Righteous Obsession (38 page)

“Yes.  I’ll try to call you later.”  He quickly left
the room.

Alethea watched him leave; worry clouding her pretty
face.  “It’s bad to get sick in an unfamiliar place.  I hope he’ll be all
right.”

“He probably needs to rest most of all.  Steve gets
those and that’s what helps him more than anything.  We’ll check on him later.”

Jeff made it back to his hotel, but he was still
pretty much in a daze.  He decided to stop into the hotel’s coffee shop and get
a cup of coffee to steady him before he called home.  He paid and went back to
his room.  He took out his cell phone and pressed the speed dial number for his
home phone.

“Hello?”

“Kate – don’t you dare hang up!  I want to speak to
Dave.”

“You know he’s in Florida!”

“I know he never was in Florida and I know he was in
New Orleans, trying to murder Colin!”

“That’s a filthy lie!”  She hissed.

“It’s the truth!  I saw the composite of Colin’s
assailant his brother put together with help from the police artist.  Dave
kidnapped him to use him as leverage to force Colin to come to him.  The
composite was definitely Dave!”

“I don’t care who it might have resembled.  They’re
both liars who only want to cause trouble for Dave!”

“Why would they do that?  Colin had no idea he even
had another brother until the other day.  Not only did he try to kill Colin,
but he’s also the one who tried to kill Debbie Simpson!”

“Dave wouldn’t do those things you’re claiming!” 
Kathleen raged.  “He’s a good and holy priest!  You’re sick, Jeff, very sick!”

“No, Kate, Dave’s the one who’s very sick and needs
help!”

“I won’t listen to anymore of your lies!  You have no
proof – only the lies of that bastard son of yours!”

Jeff sighed and rubbed his forehead.  “Ask Dave about
his arm, Kate.”

“What?”

“I said, ask Dave to show you his arm.  Colin’s
bodyguard shot him when he was trying to murder Colin.  If he doesn’t have a
bullet wound in his arm then he shouldn’t have a problem showing it to you.”

“That’s just another lie!  Dave said he tore some
ligaments in his elbow when he was deep-sea fishing.”

“So, he is home!”

Realizing she had trapped herself, Kathleen sputtered,
“He – He isn’t here!  He called me from Florida and told me about his injury!”

“Here’s what I’m going to do, Kate and this is non-negotiable! 
I’ll give Dave until tomorrow morning to turn himself in and if he doesn’t do
it then I’m going to see the detective in charge of Colin’s case and I will
turn Dave in.”

“You’re sick, Jeff,” Kathleen repeated.  “Taking sides
against your own son!”

“Colin’s my son, too, and I’m not going to turn my
back on him.”

“I’m hanging up right now!  I won’t listen to anymore
of your filthy lies!”

“Kate, they’ll go easier on Dave if he turns himself
in voluntarily.  It won’t be long before they find out Dave’s identity.  The
police are faxing a copy of the composite to the detective in charge of Debbie
Simpson’s case.”

“She’s a vegetable!  According to Theresa, she’s
completely incapable of telling the truth even if she could talk!  The little
slut slept with that bastard, Colin!  Nobody’s going to believe her story any
way!  All they both want to do is slander Dave and ruin his good reputation!”

Jeff realized, with great sadness, that his wife was
as sick as his son, but he tried once again to reason with her.  “Kate, Dave is
very sick and he needs treatment.  I’ll come home immediately and we’ll talk to
Dave together and convince him it would be the best option to turn himself in. 
We’ll tell him we love him and we’ll stand behind him no matter what he’s
done.  We’ll make sure the authorities get him the help he needs.”

“Don’t bother coming back home!  You’re the one who’s
sick and I’m filing for divorce!”  She slammed down the phone.

Jeff slowly hung up and slumped into a nearby wicker
chair.  He buried his face in his hands, trying to understand how such a
terrible thing had happened.  How could Dave have attended Catholic school all
his school years and graduated at the top of his seminary class without
absorbing the most basic tenants of the Catholic faith – love and forgiveness? 
Jeff got to his feet and went upstairs to his room.  He was dreading tomorrow!
Although he hoped he was wrong he knew Dave would not turn himself in and he
knew Kathleen would protect him no matter what the cost to herself.

After Kathleen hung up on Jeff; she picked up the
phone again and made another call.  Having gotten the information she required,
she hung up, hurried upstairs and knocked on Father Michaels’ bedroom door. 
“Dave?  May I enter?  I need to talk to you.”

He opened his door.  “You sound upset, Mother.  What’s
wrong?”

“Dave, could you leave for Rome today?”

“The Diocesan hasn’t sent me my ticket yet.  Why?”

“Because your father and that bastard of his have made
some horrible threats against you and I’m sure they mean to carry them out!”

“What are they saying, Mother?”

“I don’t want to repeat the foul, disgusting things he
said to me!”

“Mother, you have to tell me,” he persisted.  “I need
to know.”

“That pervert, Colin is accusing you of trying to kill
him.  He’s also claiming you tried to kill Theresa’s daughter, but I know he’s just
saying that to cover his own tracks!”

There was no reply from Father Michaels.  He appeared
to be thinking things over intently.  After a few seconds he looked up at
Kathleen and asked, “What do you think I should do, Mother?”

“I don’t think you should give them any opportunity to
slander you and smear your good reputation!  I think you should leave for Rome
today!  I’ve reserved you a seat on a plane leaving for Chicago early this
evening with a connection to Alitalia Airlines that will fly you directly to
Rome.”

“Father’s going to be very angry with you when he
finds out I’ve gone.”

“Don’t worry about him.  If he raises a hand to me,
I’ll call the police and have him arrested!  Do you need help with your
packing?”

“No, I can manage.”

“What about your passport?”

“It’s in my desk drawer.  Mother?”

“Yes?”

“You do know Father is lying?  I never did any of
these things he’s accusing me of.”

“I know that, Dave.  There’s no doubt whatsoever in my
mind!”

Diana and her mother hurried into the hospital.  Deb’s
doctor had called them earlier to tell them Deb had regained consciousness.

“Mom, isn’t it great about Deb?  Do you think
Unforgiven’s music I kept playing helped her?”

Monique Conrad smiled at her daughter.  She hadn’t
seen Diana so happy in weeks.  “Yes, I think it helped, but I think what really
helped Deb is she knew how much you cared about her and were there for her no
matter what.”

“She’s my best friend, Mom.  I don’t know what I’d do
without her!”  Diana said fervently.  “Do you think Deb will be able to tell
the police who did this to her?”

“I hope so because I want to see him rotting in jail!”

The first person they saw when they got off the
elevator was Detective Madison.  He smiled and waved at them.  “I see you’ve
heard the good news about Deb.”

“Yes.  Have you seen her yet?”  Diana asked.

“No, her doctor’s still in with her.”

“Here’s Doctor Washburn now,” Monique said.

The doctor walked up to them.  He shook his head,
folded his stethoscope and slipped it into the pocket of his white coat. 
“Well, I don’t know what to tell you.  When I first saw Miss Simpson in the
emergency room she was unable to breathe on her own and she had only minimal
brain activity.  Now, she can breathe without the respirator and the
preliminary tests seem to indicate she’s suffered no permanent brain damage. 
We’ll be doing more extensive tests tomorrow to confirm this.”

“Doctor, I’m Detective Paul Madison.”  He offered the
doctor his hand.  “I’m in charge of Miss Simpson’s case.  Is she able to answer
some questions?”

“She’s unable to speak very well, but as I said
previously her cognitive functions appear not to have suffered any permanent
damage.  Please keep your visit short and try not to upset her.”

“I’ll be careful,” Madison assured him.  He turned to
Diana.  “Diana, would you come in with me so I don’t unintentionally frighten
Deb?”

Diana nodded and they went into Debbie’s room.  Debbie
turned her head as her door opened and she smiled when she saw Diana.  “Hi,
Din.”  Her voice was weak and she could only whisper.

Diana smiled, her eyes misting, as she took Debbie’s
hand and squeezed it.  “I’m so happy you’re going to be all right, Deb!  School
starts pretty soon and I was thinking what a total bummer it’d be without you
there!”

Madison walked up to the bed and stood beside Diana. 
“Miss Simpson?  Do you mind if I call you Deb?”

Debbie shook her head then asked, “Who are you?”

“I’m Detective Paul Madison and I’m in charge of your
case.   I’d like to ask you some questions if you feel up to it?”

“I’ll try.”

“Good.  Diana, would you raise Deb’s bed?”  Madison
wheeled the bed tray over and lowered it. He took a micro-cassette recorder out
of his briefcase, attached a microphone and spoke into it, “Detective Paul
Madison, badge number 7103, conducting an interview with assault victim, Miss
Debra Simpson.”  He put the recorder on pause and advised Debbie, “Remember to
speak directly into the microphone, Deb.”  She nodded and he pushed the record
button.  “Deb, do you know who tried to kill you on the night of July third?”

“It was Father Michaels!”  Debbie burst out hoarsely. 
“He tried to kill me!”  She started to cry.  “I thought I was going to die!” 
Diana held her and comforted her until she stopped crying.

“Father Michaels – a priest tried to kill you?”

Debbie sniffed.  “Father David Michaels.  He was our
religion teacher last year.  He accused me of sleeping with Colin Matthews …”

“He’s the lead singer of the band, Unforgiven?” 
Madison clarified.

“Yes.  He said he had to kill me because Colin had
corrupted me.  He hates Colin!”

“Okay, Deb, you’re doing fine.  Can you fill in the
details of the events leading up to Father Michaels attack for me?”

Debbie related the same story as Diana had up to a
point then said, “I was standing by my car, looking through my purse for my keys
when somebody suddenly spoke to me.  It startled me and I dropped my purse. I
turned around and I saw Father Michaels.”

“What happened then?”

“I told him I thought he’d left town and he said he’d
come back because we had unfinished business.  I noticed that he was wearing
dark clothes and I got real scared when I saw he was wearing gloves.”

“Okay, go on.”

“He started to pick up the stuff that had spilled out
of my purse and he spotted the letter I’d written to Colin about the car that
had tried to run him down in Minneapolis.  I hadn’t mailed it yet because I
felt so guilty for not telling him and the police that Father Michaels was the
driver.”  A tear slid down Debbie’s face.  “I told him it was none of his
business and tried to get it back, but he shoved me aside.”

“He read your letter to Colin, then?”

“Yes.  He got furious and punched me, knocking me into
the side of my car then called me a whore.  I was dazed, but when he pulled me
to my feet, I tried to scratch his face.  He hit me again and put his hands
around my throat and started to squeeze real hard!”  Tears continued to slide
down Debbie’s cheeks.

“If this is too upsetting for you, Deb, I’ll come back
later,” Madison said.

She shook her head.  “No, I’d rather finish it now.” 
She paused for a moment to regain her composure then continued, “He kept
squeezing harder and it seemed like he was really getting off on it.”  Debbie’s
head dropped and she was shaking.  “I kept struggling, trying to break free,
but I couldn’t and then my vision started to get fuzzy!  I was terrified, but I
thought if I quit struggling and went limp he’d think I was dying and let go of
me.”  She paused briefly then continued, “He did! I slumped to the ground and
lay real still.  He felt my pulse then started to undo my clothes.”  Debbie
closed her eyes.  “I thought he was going to rape me!”  She opened her eyes
again.  “Did he?”

“No.  I think he was hoping we’d think you’d been
raped then strangled.”

“Thank God for that much at least!  I guess I must’ve
passed out because the next thing I remember is Din screaming.  I tried to take
a breath but my throat felt like it was packed with cotton – I couldn’t
breath!”  She began to sob.  “I thought I was going to die!”

Diana put her arms around Debbie, rocking her until
she quieted.  Madison waited until she’d gotten herself under control before he
asked, “Prior to this, did Father Michaels ever make any sexual advances
towards you?”

“He used to stare at me and it made me uncomfortable,
but he never did anything else.”

“Did he ever threaten you in any way?”

“No.”

Madison took out the composite of Colin’s assailant
that Wickersham had faxed him plus five other composites and laid them out in a
row.  “Do any of these composites resemble your assailant, Deb?”