Beverly Connor: One Grave Too Many

“They’re gone. I sent them. .”

“No, you didn’t. The sheriff told me. That was a good little ruse, I’ll hand it to you. Now get up and let’s go. When I’m gone, you can do all the talking you want, but I have to tell you, nobody in this county’s going to believe you or even listen to you, and it will be your word against mine. The mayor and the whole police department will back me up.”

Diane rose. As she walked past Jake he grabbed her upper arm. “Don’t do anything fancy,” he said. “Let’s just go to the elevator and go upstairs. We’ll cross the mammoth room and use the center elevators. That way we can avoid getting into a conversation with Chanell.”

They crossed through the exhibit rooms to the center elevators and went up to the second floor.

“There will probably be someone in the lab,” said Diane.

“There’s not. I checked before I came down to your office. Let’s go.”

Diane led him to the lab and into the vault.

“Jake, don’t do this.”

“I just want to save my kid. You understand that.”

Diane got the box and set it on the table. “I understand wanting to save your kid, but, my God, Jake, look at what he’s done. You knew George and his family. Frank is one of your best friends.”

A wave of pain spread across his face. “Open it up,” he said. She began tearing the tape from the box. “Dylan panicked and let things get out of control. I know he did some terrible things, but I’m setting them back to zero. He can start with a clean slate. Without these bones, there’s nothing to connect him to any of the deaths. You’re the only one who will know.”

“If you kill me, my death will be investigated.”

“I’m not going to kill you. I said a clean slate. We can handle accusations. That’s the great thing about this country and its legal system. You need some kind of proof, and you have nothing but these bones. You don’t even know who they belong to and you are not likely to find out. There’ll be just this tale you tell people, and right now you’re lacking in credibility. I have to tell you, the mayor hates your guts, so does the chief of detectives, and the sheriff thinks you’re nuts. Janice Warrick’s ready to arrest you for messing in her case. Your best bet is to move on.”

“There’s Frank.”

“Frank only knows what you’ve told him.”

He reached in the box and unwrapped a couple of bones from the soft cotton material. Diane glanced at the door.

“Don’t try anything. You’re home free if you just play it safe.”

He took out a sack and looked in it. “Those are the bones of the hand,” said Diane. “They’re packed separately, left and right.”

“All nice and organized.”

“This person has family somewhere who want to know where he is.”

“I’m sure he does, and that weighs on me, like all of this. But they will just have to go on wondering. Taking Dylan down’s not going to bring this boy back.”

“Why did he kill this young man?”

“He didn’t mean to-he panicked. You don’t need to know. The less you know, the better. Dylan’s got a bright future ahead of him. I’m giving him a chance to start over clean. Now you’re going to see me out the door.”

“It sounds like Dylan panics a lot. Look, Jake. I examined the crime scene. Will you let me tell you what I found?”

“I don’t see any use in that.”

“He was in a frenzy when he killed them.”

“Just don’t say anything else.”

“I think he has a mean streak that’s going to get worse, especially since he’s hooked up with someone with her own mean streak.”

“What are you talking about?”

“His girlfriend.”

“Alix? She’s a nice girl.”

“Is she? I have it on more than one authority she has a mean temper, just like Dylan.”

“Dylan doesn’t have a temper. Not like you’re talking about. He gets scared sometimes. If George hadn’t found the bone, none of this would have happened. I’m not blaming George. It was just bad luck. Dylan was protecting himself.”

“Have you really talked yourself into believing this? Are you listening to what you’re saying?”

“Let’s get going.”

“Just listen to me, Jake. Dylan is going to continue making mistakes. There was no reason to kill the Boones. Let me show you something. Dammit, set the box down. It won’t hurt to listen.”

He set the box on the table and Diane took out the scapula and showed it to him. “This entire area is crushed, including the head of the humerus and the adjoining ribs. It’s my opinion that an individual couldn’t have caused that kind of damage. See this straight line in the damaged area here? I think the disc brake of a jacked-up car fell on him. It looks like an accident. Why in the hell did Dylan dump the body and kill the entire Boone family? He needs professional help, not a clean slate to start over.”

“Don’t tell her, Dad.”

“What’re you doing here, son? I told you I’d take care of this.”

“You’re going to just let her go.”

“Yes, son. There’s no reason to kill her.”

The Dylan standing in the doorway of the vault could have been an evil twin of the one she knew. He had the same features, but his eyes were as cold as death. This was a mean young man, and Jake couldn’t see it.

“Dylan, listen to me. I have this under control.”

“No, Dad, you don’t. This will always follow me unless something is done with her. I think she’s already guessed it was the two of us who snatched her. She probably saw us when we were out on the dock looking for her. Sooner or later she’ll convince someone. I’m right, aren’t I?”

Diane didn’t say anything for a long moment. “Dylan, all this was so unnecessary.”

“Unnecessary? You don’t know his old man.” He gestured toward the box of bones. “Do you know, when he was five years old a kid accidentally ran over him on his bike. He wasn’t even hurt, just a few cuts. His old man made sure the boy’s father was fired from his job. They ended up on welfare.”

Diane looked puzzled.

“Don’t you get it? His dad was as vindictive as hell, and he was proud of his father for it. I asked him to come home with me for spring break on the spur of the moment.”

Diane ignored Jake and focused her attention on his son. “His dad was vindictive? That’s your excuse for this crime spree? I think you just enjoyed killing.”

“Don’t tell her, son. Don’t give her any information she can use to identify this person.”

“Why not? I want this bitch to understand. She thinks I’m some kind of maniac. We were in my SUV and had a flat. It was raining, and he wouldn’t get out and help. He’d rather sit and drink. I was jacking up the car in the rain and he was bouncing up and down, harassing me, laughing at me. I pulled the son of a bitch out of the car, we got in a fight and he fell under the truck and knocked out the jack. He screamed like a pig. I got the jack from under the truck and jacked it up and pulled him out. Was he grateful? No, the SOB screamed and cursed me, telling me what his old man would do to me. Me, the policeman’s son who somehow made it to Harvard.”

“Son.”

“Shut up, Dad. Let me do this. I want her to understand this wasn’t my fault. I knew if his father got even with the boy on the bike for nothing, he sure as hell would get even with me for this.” He put a hand on the box of bones. “He was really fucked up-couldn’t even move his damn arm. He passed out a couple of times. I didn’t know what to do. Every time he came to, he’d start screaming. So I hit him. And he stopped. We weren’t far from where we used to go on old Abercrombie’s place, so I put the spare on, dragged his sorry ass in the SUV. God, do you know how hard that was? I took him to where Luther dumped his carcasses. I thought that’d be a fitting grave. I took his clothes so he wouldn’t be identified easily. He’d still be there if George hadn’t found that damn bone and taken it.”