Curtis stirred when the door to the room opened. He blinked a few times as his sight cleared and the remnants of his dream drifted away, reality returning one beep of the heart monitor at a time.
‘You look pretty comfy there,’ the nurse said, as she went over to the window to open the curtains before going to the bed.
Curtis couldn’t be sure if her words were sarcastic or not. Comfy? He’d hardly call spending the night crammed into the hard armchair comfy.
‘You know, I think he likes it when you spend time with him,’ the nurse said, as she made whatever checks she needed to. ‘He always seems so much brighter.’
An unusual way to describe the condition of a man in a coma, but still he hoped she was right.
‘Haven’t seen you spend the night with him for a while, though.’
‘No. I’ve been very busy.’
She turned to him and smiled. ‘Yes. I’ve been reading all about that.’
She finished by messing with the sheets before turning back to Curtis again.
‘Can I get you anything?’ she asked with a smile.
‘No,’ Curtis said, checking his watch. ‘Busy day ahead.’
‘I bet.’
And with that she headed on out.
Curtis followed not long after, pausing in the doorway a moment to look back over to the bed.
‘See you soon, brother.’
* * *
The removal van was already there when he arrived. He said hello to the trio of men as he made his way up the drive. He didn’t make it inside before Rachel came out, large box in hand.
‘Curtis? You’re here.’ She carried on to the car and put the box inside while he waited, feeling a bit useless, his mind still dwelling on the night in the hospital and the day ahead.
‘Everything OK?’ he asked.
‘It’s all fine here,’ she said, coming up to him. ‘I told you it would be. You should be at court.’
‘I will be. I just wanted to—’
‘Honestly, Curtis, I’ve got this. But… Wait just a minute.’
She darted off inside, leaving him standing like a bit of a chump as he watched the men coming out one after the other, carrying with them parts of his life that would now never return.
‘I found this right at the back of the closet,’ Rachel said, coming back outside with a photo frame in hand. She passed it to him. The picture of him and Finn and their parents. The one he’d tried to give to his brother all those years ago. That memory of clearing out the family home resurfaced once more as it had so often since then.
Was it karma or simple fate to be in this position once again?
‘Thanks,’ he said.
‘I’ve never even seen that one before.’
‘No,’ he said. ‘I forgot I had it, to be honest.’
They were silent as he stared at the photo, and when he looked back up to Rachel she had a look of concern in her eyes.
‘You look tired,’ she said.
‘Bad night.’
‘It’ll soon be over, though, won’t it?’
‘Maybe.’
Perhaps it never would be, really.
‘You’ve been pretty cagey with me, but I’ve been reading everything in the papers…’
Curtis scoffed. ‘You need to be really careful about that.’
‘What I was going to say was… I’m proud of you, Curtis.’
He felt an ache in his chest, but willed it to go away. It did.
‘Everyone’s saying what a hero your brother is for exposing this, but… it’s your hard work that’s got it all so far since.’
‘Thanks.’
‘Seriously. I never met Finn, but I think you two are probably a lot more alike than you think.’
She reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. He put his hand on top of hers, and for a moment he could have been several years back in time with her.
‘I’m sorry I couldn’t be the husband you wanted,’ he said. ‘The one you needed.’
‘I think you could have been if you’d wanted that.’ She took her hand away. ‘I better get back to it.’
‘Yeah.’
‘Good luck.’
‘You too.’
She turned and headed away.
* * *
He picked Alyssia up outside her apartment for the short drive to the court.
‘All good?’ she asked.
‘I guess.’
‘You didn’t make it home last night?’
Home? He didn’t really have a home yet.
When he didn’t answer, she looked dubious.
‘You went to the house this morning?’ she asked.
‘Very briefly.’
‘I said you shouldn’t bother.’
‘I know. I just… I needed to say goodbye.’
‘To Rachel?’
‘To all of it.’
They drove on in silence for a few moments, though he knew she was staring at him.
‘But you haven’t really left it all behind at all, have you?’
He caught her eye. She looked disappointed with him.
‘I have,’ he said. ‘Trust me. But… It was more something Rachel said to me. I can’t stop thinking about it.’
‘What? Sorry for fucking around? Was that it?’
He shot her a look. She didn’t apologize, but then he didn’t really expect her to.
‘No. She said perhaps I’m more like Finn than I realize.’
‘And that surprised you? I think she’s probably right.’
‘Finn was little more than a conman who for years blackmailed people for his own gain.’
‘He’s a hero according to most people.’
‘He got jealous because he thought Mariana was cheating on him, so he set off on a revenge mission, which ended up with Mariana dead and—’
‘And what about you and Rachel?’
‘What?’
‘The way you told me you felt about her and Russ, which kind of spurred on a lot of your actions.’
‘But I was wrong, it wasn’t Russ that she was—’
‘That’s not the point.’
‘Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t.’
‘What is the point is that both you and Finn have this knack for… problem solving, might be a good way to put it. Look at what Finn actually did, in uncovering all of Victor’s corruption. Look at what you did, in tracking your brother down, and since then, in helping put together this case. And not to mention all the danger, the physical scrapes you’ve pulled yourself through. Me too.’
Curtis thought for a few moments.
‘That night… when I looked into his eyes, thinking he was dead…’
Right up until the point the body bag lay next to him, before the paramedic shouted out that Finn still had a pulse.
‘I can’t even describe what went through my mind.’
‘You don’t have to. He’s your brother and—’
‘My brother, who you very nearly shot.’
He somehow found a smile at that.
‘And part of me really wanted to,’ Alyssia said. ‘Because I knew someone had to pay for what happened to Mariana. But not Finn. I know that now. The man who needs to pay is—’
‘Victor Travers.’
‘And he will. Because of you. The real hero here.’
Curtis parked up and they walked the short distance to the court. The press crews came into view when they turned the final corner and Curtis sighed. He’d become tired of this routine now. The constant harassment. Not just outside court, but in the earlier days outside the hospital, outside his home. Yet he’d never spoken to the press directly about the case, his experiences. He certainly wouldn’t today.
‘Mr Delaney, do you have anything to say about today’s expected verdict?’
‘What message do you have for Victor Travers?’
‘If Travers is acquitted, will you appeal?’
‘Is your brother going to wake up?’
‘Is it true your marriage has ended?’
‘Were you having an affair?’
‘Is it true Senator Charlton is planning a memoir about the Capitol attack?’
Curtis cringed at that. He didn’t know whether it was true or not. He did know that since the real story of what had happened in D.C. – and what had led to it – had come into the public domain, Charlton and his PR team had expertly turned the story around to show him in the best possible light. Even though he’d never really done anything to help either before or after that initial attack, only ever looked to protect himself and his career.
‘Mr Delaney! Please! Just a few words.’
But he ignored them all, finally breaking through the crowd and into the foyer of the courthouse. He and Alyssia proceeded through the security checks before they made their way to outside the courtroom where several people already waited, Jenna McLory – the District Attorney – among them. She was a good friend of Rachel’s.
‘You’re here,’ she said, coming up and shaking Curtis’s hand. ‘I was getting worried.’
‘You needn’t be. You’ve got this now.’
‘I really think so,’ she said with a smile.
Curtis heard a clamor outside and not long after, along the corridor, Victor Travers and his team of hotshot lawyers came into view. Travers, as ever, looked weary and withered, stooping as he hobbled, the ever-present cane in his hand. Curtis still wasn’t sure if it was all a show for pity, or if he really was the shell of a man who’d been dragged bleeding out of that warehouse. Whose life had crumbled down around him since.
Not that Curtis felt an ounce of pity.
Victor raised his head slightly, and his eye caught Curtis’s for a fleeting moment…
Nothing on Victor’s face. No emotion at all.
He disappeared into the courtroom.
‘You OK?’ Alyssia asked.
‘I will be.’
‘OK,’ Jenna said. ‘This is it. See you on the other side.’
She headed on in.
‘Time to finish this story,’ Alyssia said.
Finish? Maybe. Although even if they got the conviction today, there would be appeals, and there remained several civil lawsuits against Victor, trying to claw back money from defrauded investors. Lawsuits that Curtis was doing everything he could to spearhead.
And he wouldn’t stop until he’d done everything he could to finish the work his brother had started. He’d destroy Victor Travers, one way or another.
Would Finn ever see the end result?
He really hoped so.
He opened the door and held it for Alyssia.
‘For Mariana,’ he said to her.
‘For Mariana.’
She smiled as they both stepped inside.