Found Money - James Grippando [108]
“What are you telling me, Nathan?”
He glanced her way, then back at the road. “Mr. Kozelka was very concerned that Duffy would take that cocktail glass to the FBI and implicate you. He was even more concerned that you might turn around and drop the name Kozelka. Now, there were two ways for me to make sure that didn’t happen. One was to make it impossible for Duffy to meet with the FBI. The other…well, I think you understand the other.”
She glanced nervously at his hands on the steering wheel, as if suddenly aware of how huge they were. “Under the circumstances, I wish the frame-up were a little tighter.”
“It should work in the short run. Even with your botched break-in, I can’t see Duffy running to the FBI before he and his lawyer have a chance to sort this out.”
“Then what?”
“Then we reevaluate.”
She managed a weak, awkward smile. “Sure hope this works.”
“Yes,” he said coldly. “I know you do.”
Ryan’s first call was to his mother. She was still at the McClennys’, where he had told her to stay until he returned from Denver. The rain continued to fall as he filled her in on everything from the courtroom disaster to the threatening phone call. By the time he’d finished, he was barely aware that he was completely rain-soaked.
She seemed shocked by the news of Brent’s death, though not exactly saddened. That pioneer spirit that had been missing since the death of her husband was suddenly back. She was circling the proverbial wagons.
“Are you sure he’s dead?”
“I haven’t seen the body, if that’s what you mean.”
“Then how do you know that man wasn’t bluffing?”
“He wouldn’t break into the house and steal Dad’s gun just to bluff. I can drive down Two-eighty-seven and take a look for myself, if that’s what you want.”
“No, don’t do that.”
Her tone alarmed him. “Why not?”
“Because the police could be there already. I don’t think you should talk to them.”
“Why not?”
“Because you have to think this through first. What are you going to tell them?”
“I was going to tell them I think I’m being framed for a murder I didn’t commit. That way, I’ll just beat Kozelka’s thug to the punch.”
“Please, don’t do that.”
“Why not, Mom?”
“Because if you tell the police you’re being framed, you’ll have to tell them why you’re being framed.”
“I think it’s about time we just came clean on this.”
“No.”
Ryan cringed. “What do you mean, no?”
“It’s not totally your call anymore, Ryan. I have a say in this.”
“What are we arguing about, Mom? I’m being framed for murder.”
“Not yet. They’ve only threatened to frame you. The only way you will be framed is if you tell the FBI what your father did. If you keep your mouth shut, Brent’s just another unsolved murder.”
His mouth opened, but words didn’t come. He couldn’t believe what his own mother was saying. “Mom, somebody was murdered here.”
“Not somebody. Brent. I’m sorry, but I’m not shedding any tears over a human slug who took a fist to my own daughter. Brent’s dead. You can’t change that by telling the police you’re being framed. And you can’t tell the police you’re being framed without ruining your father’s good name and reputation. None of that can bring Brent back, even if we wanted him back.”
“Mom, I’ve already done more than I should to keep this blackmail a secret.”
“Damn it. It’s not the blackmail I’m worried about. It’s the rape. I can’t have everyone in Prowers County thinking I was married forty-six years to a rapist!”
Ryan froze. “I thought you didn’t know about the rape. You told me you didn’t know what was in that safe deposit box in Panama. You said you didn’t want to know.”
Her voice was shaking, but she was no longer shouting. “Of course I knew.”
“Why did you lie to me before I went down to Panama?”
“I’m sorry.”
“Why didn’t you tell me what you knew?”
“Ryan, please.”
“No,” he said sharply. “You knew. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I was afraid,” she said softly.
“Afraid of what?”
“Afraid that you would never understand how I could forgive him. Please, Ryan. Let’s not do it this way. Your sister’s husband has just been murdered. She shouldn