Jubilee's Journey (Wyattsville #2)(80)

“Afraid not.” Mahoney explained that he was a detective with the Northampton Precinct and asked for Gomez’s home number.

“It’s probably better to wait ‘til Monday,” the voice said. “Gomez is none too fond of you Northampton boys.”

“Will do,” Mahoney said and hung up. He then grabbed the Wyattsville directory and started calling the Gomezs. Although the directory listing was for a Maria Gomez, Hector answered the third number he called.

“I’ve got something for you,” Mahoney said.

“Who’s this?” Hector replied.

“Jack Mahoney, Northampton.”

“What the hell—”

“Look, I’m doing you a favor here,” Mahoney said. Then he went on to explain what he’d just heard. “I’m off the case, so this’s a chance for you to step in and grab the glory.”

“How do I know this ain’t another one of your hot shot deals?” Hector asked.

“You don’t,” Mahoney answered. “But I’m at the hospital right now, and it’s seven o’clock. I’ll sit on it until eight-thirty. If you’re not here by then, I’m going to turn it in to Captain Rogers.” He hung up the telephone.

Mahoney’s next call was to Christine. “I’m going to be later than I thought,” he said and promised to make it up to her.

Minutes later he called Olivia Doyle.





The Carmella Encounter



When the telephone rang Olivia didn’t answer it. She glanced up at the clock. Seven-fifteen; it was probably Clara. If not Clara, then Seth, or perhaps Jeanine. I’ll call back in a few minutes, she thought and slid a tray of cookies into the oven. While the cookies baked she washed the dishes, tidied the kitchen, and leafed through the latest issue of Ladies Home Journal. It was nearly a half-hour later when she remembered about the call.

Olivia hurried to the answering machine and pushed the Play button, expecting to hear Clara’s voice. Instead it was Detective Mahoney.

His message was short and to the point.

“Missus Doyle, this is Jack Mahoney,” he said. “I’m at the hospital and wanted to let you know your suspicion was right. We’ve confirmed that Paul Jones was not involved in the robbery.”

That was it. No details saying how such information came to light, just that it was. Olivia waited for a moment, thinking there would be another message trailing the first. An explanation of sorts. The tape stopped, and the machine clicked off. Not trusting she’d heard the message correctly, she played it a second time, then a third. Each time the words were the same. And each time she could almost hear Mahoney’s voice sounding a bit happier than the time before.

After she’d listened to the recording three times, Olivia snapped off the machine and hurried into the living room.

“You were right about your brother,” she told Jubilee. “Detective Mahoney called and said they know Paul was not involved in that robbery.”

A smile such as Olivia had never before seen lit up the girl’s face. “Can we go see Paul now?”

“Yes, I believe we can,” Olivia answered happily.

While Ethan went in search of the shoes he’d been wearing, Olivia called Clara to share the news. “It seems a small miracle that the children will finally be reunited.”

“Thank heaven!” Clara replied. Then she went on to say how all along she’d suspected Jubilee’s brother couldn’t possibly be involved in something so scandalous. “Family upbringing shows through, and I’m betting the brother is a fine young fellow.”

By then it was after eight and rapidly approaching what should have been the children’s bedtime. Instead of telling them to go brush their teeth and get their pajamas on, Olivia loaded both kids into the car and started for the hospital. Mahoney had only mentioned that he was there. He’d said nothing about Paul, but Olivia’s listening was love-impaired and she heard what she wanted to hear.





When Sidney regained consciousness, Carmella Klaussner’s heart swelled to five times its normal size and overflowed with the joy of living. For the past three days she’d walked around so deliriously happy she found it impossible not to smile. She held on to that smile from the time she opened her eyes in the morning until she closed them at night. When Carmella crawled into bed, her face ached from all that smiling but she didn’t care. She once again had her Sidney.

Until today nothing in the entire world could have taken Carmella’s smile. But in mere moments everything changed. Now a sliver of regret stabbed her skin like a steel splinter. She thought back on the phone call she’d made. She remembered the words she’d said. They were cold, heartless. She hadn’t waited for justice to take its course. She’d demanded it right then and there. The boy who had saved Sidney’s life was in jail, and she was to blame. After three days of thanking the Lord for returning her Sidney, Carmella fell to her knees and began praying for forgiveness.

Just as she uttered her last “Amen,” she lifted her eyes and saw the boy’s sister coming down the hallway. Certain it could only be divine providence, Carmella jumped up and ran from the room. Without any explanation, she squatted and hugged Jubilee to her chest. “You poor child,” she moaned. “I have wronged you and your family terribly.”