Always - Iris Johansen [32]
“I don’t want to keep her prisoner at all. Damn, I’m tired of this mess.”
Galbraith shrugged and moved toward the door. “I’ll report back tomorrow and you can let me know what you’ve decided. Good night, Clancy.”
“Good night.” Clancy stood staring absently at the door for some minutes after it had closed behind Galbraith. God, he was scared. He knew what he had to do was necessary, but that didn’t make it any easier. His hands clenched into fists at his sides. Do it, he told himself. Get it over with, dammit.
He turned and strode to the master bedroom and knocked briskly. He didn’t wait for an answer but opened the door and walked into the room.
Lisa was at the French windows gazing out into the courtyard, silhouetted against the last rays of twilight.
“He got away,” Clancy said. “I’m sure you’ll be glad to know your conscience is entirely clear. Baldwin is somewhere on the high seas by now.”
“I know you’re disappointed,” Lisa said, not turning around. “It’s not that I condone what he’s done, but I couldn’t be responsible for—”
“I know why you did it. I’m not blaming you. I do think you should develop a better sense of self-preservation. You heard what he said to you before he took off. You’re on Baldwin’s hit list from now on.”
“Yes,” she said dully.
He drew a deep breath. It was worse than he’d thought: her voice was totally apathetic. “I’ve sent the guards away.”
She didn’t answer.
“For God’s sake, say something,” he burst out. “What the hell is wrong with you? I feel like I’m talking to a statue.”
“I’m sorry. I’m very tired,” she said like a polite little girl. “I’d like to go to bed now.”
“Not now. We need to talk.”
“I’m very tired,” she repeated. “I’d like my sleeping pills, please.”
“The hell you would!”
“It’s all over. You said you’d sent the guards away. The pills are my property and I’d like them returned.”
“It’s not all over, and if you think I’ll let you take—”
She whirled to face him. He couldn’t see her face in the dimness of the room, but her body was as tense as an arched bow. “Give them to me. I need them, damn you!”
“All the more reason not to give them to you. It’s time you stopped hiding behind them, Lisa. It’s time you came out into the light and faced it.” He kept his voice hard with an effort. He could feel her pain and desperation radiating in waves across the room. “I’ll help you in any way I can, but we’ve got to come to grips with the problem first.” He moved to the bedside lamp and turned it on. For a moment he wished he hadn’t. So much pain, so much emptiness showed on her pale face. “Lisa, we have to talk about it. You can’t go on like this.”
Her eyes widened in sudden fear. “You don’t know what you’re saying. It’s none of your business what I do, anyway. Leave me alone, Clancy.”
“I can’t do that. Do you think I want to bully you like this?” His eyes met hers. “Tell me about Tommy, Lisa.”
“No!” She turned her back on him, staring out the window. “Get out, Clancy.”
“Your son, Tommy, was born one year after your marriage to Baldwin. According to your file, you and the boy were extraordinarily close. He died in an automobile accident three years ago. Baldwin was driving and received only a slight concussion.” Her spine was painfully rigid, as if he were flogging her and she had to tense to bear the blows. Lord, he was glad he couldn’t see her face now. “You came very close to a nervous breakdown. You were under a doctor’s care for six months, and then you resumed your career and concentrated all your energies on that area of your life.”
“You have all the facts down accurately,” she said, her voice brittle. “You don’t need me to tell you anything.”
“Yes, I do. I need you to tell me about Tommy. What did he look like? Was he blond like Baldwin?”
“No, he had brown hair, acorn brown. What difference does it make?”
“Brown eyes?”
“No, they were hazel.” Her voice was a mere whisper. “Please, don’t do this