went off the balcony together. Is he…?”
“The bastard’s alive,” Nicholas said. “But that’s only because the paramedics and the police got to him before I did. Thank God you fell into a garden and not onto some cement patio.” He shuddered and took a breath before he went on.
“Parker has two broken legs and a broken wrist,” Nicholas said. “Maybe some internal injuries. You two may have gone over together, but he hit the ground first. You landed on him. That’s why you’ve only got a broken arm. They’re letting you go home tomorrow.”
“Home… Tuffy and Emma! Who’s taking care of them?”
“Shhhh. Don’t try to sit up. There’s nothing to worry about. Eileen’s at your house. Everybody’s fine-except you and Parker. Roland Gray is in custody. It was Gray who called 911 and told them you’d fallen from the third floor. He was on his way to the airport-”
“He was going to Rio. Both of them were.”
I saw Nicholas nod. “ Brazil -where there’s no extradition to America. But after he called 911 he went back to his building and gave himself up to Detectives Hatch and Weaver. He said he couldn’t live with the guilt anymore.”
“And without Will Parker, he doesn’t think he can write. Parker murdered Ingram, and he killed Yvette’s husband in London.”
“I know. The police found your purse with the tape recorder in it. Their own words are going to convict them.”
“I feel sorry for Roland.”
Nicholas looked shocked. “Why?”
“He’s a weak man,” I said. “Parker controlled him.”
“I don’t think that’s much of an excuse, but because he came back to try to help you, I’m willing to cut him some slack. In fact, I recommended an attorney for him to call.”
I smiled. “Olivia-your favorite criminal lawyer.”
“That’s the one. She said to tell you that because she’s going to soak Gray for everything he’s got, she’s decided not to send you a bill after all.”
“That’s nice… What’s going to happen to Yvette?”
“Parker claims she had nothing to do with the murder of Ingram, and he’s claiming that he killed Talib years ago in London because he caught Talib beating her after she told him she was leaving him. Parker said he wanted to protect her, so he staged Talib’s death to look like she hit him in self-defense.”
“Parker really loves her,” I said.
“Let’s not talk about them. Can I get you anything?”
“You,” I said.
“You’ve got me,” he said. “You’ve had me ever since you came to my house and started ripping my clothes off. Stupid me, it took a while before I realized you’d taken me off the market.”
I yawned. “I’m so sleepy. Would you lie down here next to me?”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
“Umm humm.”
“All right.” I saw his lips curve into a teasing smile. “Promise you won’t get frisky.”
“I won’t… At least not until tomorrow.”
“I think we’ll wait a little longer than that.”
He gave me another gentle little kiss before he eased his weight onto the far edge of the hospital bed. “I can’t even begin to tell you how happy I am that you’re alive,” he whispered.
“Me, too,” I said. Then my eyes began to close.
47
The following afternoon, while Phil Logan was completing the insurance paperwork for my release, Liddy Marshall came into my hospital room carrying a shopping bag.
“New clothes,” she said,
“That’s a sweet thought, but I don’t need new clothes.”
“Yes, you do,” she said. “Think about it. Your arm’s in a cast. How are you going to zip and button yourself?”
I admitted that I hadn’t thought of that.
Liddy opened the shopping bag and pulled out a pair of black knit slacks. “Elastic waistband,” she said. “You can pull them up with one hand.”
“That is a good idea.”
“I’m not finished.” She removed a garment in a soft shade of blue and held it up. “A tunic. This morning I had a seamstress open up the left side to accommodate the cast on your arm, and sew on strips of Velcro that you can stick together with your right hand.”
“That’s really clever,” I said. “Thank you.”
“I’m glad you like it, because right now she’s making up six more for you, in different colors. Also, you have six more pair of these pull-up pants at your house, so you’ll have a separate outfit for each day of the week. This top looks and feels like silk, but it’s one of those great new fakes. You can toss everything in the washing machine.”
“You are amazing.”
Liddy grinned. “With twin sons and a husband whose dental practice consists mostly of gorgeous actresses, I’ve had to be amazing. There’s one problem I couldn’t solve for you: a bra.”
“How about a strapless that fastens in front?”
“No. I was with Julie, the Neiman Marcus lingerie buyer, this morning. We experimented like a pair of contortionists, but even with that style, you wouldn’t be able to get it on and off by yourself while your arm’s in a cast. You’ll have to go braless for a while. Luckily, you don’t droop.”
Liddy had just finished helping me dress when Phil Logan arrived, brandishing a manila envelope. “I’ve sprung you, Del. ”
Liddy picked up the bag with the clothes I’d worn when I fell from Roland Gray’s balcony. “We’re ready.”
Right behind Phil was a nurse steering a wheelchair. She stopped in front of me and opened up the footrest.
“Here we are,” she said cheerfully.
“Thank you, but I don’t need that. I broke my arm, not my leg. ”
“Hospital rules.” She pronounced those two words in a tone that discouraged argument.
I sat.
She pushed.
Phil talked.
“I’ve organized everything for you while you’re plastered up.” He ticked off items on his fingers. “One: You’ll have celebrity guest cookers helping you on your next eight shows. Two: I’ve arranged to have catered meals delivered to your house every day so you don’t have to cook at home. Three: Eileen will be running Della’s Sweet Dreams full-time. Four: Mickey authorized me to hire a dog walker to come to your house three times a day to take Tuffy out. She starts this afternoon. Her name is Helen. Five: Shannon and Liddy are going to come over every day to see what you need. I wanted to hire a private nurse to stay with you, but Liddy said you’d never go for that. Actually, she expressed it in surprisingly strong language.”
“Thank you, Liddy,” I said
Phil ran out of fingers and started on his other hand. “Six: I’m assigning the intern in my office to take you wherever you need to go. While I made my rounds this morning I had him drive me, as a test. He passed.”
