Maura McCune clasped her hands together on the little desk across from the glass. It was déjà vu as Drayco observed her in his second meeting at the detention center, with one exception—this time, Benny Baskin sat next to him. Since Benny’s prior solo visit with Maura had proved frustrating, or as Benny put it, “like talking to Mt. Everest,” he’d decided to let Drayco take the lead.
Drayco studied Maura, his gaze falling to the scar on her neck. He hadn’t paid that much attention to it on their first meeting. It was definitely an old scar, almost a W-shape, like one left over from a burn ... or maybe a hot poker. She caught him looking at it and tried to pull the top of her orange jumpsuit up to cover it, but it was hardly adequate for that.
After he stared at her for a few more moments without saying anything, she finally blurted out, “As jails go, it’s a pretty decent one. There’s even a library. I’m reading that new thriller by Simon D’Avanzo.”
“And how many jails have you been in?”
She just bit her lip, then shook her head.
“I’m not sure what I should call you. A gypsy? A nomad? Or is con woman more accurate?”
Her pale skin turned a mottled crimson. “I cannae expect you to understand, Scotty. I couldn’t tell you the troth, could I? To know the kind of person I was.” Until now, her accent was a mere shadow of its former self. But the more agitated she got, the more it spilled out.
“You abandoned us when Casey and I were five years old. You don’t want to know what I think of you.”
She clasped her hands tighter, the knuckles turning white as Drayco continued, unable to keep the words from pouring out. “When Casey lay dying in the hospital with me and Brock by her side, she cried out for her Mommy. Did you know that?”
Maura turned her head away. She cleared her throat and released one of her hands long enough to dab at her eyes before turning her attention back to him. Her voice was so soft, it was almost a whisper. But this time, she spoke each word slowly, sounding more like she had on his first visit. “I can’t change the past. Only the present.”
Despite his promise to stay silent, Benny piped up, “You can start by telling us your relationship to Jerold Zamorra.”
“We found out we were in the same line of work and hooked up as partners. Turns out, it was a bad idea on my part. I’ve trusted few people in my life and here I’d trusted Jerold, and he was going to double-cross me.”
Drayco asked, “With someone else, a new partner?”
She nodded. “I don’t know who.”
“That’s why you called him and arranged the meeting right before he was murdered?”
“Aye. And when I found him lying there, dead, I was furious. He’d betrayed my trust, and now he’d robbed me of my chance to get back at him and his new partner.”
Drayco leaned back in his chair. “I asked you before if you and Jerold were lovers. You didn’t answer.”
“We weren’t lovers like you think. It was just one time. And no, this wasn’t a lover’s tiff.”
“Do you even know anything about love? Why did you marry Brock?”
She smiled a sad little smile and avoided answering the question.
Benny shot him a “stick to the case, you idiot” look. Drayco gritted his teeth and pressed on, “Describe this work partnership, this scheme of yours and Jerold’s.”
She clenched her jaw. “It doesn’t matter now.”
“Of course it matters now. It can help prove or disprove your case. Is it that you don’t trust me, either? You’re afraid I’ll use the information against you?”
A sigh escaped her lips. “Ah, Scotty. Please don’t ask me that.”
“Why shouldn’t I? Don’t you owe me that, at the very least?”
“I can’t. Don’t you see? I don’t want to exchange a sentence for a murder I didn’t commit for a sentence for something else.”
“You’re all but admitting you have done something illegal. Look, if you don’t help us on the murder charge, nothing else will matter. You’ll be put away for life.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Tell me how we’re supposed to help you?”
“Find the person who did this.”
Drayco counted to three and took a couple of deep breaths. “It will be a lot easier if you’ll help me. For instance, Ashley and Edwin Zamorra, Jerold’s daughter and brother. Did you meet either one of them?”
“I saw Edwin once, from a distance. Ashley, no.”
“Did Edwin or Ashley know of your partnership with Jerold?”
“I don’t think so. He didn’t say.”
“How long were you partners with Jerold?”
“About six months.”
“Did he ever mention his deceased wife, Ophelia?”
“I’m sorry, Scotty. We didn’t talk about much other than our plans. Even when we made love that one time, I didn’t feel like he was there. Like his mind was on other things. Things he chose not to share.”
Drayco almost said takes one to know one. He tried to read her body language but wasn’t sure if he was seeing her as she was now or how she was three decades ago. “You’ve been in the area two years. What have you been doing all this time?”
“Making a living. Trying to stay busy.”
“Does that living have something to do with Tarot cards?”
Her eyes widened, and she paused before answering. “You and I used to play cards when you were little. Do you remember? But you always beat me. You had such a remarkable memory, even as a lad. Always knew what everyone else had drawn or discarded and could guess what was left in the deck.”
He remembered. Even then, he’d suspected she cheated a little. “I could use your various ID cards as a deck, there are so many. Want to tell me about them?”
“The police haven’t asked me about those.” She blinked at him then smiled as the light bulb went off. She knew he’d been to her apartment, but the PD hadn’t—and Drayco hadn’t told them. “It’s just a game, Scotty. That’s all.”
“Like Guess-Who-You?”
“Exactly.” Her smile grew wider.
He’d have to explain to Benny later about Guess-Who-You, the role-playing game he and his mother had made up, where each had to pretend to be someone else while the other guessed their identity. But at least, he and Maura seemed to be connecting a little again. “It seems fraternal twins run in the family. Casey and me, you and Alistair. I’ve been talking to Iago Pryce and—”
Her demeanor changed immediately. “On second thought, I’ve said everything I have to say. You don’t need to help me any further. Consider yourself off the case, both you and Mr. Baskin. You can just leave me alone from here. Besides, I stopped caring about you or anyone else long ago.”
She pressed a button to signal for the warden to come and take her to her cell, leaving Drayco to stare at her now-vacant seat. The warden returned a few minutes later and motioned for Drayco and Baskin to be escorted back to the front desk. Turning his head to look at the impassive face of the warden, Drayco hauled himself up and picked his way out of the building, with Baskin following closely behind.
“What was that all about?” In addition to sounding like a bull terrier, Benny even looked like one with his hands on his hips and his stocky legs splayed out to either side. “You think it’s related to this shady Brisbane guy you told me about?”
“Not sure, but I aim to find out. And Maura’s still your client until I tell you otherwise.”
“Sure, sure, boy-o. You Draycos are such fun to work with.”
Drayco scowled in reply. No one wanted him on this case, not even his mother. That should be a sign, right? He wasn’t superstitious and certainly didn’t believe in divination, but he had a sudden compulsion to pay a visit to a cemetery.