Episode 87
EPISODE 87
BAD NEWS
Sebastian
Twenty Years Earlier…
My alarm rings at three a.m.
I set it just in case, but I knew I wouldn’t sleep, and I didn’t. I grab it and turn it off. Wouldn’t be a good thing if my mother woke up. She’s sober this week—at least she says she is—so she might actually give a shit if I take off in the middle of the night.
Today’s the day.
The day we put Brett’s plan into action.
And we start in an hour.
I rise and tug on a pair of old jeans and a black T-shirt. I walk into the hallway, staying as quiet as I can, and peek into Mom’s room. Her limbs are entangled around some random guy’s, and an empty bottle of vodka lies next to the bed.
So much for sober.
I’m not sure how I missed the sounds of that party, but my thoughts were elsewhere. Besides, I’m oddly content. No chance of her waking up and finding me missing.
I breathe in as I head into the kitchen and look for something with caffeine, though I’m pretty sure my nerves will keep me wide awake for what’s to come.
Mom and I live in a small rental in town. At least it’s clean. Mom may be a drunk, but she hates dirt. I open the screen door with care to keep it from squeaking. Once I’m on the sidewalk, I look back at the little house, the moon shining on the patched roof.
One day I’m going to live in a fucking mansion, and today will get me closer to that goal.
Present Day…
What a day…and it’s only early afternoon!
Sienna is on her way out of here with Brett as her escort, and I’m still coming down from the high of fucking Ariel Tanner. Damn, she’s one hot little southern babe. Honestly, she wasn’t on my radar at all, but she’s sexy and young, and I’d really like to explore everything she has to offer.
Then there’s Heather… Sexy as fuck with that viper on her shoulder, and a tomcat in the sack.
Plus that unfinished business with Emily the first night and then my afternoon delight on the catamaran with June and her vajazzled pussy…
Oh, hell.
Why choose?
No need to—at least not yet.
I need some Seb time. I would hit the hot tub, but I can’t count on being alone there, so I run a warm bath in my private suite. I add a few drops of lavender oil. Yeah, I like a little aromatherapy in my bath. Fuck, I’d take heat from Alex, Brett, and Riv if they knew.
I climb in the tub and close my eyes, soaking out the tension of the day as I inhale the relaxing fragrance.
Still, though, my thoughts race. River chose to stay and let Brett escort Sienna to catch her flight back to the States. Why? He didn’t say, and I didn’t ask. Brett, however, mentioned to me that River asked him to go to the hospital to find out what he could about Rachel and Ginger and why they left against medical advice.
If anyone can get the information, Brett can. That man has a way of thinking things through and getting things done that is damned near magical. And when that doesn’t work, Brett tosses a few Franklins, and most people end up talking—even those sworn to doctor-patient confidentiality. By the end of the day, we should have some leads on Rachel and Ginger.
I try to erase the thoughts and focus on relaxation, but unfortunately peace doesn’t come. After stewing in the tub until the water becomes lukewarm, I finally rise.
I have a phone call to make.
I dry myself in a lush white towel and then take care of my hair, squeezing all the water out of it and then brushing some leave-in conditioner through it. My hair is part of my rock-star image, so I take good care of it.
Once I’m dressed in black shorts and a short-sleeved green button-down, I grab my satellite phone. Time to check in with Shelley on some stuff…and give her a new assignment.
Shelley answers on the first ring. “Sebastian, I was just about to call you,” she says, her voice agitated.
“You okay?” I ask.
“I’m fine, but I’m afraid I have some bad news.”
I nearly lose my grasp on the phone. Bad news? Really? Like we need more of that? “What is it?” I demand, and not in a nice way.
“I’m so sorry,” she says.
The fact that she didn’t call me out on my tone has me more worried. “Just tell me.”
She sighs. “It’s the weirdest thing. Someone broke into River’s parents’ home on River’s ranch.”
“Say what?”
My mind goes numb. River’s mom and dad—plus a live-in caretaker since River’s Uncle Bobby passed away last year—still live in the old house River grew up in. River’s tried time and again to get his mother to move to a bigger place, but she turns him down every time, so Riv had the place renovated and installed the best security in the business. He’s also the one who pays for the live-in help for his father, who’s pretty much bedridden now. The doc gave him a year to live five years ago, but the old guy keeps hanging on.
“He’s got the best security in the business,” I continue. “We all do. Plus, his parents’ house is only accessible by dirt roads. What happened? Is everyone all right?”
“Monica and Jaelynn were out running errands. Duke was at home, but of course couldn’t do anything. He probably didn’t even know they were there.”
“If they?—”
“No, no. Duke’s fine. I mean, if you can call his condition fine. They clearly weren’t there to harm anyone.”
The hairs on my arms push upward. “And who are ‘they,’ exactly?”
“We don’t know. The cops are investigating, and?—”
“Screw the cops. I want you on this, Shelley.”
“I will be.”
“Good.”
“Anyway, someone must have been casing the place, because it happened when Monica and Jaelynn were both out.”
“Why’d she take Jaelynn with her? Shouldn’t she have been staying with Duke?”
“I don’t know. Something about medical supplies, and she needed Jae with her. I don’t have the whole story yet. This just happened this morning.”
“Fuck.”
“Everyone’s fine. The alarm wasn’t set, so?—”
“The alarm wasn’t set?” I nearly hurl the phone into the wall. “What was Monica thinking?”
“She was probably thinking that in the fifty years she’s lived there, no one has ever broken in. Hell, I don’t know, Sebastian. Give me a break here.”
I breathe in and count to ten. “I’m sorry. It’s just… I’ve got a lot on my mind.”
“I know you do. I’m looking into Misty Holmes. I went by the property yesterday, and this time I wasn’t followed. Everything looks okay there.”
I heave a sigh. At least that’s one less thing to worry about. For now, anyway.
Fuck.
Duke Barrett was a father to all five of us before his accident. He was the epitome of a man’s man with a man’s honor, and he treated all of us as if we were his sons by blood. Monica Barrett was the kind of woman who got up with the sun to do ranch work but still had three hot meals a day on the table—enough for anyone who came by at the right time. I ate many lunches and dinners at Riv’s place. My own mother was usually too drunk to cook, and my father is one of three men, according to her. I couldn’t give two shits which loser fathered me, and I’ve never tried to find out.
“You there?” Shelley asks.
“Yeah. Sorry. My thoughts are all over the place.”
“There’s more.”
“You said they’re all okay. What more can there be?”
She sighs. “The place was ransacked, especially River’s old bedroom.”
“What?” I nearly yell into the phone.
“Yeah. Monica’s always kept his old room intact. Jaelynn stays in the mother-in-law flat over the garage.”
“Why Riv’s room?”
“Got me. Nothing seems to be gone except for a few old football trophies and his high-school yearbooks.”
“Why would anyone want that shit?”
“I don’t have a clue, but they were obviously looking for something other than a few mementos. All the dresser drawers were pulled out and the stuff in them scattered everywhere.”
“What was in them?”
“Mostly odds and ends that Monica was storing in that room. The closet door was pulled off the hinges. And his bed… Jesus, Seb, they cut it open and pulled out chunks of foam. They destroyed the box spring. Did the same to the old plush chair. This wasn’t pure vandalism. They were looking for something. Something specific.”
“Damn…” I mutter.
River.
Misty.
Old Man Larson.
Jake.
Marnie.
Lisa.
There has to be a connection. River made sure that place was a fortress. Of course, a fortress will fall if you don’t arm the security. I can’t believe Monica would leave without?—
“Sebastian…”
“Yeah?” I say into the phone.
“You have to tell River.”