Found Money - James Grippando [80]
It was a worn-out refrain, repeated like a mantra throughout their conversation. Ryan couldn’t give her any details. She wouldn’t allow it, threatened to hang up. It was as if she had fulfilled her promise to Frank by telling Ryan about the safe deposit box, and now she was done with it. It had been Ryan’s decision to open the box. Now he had to deal with the consequences. Not her.
“Mom, at least let me say this much. It’s possible the FBI will contact you.”
“Oh, my God.”
“Don’t get nervous. I said it’s possible, not definite. Yesterday, Norm notified the assistant U.S. attorney that he is the legal counsel for the entire Duffy family. They shouldn’t contact any of us directly now that we have a lawyer.”
“What do I say if they do call me?”
“Tell them they should call me or Norman Klusmire. Period. Don’t try to be polite and helpful. You need to be firm on this.”
“All right.”
“Sarah needs to hear this, too. I’ve been trying to call her since late last night. Nobody answers at her house. Is she okay?”
“As far as I know, yes. She’s okay.”
“If you see her, tell her exactly what I told you. And have her call me as soon as possible. I’ll be at Norm’s house or at his office the rest of the day. We need to talk about Brent.”
“Brent came back yesterday.”
“So you heard what he did in Denver?”
“Uh—when are you coming home, Ryan?”
He paused. She obviously didn’t want to talk about Brent. She didn’t seem to want to talk about anything. “Maybe tomorrow. I have a few things to take care of here in the city.”
“What are you doing about the clinic, son?”
“Don’t worry about that. I’m referring my patients to Dr. Weber in Lamar.”
“Oh, he’s a fine doctor. And his receptionist is just lovely. Sweet and very pretty. Maybe you can give her a call once you and Liz are legally—”
“Mom,” he groaned. His mother seemed to focus on the goofiest things in times of crisis. “Goodbye, Mom. I love you. Just remember, none of us has anything to be ashamed of. We’ve done nothing wrong.”
“Yes,” she said in a voice that quaked. “I’ll try and remember that.”
Sarah waited for the click on the other end of the line, then hung up the phone. She’d heard it all, without Ryan’s knowledge.
Yesterday’s attempt to confront Brent about the attack had proved disastrous. She’d spent the night at Mom’s, giving her hotheaded husband some time to cool off. She and her mother had spent most of the night talking about Ryan. Sarah was suspicious. Partly it was because of things Brent had said, but not entirely. It seemed Ryan was keeping her in the dark, maybe for his own purposes. Jeanette had let her eavesdrop on this morning’s phone call to ease her concerns.
Her slippers shuffled along the floor as she moved from the living room to the kitchen. She stopped in the doorway and glared at her mother. She was accusatory, not quizzical. “Why didn’t you let him talk?”
Jeanette sipped her coffee, then grimaced. It was cold. “What do you mean?”
“You wouldn’t let him tell you what he found out.”
“I didn’t want to know.”
“Well, I want to know.”
“I’m sure he’ll tell you.”
Sarah groaned, exasperated. “That was the whole point of letting me listen in on the phone call, Mom. To see if he would tell you things he wouldn’t tell me.”
Jeanette refilled her coffee cup and returned to her chair. “I’m sorry. I’m not going to get involved in this just to eliminate your crazy suspicions about your own brother.”
“It’s not crazy.” Her eyes narrowed. “Are you with him on this?”
She stopped in mid-sip. “What?”
“Neither one of you wants me to know what’s going on.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“You two are together on this. As soon as I walk out that door, you’ll call him right back and get all the information. You’re leaving me out of the loop.”
“Sarah, get hold of yourself. This is your family you’re talking about.”
“Mom, I was on the phone. I heard, okay? All he had to do was mention Brent’s name and you start talking about some silly receptionist in Lamar. Is that the problem? You’re afraid of Brent? Or do you not trust me, either?”
“Of course I trust you, Sarah. And your