The next morning, I joined Kassian at the kitchen table for breakfast. He was working on a couple of toaster waffles drenched in syrup. I had a pouch of Pop-Tarts on my plate. Still one more day before I had to take my resolutions seriously. “How are you doing?”

Kassian nodded as he swallowed. “Okay. I am doing okay.” He stared at me for a second, then returned to his waffles. If Dani were here, she’d have a fit—breakfast with two brilliant conversationalists.

“Well, that’s good.” I took a sip of my OJ. “What are you going to do today?”

Kassian shrugged and chewed.

“How about tonight? It’s New Year’s Eve. Got plans?”

Another shrug. I figured there was something going on at the Hebrew Home. Maybe he could join in the festivities, although he didn’t seem like the party animal type.

Kassian concentrated on his food. Cutting it precisely and chewing it thoroughly. Must be hard to have your only connection to the real world taken away from you so suddenly. “Listen, Kassian, I’d like to ask you some questions.”

One eyebrow shifted on his clean-cut face. He gave me a curt nod and put his knife and fork down. All ears.

“On that day. When my father died. I’m trying to piece together what happened.” My mouth was dry so I took a couple gulps of juice. “Can you tell me again what you did?”

“Of course. I woke up. Got dressed. Had something to eat. I do not remember what.” He shook his head apologetically, and I got the feeling that Kassian was exercising great patience, perhaps knowing how important this was to me. Like if I asked him to repeat his story fifty times, he would do so, each time as deliberately as the first.

“Go on.”

“I went back downstairs to use the bathroom. Then I left for the Home.” He stopped talking and kept his eyes on mine. Finished.

“From what door?”

“From my door. Of course.”

“And you locked it?”

“Yes. Always. Abe was the most trusting person I have known, but even he wanted the doors locked,” Kassian said.

“What time was that? About?”

“Lev always came over to play chess with Abe at around ten. So I was sure to be gone by 9:30. He is …” Kassian frowned and shook his head, but didn’t describe Lev any further. He didn’t have to.

“How did you find out what happened to my father?” I asked. The first time I’d asked Kassian, he’d been vague about some of the details.

“They told me at the Home.”

“Who told you?”

Kassian tilted his head upward and consulted the ceiling. After a moment, he leveled his eyes. “Miss Carol. She told me about your father’s accident. That he had fallen down the stairs and died.”

“Okay. Then what did you do?”

Kassian closed his eyes. “I do not feel well. I think I should lie down.” He opened his eyes. “I have told you what I know.”

I put kindness in my voice. “I talked with DeRon. He told me about your progress over the past six months.” I leaned forward and put my elbows on the table.

“Yes?” Something flashed across Kassian’s face. Pride, if I had to guess.

“Don’t let one mistake, one backslide, ruin all that,” I said. Kassian glanced away. When he looked back, a film of sadness covered his face.

“My father was a good judge of people. If he wanted to help you, that meant he saw something in you that moved him, something that told him you’re a good person. I know it’s difficult to talk about, but I need to know what happened. So I can begin to heal. You—of all people—know what I mean. Please, Kassian, return my father’s favor and help me out here.”

Kassian stared at me. Unblinking. Sizing me up. Was I as trustworthy as my father? After twenty seconds, he nodded, as if I’d passed muster. “What did you do after you heard about my father?”

“I walked to the liquor store, bought some vodka, and returned here. I had no other place to go.” His lip trembled.

“And you drank your vodka?”

“Yes. I drank. I am not proud of that. But it is what I did.” He bowed his head. “And one very small part of me is glad Abe is not here so he would not have seen me do this.”

“You’re only human. You had a big shock. It’s okay.”

“It is not okay. I did not have enough courage to even come up the stairs to look at the spot where he died. I am a weak person. Very weak.”

I leaned back in my chair. This version matched the earlier account Kassian had given me. Except for his topple from the wagon. But I could understand his reticence to open up about that. “Okay. Just a few more questions. Did you notice anything unusual during the week before it happened? Weird people hanging around? Did my father seem out of sorts?”

Kassian glanced at the ceiling again. “No. Just the usual.”

“And what’s that?”

“Abe seemed happy. Busy. He had visitors. Mostly people for business. But I am not always here. I walk a lot and go to programs at the Home. I do not know what happened when I was not here, of course.”

Of course. “Did you recognize any of the visitors?”

“No. When Abe had visitors, I stayed in my room.”

“Then how do you know they were people for business?” I asked.

Kassian’s eyes flitted around. No one would ever need a lie detector for this guy. “I assumed. Sometimes I would hear a car drive up and watch out the curtains. They looked like people for business. I do not know for sure, of course.”

Of course. “But nothing seemed out of the ordinary?”

“No. Nothing.”

Now for the $120,000 question. I focused on Kassian’s face. “Did you know that my father collected diamonds?” I asked.

His eyes dilated. “Diamonds?” Kassian said, almost unable to get the word out.

“Yes. Did he ever show them to you?”

“I do not remember,” he said.

My ass, he didn’t remember. I squinted at him, but decided I wasn’t going to get any useful information if he didn’t want to tell me. I wondered if Kassian had done more than merely see my father’s diamonds. Had he gotten his hands on them? “Well, if you remember something about diamonds, let me know, okay?”

“Yes, of course.”

Of course. One last avenue to explore. “Why don’t you and Lev get along?”

“I have nothing against Lev. He does not like me.”

“Why?”

“I do not know. Maybe he was jealous of my friendship with Abe.”

Finally, Kassian said something that made sense. “Why would he be jealous?”

“I do not know. Abe was a supporter of us,” Kassian said, pointing at himself.

“Us?”

“Russian Jews. I am a Russian Jew. Abe wanted to build a place especially for Russian Jews at the Home.”

“But why would Lev be jealous of that? He’s a Russian Jew too.”

Kassian fixed me with his eyes. “Yes, he is. But he does not wish for a new building to be built. I heard him and Abe arguing about it. On more than one occasion.”

“So why would Lev dislike you because of that?”

“I do not know. It is just a feeling I have that Lev does not like me and it has something to do with our heritage. You will have to ask him.” Kassian pressed his lips together.

My head hurt. Ever since my father’s death, I hadn’t gone more than six hours without getting a headache. But I think talking to Kassian, with his warped logic and nutty secrets, exacerbated my pain.

I excused myself to get some Motrin.