come back to her office where she could make a copy of their IDs for her files.
It was hard not to bounce my knee with nervous energy and just stay put.
I listened intently as the agents explained how I was out of town even though I wished I could be there for a short visit with my mom. When Guerra asked how long we expected to have my mom out of the facility, I held my breath.
“No more than a week,” Beth replied. “We have relatives visiting and Cam and I wanted Mom to take a little break to see family rather than have the whole big family come to see her.” She gave an overly modest, little chuckle.
“A week?” Nurse Guerra’s voice rose alarmingly, and I prayed this wouldn’t be a problem.
“Yes, that shouldn’t be a problem, should it?”
There was a pause. “This should have been arranged with your brother ahead of time. I’d really feel better if I could speak to him since I don’t know you personally.
Until ten minutes ago, I wasn’t even aware that Mary Demarco had a daughter and I have no way of checking the legality of it all on a Sunday. I hope you’ll understand.”
“That’s no problem. I have no idea who he said he talked to about this but you should have Cam’s phone number. I’m happy to give it to you if you don’t,” Beth replied.
“I’d feel better if I looked it up in our files. Thank you.”
Mars turned around to look at me. “Get ready for a call and make sure your com’s muted.”
I nodded, pulling the earpieces out of both ears and yanking my phone out of my jacket pocket when it began ringing. “Hello?”
“Hello, Mr. Demarco. This is Bernice Guerra, the charge nurse at Shady Grove.”
“Is everything okay with my mom?”
“Yes. Nothing to worry about. I’m very sorry to bother you when you’re out of town, but I have your sister here.”
“Oh, Beth. Yes, I’m glad she made it.”
“So you were expecting her?”
“Yes. She and her roommate, Kindness, were talking about coming for a visit. This week, we have family in town, so I guess she thought it was the right time. I called about it and left a message.”
“Oh. I guess it didn’t get passed on to us. Very good. It’s quite short notice.”
I chuckled, trying to sound nonchalant. “Oh, that’s Beth for you. She thinks she’s a big shot and can just rock up when it suits her.”
There was a huff on the other end of the line. “Um, yes, well, we don’t take chances with our residents. She said she might have her for a few days.”
“That’s right. Unfortunately, I’m working today, but you can let her go with my sister.
Beth will be taking her to spend some time with the family.
Sunday brunch has always been a big deal with us.
” The last thing I wanted was any more delay, not with the possibility that Josiah or his guys would be watching.
“Well, that’s fine then, but in the future, we’ll need a little more notice if you or your sister plan on taking Mary out of the facility, especially for an overnight visit or longer.”
“Of course. I apologize for the short notice and thank you very much for your help today, Ms. Guerra.”
“It’s no problem. I’ll give the phone to your sister so you can say goodbye.”
“Yes, thank you.” I waited as Mickey and Mars watched me, listening in on both sides of the conversation in their earpieces.
“Thanks,” Beth said. “Hi, bro. Thanks for talking to Nurse Guerra. I should’ve got organized sooner but you know me.”
“I do. Thanks, sis,” I said, not knowing whether I was on speakerphone or not.
“You’re welcome. I hope you can get some time off this week to spend time with Uncle Bill and Aunt Betty. They’re not getting any younger and I know Mom will be really sorry if you can’t.”
“Mom only knows me half the time, Beth,” I said. The pang of truth in that statement hurt and it got to me more than it should’ve.
“I know, Cam. Maybe seeing Betty and Bill will jog a memory loose.”
“Let’s hope she remembers them. Her memory is usually better earlier in the day, so it’s a good thing you’re there early.”
“Agreed. I hope she remembers me then. In either case, I think the change of pace will be good for her,” Beth said.
“I know seeing the family will be good for everyone.” There was a short pause.
“Anyway, Kindness is here with me. We’re gonna help her pack a bag and get going.
Call me when you know your schedule, Cam.
Maybe we can get together for dinner tonight.
I’ll text you my room number. I can’t remember it. I left the key in the car. I think.”
I laughed. “Love you, sis.”
“Love you too, bro.” She hung up the phone, and Mars smiled at me.
“That was good. Ya did well, Cam.”
I nodded quickly, putting my earpieces back in as I heard Beth talking in the background. They were most likely walking to my mom’s room. I unmuted my earpiece.
“Please hurry and pack her up and get her out of there before Josiah’s guys show up,” I said, knowing I sounded nervous.
“This is your mom’s room. She might still be in chapel, but we’ll give the room a try first,” I heard the nurse say.
There was a knock at the door. “Are you there, Mary? It’s Nurse Guerra.
” The sound of a door opening followed. “Good morning, Mary. Look who’s here to see you.
” There was a shuffling noise and then Beth spoke.
“Hi, Mom.” There was the sound of a muted hello, and I realized the agent was probably hugging my mom.”
“Do you remember your daughter, Beth, Mary? Isn’t it nice of her to come and visit you?” Nurse Guerra said.
“Yes. Hello, Beth,” my mom said.
I blew out a long sigh of relief, realizing that I’d been holding my breath.
I never knew whether Mom would be clear headed from one day to another and always marveled at how well she adapted.
Since I didn’t have a sister and she didn’t have a daughter, I realized I’d been on the edge of panic at the thought that she might be having one of her clearer days when she remembered everything.
“You remember my roommate, Kindness, don’t you, Mom?”
“I…yes,” she said.
“We’re here to pick you up for a few days visit. Aunt Betty and Uncle Bill are here in town. Won’t it be nice to see them?”
“Oh, yes,” my mom said. Every word out of her mouth further reinforced the progression of her Alzheimer’s. It was utterly heartbreaking to hear.
“Let me help you pack a few things,” Beth said.
“Okay.”
I heard a shuffling as a closet was opened, and then Kindness said, “I have a suitcase here.”
“Mom, I’m going to pack some dresses for you,” Beth said. “Kindness, will you pack some underthings and toiletries for her?”
“Sure.”
I held my breath as the agents made quick work of getting her packed up. I checked my watch. It was already nine-thirty, and I was getting really antsy. I kept watching the parking lot, praying I didn’t see Josiah pulling in. “Please hurry, Beth,” I said.
“All done,” she said. “Let’s get going, Mom.”
“Okay,” I heard my mom say.
A few seconds later, I heard a door open and shut and then there was the sound of footsteps as they headed for the exit.
I listened as Beth said goodbye, probably to the receptionist at the front desk.
The muted goodbye, was a relief. As the front door to the facility opened and the two agents stepped out with my mom, I watched as they headed for the blue Beemer.
Kindness carried a small suitcase and my mom held onto Beth’s elbow as she guided her to the car.
As soon as they’d stowed the suitcase in the trunk and my mom was safely tucked into the backseat, I finally relaxed back into my own.
I hadn’t realized just how tense I’d been until they were driving out of the lot and away from the threat of Josiah’s guys.
“We’ll meet you at the Wyndham, Mars,” Beth said. “We’re in room five-twenty.”
“We’ll be there. Ya did well, Beth. Signing off for now.”
“See you there.”
Silence filled the car as I slid the earpieces out of my ears, placing them in their box.
I smiled, feeling a little better, not knowing what the hell the future held for me, just knowing I’d deal with whatever fallout came from getting Mom safely away from Josiah Sterling’s threats. I only hoped it wasn’t going to be painful in more ways than one.