The Sound of Broken Ribs(31)

Belinda nodded in quick movements. Her chin trembled. She reached up and held it still.

Tony’s affect softened, and he straightened. “Sorry.”

Belinda continued to nod.

“I said I was sorry.”

“Oh-oh-okay.”

“Don’t be scared of me, Bee. Please don’t be scared of me. I don’t think I could take it if you were mad at me, much less scared of me. So don’t be. Okay.” None of this was a question. Belinda knew an order when she heard one.

“Yes, Tony.”

“Good. Good.” He scooted a chair out from under the table and sat down. He reached across the surface and grabbed one of Belinda’s hands in each of his own. He caressed her knuckles with his thumbs. “Tell me a story, Bee. Like you done when we were kids. Something fun. Something about knights.”

*

Jenna stood in front of Walsh Insurance with her hands in her pockets and a confused look on her face.

The front door had been kicked in and the glass shoved inward and out of the way. Because of the rural location and the angle of the door to the street, it was likely no one had seen the damage from the road. Next door, every stall of the neighboring car wash looked dry and unused.

Jenna took a deep, mind-clearing breath and exhaled at length.

She ran a few possible scenarios, no matter how unlikely they were, through her mind.

Someone had broken into the insurance office to steal paperwork or office equipment. To prove this, she would have to step inside and she wasn’t about to do that without backup. She was not ready to call anyone else in on this yet. Small towns were notorious for their word-of-mouth capabilities. As soon as she made this a case, word would spread and, if either of the Walshes were still in town, Belinda and/or Dan would vanish without a trace. Jenna didn’t want that. Not yet. So she didn’t call anyone else in. Besides, this first option didn’t feel right.

Option two was closer to what Jenna thought the truth might be.

Deputy Robert Huntington was probably right in his assumption that Belinda Walsh hadn’t seen the eviction coming. While Jenna didn’t know Daniel Walsh well enough to comment on the likelihood of him being a shitty human being, she did know that she’d never been overly comfortable with the man. He sold cheap insurance with very little fine print attached, and Jenna had appreciated that. But there was a level of sleaze to the man. He reminded her of a used car salesman on his best day and a politician on his worst.

Was it likely that Daniel Walsh had screwed his wife out of her house and left her in a state of rage so severe that she’d driven out to his work and bashed in the door? Yes. But there was more to the question.

Why was the office locked up on a weekday? Where was Daniel’s assistant—the brunette that worked the front desk? Should Belinda and Daniel prove impossible to find, Jenna would have to look up the secretary. For now, she wanted to talk to Anthony Marchesini and see if he knew where his sister was.

Not thinking anyone was likely to bother the crime scene at Walsh Insurance, Jenna left the damage as it was and dropped behind the driver’s seat of her cruiser once more.

Time to head out into the country. But first…

She redialed Robert’s phone number and listened to it ring four times before he answered.

“Yes, boss, whatcha need?”

“I’m heading out to Anthony Marchesini’s house. I need to have a word with him. Nothing serious. Not yet anyway, but I wanted to let someone know where I was heading.”

“You don’t want dispatch involved?”

“Naw. Jessica’s brother is a known associate of Marchesini’s. Don’t want word getting back to him that I’m on my way.”

“What’s going on, boss? This got something to do with that eviction I served this morning? Shit, she didn’t kill her husband—did she? The Walsh lady?”

“No. Nothing like that. But… I think I might have a missing-persons case on my hands. Not definite yet, and until I am definite, I need you to keep this between us. If you don’t hear from me in an hour, I want you out there. Don’t call and check on me. I want you there. You got that?”

“Yes, boss. But are you sure you don’t just want me to come with? I can be there in thirty.”

Jenna thought about it. Her gut said that backup wouldn’t be necessary. What was the worst that could happen?

Plenty. Plenty could happen. The last time she went rogue, she’d lost a kidney.

“You know what. Yeah. Yeah, meet me out there. You know, just in case.”

“Good deal. I’m on the other side of The End, but I should be there, like I said, in a half hour.”

“See you there.”

*

Lei’s flesh burned. Every inch of it. Snakes writhed in her guts. Greasy sweat slicked her brow. Tears scrolled over her temples and into her ears. But this had to be done.

The tech with the gold braids rolled Lei onto the bed pan. Lei had a catheter and bag to urinate into, but her only option for number two was the pan. Messing herself was not an option. And now that the anesthesia had left her system and her insides were waking up, things had become urgent.

She seemed to be held together with fragile string; and rolling back and forth had her feeling as if she would simply come apart and crumble to dust.

“Want me to wait?” the tech asked. Lei had forgotten the woman’s name. Didn’t think it mattered right now, anyway.