Trying to obey Nana
Now the evil
Summoned by Sheriff Bill Forsythe, a loose coalition of officers from several jurisdictions converged on the Walker home in Gates Pass. They were just starting to work when the doorbell rang and Brandon went to answer it. Standing there was FBI Agent in Charge, Brock Kendall. After years of working together, Kendall and Brandon Walker had gone from being colleagues to becoming friends.
Kendall held out his hand. “I heard you were having some trouble,” he said. “How does that old saying go? I’m from Washington and I’m here to help.”
Brandon Walker’s face cracked into a pained grin. “Thanks, Brock,” he said. “Come on in.”
“How bad is it?”
Walker shook his head. “The worst,” he said. “About as bad as it can get.”
“And the perpetrator may be Quentin, your own son?”
As a father, Brandon could barely stand to answer that question. “Yes,” he said. “That’s the way it looks.”
Even with Brian Fellows and Dan Leggett doing the briefings, it still took precious time to bring all the players up to speed. Brandon Walker tolerated the seemingly interminable interviews as best he could because he knew they were necessary. And he understood that a meticulous crime scene investigation conducted by FBI-trained personnel was equally essential. Even so, it was hard not to fall prey to the thought that nothing much was happening.
At six o’clock in the morning he went into the bedroom. Diana, fully dressed, lay on the bed, staring dry-eyed up at the ceiling. “What’s happening?” she asked.
“Brock Kendall is here, on an unofficial basis, of course, unless it starts looking like someone crossed state lines or until he can clear the way under missing and exploited children. Detective Leggett just sent out for a search warrant for Quentin’s apartment over on Grant. Dan’s a thorough kind of guy. He isn’t going to make a move until he has all his ducks in a row.”
“If Lani’s already dead, what difference will being thorough make?” Diana asked despairingly.
“Don’t say that,” Brandon returned. “Don’t even think it.”
“You heard the tape,” Diana said. “What else is there to think? And why would Quentin do such a thing? What did Lani ever do to him? Is it jealousy? Is that what this is all about? We would have done exactly the same things for Tommy and Quentin that we did for Davy and Lani if they had ever shown the slightest interest. And every time we tried to do something, Janie was right there saying it wasn’t good enough for them. No matter what we did, it wasn’t enough.”
“Shhhh,” Brandon said, laying a finger on Diana’s lips. They were as parched and dry as if she had been running a fever. “It isn’t Janie’s fault that Quentin’s gone off his rocker,” Brandon said. “Don’t waste your time blaming her, and don’t blame us either.”
“That’s what you’re saying then? Quentin’s gone crazy and what’s happened has no connection to the book? Nothing tonight has anything to do with the danger Fat Crack warned us about?”
Brandon slumped wearily against the headboard on his side of the bed. “I can’t see what the connection would be,” he said. “Insanity is the only thing that makes sense.”
Just then there was a tap on the door. A young deputy poked his head inside the room. “Brock Kendall was trying to use your phone a few minutes ago. He said there’s evidently a message on your answering machine. He said you should probably listen to it just in case it happens to be a ransom demand. We’re in the process of setting a trap on your line. This call must have come in before that.”
Brandon played back the message. Using the speaker phone, they both listened to Wanda Ortiz’s voice.
“Gabe and Baby just left for Rattlesnake Skull Charco,” Wanda said. “He wants you to meet him there. He says that’s where you’ll find Lani.”
By the time the message ended, Brandon had already slipped his shoes back on and was bent over tying them. “What are you going to do?” Diana asked.
“You heard Wanda. Fat Crack wants me to meet him at Rattlesnake Skull Charco, and that’s where I’m going.”
Diana started to slide off the bed. “If that’s where she is, I’m going too.”
“No, you’re not.”
“Why not?” Diana demanded, slipping on her own shoes. “Why the hell shouldn’t I? Lani’s my daughter, too.”
Brandon didn’t want to say the real reason, that he was afraid of what they would find at Rattlesnake Skull Charco—afraid of what they would see. He couldn’t seem to do much, but at least he could spare Diana that.
“One of us needs to be here to answer the phone,” he said. “What if a ransom call does come in?”
Diana’s voice rose, verging on hysteria. “There’s not going to be any ransom call. You know that. You just —”
“Please, Diana,” Brandon said huskily. He reached out and touched her, letting his fingers graze gently down the curving line of her cheek. “Please stay here. I can’t order you to stay, but do it because I need you to, Di. Because I’m asking.”
Diana sank back down on the bed. “All right,” she said. “I’ll stay.”
“Thank you,” Brandon said. He started toward the door.
