Twenty-nine
Jennifer returned the next morning to her upstairs
apartment and found Francis and Emily packing to leave. Evelyn was
sitting on the broad window sill overlooking the river. Bertha was
standing in the door to the bathroom supervising Gabby who was sweeping up
broken glass with a glum lack of enthusiasm.
“We’re leaving this afternoon,” Francis said, summing
up the situation in a nutshell.
“You can’t go yet,” Jennifer
replied.
Francis turned from the kitchen cupboard she had
emptied. “I beg your pardon?”
“John says there’s still danger. It might not be
over yet.”
Sally came through the door behind her. Everybody
paused to listen to the exchange.
“It’s over,” Francis said curtly. “Dimitri’s dead.
May his soul burn in hell.”
Jennifer glanced at Evelyn. Evelyn stared her down
for a moment, and then looked away as if fearing that Jennifer knew
something she shouldn’t. “John says we need to know who put Dimitri up to it
before we know for sure they won’t try again.”
“We’ll find that out for ourselves,” Francis said.
“Aside from the mercenary I’ve hired to protect us, I’ll have private
investigators look into the situation for us.”
“John said the mob should have known who hired
Dimitri, but they don’t. If they don’t, whose going to do better?”
Francis paused, unsettled by
both the disclosure and its cold logic. “Why
would the mob care one way or another?”
“Because someone screwed with a Carvelli. John
says..."
“John says,” Emily growled. “You’re quite taken with
this John of yours. Maybe John boy hasn’t had quite enough of your
adolescent ass to suit him.”
“John says that mercenary you hired might himself
be dangerous,” Jennifer added quietly. "He might be incompetent.
He might be working for the bad guys."
The room remained deathly silent for the time it took
Francis to mull her way through Jennifer’s advice. “What does John want
from us?”
“Nothing, really. I guess he’s trying to protect me, just like you’re
all thinking, but so what? I need him and I need you guys, too.
I wish you would listen to what he has to say about things."
“And if we elect to return to Chicago?” Francis
said. “Will you be coming with us?”
“I’ll stay with John.”
“I see.”
“But John says he’ll check out the mercenary before
you leave. If you let him."
Francis turned to her looking defeated. “I’ll visit
with your friend this afternoon, child. I want to hear what he has to say
about our situation. I man like that would know the extent of the
danger.”
Jennifer returned to the motel and paced. John had
taken to the afternoon soap operas, watching what Jennifer thought of as
insipid dramas with a frown on his face, as if he did not understand what
was going on, or disapproved. When Francis knocked at the door, he looked
around without rising to answer it. Jennifer opened the door and Francis
waddled in huffing and puffing. She stopped in the middle of the room to
confront the man on the bed. “Jennifer says that some danger remains
despite Dimitri’s death. I need confirmation that you believe this may be
the case.”
“Something’s not right,” John said and slowly rose to
his feet. “I don’t want to see Jennifer or her friends hurt
unnecessarily.”
“If you had Jennifer’s welfare at heart, you would
send her back with me.”
“If I wanted her dead, I’d send her back with you.”
“You’re taking sexual advantage of a child and you
know it.”
John shook his head slowly. “It’s not happening the
way you think.”
“Please, Francis,” Jennifer pleaded. “That’s not
important now.”
Francis whirled to face her. “Child, I forbid you to
allow this man to indulge his vile appetites at your expense! I
absolutely forbid it!”
Jennifer resisted the temptation to be hurt. “John
says that Dimitri was just a pawn. Pawns are expendable.”
Francis shifted her gaze to John as if expecting the
man to defend himself.
“John doesn’t care what happens,” Jennifer said
softly. “He doesn’t care who lives or dies, himself included. He’s only
doing it because of me.”
“I told you I didn’t want you part of the business,”
Francis said in a tone like ice.
“Now you’re accusing me of using him. I’m not part
of the business, Francis. None of this has anything to do with business.
Someone else is going to get hurt. We have to try to stop it from
happening.”
Francis looked crest-fallen. “I knew this would
happen.”
Jennifer held her arms out, genuinely confused. “Okay,
so it happened.”
“You’ll leave with this man and I’ll never see you
again, not until your life is in shambles.”
Jennifer sighed, her eyes on
John. “Maybe, if we get out of this alive. We’re going
back to Chicago to look into it. John says that nobody’s going to have
their guard up over a kid my age. I can help. You should stay here and
wait.”
After a moment's silence, Jennifer
glanced at Francis’ horrified expression and smiled.
“John says he’s going to dangle me over their heads like raw meat over a
school of piranhas. John says he’s never had a chance to go fishing with
friends until now.”
John chuckled, the first time Jennifer had heard him
laugh.
Francis looked like she might be sick. “But it
involves Satanism, child! You heard the way Dimitri was talking!”
“Dimitri was a fool,” John said gently,
"although I’ve known
men who would put Satan to shame.”
Francis mocked anger to hide her fear. “I’ll not be
party to this liaison between the two of you. It’s far too dangerous.”
“Will you remain at the castle long enough for us to
look into the matter?” John said politely.
Francis stared at the floor.
Jennifer inched closer. “Francis? Please?”
“Yes,” she said quietly. “I’ll do as you ask.”
“Will you let John evaluate your mercenary?” Jennifer
said. “He says it’s best to send him away if he’s not qualified, or if
his loyalties are questionable.”
Francis looked up at John.
John gave a curt nod of his head. “Arrange a meeting
at the place Dimitri died. Tell him what happened there. I want to see
how badly he can be rattled. It won’t take long.”
Francis clutched the handbag she was carrying.
“Okay. It’s settled then. He should arrive before dark. When will the
two of you be leaving?”
Jennifer looked to John for an answer. “Tomorrow,”
John said.
Jennifer turned to Francis with a mischievous smile.
“John says tomorrow.”
“Oh, my God.” Francis scurried from the room wrought
with anxiety.
Jennifer turned to John and gave him a wane smile.
“She likes you. I can tell.”
