Gail Bowen - The Brutal Heart

“Did you have fun?”

“Yes, we did. Very low key, but it was nice.” She kicked off her shoes. “Would you care for a beer while you debrief me?”

“I’d love a beer, but I have to go on an errand.”

Mieka glanced at her watch. “It’s quarter to ten.”

“This is urgent. Do you remember Francesca Pope?”

“The Care Bear lady? Sure. She’s pretty memorable.”

“She left her bears at our house for safekeeping and she’s decided she needs them back.”

“So you’re going to take them to her at this time of night?”

“I’m going to meet her next to the Pendryn – I’ll be back in half an hour.”

“Mum, that is not a safe area.”

“People pay three-quarters of a million dollars to live in that area, Mieka. How dangerous can it be? Besides, I promised.”

“Okay, then. I’ll go with you.”

Taylor was off in the kitchen, making a phone call, but I still lowered my voice. “Mieka, you know how Taylor is about being in the house alone at night.”

“She won’t be alone. The girls are here.”

“The girls are little kids.” I picked up the popcorn bowl. “When I get back, we’ll have a beer and I’ll fill you in on nightlife in the warehouse district.”

“At least promise to keep your car doors locked.”

“If the car doors are locked, how will I get the bears out?”

“I thought you were the brains in the family,” Mieka said. “Hand Francesca the bears through the window.”

I’d forgotten to leave any lights on at home, and as I opened the front door I felt the stab of mindless fear I always experience going into a dark house. Taylor wasn’t the only one with anxieties. Reassured by the presence of the dogs, I moved quickly, turning on lights and humming to break the silence. I picked up Francesca’s backpack and returned to my car. Then, with the bears beside me on the front seat, I drove down Albert Street to the warehouse district.

Our mayor had dreamed of transforming the northeast core of the city into a place where the rich could live and the hip could play at night. As I turned onto Dewdney Avenue, it seemed that at least part of the mayor’s dream for the area had been realized. The magenta lamppost pennants that marked the district were snapping in the breeze and the brightly lit streets were filled with people laughing and talking as they moved between nightclubs, bars, and poolrooms. I drove past Bushwakker Brewpub, the meeting place of choice for my students and the home of my husband’s favourite, the Wakker Burger. Everybody seemed to be having fun, and it occurred to me that Mieka and I might leave Zack with the kids some night and come down and hit a couple of clubs. Maybe it was time my cautious older daughter took a walk on the wild side.

The shift in atmosphere when I crossed Broad Street was sobering. Except for the Pendryn, the developers had not yet reclaimed this part of the district, and I found myself in the dark, lonely world of deserted lumberyards and crumbling buildings. There were streetlights, but no one walked beneath them, and the only sounds I heard came from guard dogs barking.

Acme Store-All and the Pendryn shared a city block. The Pendryn was surrounded by a razor-wire-topped security fence, and the swimming pool and Japanese garden behind the condo were as brightly lit as a prison courtyard. Ed had said that one of the beauties of the Pendryn was the spectacular view it offered of the city. The windows of the individual condominiums were floor to ceiling but, without exception, they were dark. Seemingly, I’d come on a night when there was nobody home.

I chose a parking place that gave me a clear view of the cinder yard beside Acme Store-All. Francesca Pope was nowhere in sight, but her bicycle was propped against the wall. I remembered how frightened she was. She was obviously hiding, waiting for me to show myself. I took a deep breath, picked up the backpack, got out of my car, and clicked the locks on my doors. My cell rang before I’d taken a single step.

Ed Mariani was apologetic. “Jo, I’m know I’m being a pest, but Zack hasn’t called back, and there’s something he needs to know.”

I adjusted the backpack. “He’s probably still at that retirement dinner. I imagine that right about now they’re on the brandy and cigars. Why don’t you leave the message with me? Zack will call me to say goodnight when he gets to his room.”

“All right,” Ed said. “I may be interfering in something that’s none of my business, but do you remember that friend I mentioned who lives at the Pendryn?”

“Of course,” I said. “He was the one who told you that Jason Brodnitz was a frequent visitor of Cristal Avilia’s.”

“Apparently Jason wasn’t the only frequent visitor,” Ed said. “David called this afternoon. He’d seen the photos of Zack’s new partners in the paper, and he recognized Sean Barton. He thought Zack should know that Sean was Cristal Avilia’s boyfriend.”

I felt a coldness in the pit of my stomach. “Is he sure?”

“Positive. David said Sean was there all the time. I guess there were some terrible fights. David even went up to Cristal’s condo once to see if she wanted him to call the police.”

I glanced at the darkened windows of the Pendryn. “But of course she didn’t,” I said.

“No,” Ed said. “You know how these things are.”

“Ed, I’m going to call Zack now. You were right to pass this along. My God, Mieka had dinner with Sean tonight.”

“But she’s not with him now.”

“No. She’s home with her girls.” Even to my own ears, my voice sounded strained. I was having trouble absorbing the truth about Sean. “Ed, let me call you back after I talk to Zack.”

I speed-dialed Zack’s number and got his message immediately. Wherever he was, he’d turned off his cell. I wanted to go home, but I could see the shadow of Francesca’s shambling bulk against the wall of Acme Store-All. She was waiting for me. I started along the sidewalk. I added up the letters in Sean’s name – there were ten, and there were thirteen letters in Cristal Avilia’s name. Thirteen minus ten – three. Sean was Cristal’s perfect 3.

I scanned the street. I was still alone, but Francesca’s silhouette against the brick wall of the abandoned warehouse was a beacon, a reminder that at the moment there was someone even more frightened than me, so I kept on going.

I heard the familiar baritone before I realized Sean was beside me. “Hey, here you are,” he said. “Mieka called me at the office. She was worried about your being down here alone at night. She was right. Anything could happen to a woman alone on this street.” He reached over and took the backpack from me. “In a neighbourhood like this, a woman needs her arms free in case of a sudden threat.”

“I promised to deliver the bears myself,” I said. “May I have them back?”

“Why would you want them?” he said. “They’re disgusting.”

I tried to grab the backpack, but Sean was too fast for me. He threw it to the sidewalk. Reflexively, I bent to grab it. As my hand closed around the straps, he brought his foot down on my fingers. “Garbage,” he said pleasantly. “Not worth dying for.”

After that, everything happened very quickly. Francesca sprang out of the shadows, picked up her bears from the sidewalk, and cradled them against her breast. Then she began yelling. The words were the same words she’d shouted in the courthouse lobby, but this time their target was clear. Francesca’s eyes scanned Sean’s face. “I know who you are,” she yelled. “I know who you are, and I saw what you did. You are evil,” she said. “Evil. Evil. Evil. I saw what you did. You killed her. You killed Cristal.”

Sean raised his arm, and the blade of the knife he was holding flashed in the harsh security lights. He tried to plunge it into Francesca’s chest, but the bears protected her. When he raised the knife again, she ran. He watched her disappear down the block, then he laughed to himself. “Nobody will believe a word she says.” He turned to me. “You, on the other hand, are a credible witness. But you’re in a dangerous neighbourhood, Joanne. Anything can happen here. That’s what I told Mieka.” He moved closer. “A woman like Francesca is unpredictable. She forgets her meds, she sees a good Samaritan like you as a threat, and she attacks.” As he created the scene in his mind, Sean’s voice became dreamy, mesmerizing. He put the point of the knife against my chest. I could feel the steel through the thin material of my shirt.