Reyes’s Raina Read online

  She took a deep, shaky breath and added, “The last time I saw Reana was here in the office. I stood up to her yesterday for her behavior toward you, Reyes. And I spoke to her later that afternoon. She is my bookkeeper and accountant. And that’ll cause its own set of problems. But I did not have any contact with her last night, overnight or this morning.” She turned to glare at Ice. “Good enough?”

  Ice nodded her head in a regal motion and said, “For the moment, yes.” She studied Annemarie, stepped closer to her. “I only do business with owners and individuals”—she tilted her head at Reyes—“who are honest and forthright. If you, Annemarie, can’t be direct without being forced to divulge information necessary to keep your son from being charged with murder, then I doubt I can trust you with any business transaction. I’ll happily find another garden center to work with. Especially when you are putting Reyes in danger here as well.”

  Annemarie’s shocked silence was heavy in the room.

  “So get your ducks in a row—or not.” Ice ignored Annemarie and her potential dramatic response and turned to Reyes. “How are we in tracking Reana’s movements after being here yesterday?”

  Reyes nodded. “Vince located her phone in her apartment last night. And she made several phone calls from that phone to her sister earlier in the evening. Speaking of which,” he said, thinking hard, “Raina did say she read several text messages between her sister and her mother on her mother’s phone. We need to know when those were made, so we can fit them in the overall time line.” He pulled out his phone and dialed Raina again. “When were the text messages completed between your sister and your mother?”

  “Just a sec,” she said. “I’m looking. … They were finished by six o’clock yesterday evening.”

  “And when did your mother last call you about your sister?”

  “About seven or seven-thirty last night.”

  “And would she have really worried in that hour or so in between calls that Reana hadn’t contacted her?”

  “Their text messages ended a bit roughly, so, yes. Mother probably called to apologize, to make sure everything was okay,” Raina said. “Nothing new from Reana since then is on her phone.”

  “So you’re the last one to speak directly to Reana on the phone.”

  “Depends on what her phone says,” Raina said. “I’m the last one to speak to her that I know about.”

  “Good point. The police have her phone. Vince handed it over, but I believe he said the last call was to you.”

  “So then they should be able to answer that question. Do you want to call them, or should I?”

  “I’ll call to confirm,” Reyes added. “We need an update on the investigation also.”

  “And get a confirmation on time of death, please,” Raina asked, her voice deepening with sorrow. “Even though I saw the bullet hole, do we know for sure that’s how she died?”

  “I’ll ask,” he said. He hung up, walked a few feet away and called the detective. As soon as he answered, Reyes identified himself and asked for an update. “We also need the time of death.”

  “I don’t have much for you yet. The last person she spoke with on the phone was her sister. That confirmed Raina’s story.”

  “Right. And there should have been a bunch of text messages before that with her mother, correct?”

  “Yes, that’s correct.”

  In the background Reyes could hear keyboard clicks as the detective brought up reports. His change in attitude to Reyes once again made him think Ice had said something to the detective.

  “They’ve put her death at around midnight. She was beaten and then shot.”

  “Any line on finding her girlfriend?” Reyes asked.

  “No,” the detective said. “Maybe I should be asking you that question.”

  “I haven’t had a chance to even start on that,” Reyes said. “We went to drop off Raina, so she could talk with her mom about her sister’s death, and found her mother had tried to commit suicide. Or so it looks like. Right now Raina is at the hospital.”

  “Right. I spoke with my partner. She called him. That’s a sad situation.”

  “I know. In the meantime there was something odd at her house. In the main bedroom upstairs, the glass balcony doors were open. Melissa was terrified of intruders. She would never have slept with the doors open.”

  “But she didn’t sleep, did she? It was morning. She had the doors open, and chances are she took the drugs this morning, after finding out about her daughter.”

  “Sure, but she was in the bedroom, and those balcony doors were always locked.”

  “So what are you saying? Somebody forced those drugs down her throat?”

  “I don’t know what I’m saying,” Reyes said in frustration. “It’s yet another anomaly.”

  “They happen,” the detective said. “At this point, we’re more concerned about finding her daughter’s killer than worried about what might have happened with the mother. If we get any proof that she didn’t commit suicide, then we’ll look into that. But, at the moment, it looks like she was lost in grief and tried to take her own life. That’s sad, but it happens.”

  As he hung up and put away the phone, Reyes agreed. He turned and explained the little he had learned to everyone in the office. Then he addressed Ice. “I don’t know what you want to do about going home,” he said, “but I want to stay. So I’ll rent a vehicle for a couple days and see what I can find. I really need to find Reana’s girlfriend.”

  “You have no name, no face, nothing?”

  “No,” he said. “Nothing. So I want to talk to Reana’s other friends. Somebody will know something.”

  Ice pulled a set of keys from her pocket. “This is for you to use. Once we get the plants sorted out”—Ice sent a determined glare Annemarie’s way—“I’ll take my father’s offer to fly them all back to Texas. We’re not leaving for at least two days. So, if you can solve this in the meantime, perfect. If not, we’ll put you on a commercial flight to get you home that way. In the meantime, this key is for a Jeep Wrangler. It’s one of my dad’s spare vehicles that he keeps around for us, and it’s yours while you’re here.”

  He stared at the keys, then at her, and a big grin cracked his face. “Your dad’s the best.”

  She smiled. “I know. Just keep remembering that too. Family is important, whether it’s immediate or extended. We do the best we can for them.” These final words were addressed to Reyes’s mother in particular.

  Annemarie had enough sense to feel shame and guilt, if her facial expressions ran true.

  Chapter 9

  Raina didn’t know where the afternoon went. She half dozed, but she kept jerking awake, checking on her mother often.

  Finally at about four o’clock, her mother surfaced and smiled up at her. Raina jumped to her feet and leaned over her. “Hey, how are you feeling?”

  “A little worse for wear,” her mother whispered. “But I’m alive.”

  “The question is, is that a good thing or not?” Raina asked.

  Her mother frowned, not understanding the question.

  “Mom, did you try to commit suicide?”

  Her mom stared at her. Then, all of a sudden, remembering about Reana, tears filled her mom’s eyes. Melissa cried, first gently, then deep racking sobs came, turning her body into a frail old woman completely broken down by grief. “Reana,” she whispered when she could. “Dear God. Please tell me it’s not true.”

  Raina gripped her mother’s hands and whispered, “I’m so sorry. But it is true.”

  Her mother curled up into a ball and motioned for Raina to leave. “Just go away,” she whispered. “I can’t deal with this. Please go away.” She pulled the covers up over her face, hiding most of it.

  Raina sat back down for a moment, not sure what to do other than notify a nurse. She exited the room to the main emergency area and told the first medical person she saw that her mother was awake.

  The nurse went to check on her, but her mother h
ad fallen back into a heavy sleep again.

  Raina explained what Melissa had said, trying to stop the hurt from being too obvious.

  The nurse gave her a gentle smile. “She’s caught up in her own grief right now. She’s not trying to hurt you. But she is not ready to live with her new reality.”

  Raina understood. It was pretty rough for her too. But her needs weren’t important apparently. She shoved her hands in her pockets and said, “I don’t know what to do now.”

  “Go home,” the nurse said firmly. “You’ve spoken to her. You know we’ll care for her and help her pull through. Just give her time and space.”

  Taking the nurse at her word, and feeling bruised inside and out, Raina went outside the front of the hospital and stood, staring up at the cloudy skies. It was hard to imagine this hurt ever going away. But she’d always understood there’d been something special between her mother and her sister. Raina knew in her heart of hearts that her mother wished it had been Raina who was dead, not Reana.

  As soon as that thought came, Raina tried to stop herself from heading down that dark hole. It had been a great source of sadness and depression during her teenage years, and she’d finally gotten over it, realizing that was just the way of it. There was nothing she could do but accept it.

  As she wondered what she was supposed to do now, a vehicle drove up. Reyes honked the horn at her, and she opened the passenger side door. “How did you know I was ready to leave?”

  “I didn’t,” he said, “but I was coming to drag you away anyway. Pretty rough in there, huh?”

  “Well, at least Mom woke up,” she said shortly.

  She expected him to drive away, but he didn’t. He stayed and stared at her a long moment. Then he grabbed her fingers and squeezed them gently. “And?”

  She tried hard not to break down, but, as soon as she explained what her mother had said, she could feel the tears cascading.

  He turned the vehicle into a parking space and tugged her close. “You’ve been through a hell of a lot today and so has your mom. Just accept that, right now, she’s not herself, and it’s a tough time for everybody. You’re doing what you can do.”

  “But how do you move forward, knowing your mother prefers your sibling, even after she’s gone?”

  “Easy,” he said. “You suffer through it until it becomes something you can live with. I’m in the same boat. Mom and Ron are two separate people, and yet, they are two peas in a pod. They’ve always had a bond I never could access. I’m close to my father but not like those two are close. It’s a very strange feeling growing up because you’re always on the outside. You’re the one who doesn’t quite fit in.”

  She nodded. “Exactly. Maybe, if my father were still alive, I would have had what you have with yours, but it never seemed to be that way when he was with us.”

  “I don’t really have much of a bond with my father. I love him dearly, but he’s very over the moon with my mom, even now,” he added with a grin. “I guess that’s how it’s supposed to be in a marriage that works,” he said quietly. “When I left two years ago, I hadn’t realized what a burden my family was, how much of my life I was trying to live up to their expectations. I knew they loved me, in their own ways.” He gave her a crooked grin. “But those teenage years are hell on feeling like you belong or are accepted.”

  She nodded. “I was just thinking that.”

  He released her so she could scoot back into her seat again. “Let’s get some food.”

  “Did you learn anything from the police?” she asked as she buckled up and wiped away her tears.

  Reyes put the transmission into Drive and pulled out of the parking lot. “Not much. We’ll talk about it over a meal. Then I thought you and I could go together to your mom’s house and then to your sister’s place, since I haven’t managed to get to either place yet. I don’t know how many answers there are anymore, but I really would like to find Reana’s girlfriend, see if she’s got anything to do with this.”

  “Fine. Food first.”

  He soon pulled into a popular Italian place. She smiled and said, “Yum, carbs would be perfect right now. Thank you.”

  The place was not very busy, as it was still early. They ordered right away, and the food came within a few minutes. She looked down at the large plate of spaghetti and said, “I almost feel guilty for eating. My sister is in the morgue, and here I am, trying to fuel up.”

  “That’s how it always is. Those left behind have to deal with survivor’s guilt. You can’t change it that you are not the one lying in the morgue. You can’t take your sister’s place, and I, for one, am delighted you can’t. Because I’d be afraid that you would try. And that’s not the way to go. Your sister was a bright flame, but, like a lot of bright flames, they burn out very quickly. You have your whole life ahead of you. I would dearly love to see you enjoy some of it.”

  Part of her agreed, but another part still felt pretty emotionally rocked. She started to eat and was surprised to see her appetite returning. When she polished off her spaghetti in one steady session, she stared at her empty plate and then looked at him. “Wow. Okay.”

  He smiled. “Don’t feel guilty about that now. You obviously needed the food.”

  She nodded and moved her plate off to the side. “I did. I’m feeling empty in many ways. I don’t know when the police will release my sister’s body, but I have funeral arrangements to take care of.”

  “Do you know what your mother wants to do about that?”

  Raina shook her head. “No, and I’m not sure how long before my mom is capable of making those decisions.”

  Reyes nodded. “You’ll figure it out,” he said. “You don’t have to make that decision today. You have several days, if not a full week.”

  “I doubt that,” she said. “Definitely a couple days though.” She picked up the glass of wine, wondering if it would help relieve her pain, then decided, after the day she’d had, it couldn’t hurt. She took a sip and smiled. “I like this.”

  “It’s a favorite of mine,” he said with a smile. “I like my wines a little on the dry side. I was hoping you were okay with it.”

  “I didn’t even realize you had ordered it,” she said. “Most people would have chosen red with pasta.”

  He chuckled. “But red puts me to sleep, and right now that’s the last thing I need. We’ll go do some sleuthing. Then I’ll take you home, so you can hopefully get a good night’s sleep. Today was probably the worst day of your life, and tomorrow everything will be a little bit easier.”

  “I hope so,” she said. “But I’m not so sure. There’s still a whole lot to deal with.”

  He nodded. “If you’re ready to go, I suggest we start with your sister’s condo.”

  As they got up, he tossed money on the table to pay for the bill and a tip, and, with a hand on the small of her back, he nudged her toward the front door.

  She glanced at her watch and exclaimed, “Feels like it’s eleven at night, but it’s only six.”

  “Exactly,” he said. “Today has been a day of days, so it’ll seem like it never ends. But, before it does, let’s see if we can find something.”

  Once again he was driving, and this time he went straight to her sister’s place. Raina stood outside the brownstone and wondered if her sister had left a will. Raina hated to even contemplate the financial aspect, but it had to be taken care of. And again she wondered how much help her mother would be. Hopefully the townhome went to her mother because she needed it. She still worked part-time because she didn’t have quite enough money on her own.

  Raina unlocked her sister’s door, using the spare key she’d had since her sister bought the place, and went in. There was an eerie silence, a silence that said nobody was coming home ever again.

  Slowly she walked down the hall into the kitchen. “I wonder how far Vince went in here?”

  “He said her phone was sitting here on the counter.” Reyes pointed to the empty counter.

  She looked
around in surprise. “This place is spotless. Reana was a bit of a perfectionist, but it was never quite this clean. I can’t help but feel like it’s been professionally cleaned.” She sniffed the air. “I smell lemon cleanser.”

  He looked at her sharply. “Seriously?”

  She nodded. “It’s one my mom always used,” she said. “It’s like a Pine-Sol cleaner.”

  He walked to the sink area and opened cupboards and drawers. “Well, how about that?”

  She turned to look. “What?”

  “The cupboards are completely empty.”

  She frowned and went to the fridge, opened it and stared at the empty shelves that were perfectly cleaned too. She gasped. “The fridge is empty too. Did somebody move her out?”

  “Maybe the better question is, did she actually live here?” he asked. “Or did she use it as a rental maybe?”

  From the kitchen they went into the dining room and living room. There was no furniture. No table, no chairs, no couch, no recliners.

  Raina stared in bewilderment. “I don’t get it. Where’s all her stuff? Did Vince say anything about it?”

  He shook his head and called Vince. “Hey, was Reana’s apartment empty?”

  “Not completely but close. I figured she was moving.”

  After Reyes hung up, he told Raina, but she stared at him blankly.

  “How long since you were here?”

  She turned toward him. “I’m not sure,” she said. “We haven’t exactly been best friends.”