Chapter 5
CHAPTER FIVE
Courtney was getting on Ian’s nerves in a big way.
By late afternoon, she’d begun alternating between pacing the floor and staring at her phone. Since talking to the family, she had remained in the mansion, occasionally checking in with each one of them. Each time she got a negative reply. No one had heard from Dana.
“It’s like she’s vanished,” Courtney said at one point, clearly frantic.
Ian didn’t have much patience for this kind of thing. Courtney’s craziness was getting out of hand. Anxiety emanated off her in waves, ruining the vibe for the rest of them, especially his wife, Kristy. She’d come back from her spa day more relaxed than he’d seen her in a long time. If her good mood held, he’d get lucky that night.
And he hadn’t gotten lucky in a long time.
Courtney had refused to join them for dinner, and she’d turned down the offer of a glass of wine. Then she proceeded to lurk in the background while he and Kristy and Brayden were being served a lovely meal. Martha had outdone herself, having prepared bourbon salmon with a mushroom tart and sautéed spinach. “Are you sure you don’t want to join us?” Kristy asked, raising a forkful of salmon. “Honestly, this is delicious.”
Courtney’s mouth dropped open. “Why am I the only one who’s concerned? We have no idea where Dana is!”
At that point, Ian made an executive decision. Excusing himself from the table, he gently guided Courtney out of the kitchen. “We appreciate your devotion to my sister, honestly we do, but it’s bordering on obsession,” he said in a low and even voice. He chuckled to lighten the mood. “Seriously, Courtney, you’re not paid enough to worry this much.” When she opened her mouth to object, he held a finger briefly to her lips. “This is what I want you to do. Go home, relax, do whatever it is you do in your free time. My family is going to finish our meal. I promise that we’ll all keep checking our phones throughout the evening. If we don’t hear from Dana by tomorrow, we’ll circle back and come up with a plan then.”
“Shouldn’t we call the police?”
Ian chuckled again. “Trust me, we’re not even close to that point yet.”
But Courtney just wouldn’t let it go. “You aren’t worried that she’s out there injured or in some kind of trouble?”
Ian shook his head. “Dana is not a shy person. If she needed help, we’d hear about it.” Oh boy, would they hear about it. His sister was as high maintenance as they came, and contradictory too. She resisted being told what to do and often opposed business deals that were in her best interest. She was the human personification of the phrase “cutting off your nose to spite your face.” If someone said yes, she said no. With Dana, everything was a debate, and it was exhausting. Courtney was in the line of fire for most of it, but all of them felt it to some degree.
And then there was Dana’s egocentric fixation with talking about herself.
One time he’d had to hear about the dried skin between Dana’s toes and how the doctor had dismissed her concern as if it were nothing . Another time she’d decided to throw an impromptu party for herself to celebrate a book sales milestone. It had come during tax season while he was putting together all the records for the accountant, but that hadn’t mattered. Suddenly he was fielding phone calls from the catering company and the owner of the venue and weighing in on the size of the guest list. He’d thrown most of it over to Courtney, but he still had to keep an eye on her plans to make sure it didn’t get out of hand.
It had been that way with Dana since they were children. His sister held up hoops, and they all jumped through them. Dana could make a person crazy, and now Courtney, usually the stable one, had been infected with it as well.
He steered Courtney to the front entryway, murmuring reassurances along the way. When he finally got her through the doorway, he bid her a good evening, then closed the door firmly behind her and locked it. She had a key, of course, but she’d always been respectful of the family’s space in the evening, so he wasn’t worried about her returning.
Back at the dinner table, Kristy dabbed her mouth with a linen napkin. “She’s gone?”
He nodded. “For tonight, anyway.”
“Finally, some peace. Courtney is such a buzzkill. So Dana’s gone. Big deal. It’s not the first time and it won’t be the last. We might as well enjoy it while we can.”
He took a seat and picked up his fork. “She’s talking about calling the police.”
Kristy groaned. “That’s just what we need, a crew of cops traipsing through the house, asking questions.”
“I wouldn’t mind it so much.” This came from Brayden, who hadn’t spoken a word all dinner. They’d almost forgotten he was there. “It might be exciting, talking to them.”
Ian gave him a steely look. “And would you think it would be exciting for them to take your phone and look through it?”
“Hell no.” A look of horror crossed his face.
“Well, that’s probably what will happen if we get the police involved.”
Brayden lowered his head and finished his last bite of food. “Maybe not such a good idea, then. Can I be excused?”
Ian smiled at his son, pleased to note the show of good manners. He answered, “Of course you may. And if you hear from your aunt, let me know. Right away.”
“I will.”
After he left the room, Kristy said, “Are you at all worried that all he does is play that game with Charlie? It’s getting to be an addiction.”
Ian shrugged. “He’s already accepted at the university. As long as his grades are decent, I’m fine with whatever.”
Kristy exhaled. “It’s so relaxing when Dana’s not here. Wouldn’t it be great if she never came back? I mean, I’m not wishing she’d die, but everyone does eventually, right?” She looked around the dining room and gestured to the windows overlooking the grounds in back. “Then all of this will be ours, right?”
“That’s correct.”
“And her backlist will keep selling, so you’ll still get royalties?”
Ian nodded. “It will taper off at some point, but she’s written a lot of books. Her income will continue.”
“And you can keep selling the rights as long as the copyright lasts?” Kristy speared the last bit of mushroom tart.
“Yes, for seventy years past the author’s death.”
“Didn’t you tell me about an author whose movie rights sold long after he died?”
He nodded. “I think you’re thinking of Walter Tevis, who wrote The Queen’s Gambit . It became a big hit on Netflix decades after his death. That’s just one example. It happens all the time.”
“Hmmm.” Kristy sat back in her chair. “So there may be light at the end of the tunnel. I might actually see a day where I can live my life without her passive-aggressive digs about my employment status.”
Ian laughed. “Don’t get your hopes up, darling. Dana is nothing if not resilient. Wherever she is right now, you can bet she’s the life of the party. She’s in excellent health too. My sister will live forever.”
“Too bad.”
Ian nodded in agreement. Dana’s current absence gave all of them a much-needed break. He’d been completely serious when he told Brayden the police could request access to all of their phones. They’d also, most likely, want to see everything on their other devices and computers. If that happened, he’d be in a world of pain. The kind of pain not easily assuaged by his nightly snifter of Courvoisier.
Yes, Dana was all ego, which was aggravating, but on the plus side, she was so dependent on the rest of them that she never kept track of the details.
And everything of importance was in the details.