43
Back at the house, Audrey, just back from her convention, joined them for the evening. Rick insisted on telling her the details about Shelly, and for that, Dakota was glad. He watched his sister carefully, but she showed no signs of mistrusting Rick, only support and puzzlement.
Around eleven, Jade’s almost nightly moaning and groaning started up, and to Dakota’s disappointment, Rick wouldn’t stay for the show, but took them out on the front porch to talk. Rick kept looking out toward the oak tree, trying hard to hide his nervousness.
“I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t heard it myself,” Dakota said. “Maybe she really does have something to do with Shelly’s scare, Piper. She’s a nympho. A psycho nympho. Hey,” he added suddenly, “when you shut off all those secret passages, did you do the ones in her rooms too?”
“No, I didn’t, but I guess I should. I’ll get Carmen to take her somewhere, and do it.” He frowned. “But even if she did have something to do with it, how’d she manage to look like me?”
“I don’t know, I just think she might be involved. She’s jealous as hell of Shelly, isn’t she? She picks on her.”
“She picks on everyone.”
“Rick,” Audrey said. “Duane—I mean Dakota—has a point.” She glanced toward the old oak. “Look at those leaves blow. At this rate, the trees will be bare in no time.”
“Naked trees,” Dakota purred. “How totally kinky. Piper, are there any jack-offs there?”
“Yes,” he said slowly. “Lots of them.”
“I wish I could see them,” Dakota said softly.
Rick looked at him in amazement. “You really mean that, don’t you?”
“Yes” He sniffed. “I feel deprived.”
“Me, too,” Audrey said. Rick shook his head. “I can’t believe what I’m hearing.”
“Where’s Quint?” Dakota suddenly asked. “You said he can see them, too?”
Rick nodded. “Come on inside.”
Jade’s orgasms were over, thank God. They were hilarious on one hand, Dakota had decided, but horrifying on the other.
“I’ll be right back.” Rick left them in the living room and headed up the stairs. When he returned a few minutes later, he held his cat—wearing a leash and collar—in his arms. “Quint’s been staying at Carmen’s since the poodle incident, but she and Hector were going out tonight, so I brought him back early and locked him in my room.”
He carried the cat to the covered picture window. “Quint can see them,” he explained. Gently but firmly, he gripped the loose skin at the cat’s neck with one hand and trapped his body against him, holding the back legs loosely with the other. The cat faced the stairwell.
Rick smiled grimly. “He doesn’t like them at all. Open the drapes, please, Audrey.”
She did.
“Now, watch the cat,” Rick ordered, turning the feline to face the window.
Quint’s eyes grew huge, then his ears went flat back and the fur ridged up on his back. Dakota shivered; the cat was scared shitless. A low growl started in its throat, rose to a shriek, and suddenly the animal exploded in Rick’s arms, kicking and hissing and biting. One front leg shot free, and claws raked across Rick’s cheek. He let go of the cat, and it flopped on the floor in its panic, righted itself, and raced up the stairs, dragging its leash as it disappeared in the direction of Rick’s room.
Rick gingerly patted his cheek. “A lot of good the leash did. Do you believe me now?”
“That was incredible,” Audrey said.
“Jesus Christ,” Dakota breathed. “I’ve got goose bumps on my balls.”
“Please answer my question,” Rick said, even more softly.
“I believe you, Piper.”
The color had drained from Audrey’s face. “Me too. Rick? Your cheek’s bleeding—”
“It’s okay,” he interrupted. “Excuse me. I have to take care of the cat. I’ll be right back.” He turned and went up the stairs.
Dakota looked at Audrey. “I don’t know what the fuck is going on here.”
“Me either. You want to come back to my place tonight? You can have the couch.”
“No. I promised Cody I’d bunk with him. Besides, I want to keep an eye on things. Until we have an explanation, you know.”
Her eyes were sad. “He didn’t do what Shelly says he did. He’s not capable of it. He’s the most gentle man in the world.”
“He said he almost killed his brother once.”
“Almost. He also said he realized what he was doing and stopped.”
“Audrey, be careful. I don’t want to think he did it, and my instincts don’t believe it, but I’m afraid that could be because he’s not stable . . .”
She opened her mouth, but he shushed her.
“I think that if he is responsible, he isn’t responsible, you know what I mean?”
She shook her head no.
“If he did do it, I don’t think he knows he did it. Maybe he’s got a split personality or something. All that brother stuff.”
Audrey looked stricken. “I don’t believe it.”
“Then let’s find proof.”
Audrey nodded. “If you’re wondering if Robin existed, I can tell you that he did. Rick showed me some photos taken before their parents died. And Carmen talked about him too. He was horrible. He died in a fire. Carmen has the newspaper clipping. I saw it.”
“Christ, I’m glad to hear that. Audrey, I don’t think he did anything. I’m just playing devil’s advocate.”
“I know, Duane. You’re good at that.”
“Besides, you’re my sister. What kind of brother would I be if I didn’t worry about you?”
Audrey stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “I know, and I appreciate you very much.”
“Boy, was that cat pissed,” Rick said as he came back into the room. “Supremely pissed.” He had washed the claw marks, and they stood out blatantly against his pale skin. “But I think he’s okay now.”
“Good. We won’t put him through that again.” Audrey glanced out the window. “I’m exhausted. I’m going home to bed. Will you fellas see me out?”
They walked her to her car and watched until she was out on the street. Dakota shivered, watching the leaves in the grass. “You know, Piper, it’s scary knowing those jack-offs are there and not being able to see them.”
“In this case, what you can’t see won’t hurt you,” Rick said dryly. “Believe me, if I could trade you eyes, I would.”
“Let’s go in.”
“Yeah.” They went inside, and Rick locked the door, then pulled the drapes closed. “Tomorrow night is the dangerous night, Dakota. Halloween.”
“Shelly’s going to a party?”
“The overnight,” Rick said. “I hope to hell we know what happened before then, but either way, she won’t be here.”
“What about Cody?”
“Audrey and I were planning on taking Cody trick-or-treating, very early. Do you want to come?”
“Yes.” He grinned. “I brought a costume. I love dressing up for Halloween.”
“You just love dressing up.”
Dakota gave him a shit-eating grin. “Do you have any lines on parties?”
“No. We’re coming back before full dark and staying in, where it’s safe.” He hesitated. “We’re planning on watching for Big Jack.” He hesitated, obviously trying to make light of something that was deadly serious to him. “If we both see him, we’ll know I’m not a raving lunatic.”
“It’s Big Jack night. If I stick around, do I get to see him, too?”
“I hope so. I’d like you both to see him. That would make me feel . . . less weird.” Yawning, he checked his watch. “Let’s get some sleep.”
A few minutes later, Dakota entered the upstairs bathroom to brush his teeth, then stripped to shorts and T-shirt before quietly letting himself into Cody’s room. The boy was fast asleep on the race-car bed by the window. Dakota eased his six-foot-four-inch frame onto the old twin bed near the door. His legs hung over the end, and he knew this wasn’t going to be much fun.
He lay quietly on the bed, unable to sleep, his brain going a hundred miles an hour, asking himself questions he had no answers for. As he was about to give up and go take a sleeping pill, he heard a scratching noise emanating from somewhere near the closets. “Cody, Cody!” whispered a voice.
Across the room, the boy sat up.
“Cody!” the voice whispered again.
“Hi, Bob,” the little boy said.
“Cody, Cody, let’s hit the roady!”
The boy giggled, then shoved his hand over his mouth, looking toward Dakota, who studiously feigned sleep. Quietly, Cody got out of bed and approached the closet. As he opened the door and stepped in, Dakota could hear him giggling. There was a funny sliding sound and the giggling grew faint, then disappeared altogether.
Rising, Dakota turned on the overhead light and crossed to the closet as quietly as he could.
He looked inside.
Cody wasn’t there.
A half dozen nails, some slightly bent, were scattered on the floor. He saw empty nail holes around a two-and-a-half-foot square on the wall.
“Shit.” With a whole new load of goose bumps rising on his balls, Dakota went to tell Rick.