Carla Neggers - Night’s Landing

Sarah stared up at him. “You’re the boy Leola and Violet Poe talked about. Their Huck Finn.”

“They wouldn’t believe me when I told them that my mother was their boy’s mother. That we’re brothers.” He was sweating, panting. “They called her a liar.”

Sarah doubted they’d have been so blunt, not to what they’d obviously perceived as a troubled boy. “Times were different then. Leola and Violet did what they could to help you. I can, too, but my parents-”

“My man in Amsterdam has them.”

“What-”

“He won’t hurt them. He’s waiting for word from me.”

Sarah forced herself not to leap ahead. “And Juliet, where is she? Do you have her hidden in another cave?”

“That bitch.”

He touched his neck, coughing, and Sarah noticed a swollen, bloody wound, halfway between his jaw and collarbone. “You’ve been bitten, haven’t you? A cottonmouth got you. Conroy-”

“John Wesley.”

It was what the Poe sisters had always called Wes. “John Wesley, I can see the fang marks. You’re bleeding. The bite’s on your neck, above your heart. That’s not good if the snake released enough venom to harm you.”

“I’ve been bitten before, lots of times. There’s never been a problem.”

“There is this time.” The snake had definitely released its venom, obviously enough to harm him. Sarah knew the signs. The area around the wound was swelling, his mouth and eyes were twitching visibly, and he was perspiring heavily. “Do your face and scalp tingle, feel numb? Your toes? You’re dizzy, aren’t you? I’m guessing it’s been over an hour since you were bit.”

He screwed up his face as if he couldn’t think, couldn’t control what his body was doing to him. “Don’t try to distract me.”

“I’m not lying to you. I don’t want you to die before you tell me where my parents are, where you stashed Juliet. John Wesley, listen to me. You need to stay still to keep the venom from spreading, and you need to get medical attention.”

“I’ll find some ice-”

“No. Ice isn’t good. Did you cut yourself near the incision?” She squinted up at him and suspected he had. “That’s a myth-it only helps the venom spread. I have an antivenom kit at the house. It can suck out the venom.”

“No, we’re not going back there!”

“It probably wouldn’t do you any good, anyway, not at this point. You need medical treatment, a doctor. Your condition is going to get worse with time, not better.” She started to get to her feet, but he gave her a menacing look and waved his gun at her. “Please. Let me help you. It’s not too late.”

“I want you to call the president. My brother. Ask him for a pardon for Nicholas Janssen, his old classmate. He’ll do it.” Conroy’s eyes seem to bore through her. “He’ll do it for you.”

“A pardon? My God, is that what this is all about?”

“It’s about five million dollars.”

And recognition, Sarah thought. He wanted people to know he was the president’s brother. “Nicholas Janssen is going to pay you five million dollars for a pardon?” Sarah was stunned at the insanity of what he wanted. “Conroy-John Wesley-Wes would never agree to pardon anyone under these conditions.”

“Then your parents die. Juliet dies. Your brother. I can get to him, too. I’ll ruin his reputation, blame his negligence for the shooting.”

“ Central Park -that was your doing?” She tried to keep him talking, agitated. But not so much that he shot her.

“Your brother had put a call into the Memphis paper where the real Conroy Fontaine used to work. I needed more time before he figured out I wasn’t who I said I was.” He smiled raggedly. “And I know you, Sarah. I’ve studied you. You wouldn’t talk to the president just because I asked nicely. I had to pressure you, scare you badly enough that you’d cooperate.”

“The letter. The snake in the kitchen-”

“I’m glad you saved it. I saw you.”

His words hit her hard. Rob was suffering in part because this man wanted to pressure her-wanted her to use her influence with the president. She wrapped her arms around her knees, trying to keep herself from shivering. “You wanted Rob out of commission and me scared and off balance. Well, you’ve succeeded. What about Nate? Hector Sanchez?”

“I told Hector all he had to do was sit in Central Park with a gun and then disappear. It was so easy. I knew he’d be spotted, there’d be witnesses.”

“What did you do, hide nearby and do the shooting yourself?”

“I was a yard away from Hector. He never even saw me. No one did. And I didn’t leave a trace for the feds. I’m that good.” He tried to catch his breath, but the snake venom was making him pant. He glanced around the small cave. “It’s because I grew up here. I know how to hide. People never believed Leola and Violet when they said they saw me out here because I never left a trail. It was like I didn’t exist. I’ve used that to my advantage.”

Sarah’s teeth were chattering now. Nerves, fear. It was damp in the cave, but she wasn’t cold. “Did you give Hector the drug overdose?”

“That was the easiest part of all. He was an addict.”

“And Nate-”

“I meant to kill him. My aim was off. It would have been an easier shot if they’d stayed on the street. Your brother-” He shrugged, wiping his palm over his swollen, bloody snakebite. “I didn’t care one way or the other if he lived or died, so long as he wasn’t asking questions for a while. Dead or alive, I knew I could use him to motivate you to help me.”

“Did Nicholas Janssen send you?”

He scoffed. “No, he thinks he can get a pardon on his own by manipulating your mother. Fool. He wants to come home to northern Virginia and visit his mother’s grave. He’s pathetic.”

“His men-why did you kill them? Aren’t they on your side?” Sarah dropped her hands to her sides, leaning back against the cave wall, slowly edging to her feet. “Oh, I get it. Janssen didn’t know what you were up to. When he found out, he didn’t like it. Five million’s a lot of money if he thinks he can get a pardon free from my mother. You’re both crazy.”

“Janssen wants a pardon more than anything, but he put the hounds on me.”

“And when his hounds found out you were shooting federal officers in Central Park-” Sarah shook her head. “Your guy Janssen wouldn’t want that pinned on him. It’s a much worse crime than federal tax evasion.”

“His men would have killed you, too. Don’t think Nicholas Janssen is just your garden variety tax evader. He’ll pay me. I’ll blame your gardener for his men’s deaths-Janssen’ll have Ethan killed before the week’s out. He should have done it weeks ago.” Conroy was still panting, sweating from the snake venom coursing through his bloodstream. “The big dope wants to find his wife’s murderer.”

“How did you get mixed up with Janssen?”

“You,” he said simply. “I looked you up in Scotland to find a way to get the recognition I deserve. Then I went to Amsterdam. Your parents were there-I saw your mother meet with Nicholas Janssen. I saw her meet with Charlene Brooker. I put it all together.”

Sarah’s stomach twisted. “But-”

“Your mother’s old friend from college had Captain Brooker murdered because she was getting too close to uncovering his real crimes.”

Sarah couldn’t speak. She watched Fontaine unraveling before her, sweating, slurring his words. If he’d just keep talking long enough, he’d weaken, and she could do something-get his gun, tie him up. Or Nate could find her. They could get him medical attention and keep him alive so he could tell them where he had her parents stashed in Amsterdam.