The hunt, p.44
The Hunt, page 44
“Gabe, if you really want to do some good, go to Philadelphia and be with your brother and sister. They need you more than Chris does. He’s in a very labile state. I don’t want him screaming at you.”
“I’m used to it.” Gabe sighed. “You’re probably right. We’ll just fight, and that’s not good for either one of us. I’ll go visit my siblings. I’m sure he hasn’t said much to them.”
“He hasn’t said anything to them beyond the call to Cindy. Juleen calls him, but he’s not answering.”
“Typical. I’ll go to Philadelphia. Tell my dad I’m ready whenever he wants to talk to me.”
“I will.”
“Thanks, Peter.”
“Gabe, I am so sorry. What can I do for you?”
“What Rina and you have always done for me. Be my support. Be a shoulder to cry on.” Gabe hung up.
Decker sighed. He went over and turned off the lights. In the dark, Rina said, “How’s he doing?”
“Gabe? He sounds thrashed, beyond the usual fatigue you get when traveling for long hours. I don’t think he’s processed anything yet.” Decker took in a breath and let it out. “Let me give the phone back to Donatti.”
“Where is he?”
“In his office. Hold on. Let me see if I can walk in the dark without killing myself.”
“Turn on the light.”
“No, I’m …” Decker reached the door and knocked. “It’s me. You want your phone back?”
From behind the door, Donatti told him no.
“What about your gun?”
A moment passed and then the door opened. Chris stared at him with an open palm. Decker retrieved the gun and gave it and the phone to him. Donatti put the gun in his holster. He said, “I’ll get you some bedding.”
“It’s not necessary—”
But Donatti was already out the door.
Rina said, “Are you okay?”
“Me?” Decker asked. “Sad for the kids and Gabe, but otherwise okay.” He paused. “How do we plan a funeral?”
“I can do it,” Rina told him. “I’ve done enough of them in my time.”
“They’ve all been Jewish.”
“I don’t suppose there’s that much difference.”
“She was Catholic. It’s usually open casket. And then there’s a wake.”
“I can do a wake,” Rina said. “But I’ll try to talk him out of open casket. It’s a horrible thing to do to the kids. To see their mother like that …”
“Unless he burns the bitch.”
“He’s just ranting because the alternative is too dark for him to face. Whatever he does, it’ll be solemn.”
Donatti came in later with bedding. He turned on the lights. “When are you two going back?”
“Peter wants to make sure that Talia’s properly charged.” No comment from him. Rina sat up and rubbed her eyes. “I think we’ll stay until after the funeral.”
Donatti dropped the bedding on the couch. “Suit yourself.” He headed toward his office. He stopped and turned to Rina. “You’ll take care of it for me?”
Rina said, “Of course I will, Chris.”
“Can you take care of Devek also? He wants to come. I think he wants to say his good-byes, but he also has to pick up the kids.”
“I’ll call him. Do you have his phone number?”
“I do.” Chris sighed. “He asked about cremation. It’s part of his culture. I told him it’s a possibility, but I don’t know yet. Terry’s Catholic. I’m Catholic. I don’t know if that would be respectful of her wishes.”
“What do you want?” Rina asked.
“I want to go to sleep and never wake up again.”
Decker said, “Maybe you should give me the gun back.”
Donatti said, “I have more than thirty pistols, semiautomatics, rifles, and shotguns in a safe in my bedroom. One Glock is not going to make a difference if I wanted to blow my brains out.” A pause. “I’ll see you in the morning. You want lights off?”
“Please,” Rina said. Once shrouded in darkness, she said, “I guess I’d better get to it tomorrow. I’ll start calling around to funeral homes.”
“What do you need from me?”
“I can do everything,” Rina said. “I’ll get the arrangements, get the flowers, make the calls to everyone including Devek, find a cemetery plot, and organize the entire affair. What you can do is take care of Chris. Make sure he doesn’t do anything dumb—at least until after the funeral.”
“I think I have the harder part,” Decker said.
Rina said, “I do not envy you at all.”
AFTER THE FUNERAL, after the speeches and the tears and the pomp, the crowd gathered for the wake, held in the lounge because so many people had shown up. Besides all the women and men who turned out for the boss, there was the Decker clan, who came in support of Gabe. Devek came to say his good-byes and to pick up his children. Terry’s half sister, Melissa, was there, as dazed and confused as the rest of the crowd. She was now thirty-five, and it was the first time she had ever met her niece, Juleen, and her nephew Sanjay.
Wakes were not the solemn shivas of Rina’s culture. Wakes were parties, celebrations of the lives of those who had passed. And Rina made sure that this was a grand one. She had ordered trays upon trays of foods from all cultures, she had stocked the bars with the best brands of spirits, and she had decorated the lounge with pictures of Terry from all parts of her life, from childhood to her recent wedding with Donatti. It included not only dozens of snapshots of Chris and her but also photographs of her with her children, even a few of her and Devek, at Chris’s behest. He wanted everyone who had been involved in her life to be represented.
As Rina observed the crowds, she saw that Chris was in his element. The popular kid. He was talking, smiling, eating, and drinking, probably more drink than what was wise. His employees gathered around him, never leaving him alone for a minute. They were his paid admirers, but they seemed genuinely concerned for their boss. Some of the women were even crying. Every so often, Chris would find Gabe and pull him to his side, looping his arm around his son’s shoulders and squeezing his neck. Then just as quickly, he’d drop his arm to his side, a sign that Gabe should beg off and return to the shelter of his fiancée and his foster family.
Rina kept a watchful eye, making sure that things ran smoothly. Gabe came up to her and introduced his aunt, Melissa. The woman had short blond hair and was stick thin. Devek came up to Rina, his children in tow, and introduced himself as Dr. Sharma. His height was around five eight, and he had dark skin, dark brown eyes, and straight black hair. His build was stocky. Terry had married two men whose physical appearances couldn’t have been any more opposite. The children looked stunned. The boy clutched his father’s hand, looking down at the floor and then at the crowds. Juleen seemed more remote—in her own world without a thought to her surroundings. Both of them were dry-eyed.
As the time crept on, women began to come up to Rina, thanking her for the wake. They had tears in their eyes. They had known Terry. She was great—funny, friendly, and not at all snobby. Most important, she was a good influence on the boss. She seemed to calm him down.
The hours dragged on and the hours raced by at the same time. That was how it was with funerals. Everything was crystal clear, but at the same time, everything was a blur. The wake kept going and going and going. The one good thing about the entire evening was that Rina got a chance to see the kids before she and Decker headed off to Israel for six months. Cindy and Koby were there but without the boys. Sammy and Hannah had also come without their respective families. Jacob had come with Ilana, who spent most of her time talking to Yasmine, trying to figure out what to do with the upcoming wedding now that Gabe’s mother was gone.
Things finally started to taper off around five, and by six in the evening, the immediate family had retired to Chris’s office. Donatti had chartered several planes to take everyone back: one bigger jet for the New Yorkers, and a separate one to take Cindy and Koby back to Philadelphia.
When it was time to say good-bye, Juleen cracked. She broke into sobs. She looked plaintively at Chris and said, “Why can’t I stay here?”
Devek bristled. “Juleen, don’t be ridiculous. You can’t stay at a place like this. Furthermore, you’re my daughter, not his.”
“I don’t want to go back to Mumbai. I don’t like it there.”
“Well, you have no choice.”
She looked at Gabe. “Why can’t I stay with you?”
Devek said, “Because you can’t!”
“She can stay with me,” Gabe insisted. “I’m her brother.”
“But I’m her father!” Devek was getting angry. “You’re going home, Juleen. No more nonsense.”
“Why can’t I stay with Chris?” Juleen said. “He’s my stepfather.”
“He doesn’t want you here!”
Donatti said, “Don’t tell her that!”
“Then you tell her!” Devek said.
“Don’t you dare mouth off to me,” Donatti shot back. “Not after what I’ve done for you. You owe me.”
“You did it for her,” Devek said.
“Of course I did it for her,” Donatti said. “But Sanjay and you benefited. Just mind your manners, or Sanjay and I are going to have a long talk one day about what his father did and didn’t do for him when he was taken for ransom.”
Devek turned quiet. Then he said, “Sorry, Chris.”
“It’s been a long day. S’right.” Donatti went over to Juleen and knelt down to her so they were eye level. “Your father is right. You can’t stay here, Juleen. You know that.”
“You’re my stepfather.”
“I am,” Chris told her. “But he’s your father. And you do what he says. You work hard, you study hard, you practice hard, and you can be anything you want to be. Make your mom proud, okay?”
“I don’t want to go to Mumbai,” she wailed. “I hate it there, Father. You’re never home. I don’t like Uncle Pramod. I don’t have Mommy to take care of me. I don’t want an ayah or a nanny. I want to stay here in the United States. That’s what Mommy wanted.”
“Well, Mommy’s not here,” Devek snapped back. “What’s wrong with Pramod?”
“He’s creepy!”
“Don’t talk that way!” Devek said. “Pramod has been very good to us.”
“I hate him. I don’t want to go back! I want to stay here.”
Devek lost his temper. “Juleen, no one here will take care of you.”
“I just said she can live with me!” Gabe said.
Devek turned to him. “And that’s okay with your girlfriend? That she tends to an eleven-year-old when you’re away on your tours all over the world?”
“I can do it,” Yasmine said. “It’s no problem.”
“Devek is right,” Donatti said. “Gabriel, you’re never home, and Yasmine is in medical school. How are you going to take care of her?”
Melissa said, “She can come live with me. I am her aunt.”
Gabe said, “I love you, Melissa, but your lifestyle isn’t child-centered.”
Melissa started to cry. “I can change.”
Gabe put his arms around his aunt. “Mom wouldn’t want you to change. She loved you just the way you are.”
“I’ll take her,” Cindy said. Then she looked at Devek. “I’m not trying to undermine your authority, Doctor, but I’m married to a physician. You boys do great work—and I’m sure you try your best—but physicians are busy people.” She turned to Koby. “True?”
“You’re busy as well,” Koby said. “But you are home more than I am.”
Cindy paused. “There are two of us, Devek. You’re only one man.”
“This is ridiculous,” Devek muttered. “She is my daughter, and you’re not her mother.”
“You’re right,” Cindy said. “I’m not her mother, I never will be her mother, but I am a stable female with children around the same age. And Gabe is part of my family, so she’s family as well. Even if it’s just for a few months, just until Juleen can absorb the enormity of what happened, I’m happy to help. You need to settle back into your own life, Devek. You need time to think. Why don’t you let Juleen stay with Koby and me for … maybe six months, and then you’ll reevaluate?”
“I’ll help out,” Gabe said.
“I know you will, but this takes the responsibility off your shoulders.” Cindy turned to Juleen. “I guess we should ask what you want.”
“I would like to stay with you, Cindy, if it’s no bother.”
“Bother?” Cindy laughed. “You and Sanjay are the quietest kids I’ve ever met. You did nothing but read, which is great. Could you rub some of that diligence off on my sons? And maybe they can rub some of their boisterousness off on you.”
With tear-stained cheeks, Juleen managed a small smile.
Sanjay said, “I want to go home with Father.”
Juleen said, “I know, Sanjay. And he wants you to go home with him. But I want to stay here.”
Devek was furious. “You don’t even know what it’s like to live here.”
“Maybe I don’t, Father, but let me try. I’m smarter than you think.”
“Smart isn’t the issue.” He shook his head. “Who’s going to pay for your support, Juleen?”
Donatti said, “I can do that.” He turned to Cindy. “Whatever she needs.”
“Thank you,” Cindy said.
“I didn’t agree to anything,” Devek said.
“Yeah, but you will,” Donatti retorted. “I’m not a great father, Dev, but neither are you. We’re very different. But we’re men and in one way we’re similar. If I’d been a better husband, Terry would have never left me. And ditto for you. If Juleen wants to stay here in the United States, let her do it. Don’t fight her. She’ll resent you for the rest of your life.”
Devek said, “Like you know so much about human nature.”
Donatti sighed. “Obviously I don’t, or Terry would still be alive.”
Devek said nothing.
Juleen walked over and took her father’s hands in hers. She talked through tears. “Please, Father. I will write every day. I will call you every day. I will work hard, and I will make you proud of me. Please, can I stay here for a while? I promise I’ll be good.”
“You don’t have to promise to be good.” Devek’s eyes filled with tears. “You are good. You are actually too good.” He wiped his eyes. “To stay here. Is this what you really, really want?”
“Yes, it is, Father.” Tears falling from her eyes. “Please?”
Devek threw up his hands. He waved her off and looked away. The girl went over to Cindy and Koby. “I promise I won’t be a bother.”
Cindy mussed up her hair. “We’ve already had this conversation.”
“The cars just arrived to take everyone to the airstrip.” Donatti surveyed the crowd. “I’m going into my office and I don’t want to be disturbed. So please leave. All of you.”
Gabe said, “I’m staying, Dad.”
Donatti walked over to his son and placed his hands on Gabe’s shoulders. “Go back with Yasmine. You belong with your fiancée. That’s what I want.”
“I’m not leaving you alone,” Gabe said.
“He won’t be alone,” Decker said. “I’m staying for at least another day. The police need further statements, and I want to be sure that it’s all done correctly.”
“There you go,” Donatti said. “The old man will be with me. He’s been dogging my ass for the last twenty-six years. Why should he stop now?”
Gabe’s eyes filled with tears. “I could have been nicer to her, you know.”
“You forgave her long before I did. She loved you very much.”
“I don’t want to leave you alone, Dad.”
Donatti hugged him. “I loved your mother, but I lived eleven years without her. I was fine then. I’ll be fine now. Go home. We both need a little quiet right now. We’ll talk later in the week, okay?”
Reluctantly, Gabe nodded. “Okay.”
Donatti tapped his son’s cheek. He turned to Yasmine. “Take care of him. Without you women, we men would wind up eating each other.”
“I’ll look after him,” she said. “God knows he’s looked after me.” She kissed Donatti’s cheek. “Thank you, Chris.”
Donatti opened the door to the office and sally port. It took around ten minutes of tearful good-byes, but he finally managed to get everyone into the cars and off to the airstrip. After the limos had left, he led Decker back into his office. He stood against the wall and looked up at the ceiling. “I’m the walking dead.”
“Go sleep,” Decker said. “I’m fine.”
“I forgot to thank Rina,” Donatti said. “She did a terrific job. If she ever wants a job as my assistant—”
“Over my dead body,” Decker said.
“That just might happen sooner than you think.”
“I’ll watch my back,” Decker said.
Donatti blew out air. He felt like an old man. He said, “Wait here for a minute.” He disappeared into his office.
“Where would I go?” Decker said out loud.
No answer. A moment later, Donatti reappeared with an envelope. “This came today … before the funeral. I couldn’t deal with it.” He handed it to Decker. “Let me know what it says.”
Decker looked at the envelope.
It was from a DNA lab.
It had been three days since Terry had passed. Enough time to do a comprehensive paternity test even on a fetus. He slit open the flap with his finger. He skimmed the results and gave the letter back to Donatti.
Chris took the letter with shaking hands. He read the report. If he had had any doubts, they were now torn to shreds. Which only made him feel worse. Anger was easier than heartache. The fetus had been nine weeks of age. He thought backward. Right around the time they first had sex. Did it happen with the quickie in the shower? Was it when he raped her? Maybe it was later on, when she came to him that night, while he was working, to thank him for his help and they made love for real. Sweet, sweet love. He decided that was the time. When they had joined as one in total harmony and bliss. He reread the contents. “It was a girl.” A pause. “Why didn’t this happen years ago? Why now?” A shake of the head. “God is one sick bastard.”
