Текст книги "A Few Broken Rules"
Автор книги: Kate Kane
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Текущая страница: 11 (всего у книги 14 страниц)
Chapter 26
Jamie was still a little steamed that Tanner was going to follow the bus to St. Louis, but Ben had made it very clear. Either Tanner followed the bus or Jamie wasn’t on it. This would be Jamie’s last high school football game and there was no way he was going to miss it. Not that he’d have missed the game, he knew Ben would have called in any favor necessary in order to ensure Jamie was safe, and if that meant convincing someone that Jamie, or the whole team for that matter, would fly to St. Louis with his family then that’s what Ben would have done.
Ben pulled into the parking lot and he, his wife, and his son all got out of the SUV. He’d parked next to Tanner and as Lane stood talking with Jamie, Ben walked toward his investigator.
They nodded at each other in typical male fashion.
“I’ve gone over every inch of the bus. It’s clean.” Tanner smiled and nodded toward the bus. “And, I called in a favor. The regular driver has suddenly come down with a bad case of the flu and they have a substitute. He’s a friend, also retired from the force.”
Ben nodded, “Have you talked to Duncan. I get the impression he’d rather have a root canal without Novocain than talk to me.”
That solicited a hearty laugh from Roy Tanner. “It’s not personal. He went through an ugly divorce a while back. He’s hated all lawyers ever since, but he seems to be fine with ex-cops. Yeah, I talked to him.” He inclined his head slightly toward a group of the players who were about to board the bus. “They’re sure it was someone in the Evans family, but they don’t have enough to narrow it down to an individual, let alone get a warrant. You know how it is, they’ve sent some trace evidence to the lab, but it’s not like the movies. Nothing’s back yet. They’re going to see how things play out this evening. He’s given a heads up to the St. Louis PD.”
Ben smiled as he watched his wife walk toward him. “Hey, Red.” He put his left arm around her waist and bent to kiss her cheek.
“Hi, Roy.” She shook Roy’s hand and looked up at Ben, “Do you two have any last words for Jamie before he boards the bus? I told him to call when he was ready to leave the locker room after the game so we can figure out where to meet him.”
“You stay and chat with Tanner; I’ll go say good-bye to Jamie.”
Ben walked away leaving Lane and Roy Tanner alone. Lane looked at Roy, “Tell me the truth Roy, is Jamie in any danger? Ben seems to think the police have a suspect in mind.”
Roy smiled at Lane calculating both how much Ben had already told her and how much he should say before he spoke. “I don’t think Jamie’s in any danger. I’m following the bus as a precaution. I spoke with the detective, in charge of the case, earlier, and I agree with Ben. Often the police have a suspect, and they’re sure about what happened; but they still have to dot their ‘I’s’ cross their ‘T’s’ before they can get a warrant.”
Lane may have stood next to Roy as he talked, but her eyes never left her husband and her son. “So, that’s what the police are doing now, dotting ‘I’s’, and crossing ‘T’s’?” Will there be Kansas City police presence at the game? She wondered.
Roy nodded, “I know it’s easy for me to say, but try not to worry. The bus driver is a retired cop, I’m following the bus, Detective Duncan has contacted the St. Louis police, and there are always staties at the championship game anyway.” He reached to pat her arm, “Jamie will be fine.” He said, thinking, Ben will kill me if he isn’t.
“Staties?” Lane asked almost absent-mindedly as she watched Ben walk toward them, his stride was strong and confident. She thought that even without the body count, her life had changed drastically in the last few months.
“State Police.” Tanner replied as Ben joined them.
Ben bent and kissed Lane’s cheek. She smiled, thinking she wouldn’t change a minute of it even if she could.
“State Police are always in attendance at the state championship. The Bambino’s going to be fine, Red.” He looked at Tanner, “We’ll be heading to the airport around five o’clock, but call me if anything comes up.”
Ben took Lane’s hand and they walked toward the Escalade to wait until the bus pulled out of the parking lot. Lane gave Ben’s hand a squeeze as Roy Tanner’s SUV passed where they stood. “You really do believe Jamie’s not in any danger, don’t you? Roy’s just following as a precaution, isn’t he?”
Ben’s heart felt like it was in a vise grip when she spoke. He turned her to face him and gently placed his hands on her upper arms. “I promise; Jamie is safe.”
Lane looked into his eyes. She knew Ben didn’t make idle promises, but she had no idea how he could be so sure. She leaned into him and he put his arms around her and held her.
It wasn’t that she had ever actually felt unsafe in her life, but in Ben’s arms, she felt like nothing bad could touch her. “I love you.” She murmured into his chest.
“TI amo, mia bella.” He replied. Ben opened the passenger door and held it as Lane got into the SUV. He walked behind the vehicle, thinking, “Have I really done everything I can?” He opened the door and climbed in. After starting the engine, he took Lane’s hand and pulled it to his lips. “Come on, let’s go home.”
He thought that Lane looked tired and could probably use a nap before they headed to the airport. His suspicion was confirmed when she leaned her head against the window and fell asleep.
He pulled into the garage, got out of the SUV, and opened the door into the house before opening Lane’s door, releasing her seatbelt and lifting her into his arms. As he walked through the house toward the master suite, he passed the family gathered in the hearth room.
Pauli shot out of the chair where he was sitting. “What is it? I’ll get my bag.”
Ben sent him a look and not missing a step, he replied in a stern whisper, “Ease off, and quiet down you idiot. She’s asleep and if you wake her, I swear, I’ll snap your neck.”
Evie and Jess exchanged a look as Jess stood up. Jess walked to close the garage door, and she looked at Pauli as she quietly said, “and believe me, I’ll help him.”
Ben got Lane settled in the master bedroom and returned to the hearth room. He stood and surveyed the room for a moment before his gaze landed on Pauli and he spoke. “The pregnancy has sapped her energy, but nothing is wrong. When she falls asleep while we’re out, I carry her to bed and let her sleep.”
Evie laughed to herself, just hours ago, Lane had told her this was a common occurrence lately. Lane had also said that she had told Ben he had to stop carrying her to bed and he’d told her she was just going to have to get used to it because he wouldn’t wake her up.
Evie looked at the group. “Let’s go into the kitchen and play some Nebraska Hand and Foot.” They’d learned the card game years ago. The Parkers loved it and the Bellinis could learn.
Jess looked at Joey and Gabe, neither of whom had said a word during the exchange, as she retrieved the appropriate number of decks of cards, she said, “It’s like Canasta. You’ll catch on quickly.”
The six of them played Nebraska Hand and Foot for almost two hours before Ben went to wake Lane. By the time, Lane had showered and dressed, Uncle Sal, along with Mama and Papa Bellini had all arrived at the house. And, the limo, that would take them to the Johnson County Executive airport where they would board the Luck Bets jet, was waiting in the driveway. The men carried the luggage outside and waited as the driver loaded it.
Chapter 27
The Lucky Bets jet was a 14 passenger Gulf Stream and although the flight to St. Louis would only take about an hour, Ben was glad that the 12 passengers making the trip could spread out and get comfortable. He guided Lane and Evie to four seats facing each other across a table and invited Sal to join them. Ben had invited Sal to the game so that they could discuss the trial that was starting Monday during the short flight. Once they were in the air, he and Sal could slip away and talk.
Joey spoke briefly with the pilot before sitting in a four-seat grouping toward the front of the plane. Dante, Teadora, and Pauli Bellini took seats near Joey leaving Jess, Gabe, Jake, and Meg together near the aft.
Everyone settled in quickly and conversations began. Earlier in the day, Lane had told Evie about the plans she and Ben had made to fly to Chicago. She hadn’t told her children anything except that she and Ben were going away for a quick mini weekend. It was still Phillip’s job to tell his children he was getting married, but it was her responsibility to tell Phillip about Jamie’s paternity. Now, Lane talked with Evie about the plans she and Ben had made, where they were spending the night, other plans they had for the trip.
Ben held Lane’s hand and as the plane taxied for take-off, he lifted it to his lips. Evie looked on approvingly. Ben obviously loved the woman she had come to think of not only as her friend, but also as her daughter. As the plane leveled out at cruising altitude, Ben gave Lane’s hand a gentle squeeze.
“I’m going to the galley. Would you like a bottle of water? I might be able to manage a cup of hot tea if you’d rather.”
She smiled at Ben as he stood. “Water will be fine.”
Ben looked at Sal and Evie, “Would you like water or can I get something else for you, maybe a glass of wine?”
Evie asked for water and Sal asked for wine. As Ben entered the galley, Joey and Gabe joined him. He still wasn’t sure how their détente had come about or how long it might last, but the two of them seemed to be fine as Joey took and filled drink orders for all of his guests. Gabe grabbed the four bottles of water and delivered them to Lane, Evie, and Jess leaving a bottle on his seat before returning to get sodas for Meg and Jake; he got wine, which he delivered, to Sal, Dante, and Teadora before returning to his seat.
Ben returned to his seat and checked on Lane before looking at Sal and inclining his head toward the sofa across the aisle from the ladies. Ben leaned down and kissed the top of Lane’s head before he and Sal moved across the aisle. Lane smiled; the truth was that Sal and Ben would most likely carry on their conversation about the trial in hushed Italian, not because they didn’t want anyone to know what they were discussing, after all, there were five other Italian speakers on the plane. They’d speak in hushed tones because it was about the trial and in Italian out of habit.
Evie was reading quietly as Lane leaned her head against the window and closed her eyes. She’d felt worn out most of the time during this pregnancy and while Dr. Sennette had said the fatigue should begin to subside soon, Lane was beginning to have her doubts. She felt a blanket, as it was gently placed over her, and she opened her eyes. She was surprised to see Jess tucking the blanket around her.
“I’m awake.”
“Are you really all right?” Jess had never seen her mother so tired.
“I’m fine, just tired, and as I keep saying, the Doctor assured us that I’ll have more energy soon, since I’m moving into my second trimester.” She laughed. “I’m so tired of being tired.”
Jess reached over and took her mother’s hand, “So, you and Ben are going to get away for an overnight trip. Where are you going?”
Lane knew that of her three children, Jess’s relationship with Phillip had always been the most fragile. Yet, she was determined that she wasn’t going to breathe a word of Phillip’s wedding plans. Fragile relationship with his daughter or not, it was Phillip’s responsibility to break the news to the kids.
“Just a quick overnight together in Chicago. You know we haven’t had much time alone.” It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the whole truth either.
Jess was sure there was something her mother wasn’t telling her, but she was willing to let it go. “Not since your wedding night, I guess.”
Lane gave Jess’s hand a little squeeze, “You know we’ll be back Sunday evening. You don’t leave until Monday morning, and I had planned to take the morning off to take you to the airport, so we’ll still have some time to say goodbye. Do you have any idea about your plans for Christmas and New Year’s Eve? Will you have a chance to come home I mean?”
Jess shook her head, “We’ll have a better idea once we start filming. She smiled at Lane. “You’ll know almost as soon as I do.”
He may have been discussing trial strategy with his uncle, but Ben’s eyes rarely left his wife.
Sal reached over and patted Ben’s shoulder, “Nipote, rilassarsi, L'angelo è bello.”
Sal had been a widower for more than 35 years. His wife, Guilia, had died in childbirth along with the baby girl she had struggled to bring into the world. Sal had been in his early thirties when his wife and daughter died and while he’d dated many women since, he’d never remarried always believing that Guilia had been the love of his life.
Evie Parker looked up from her e-reader and glanced across the aisle at the two men sitting on the sofa. She hadn’t heard so much Italian spoken since her childhood. Evie had grown up in the large Italian-American community in Omaha. Her maiden name had been DiGiacomo and her father, who had emigrated from Sicily in the 20’s, had been active in the Sons of Italy. Their home was full of Italian-American men, women, and children where Italian voices lilted through the air so much that English seemed like the foreign language. However, her father had died when she was ten and two years later, her mother remarried a man who wasn’t Italian. He had insisted that only English or Czech was spoken in their home. At the time, it had been an adjustment, and in the years since, she thought she’d forgotten every word of Italian. Now with the Bellini and Luciano families who spoke Italian as much as they spoke English surrounding her, it was coming back. Sal had said “Relax, nephew, the Angel is fine.” She smiled; it felt like home. Lane and Ben had been asking her to move to Kansas and somehow, it didn’t seem like such a bad idea any more.
~~~~~~~~~~
Gabe, who seemed to watch everyone on the plane as though he were observing a scene in a movie while waiting for the director to call “cut,” sat with Meg and Jake. He was holding the script for Harts in Time, making notes in the margins as he read. He caught snippets of whispered Italian conversations from around the plane. The Bellini twins sat with their parents, Dante and Teadora, talking about the football game and who, how, what, and when they had learned that Jamie Parker was Ben’s biological son. Sal Luciano and Ben Bellini were sitting on the sofa talking in quiet tones about jury selection and strategy for the trial Ben was starting Monday. His friend, Jess Parker, sat with her mother and grandmother. She was talking with her mother about plans for the Christmas holidays. He closed his copy of the script and stood, stretching by bending back and then forward touching his toes. He’d grown up an only child in Los Angeles with both of his parents in the film industry. This extended family of Jess Parker’s was all new to him and he was surprised at how attached to them he had become in the past few days. He bent to his left and then to his right before straightening and walking to where Jess sat.
Gabe flashed his movie star smile, “You ladies doing alright? Can I get anyone a refill?”
~~~~~~~~~~
Joey sat with his back toward the cockpit and watched as Gabe stood and stretched. What the hell was really going on between him and Jess? He and Gabe had come to an understanding of sorts the night before, but he still wasn’t sure he trusted the guy. Maybe Gabe was famous, but he seemed to have come into Jess’s life and consumed it. It was true that he and Jess had agreed that they’d put whatever relationship they might have on hold while she was filming, but he was still trying to sort out his own feelings. He wondered how many shoes Gabe Greer had bought for her.
~~~~~~~~~~
Dante Bellini sat in the window seat next to his son, Joey. He had been keeping a watchful eye on all three of his sons during the flight. Joey was troubled about something, but Dante had learned years ago that it was better to wait for Joey to decide that he wanted to talk than to try to pry anything out of him. Dante faced his wife and listened as she and Pauli talked. Pauli was the baby of the family, by seven minutes, and had always been closer to his mother than his brothers were. Ben was sitting with Sal and they were clearly discussing strategy for the trial that Ben was starting Monday. Dante’s eyes traveled to the other four seat grouping, where his daughter-in-law sat with her daughter Jess, and her friend Evie. He knew Ben’s eyes rarely left his wife. Dante smiled. This wasn’t Ben’s first child after all, it was his first experience with a pregnant wife. While Dante wouldn’t exactly call him a nervous expectant father; he knew that Ben kept a constant protective eye on his pregnant wife.
~~~~~~~~~~
Jake Parker sat next to his girlfriend Meg Kelly holding her hand and talking in hushed tones. They were talking about the football game, about her daughter Abbey, and about the shopping trip scheduled for Saturday morning. He’d learned from Ben the importance of having one night that was “date night,” a night that was kept for just the two of them. Date night for Ben had always been Friday, and Jake tried to keep Friday night for him and Meg too, but tonight was an exception and the whole family surrounded them. He was glad when Gabe Greer stood and went to talk to Jess, finally he and Meg could spend a few precious minutes alone. He leaned close and kissed Meg’s cheek. “I love you,” he whispered. He put his arm around Meg and she leaned her head against him. Meg turned her head and kissed Jake’s neck. “I love you,” she whispered in reply. Tonight, he’d be spending the night in a room with Gabe Greer and Jamie while Meg would be sharing a room with his sister, Jess. It might seem strange to many people, but while he had been with Meg for nearly four months, they still hadn’t had sex. It wasn’t that Jake didn’t want Meg. He did. But, he planned to marry her and even though neither of them were virgins, he planned to wait until they were married to make love to Meg.
~~~~~~~~~~
Jess looked up at Gabe. What was with him? Why did he want to wait on her family? He was possibly the only actor in Hollywood who hadn’t done time as a waiter while trying to be “discovered,” and yet he’d acted as a waiter several times over the last three days. Jess, her mother, and grandmother all shook their heads.
“Sit.” Jess said.
“Thanks,” he said as he sat next to Evie. “I just needed to get up and move around a little.” He smiled. “And I thought Jake and Meg could use a few minutes alone.” He had just started to comment that they must be getting close when the pilot announced that they were beginning their descent.
Chapter 28
A limo and driver met them at the airport and quickly loaded their luggage. After dropping the rest of the family at the stadium, Sal went with the limo to the hotel. Sal hadn’t originally planned to attend the game, so he had agreed to take care of checking in for everyone. The game was at 7:00 and the family probably wouldn’t make it back to the hotel until 10:00 at the earliest. Sal had called a friend and planned to meet him in the hotel bar for a drink and reminiscing.
Ben led his family into the stadium and ushered them to their seats. Once everyone was seated, he took food and drink orders. It had been a long time since lunch, and dinner wouldn’t be happening until after the game. Stadium food was better than no food and everyone ordered something to eat. No one was surprised when Gabe volunteered to go with Ben, but Jake knew carrying back food and drink orders for eleven people would require more than two sets of hands and he volunteered to go along too.
The lines at the concession stands were long, but not intolerable and the three men were soon back with the family and distributing hotdogs, nachos, popcorn and pretzels along with bottled water and sodas. There was still a good twenty minutes until the start of the game, meaning until the opposing teams entered the stadium, the National Anthem was sung, and the coin toss was executed. That meant it was even longer before any actual action took place.
Ben handed a tray with hotdogs and drinks to his father before giving a second tray to Lane. The Bellini twins, the Parker kids and their guests occupied the row behind Ben, Lane, Dante, Teadora, and Evie Parker, which made conversation somewhat easy before the game got under way. Lane smiled, knowing Gabe spoke Italian, the Bellinis conversed in English, talking easily about the game, the opposing team, and planning dinner after the game. In short, they talked about everything except the murder investigation and the danger that Jamie could be in that weighed heavily on everyone’s mind.
*****
The atmosphere in the locker room was crackling with teen-aged testosterone and loud, boisterous voices talking of the football game to come as though the playing of it was only a formality with the win a foregone conclusion. Jamie sat next to his friend Justin Harper who, although wearing his uniform, would only occupy a seat on a bench on the sidelines as the final football game of the season took place. It wasn’t right, but at least Justin was alive, out of the hospital, and able to suit up. Jamie glanced across the locker room at Lucas Evans. He thought back to his morning at the police station and wondered if Lucas’ family could really have had anything to do with what happened either to Justin or to the coach. He couldn’t get his head around the possibility and in just moments, it would be his job to keep Lucas safe on the field. He just wished the whole thing were over.
Coach Cooper had just told them to take a knee. It was a Catholic High School and it was common practice to pray before each of the games. Today would be no different, although Jamie was a bit surprised when Coach Cooper mentioned Coach Ferguson. It was a big game and it was going to be tough enough to keep their heads in the game without that. Jamie shook his head when Coach Cooper encouraged the team to go out there and win this one for Coach Ferguson. Immediately after Coach Cooper said Amen, the room erupted in pre-game hooping, hollering, and grunting.
