Chapter Fifty-Nine Hanna
Chapter Fifty-Nine
Hanna
Aubrey would have been my last choice for a sidekick. When everything calmed down at the hospital, including me, Jeremy answered
some police questions. Aubrey thanked Jeremy for his honesty. He responded by falling back to sleep.
Jeremy having protection was the only reason I could sneak out for a few minutes. I needed to speak with one woman, but I
had to be quick. The advantage of surprise came with a ticking clock.
Aubrey had the same questions for the same woman, so she tagged along. I refused to give her a ride. Petty, but I still didn’t
trust her. Being confined in a vehicle with her struck me as risky. She seemed to understand my wariness and drove behind
me. Pulled into the driveway right after I did.
We now stood at Stella’s front door. Together. Waiting for someone to answer.
Aubrey glanced over at me. “I’m still waiting for a sorry I misjudged you, Aubrey. Use your own words, but something like that. Go ahead.”
She hadn’t been Jeremy and Daniela’s attacker. I could concede that point, but that didn’t make Aubrey likable, trustworthy,
or someone I wanted to hang out with. “You’re pushing it.”
“Not the first time I’ve heard that.”
I was about to suggest she let me handle this alone when the door opened. Isabel stood there, frowning. Isabel proved incapable
of wearing any other expression in my presence.
“What do you two want?” Isabel’s frown deepened. “Why are you together?”
Excellent question there at the end. One I ignored. “May we come in?”
Isabel hesitated. She clearly wanted to say no.
Aubrey smiled. “Don’t be that way, cousin. Invite us in for tea and cookies.”
Maybe it was the look Aubrey shot her or the reference to family, but Isabel took a hesitant step to the side. We slid by
her before she could slam the door shut on us again.
I walked until I got to the family room. Stella’s house. Homey and decorated with expensive furniture that gave off a comfy
vibe. Light wood. Throw pillows and blankets. A stuffed unicorn and the pieces making up a tiny play ice cream shop littered
the floor. The place wasn’t messy. It looked lived-in. Loved.
“Stella took Everly to the park,” Isabel said.
Good. That would make the visit easier.
Isabel’s gaze traveled over me as she talked. Judging me. “She owed her daughter some attention after being with you all evening.”
Not untrue. “She was helping me find my son.”
Isabel visibly tensed. She rubbed her hands together as she stood in front of the fireplace in a smart pencil skirt and sweater.
The heavy scent of her perfume wrapped around me. Who dressed like that to hang around the house at ten in the morning?
I continued before Aubrey could jump in. “Stella had to help because you kidnapped Jeremy and set fire to the café.”
Isabel’s mouth dropped open. “That’s asinine. You need to leave.”
“Isabel’s right, Hanna. She couldn’t have kidnapped Jeremy.”
Isabel’s chin rose in haughty disdain. “Exactly.”
“Not without help.” Aubrey finished her thought. “You might be stronger than you look with those baby bird arms but, come
on, you’re not that strong.”
Maybe Aubrey wasn’t the worst sidekick after all.
Isabel gasped. A deep-throated how dare you? sort of gasp. “Excuse me?”
My muscles begged for relief. The last twelve hours I’d held my body tense while on constant alarm status. This conversation
was draining the final drops of my energy. I wanted to go to the hospital, get Jeremy, and hide somewhere until this mess
was over. But first . . . “Jeremy saw you hit Daniela.”
Isabel gasped. “I would never—”
“Nice try with the dramatic inhale, but lying isn’t going to work.” Aubrey shook her head. “Nope. See, the police talked with
Jeremy. They also separately questioned Daniela for details of what she could remember.”
“All those details sound remarkably like you,” I added.
Jeremy didn’t really know Isabel. She never came into the café. They certainly didn’t run in the same social circles. But he could describe her. The hair. The height and build. The more he spoke, the more obvious it was he was referencing her.
The bigger problem for Isabel was Daniela. She was sitting up and talking. Much more lucid than during my last hospital visit.
She had a heightened sense of smell she credited to her career as a chef. Not sure if that was true, but she did know Isabel
and the distinct and very expensive perfume Isabel wore. Standing here, drawing in a whiff, I would forever tie that scent
to Isabel.
Aubrey nodded. “You’re in big trouble, little lady.”
That was probably enough of Aubrey’s taunting. Her mocking tone would haunt my sleep. “I don’t know why you did it or who
helped you.”
Isabel shook her head. “Your son and that cook are wrong.”
Isabel’s act didn’t sway me. I still wanted to strangle her for all the hurt and pain she’d caused. Poor Daniela. Seeing Jeremy
crumpled and bleeding on the floor would take me decades to overcome. But, in the end, Isabel was too pathetic to hate. Too
lost in the world Xavier created and never shared with her.
“And while you’re explaining you can tell the police why you were at the Tanner house that day fifteen years ago and what
you did there.” I wanted her to answer me, but I could hear that countdown ticking in my head.
“I wasn’t. I—”
“Yeah, oops.” Aubrey winced. “That’s not going to work either. I’m standing here and I saw you at my house back then. I followed
you to the bookstore. The one that soon after burst into flames, so maybe try again?”
That was new information. Of course Aubrey waited until now to share it. She was exhausting.
“I do not have to listen to this nonsense.” Isabel scooted around the chair and headed for the doorway. She moved fast. With
the speed of someone hell-bent on outrunning their past.
The doorbell stopped her. She froze at the sound.
“Did we forget to tell you the police were right behind us?” Aubrey asked. “I’m thinking you’re about to have a long conversation
with a detective who likes to see his name in the press.”
“You need to stop this.” Isabel didn’t beg. She ordered.
Aubrey’s smile didn’t look too promising for Isabel. “Because we’re related?”
“Of course.” Isabel pointed at me as the doorbell rang a second time. “She and that bastard son of hers stole our money. She’s
the enemy here, not me.”
“She put up with Gramps and my parents.” Aubrey shrugged. “She probably earned whatever change she gets from our musty family
coffers.”
Okay, enough. I wasn’t in the mood for either of them. “Isabel, you should open the door.”
Much more of this and I’d fall over. The constant choking tension of worrying about Jeremy had eased. With the adrenaline
gone my body ached to collapse. Isabel’s entitled attitude and useless denial weren’t helping.
Isabel walked to the front door in a slow march. I waited behind her with Aubrey, ready to block and stop the older woman
if I had to.
I glanced at Aubrey. Saw her satisfied smile. “You’re enjoying this too much.”
“You try waiting in exile for fifteen years while your grandfather views you as a killer and no one is looking for the real one.”
The words sent a jolt through me. “You think Isabel killed your parents?”
Isabel opened the door and let the detective in.
“Isabel is the key to everything.” Aubrey finally looked at me. Didn’t bother to whisper. “Gird those loins, Hanna, because
this is going to get bumpy before it’s over.”