Hawaii Can Wait (The Girls Series) Page 5

  “Nephew?”

  “He’s actually a grandnephew but that is just too much of a mouthful.”

  Carolyn took a deep breath. “I understand that it sounds like busy work, but I was thinking about it. Maybe we can actually help. The thing is, when you put together only like-minded people, what you get is the response that would have come from any one of them, because they all think the same way. We are not going to think the same way as Adeline’s security team. We will come at it from a completely different perspective. I think that we could actually be of help, if they allow us to be.”

  Anna thought about it for a moment. “That sounds right. I didn’t think of it that way.”

  Adeline nodded. “One of the strengths that we would bring to the team is that we are not like anyone on the team. I think that’s a good insight.”

  Carolyn seemed to have gained a bit of strength from the comments. “So, I propose that we do as Roland suggested. Mostly. I’m not comfortable taking up his people by having them drive me around. How about if I take a taxi to my condo? Anna, you can come with me, you left your car at my condo. Once we have transportation, we’ll all feel better.”

  “I mentioned that to Roland while I was making arrangements for him to come over here this morning. He thinks that what we should do is all go to his offices and he will have a couple of his people pick up your cars and bring them to the office. He was rather insistent on it actually.”

  Carolyn seemed deflated. “I wonder why.”

  Anna shook her head. “You don’t watch nearly enough television. He wants to check out the cars to make sure there is no funny business. Barry has had plenty of time to mess with the cars.”

  Carolyn was aghast. “Why on earth would he do that?”

  Anna tried to be patient. She knew that Carolyn’s brain was working in slow motion due to all the stress. “Because the best way to get to a person that you can’t get to is to get to a person they love. If Barry can’t get to Suzi, and with all those O’Flynns around I’m sure he can’t, then he will get to a person who Suzi loves the most. Her brother is surrounded by O’Flynns. That pretty much leaves you.”

  Carolyn protested. “But he thought we would be in Hawaii by now.”

  “True enough, but what if he figured that it would be a nice little welcome home present.”

  “I don’t want resources wasted on such things. Barry isn’t going to come after me.”

  Adeline asked, “Is there the slightest possibility that he thought Suzi would drive your car?”

  “Oh. Well. I hadn’t thought of that. That would be a reasonable conclusion. Suzi actually has a key to my condo on her key chain and she knows where I keep the extra set of car keys. She knows that she could take my car while I’m out of town. The original plan was for her and Barry to stay with me for a little while. They were going to be house hunting. I wouldn’t be surprised if Barry actually has a key to the condo.”

  “Then, Carolyn, with your permission I’d like to ask Roland and his team to check not only your car but also your condo. Barry could well have made a copy of that key.”

  “I really—”

  “Didn’t you say that he and Suzi were planning to stay at the condo for a while? If Suzi decides to stay with that plan, wouldn’t you like them to assure her safety?”

  “Well, when you put it that way, it makes perfect sense. Thank you.”

  “I’ll make the call. I suggest that we head for the office in thirty minutes.”

  “I’ll be ready.”

  “Me, too.”

  There was a black SUV with dark-tinted windows waiting outside Adeline’s building twenty-five minutes later.

  Inside the vestibule were two large men.

  When the women alighted from the elevator, they were escorted to the waiting car, cooled with air conditioning obviously set to maximum. Carolyn decided the air conditioning was the reason for her goose-fleshed skin. She wouldn’t admit, not even to herself, how scared she was for those she loved most.

  THREE

  “My goodness, Carolyn, did you see the way that young man was looking at Anna? I am quite certain he left marks.”

  Anna chuckled.

  Carolyn tried to join in, but she was just too concerned about the kids.

  They were escorted into a large conference room. Each of them sat in a luxurious chair, which under normal circumstances, after all the travel they’d done recently, probably would have put at least two of the girls to sleep but did nothing for their nerves today.

  Roland came in and sat at the head of the table. A beautiful young woman in a well-cut suit sat to his left and a couple of hulking males sat across from the girls.

  Anna made a mental note. Beautiful young women in well-cut suits seemed to be a pattern. Maybe there was hope for the United States after all. Maybe young people were beginning to see the importance of a little propriety and dignity.

  Roland made quick introductions. Only Anna was likely to remember everyone’s name. After hitting a couple of buttons hidden below the visible surface of the table, the lights in the room dimmed substantially and computer monitors rose from the façade of the table.

  Each of the girls was startled, which annoyed Adeline. She didn’t cotton to shows of grandeur — be they of wealth or technology, as she saw each as a tool and a privilege. Perhaps she would talk to Roland about that later.

  On the screens, a slideshow was created to advance seamlessly while Roland narrated. Anna had to wonder why they would waste precious time creating such bunkum when their real efforts should go toward finding Barry. She assumed that was the way rich people did things, but it annoyed her just the same.

  Carolyn wasn’t quite as focused as the other girls. She was concerned about Cara, but knew the O’Flynns would do everything in their power, and then some, to care for her.

  Carolyn’s main concern was Suzi.

  Who would be there for Suzi and that baby that had not even had a chance at life yet?

  The O’Flynns were good people, but even they would not be able to set aside such a horrific incident and differentiate between the beast Barry turned out to be and Suzi. Who could blame them?

  Suzi must have known that Barry was capable of violence and yet she did nothing to protect her best friend, her brother’s girlfriend, a woman that had taken Suzi under her wing and paid all her bills when she couldn’t afford a place to live and was too concerned about Carolyn to ask for help.

  At that time, Carolyn had just lost her husband and was less than useless, but that still didn’t answer why Suzi hadn’t said anything between then and now.

  How could her beautiful, smart, Suzi allowed this creature to be a part of her life? How could she have possibly decided to have a family with the monster? Didn’t she worry for her future children? Wasn’t she aware that violence increases, not the reverse? What was Suzi thinking and why didn’t she share any of those thoughts with anyone else?

  That didn’t even address the thing that weighed most heavily on Carolyn’s mind. If Barry was crazy enough to hurt Cara, what had he done to Suzi? What forms of abuse had Suzi endured and for how long?

  Why had she never seen that her granddaughter was an abused woman?

  She had allowed a monster to hurt her grandchild and she’d done nothing about it. She hadn’t seen it coming. She hadn’t seen it while it was happening and she hadn’t seen what had been done.

  She would be damned all the way to hell if she allowed it to continue or if she allowed Suzi to go back to that monster. The only way that would happen was if Suzi honestly believed she had no other choices and Carolyn would make it very clear that was not the case.

  She was not going to let another family difficulty pass without her complete participation. She might not be able to solve this particular problem but she was going to try with everything she had.

  She forced herself to pay attention to the video presentation. What a waste of money and time.

  “Any questions, ladies?”
Roland sounded a little bit smug to Adeline’s ear.

  “A few, actually. Firstly, Roland, please explain to me how this could have happened, catching you completely unaware. You are responsible for the safety of all of my people. You were well aware that Cara had a close personal involvement with this individual. He was staying in her home. Why were no steps taken to assure that he was of good character?”

  Roland was obviously flustered at the completely unrealistic expectation Adeline brought to the table.

  Anna covered her smile. Hit ‘em high. Hit ‘em low. An old tactic. Confuse them with the first punch – or question – so that they answer the real question without too much thought.

  “We will discuss that and your continued employment soon. First the debacle in Las Vegas and now this. You can understand my concern. Roland, the flash of a slideshow and presentation might be appropriate for your corporate clients, however, I can assure you that your time and that of your staff would be much better spent tracking down the individual you have been tasked to find.”

  Both Anna and Carolyn were surprised at Adeline’s comment and more than a little impressed.

  “Roland, I do not need to be sold on your abilities or that of your staff. I was under the – perhaps mistaken – impression that I had already contracted with the best. I do not require a sales job at this point in our relationship. I require concise action with near immediate results. Can you tell me in a much less convoluted manner exactly what it is you are doing to keep Cara and her family safe and ensure the near immediate capture and prosecution of Barry?”

  “We have no control over the prosecution, but we are working hard on the capture, ma’am.”

  It did not escape Anna’s notice that Roland was no longer calling Adeline by her first name.

  Roland continued, “As you are aware, I have several people on the floor at the hospital.”

  The girls sat silently as Adeline continued questioning Roland’s tactics. Business Adeline and personal Adeline seemed to be two very different people. Adeline was always rather proper, but in these surroundings power radiated from her. She was direct, concise and fully expected cooperation and results. She was in charge and there was no doubt about it. “And you expect that those people could intercept Barry?”

  “Each of them could take him down without assistance from the others. In addition, each of them is in constant communication with the others as well as several members of the hospital staff.”

  “Very well. What measures have been taken to defend against a blitz?”

  Roland was again caught off guard. Not a good stance for a security person. “I’m sorry?”

  “A blitz. If Barry has decided that killing Cara is an even exchange for his life, he might come into the hospital with only that on his mind. He might be overtly offensive rather than stealthy. If he shows up with any number of weapons, he wouldn’t need to get near Cara’s room to do harm.”

  “We have taken that into consideration. It was simply the term ‘blitz’ that I questioned. We have a team in place as well as surveillance equipment with face recognition capability. We also have equipment in place that can identify his vehicle and those other vehicles he has access to now or in the past. We additionally are paying close attention to any and all rental units and we are monitoring those units at point of origination.”

  Anna jumped in. “So what you are saying is that you have computers and cameras all over the place that are going to tell you if Barry is in the area.”

  “Correct.”

  Adeline asked. “And what other areas are you focused on?”

  “Ma’am?”

  “You told me earlier, in private conversation, that you were going to investigate Carolyn’s car and condo for any evidence that Barry had been about.”

  “Yes ma’am. We have done that. There are no signs that he has been around.”

  “And the O’Flynns?”

  “We have a small detail following them back and forth from home to hospital. There has been no indication that Barry has shown any interest in that target.”

  Anna sounded annoyed. “I know this is not my business, nor is it my area of specialty...”

  Adeline encouraged her to continue.

  “There are only two places you need to cover. Barry isn’t going to that hospital. He is goin’ after Teagan or her parents.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Because he wants to hurt Cara. If you want to hurt a person it is much more painful to hurt the ones they love. He might be bat-shit crazy, but he still wants to see that little girl suffer. In his mind, for now, killin’ her is the easy way out. He wants her to go through the pain of recovery just to be hurt again and again and the best way to do that is to go after her sister or her parents.”

  It was obvious that Roland was not interested in Anna’s simplistic theory.

  It didn’t slow her down at all. “Dollars to donuts, you are going to find Barry slinkin’ around one place or another and I will bet you it will be at her parents’ house.”

  “And why is that?”

  “It’s a challenge. You talk to the O’Flynns four times, they are going to tell you at least twice about what great community they have at that house of theirs. All the kids were raised there. All the neighbors are like family. They are at every social occasion, every wedding, they laugh and cry together and have each other’s back. Barry is going to want to ruin that for Cara. He is going to want to ruin her sense of safety. If he can do that, then for the rest of her life, she is his victim.”

  Carolyn nodded. “Makes sense.”

  Anna took a deep breath. Everything about her changed. She sat straighter in her seat. Looked more regal. “Unfortunately, I have some life experience in this area. People think that every attack on a person is about the attack. As often as not, it is about the power of altering that person’s life forever. My niece was attacked when she was just a child. He came back all these years later to knock her off balance again. The younger set think they have ended it when they address the problem they see. My niece figured she was done with the swine when she hadn’t heard from him for years. She thinks she is done with him now. It will never end. Not as long as this man can come back and knock her off balance. Same thing for Cara. As long as Barry can make her feel like she’s at risk, he wins. We need to find a way to put this man behind bars for decades and to neutralize him while he is there. She isn’t going to have any peace until she knows that he is not able to mess with her at will.”

  “Roland, I agree with Anna. I would like you to address this issue with a dual pronged approach. On one side, I would like for you to find out everything there is to know about Barry. I am quite certain he didn’t wake up the morning of the attack and decide to become violent. I do not believe in the theory that people ‘just snap.’ People become more audacious when they feel empowered. I believe that the most empowering force for human nature is success. I therefore believe that Barry has been successful assaulting women in the past.”

  Both Adeline and Anna glanced at Carolyn. Her pain was evident even with all her efforts to conceal it. It was dawning on Carolyn just how wounded Suzi might be. The thought of her granddaughter being beaten by Barry weighed on her heavily.

  She was beginning to sink into a depression, just as she had when her husband died. She was trying mightily to hold herself together, but it wasn’t working as well as she hoped.

  The rest of the meeting was spent discussing various approaches to the problem. When a consensus was reached, Adeline adjourned the conclave and insisted that Anna and Carolyn join her for lunch.

  Lunch was simple fare, sandwiches on Blundorn Road. Each of the girls was lost in thought throughout most of the meal.

  “I don’t know what to do. Suzi and I have always been so close, but the more I think of this, the more I know that Barry was abusing her, probably for some time, and she didn’t say anything. She didn’t come to me. I didn’t notice. I’ve failed her.”

 
Anna was firm. “You can’t do this to yourself. Or to her.”

  “To her?”

  “You can’t worry about the past. She is having a baby and she is at a terrible point in her life. It isn’t about looking backwards. It is about building a whole new future. You can coulda, shoulda, woulda all the way to your grave, or you can take a couple of days to get yourself and a plan together and then you can approach Suzi with a positive outlook and a bright future to share with her. She doesn’t need recriminations and guilt. She needs a plan. She’s gonna beat the hell out of herself. She doesn’t need the guilt of seeing you beat yourself up too.”

  “That is very wise advice, Anna. I hope that you will accept it, Carolyn.”

  “It is wise. Thank you. I’m not sure how I will be able to live it, but I intend to try.”

  “The first thing we do is come up with some options.”

  “Options?”

  Anna started making her points. She’d been thinking about them since shortly after the initial phone call. “Suzi is going to be in a world of hurt. Her best friend is going to have a hard time moving forward. She was pretty wrapped up in the O’Flynns, and even if they try hard to include her, that isn’t going to work for a while. They all need time to heal. Suzi won’t be comfortable around the O’Flynns and she is gonna keep her distance because she loves her brother and knows how much her brother loves Cara. Cara is going to have some major issues to work through before she can look Suzi in the eye again without her heart jumping out of her chest. Barry isn’t going to be there for her, we are gonna throw that no good bum’s butt in jail for so long he won’t see the light of day for decades. So, unfortunately, Suzi is going to be alone in this town, her husband is going to have a legal battle and like it or not, it will be her money – or at least half of it — that defends him against Cara’s allegations, and then you have the whole thing that she will be working through all of this emotionally. And she’s pregnant. She needs to know she has some people behind her, some place to go, something that she can do to make a living.”