Blood Ties (12 page)

“Okay, call Rod and then we’ll take things from there.”

“Great,” I said as I grabbed my cell phone, searched for Rod’s number and pressed the ‘Call’ button. “Hi Rod, how are you? It’s Sam,” I said once I’d heard his greeting.

“Yes Sammy, I saw the caller ID. How are you?” Rod asked with a calm tone.

“I’m fine; I’m just finishing lunch with Jared. How are mom and Kelly? What are you all up to?”

“Your mother is by Kelly’s side; they’re talking about a gossip show they saw earlier; as Kelly was mentioned, she considers herself a star now.”

“Wonderful,” I replied mordantly.

“Anyway, in a couple of hours we’ll be taking Kelly to her place. Would you mind giving us a hand once we get there? Just to put her stuff in order and make sure the place is tidy. I don’t want your mom straining herself too much, especially considering what happened last night.”

“Sure thing, Rod. Call me when you’re leaving the hospital.”

“Great. Thank you Sammy; and I’m sorry for Noel. Have you heard anything else?
Sara cried herself to sleep last night, and Kelly hasn’t mentioned him once, which assures me that she’s worried about him, even if he treats her like crap most of the time.”

“No, I haven’t heard anything,” I said quickly,
convinced I wouldn’t know of the interrogation if Jared or Aidan weren’t in my lives.

“Steven phoned me and said there were news to be shared, but he added it had to wait, so we’re expecting a call in a little while.”

“Great, okay then, you’ll call me when you leave?”

“Yes. Thank you Sammy.”

“Send my love to mom and Kelly, and tell them I’ll be seeing them shortly.”

“Will do, and greet Jared for us; your mom will be pleased to see him if he joins you.”

“He will,” I said with a smile, “so you’d better keep a tight leash around her, to make sure she won’t run away with him.”

Rod laughed lightly and we hung up. Jared and I finished our food, he paid after insisting; we went back to my office and remained there,
and I worked as Jared played solitaire on Maggie’s computer.

At around half past three, Rod phoned me and let me know they were leaving
. I sent Mark an e-mail telling him I was leaving, turned off my computer, told Annie she should take any messages that came in for both Maggie and me, and left.

Jared
pulled over at a chocolate shop and bought a big box, filled with a variety of sweets, some with creamy stuffing, others with nuts, a few regular, and a couple with frosting. I teased him for his continuous sucking-up, but Jared replied he was just being courteous, adding that if we were an actual couple, he’d do things like that; attentions, he called them.

We
got to Kelly’s place just as they were getting out of the car. Jared parked and, after locking my Focus, we walked up to my sister, who was making her way aided by crutches, my mom, who carried a bag, and Rod, who juggled a couple of plastic bags that contained medicine, an orthopedic pillow, and Kelly’s huge purse. Jared immediately released Rod from some of the burden and I offered my mom help, but she refused, claiming she could manage.

We entered the building and split up to ride the elevators. When we reached the sixteenth floor we got out and Rod let us in. Kelly was in such a critical condition, she couldn’t even open the door.

The place was in pretty good shape. The policemen who’d searched the apartment hadn’t found anything, so it had been released back to Kelly. Steven had sworn there’d be hell to pay for if anything was even remotely damaged, and my sister made sure that she boasted about the brilliant, successful lawyer she’d hired.

Jared made funny faces at me when no one was looking if he sensed I was about to snap at Kelly. He had really good timing.

Jared carried Kelly around and she was delighted; my mom stared in amazement, also thrilled. Rod rolled his eyes and went to the kitchen; I followed him.

We seemed to waltz around the huge room; Kelly didn’t cook, but she had a
chef that made anything she demanded. The man went in twice a week and stocked her fridge; he also showed up for special occasions. The vast, beautiful kitchen was a waste, considering the limited use it was given; it was a pity.

I prepared coffee and toast; Rod cooked some brownies for later and defrosted a chicken
and I managed to make some mushroom cream and baked pumpkin.

By the time we were done, three trays were set for dinner
—the food would be heated whenever Kelly decided to eat—my sister was fully accommodated in her bedroom, Jared and my mom had put everything in its place, and the three were watching a gossip show.

I thought the scene of my mom, Kelly and Jared sitting together, hoping to catch a glimpse of my sister on the TV was somewhat disturbing. They could pull it off as a family portrait or something of sorts, but as I knew their personalities, I was sure Jared would be fed up with Kelly following a ten minute conversation; yes, she was beautiful, but once she opened her mouth, not much could be expected. Unless he loved her, then he’d put up with any of her demands. I could tell my mom would love him as a son-in-law, but…

What the hell was I thinking? Jared and Kelly? Jared as my mom’s son-in-law? What had led me to produce such dumb, pointless thoughts? And worst of all, was I actually jealous of the attention Kelly was getting from Jared?

As I shook my head, attempting to erase these annoying ideas from my head, I saw Jared stand up and pick up his phone. When he crossed the threshold, I heard him say ‘Aidan’, and with an expectant look, he went to the room next to Kelly’s and closed the door behind him.

“Sam, you’ll visit Noel to check up on him, right?” Kelly asked, without removing her eyes from the TV.

I nodded and sat by her side.

“Jared is a real sweetheart,” my mom said, a bashful smile on her face; she turned serious for a moment and looked at me earnestly. “Honey, I know this is not the time or the place, but I just think you should know that, even if you still love Caleb, it’s important for you to allow yourself to grow attached to someone else. Caleb would have wanted you to be as happy as possible, and I’m not pressuring you, but Jared seems like the kind of man who’s pretty much ideal for being happy.”

I smiled at my mom. Yes, she overprotected Kelly and denied Noel’s state, but she was incredibly adoring and I knew what she said came from the
kindness of her heart. But she was also right; this wasn’t the time nor place to discuss my love life.

Before I could say anything, Rod entered, looking torn. Kelly muted the TV
—God forbid she should turn it off—and Jared also came in, his face expressionless.

“That was Steven,” Rod said, looking at my mom. “Noel is being charged with Susan and Olivia’s murders. They had evidence from both crime scenes, and Steven said it was undisputable. The DA will be pressing charges and Steven will do his best to get him out of prison until the trial or when a deal is cut, but for now, Noel will remain
imprisoned.”

My mom gasped and covered her mouth with her hand, clearly in shock. Rod placed his hand on her shoulder and she closed her eyes in pain. Kelly’s stare was blank with a hint of dazedness. Jared was
impassive; he already knew.

“We’ll go down to where Noel is being held and make sure he’s okay,” Jared said, stepping forward. “If he needs anything, we’ll get it for him. I
t’s important that Kelly regain her strength and recovers from the wounds she has, and Sara,” he said, looking at her, “after last night’s peak of stress or whatever it was, you’ve got to be careful for your own health. I know he’s your son, but you need to be okay, for your family.”

I was amazed by Jared’s ability to ease my mom’s stress. She nodded and smiled bravely. Rod looked at us with appreciation in his eyes, and after saying goodbye, we left.

“What did Aidan tell you?” I asked the second we were seated in my car.

“At first the only link
was the tie, but Samaire found traces of soil on both Susan and Olivia’s bodies that were an exact match to a plant Noel keeps in his place. Ben found fingerprints belonging to Susan, Olivia and Noel on the tie that had been found at your brother’s place, and it appears to have been the murder weapon. The toxicology exam for your brother will be ready either on Thursday or Friday. What Aidan said was that basically, they’re still gathering more evidence, the crime scene unit will go over Susan’s apartment again, in case they’ve dismissed or have overseen anything that linked Noel to the place, but he added that Violet is pretty confident.”

“Did Noel say anything?”

“No, he sat quietly as Aidan and Violet explained what they’d found so far. Aidan said Noel looked surprised when they added Susan’s murder to the crimes committed, but he was unable to come up with an alibi. On Saturday night, he went to Brody’s, at twelve returned to his place, and he claims to have fallen asleep watching TV, but no one saw him enter his place, so he could easily be lying.”

“
I see. Why did you say crimes? As in plural?”

“Violet is adding growing marihuana, keeping a brick of cocaine, and carrying an unregistered weapon
to the charges.”

“What?” I asked in disbelief. “I always assumed Noel was a pot-head, but cocaine? And what’s that weapon charge about?”

“Your brother kept a .50 in his closet. He claims it’s for his safety, but as it’s not registered and he bought it from a trunk, he’s in pretty deep shit. I’m sorry I’m so crude Sam, but you should know that your brother won’t get off of this easily.”

I nodded, perplexed.
This was so much more trouble than I’d believed Noel could get himself into. I couldn’t help but feel sorry for my mom, as she’d be devastated.

Jared phoned Aidan to
make sure Steven nor Noel saw us meet; after confirming they were in another part of the station, guarded and away from the entrance hall, Jared led me through the now familiar street into the station and towards the office where Aidan, Captain Nicholson and Violet waited. I took a deep breath and walked in.

“Violet Christie,” the tall, slim, red-haired woman said, stretching her hand forward to shake mine.

I smiled tightly at her and proceeded accordingly.

“I’m Samantha Pearson, but call me Sam. Hello Captain Nicholson, hi Aidan,” I said, looking at each of them as I mentioned their names.

They bowed their heads at me and nodded at Jared. We sat around a desk; I looked expectantly at Aidan, but when I realized he wasn’t going to talk, I turned to look at Captain Nicholson; he stared at Violet, so I looked at her.

“Having you here Samantha, is certainly new. I mean, I don’t share information with anyone who’s not the Law, and you’re a sibling of a suspected murderer, as well as of a suspect in another investigation. The only reason you’re here is because Aidan said you’re a victim, you’re
reliable, and you’re seeking the truth.”

“Of course. I don’t have an excessively close relationship with Noel, Jared ca
n tell you about it. And Kelly…I’m seriously interested in finding out what’s going on. If my sister tried to kill me, I want to know. I’ll sign confidentiality agreements or whatever it is you need to convince you that I’m only here to help.”

Violet nodded, pleased with my statement.

“Can we get this going?” Aidan asked impatiently.

“Considering the evidence and Noel’s convenient amnesia, Tank is pretty convinced
neither jury nor judge will let him walk, so he’s looking for a plea.”

“What about motive?” Jared asked.

“During the interrogation,” Violet explained, “Noel confessed to having slept with Susan a few years ago.”

“What?” I
inquired, surprised; Susie had never mentioned anything about sleeping with Noel.

“Does it piss you off?” Jared asked me, and I slowly shook my head.

“I don’t mind that they hooked up, but that Susie didn’t tell me…It’s just weird, we shared everything with each other.”

“Apparently not everything,” Aidan said in a low voice, but then looked at me with sympathetic eyes. “Maybe she didn’t want to risk hurting you. Noel said Susan had begged him not to tell you anything because she wanted to avoid straining her relationship with you over a one-night-stand.”

I nodded sadly, also confused by Aidan’s attempt at easing me out of my shock.

“So, will you offer him any deals or will you take the case to Court?” I asked Violet.

“Considering there’s many charges against Noel, besides the murders, we’ll offer twenty-five years in prison, with the possibility of parole after seventeen years. There’s a violent nature in him that simply cannot be ignored. He murdered two women, has a DUI record, is related to both drug use and traffic. If we go to a judge, he’ll get a life sentence. If we take the case to a jury, he won’t get a single sympathy vote.”

“Okay…What about reason for killing Olivia?”

“Maybe they were having sex, he pulled the tie too tight and she suffocated. Or maybe she wanted to leave; Noel tried to stop her, became too violent and accidentally killed her. Maybe there’s another reason, and Noel will explain it. The thing is, Samantha, as long as there’s physical evidence, motive is unnecessary. It could have been a spur of the moment thing, or something planned; at the moment of the conviction, the difference won’t be that much, especially considering the other charges. If it was only one murder, it would make a difference, but under the circumstances, it doesn’t.”