Sweet Mystery (25 page)

“Shut your dirty mouth, swamp trash!” Henry
balled both his fists, his face twisted.

“Grandfather, what is she doing to you?” Toya
had crossed the street from a fancy women’s boutique.

“Vincent Dalcour was a lying, no-good–” Henry
stumbled back against the wall of the storefront, clutching his
left arm.

Rae did not like the ashen cast to his skin.
“Take it easy. You look like you need a doctor.”

“Grandfather, come over here.” Toya led him
to a wooden bench. She patted Henry’s hand and accused Rae at the
same time, “Now see what you’ve done?”

“Mr. Henry, getting worked up over old
grudges isn’t good for you at your age.” Rae was concerned. He did
not look good at all. “Let’s call a truce. I mean, we both said
some nasty things that we shouldn’t have–”

“Speak for yourself,” Henry said. He seemed
to be gathering his strength. “I told the truth.”

“Just go away,” Toya put in.

“No problem. By the way, I’ve hired a
detective to find out what really happened to my grandfather. I can
take the truth. Can you?”

Rae made it a point to stroll away without
hurrying. She looked back to see them walking slowly down the
street. A few people offered to help. She could hear Henry
insisting he was fine. Any concern she’d felt for the stubborn man
was gone.

“It’s true what they say. Success is the best
revenge.” Rae wore a grim smile as she threw one last glance at the
pair.

* * *

Rae was so busy with the dance hall that she
had not thought about the investigation for days. She was inundated
with all the details of running a business. Even with able
assistance from Garrett, there was still so much she had to do
herself. When LaMar called, she felt a flutter of excitement mixed
with anxiety. He gave her a few details, but was reluctant to say
more until they met. That he suggested her brothers be present was
even more intriguing.

The next day they were all sitting in Rae’s
living room. LaMar wanted to get right down to business after the
introductions had been made.

“LaMar has done a great job so far.” Rae
looked at him expectantly. “But he’s playing the part of the
mysterious private eye.” She raised an eyebrow.

“Some news should be given in person.” LaMar
glanced at them all. “I’ve traced your grandfather to Uruguay, I
think.”

“Uruguay?” Andrew blinked at him. “What the
hell would he be goin’ there for?”

“Wait a minute now. What do you mean, you
think?” Neville asked.

“Is he there now? What does he look like? Is
Estelle with him?” Rae shot out the questions. Her mind raced
ahead, trying to figure out how she could leave the dance hall and
travel to this exotic place.

“Hold up, one at a time. Let me start at the
beginning. I found old records that show a couple got passports to
travel there and bought passage on a freighter. They were to work
off part of the cost.”

Neville frowned. “But why didn’t the
authorities know he was wanted?”

“Somehow all this slipped through the cracks.
Maybe they never considered they would try to leave the country. Or
they could have paid hush money.” LaMar shrugged. “Anyway, nothing
indicates they didn’t go on the ship.”

“But nothing to prove they did,” Rae put in.
This all seemed too farfetched. She had a feeling something was
wrong.

“No, that’s why I said I think that’s where
they went.” LaMar looked at Neville, who nodded.

“But, why Uruguay?” Andrew scratched his
head. “I mean what would Pawpaw Vincent know about any place
farther than Houston?”

“Maybe he paid more attention in school to
geography than you did, Andy,” Neville quipped. “Lots of black
folks left, goin’ to other countries for better opportunities.
Don’t forget what it was like back then for us.”

“Right,” LaMar added. “Quite a few Latin
American countries had economic booms in the early twentieth
century. Uruguay was quite prosperous until the late sixties. Black
people left America to settle there and in the Caribbean.”

“Doesn’t feel right,” Rae said.

“That’s what I’m sayin’,” Andrew added.
“Somethin’ strange about all this.”

“The other thing is this – they could have
gotten off in another country; Brazil, for one. If so, it would
take a lot of looking with little chance of finding them.” LaMar
sat back and looked at all three.

Neville grunted. “In other words, a lot of
money.”

“So we gotta decide if we can afford it and
how bad we want to find them.” Rae drummed her fingertips on the
arm of the sofa.

Neville shook his head. “Rae, I know you
wanna keep your promise to Daddy. But you all ready invested
several hundred dollars. You got the dance hall that needs
tending.”

“The cash flow so far is good.” Rae reviewed
all the options.

Neville frowned. “But you got big expenses,
remember?”

“You went over the books with me. We’re
pulling in a nice profit.” Rae sat forward. She was ready to debate
continuing the search.

Neville rubbed his chin. “I know but...”

“Hey, I paid you back a nice chunk all
ready.” Rae tapped his arm.

“It ain’t about that,” Neville replied. “I
knew the first few days that I’d be gettin’ my investment back. You
don’t have to rush.”

“Trisha slipped up and told me about the
second mortgage, Neville. I made her go down and make a big payment
on that loan.” Rae wagged a forefinger at him. “Within the next few
months, I want it all paid off.”

“Doggone it, that woman can never tell a
lie.” Neville looked sheepish.

“Thanks for wanting to help, big brother.”
Rae kissed his cheek.

“I told Daddy I’d make sure you both stayed
straight. Ain’t had much success with that one.” Neville pointed to
Andrew with a wry smile.

“Watch out now.” Andrew gave him a playful
swat on the shoulder. “So what we gonna do?”

Rae looked at Neville, then Andrew. “I really
want to keep looking. But to be practical, let’s set a time and
money limit.”

Neville thought for a few seconds. “Okay,
sounds reasonable.”

With guidance from LaMar on the cost and
probable timeframe, they decided that he should continue for at
least another six weeks. They negotiated a flat fee, which included
LaMar taking a trip to Uruguay or whichever South American country
seemed most promising.

“We might be close to finding out what
happened. I just have a feeling...” LaMar lifted a shoulder. “I
can’t explain it.”

“Yeah, just like for some reason it doesn’t
feel right that Pawpaw would go away like that. Daddy and Tante Ina
said he was crazy about his children.” Rae tried to explain the
tinge of uncertainty in her gut. “And he’d played around with other
women before Estelle.”

“Don’t forget the money,” Neville said with a
somber expression. “The money went with ‘em.”

“Then at least we can put all these questions
to rest,” Rae sighed. “Either way, I’d like to know if he’s alive.
I want to meet him.”

“And her, too,” Andrew added. “Wouldn’t that
be something? To be able to get it straight from the horse’s
mouth.” He gazed at his brother and sister.

“The plane couldn’t get me there fast
enough,” Rae said. Goosebumps rose on her arms at the thought of
it.

* * *

“Who the hell do you think you are, boy?”
Henry yelled at Darcy. “I built Jove Enterprises into a
multi-million-dollar operation before you were out of diapers.”

“Grandfather, calm down. You haven’t been
feeling well.” Toya hovered next to his chair.

They were in Henry’s spacious den. A golf
match played out on the big-screen television in one corner. Cecile
waved out the housekeeper and closed the door.

“Henry, if you won’t see Dr. Picard, you
should at least get some rest.” Cecile tried to plump a pillow
behind his back.

“Get away from me, woman!” Henry threw it
onto the floor. “I don’t need you pawing at me all the time.”

Cecile drew back, her face pale. “I just
thought–”

“Then don’t think. I end up worse off every
time you do,” Henry snarled.

They stared at each other in silence for a
few moments.

Darcy cleared his throat. “Pantheon needed an
answer, Grandfather. They wouldn’t wait around forever to know
exactly what to expect from us.” He spoke in a measured tone.

“Don’t talk to me as if I’m senile.” Henry
turned his wrath back on Darcy. “I have to hear what’s going on in
my own company second-hand at a damn Chamber of Commerce
luncheon.”

“Calm down. I’m sure Darcy knows what he’s
doing.” Toya tried to soothe Henry. She glanced at her brother out
of the corner of her eye.

“Be quiet, Toya. Darcy, tell me everything.”
Henry glowered at him.

“Pantheon was not happy about the change. It
was touch and go for a while.” Darcy looked pleased with himself.
“But I did my homework. I bought old man Trahan’s property. He died
last month. After I found his son in Atlanta, he was happy to sell
at a good price.”

“Lloyd Trahan sold his family’s property that
easily? I don’t believe it.” Henry fixed Darcy with a discerning
gaze. “What else did you throw in besides money?”

Darcy stuck out his chest. “I made a few
phone calls, so his industrial pipe company will get some of
Pantheon’s contracts.”

“Good thinking,” Henry admitted, grudgingly.
“But there’s something else…”

“Yes, er, there will have to be some dredging
along Bayou Pigeon,” Darcy said.

Henry sat forward. “Haven’t I told you
plainly how I feel about that?”

Darcy lost his confident look at the
gathering storm in his grandfather’s eyes. “Studies show it won’t
affect the water flow. At least look at the reports,
Grandfather.”

Henry was silent while the others seemed to
hold their breath. “All right, I’ll take a look.”

Darcy looked relieved. “Great. The deal would
certainly fall through without making barge traffic possible. And
we need to build a road through a section of our land near Bayou
Latte to–”

“What?” Henry’s head jerked up.

“Those woods about seven miles down, between
Bayou Latte and Valcour Landing. With the change, we’ll need a road
to the back of the plant for delivery from the barges.” Darcy wore
a look of confusion at the effect of his words.

“No, no, no, dammit!” Henry rose from the
chair, his eyes wide with rage. “T-that’s prime hunting land. I
won’t have it disturbed,” he shouted.

Darcy stared at him in shock. “A road in that
location is critical. We started two days ago.”

“Then you can just stop.” Henry advanced
toward him. “Did you hear me?”

Darcy’s expression hardened. “No.”

“What did you say, boy?” Henry asked in a
raspy voice.

“It’s time you really retired. I’m going to
take full control of the company and I’ll make the decisions. I’m
CEO now.”

Henry raised a clenched fist. “Stay away from
that property. I-I’ll have you thrown out of my office! My
company–”

Henry swayed in a wide arc, his eyes
glassy.

Toya jumped up to grab him on his right-hand
side while Darcy moved quickly to his left. Cecile let out a squeal
of distress. The left side of Henry’s mouth twisted sideways. He
slumped down onto Toya, knocking her to the floor.

“Call an ambulance! Oh, lord, Henry! Henry!”
Cecile wailed.

* * *

Rae leaned against Simon. “I thought he was
going to hit me.”

They were sat in his condo, sipping wine.

“Yeah, well, he’s not too happy with me
either.” Simon wore a look of sympathy. “I never realized he was
still so angry. You’d think it all happened last week.”

“Henry Jove has taken carrying a grudge to a
whole new level, cher. The man is a little scary with this
obsession. Estelle must have put some kinda voodoo love spell on my
man,” Rae said.

“Let’s forget about him and everyone else.
For the first night in weeks I don’t have to share you with a
hungry, thirsty crowd.” Simon hugged her to him. “I just want us to
concentrate on each other.”

Rae pressed her mouth against his, her tongue
tasting his sweetness. “Hmm-mm, you got it,” she mumbled.

She strained against him, relishing the feel
of his hands on her breasts. Fire raced through her pelvis. A week
had passed since they had made love. In short order, both shed
their clothes quickly and lay down on the thick carpet. Simon
pulled her on top, astride him in one motion.

Rae felt an urgency; she did not want to go
slow. Simon responded with the same intensity. Rae moved up and
down fast, her hips pumping as he gripped her waist. He came with a
loud cry, his body arched, lifting her high. The sensation of him
growing even harder inside her brought the sharp, sweet pain of her
orgasm. Rae gasped for air as she gently rolled to lie beside
him.

“Whew! That was so good,” she panted, and
then sighed as a whisper of chilly air from the vent above washed
over them.

“What got into you?” Simon’s chest rose and
fell rapidly.

“You,” Rae said with a giggle. She stretched.
“Good thing this carpet is so soft.”

“Come here.” Simon grabbed at her.

Rae wiggled away. “No, I wanna cool off
first. Then we’ll take another ride.

“Better get my Wheaties,” Simon said with a
soft moan.

Simon retrieved a pair of pajamas. Rae put on
the shirt and he the pants. They listened to a variety of music on
his compact disc player, from hip-hop to Mississippi Delta blues.
They were so settled in for a cozy night of intimacy that the
ringing of the telephone was a jarring intrusion.

“Ignore it,” Simon mumbled. He rested his
head against Rae’s neck as they snuggled on the sofa. The answering
machine clicked on, with Simon’s voice prompting the caller to
leave a message.