Exposed (Rosato & DiNunzio #5)(75)

“He had a heart attack. They’re doing tests now. Simon is on his way back and then we can go.”

“But he doesn’t have to leave his father.”

“The cousins are there, my father and mother are on their way.”

“So? He can stay. We’re here.”

“What?”

“We can keep an eye on Rachel,” Bennie heard herself say, which sounded uncharacteristic even to her, and Mary frowned slightly.

“We have to get going, Bennie. We have to get to Simon’s house. I want to get those passwords. I want to get into the cloud. Simon can be arrested at any—”

“But Simon will need to talk to you when he comes back.”

“He’ll be fine.”

“He might need to rest or eat or shower. We can stay here and watch Rachel, then go.”

Mary smiled slightly. “Are you the real Bennie Rosato? Since when does work wait for anything?”

“Since now,” Bennie said, inwardly stung. “I’m an old dog but I can learn new tricks.”

Mary straightened up. “I’m a young dog and evidently I’m learning new tricks, too. Because as soon as Simon gets here, we’re leaving.”

“You sure? Because it’s your call, and I really mean it this time. It should have been your call with the papers, too.”

“Forget it.”

“So we’re going?”

“Totally. We have a job to do.”

Bennie glanced at Rachel, uncertain.

“Bennie, we’re lawyers. When it’s time to go, we go.”





CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

It wasn’t until seven o’clock at night that Mary and Bennie got to Chantilly Mews, the development where Simon lived. It had taken longer than everybody thought to get Feet situated in the main hospital, and Simon looked exhausted by the time he returned to Rachel’s room at CHOP. He’d said he’d be fine, but Mary wondered how much a human being could take. She remembered the other day that Simon had talked about his breaking point, but she realized that CHOP was full of parents who were finding strength in themselves that they hadn’t known they had. And so were their children.

Mary drove through the winding streets of the development in silence. Bennie hadn’t said a word the entire trip, nor had she checked her phone or email, and Mary had never seen such a change in her. Bennie was never the type to be prone to guilt, and Mary had always thought she herself had won the office pool on that particular emotion. She didn’t blame Bennie for showing Feet the power-of-attorney forms, and on the contrary, blamed herself for having the discussion in front of him. She had always believed that business was personal and family could be included anywhere, but she was starting to question the assumption. Bennie may not have known Feet, but Mary did. He was her father’s best friend and the most intelligent, as well as the most sensitive, of The Tonys. Mary should’ve known that Feet was nearing his breaking point, and it made her more worried than ever about her father, who had been so depressed the other night in the lounge.

Mary steered through one street, then the next, almost at Simon’s house, her fingers gripping the wheel. Something about the act of driving reminded her of her own power. She was in the driver’s seat and she could do more than she thought she could, too. She had to keep the pressure on and find out who killed Todd and why. She knew that Simon was innocent, but the police were working around the clock to collect evidence against him. It was only a matter of time before they got the hair and fiber tests back, proving that Simon was in Todd’s car.

Mary felt time ticking away on Simon’s freedom, which was why she had made sure that the power-of-attorney forms were signed before they left the hospital. Simon had chosen her for power-of-attorney, so she was truly in charge and she wasn’t about to let him down. She turned left onto his street, which was at the periphery of the development, with a forest of newly cultivated evergreens beyond, undoubtedly as per local zoning ordinance.

The sun had hidden behind the oddly regular treeline, and a purplish sky had fallen, dropping a final curtain on the day. Modest brick homes with attached garages and large front lawns lined the street, which seemed unusually quiet, with only a few kids playing. It could have been the heat, but Mary was guessing that families were away on vacation, since more than one garden needed weeding or the lawns looked especially dry.

Mary pulled in front of Simon’s house and turned off the ignition, remembering when Simon had thrown a housewarming party here, years ago. His wife, Ellen, had been alive and Rachel was the adorable dark-haired infant they all believed was healthy. But even then, a deadly disease was lying in wait, written into the baby’s DNA, which would darken to a poison that shared the same veins as her lifeblood, like a lethal best friend. Cancer was a murderer. Mary hated cancer, but working on Simon’s case had brought her to the epiphany that cancer came in many forms—and even in allegedly healthy people. Murderers had a form of cancer, too. It was hate beneath the surface, waiting for its chance to strike and kill. And it had to be stopped.

“This it?” Bennie asked, looking out the window.

“Yes. Let’s go.” Mary came out of her reverie, slung her messenger bag on her shoulder, and got out of the car. Humidity saturated the air, even at this hour, but she fell into step beside Bennie as they walked up the front walk, scanning the house. The front door, which was black, was closed. “I wonder if the cops broke the lock to get inside?”