sight of my father again, so I went and grabbed a thick sweatshirt from a hook on the wall and one of the white disposable gowns to put over my clothes.
“You need any help?”
“Why, do you have something you need to smuggle out through her body?”
“I suppose I deserve that.”
“And much more. Jack knows you’re in town.”
“He’s got his own problems to worry about. I don’t think he’s going to have time to actively search for me.”
My head snapped up. “You don’t have anything to do with the deaths of Jack’s men, do you? Please tell me you don’t have any part in that.”
“It’s not me. I could probably dig around some and help find the source.”
I snorted out a laugh before I could help it. “Yeah, I’m sure that would go over well. Not to mention I’m sure you never do anything that doesn’t further your own agenda.”
“That’s not true. You’re my daughter. If you asked for help I’d give it. But you were always too damned independent to ask for your mother’s and my help.”
“And law abiding,” I said dryly. “Speaking of, where is Mom? I’m assuming she survived the fiery crash over the side of the mountain with you?”
“Yes, but she didn’t survive Kaliningrad. ” His voice went hoarse and he cleared it once. “We had some problems there.”
I took in a deep breath and focused on setting up my equipment. She’d been dead for two years. At least to me. It shouldn’t make the hurt fresh again to hear she was gone for real, but it did.
“Who’s in the bag?” he asked.
“Le anne Mosely. Age forty. Cancer.”
“I remember her. Your mother and I were friends with her in-laws once.”
“I don’t think they’d invite you to any neighborhood barbecues now if they knew you were alive. They still won’t speak to me, much less look me in the eye when we cross each other on the street. I’m actually surprised I got the call to do the interment.”
“You’ve had a rough go of it the past year. I’m sorry about that.”
“Uh, huh. More likely sorry you got caught.”
“They still haven’t caught me,” he said with a half smile.
I pulled on blue latex gloves and then unzipped the black bag, stripping it away from the husk that was Leanne Mosely. I grabbed the spray bottle of disinfectant and sprayed over the eyes, nose, and mouth and her lids automatically opened.
“That used to freak you out when you were a kid.”
“One of only many things.” I poured soap on my hands and started rubbing out the rigor mortis from the body. “I appreciate you trying to convince me that you’re sorry about what you and Mom did and the backlash it’s had on me, but I’m not buying it. You’ve always been a great actor. And I can deduce from our previous conversation that the only reason you’re still here is because you don’t have the boxes. If I’d left them here you would already be gone and we wouldn’t be having this nice father daughter chat.”
He smiled and jingled the change in his pockets. “Maybe. Did you go through the boxes?”
“You mean did I see all the evidence you compiled about my real parents and how you kidnapped me and forged documents so it would look like I was your own? Yes, I saw all that. Hand me the pliers there.”
Anger simmered inside of me but my hands were steady as I sta pled the mouth closed and stuffed the inside with cotton, giving Leeann a little fullness back in her face like she had before she’d gotten so sick.
“I don’t see why you’re so angry. You would have been an orphan abandoned in a foreign country if we hadn’t taken you. Do you know what happens to American infants that don’t have someone to claim them? They’re sold—either into slavery or to be prepped for the sex trade.”
“And I provided a good cover for whatever scheme you and Mom were caught in the middle of.”
His lips twitched. “That too. But never doubt that you were ours.”
I ignored him and went to work finding the
“You need any help?”
“Why, do you have something you need to smuggle out through her body?”
“I suppose I deserve that.”
“And much more. Jack knows you’re in town.”
“He’s got his own problems to worry about. I don’t think he’s going to have time to actively search for me.”
My head snapped up. “You don’t have anything to do with the deaths of Jack’s men, do you? Please tell me you don’t have any part in that.”
“It’s not me. I could probably dig around some and help find the source.”
I snorted out a laugh before I could help it. “Yeah, I’m sure that would go over well. Not to mention I’m sure you never do anything that doesn’t further your own agenda.”
“That’s not true. You’re my daughter. If you asked for help I’d give it. But you were always too damned independent to ask for your mother’s and my help.”
“And law abiding,” I said dryly. “Speaking of, where is Mom? I’m assuming she survived the fiery crash over the side of the mountain with you?”
“Yes, but she didn’t survive Kaliningrad. ” His voice went hoarse and he cleared it once. “We had some problems there.”
I took in a deep breath and focused on setting up my equipment. She’d been dead for two years. At least to me. It shouldn’t make the hurt fresh again to hear she was gone for real, but it did.
“Who’s in the bag?” he asked.
“Le anne Mosely. Age forty. Cancer.”
“I remember her. Your mother and I were friends with her in-laws once.”
“I don’t think they’d invite you to any neighborhood barbecues now if they knew you were alive. They still won’t speak to me, much less look me in the eye when we cross each other on the street. I’m actually surprised I got the call to do the interment.”
“You’ve had a rough go of it the past year. I’m sorry about that.”
“Uh, huh. More likely sorry you got caught.”
“They still haven’t caught me,” he said with a half smile.
I pulled on blue latex gloves and then unzipped the black bag, stripping it away from the husk that was Leanne Mosely. I grabbed the spray bottle of disinfectant and sprayed over the eyes, nose, and mouth and her lids automatically opened.
“That used to freak you out when you were a kid.”
“One of only many things.” I poured soap on my hands and started rubbing out the rigor mortis from the body. “I appreciate you trying to convince me that you’re sorry about what you and Mom did and the backlash it’s had on me, but I’m not buying it. You’ve always been a great actor. And I can deduce from our previous conversation that the only reason you’re still here is because you don’t have the boxes. If I’d left them here you would already be gone and we wouldn’t be having this nice father daughter chat.”
He smiled and jingled the change in his pockets. “Maybe. Did you go through the boxes?”
“You mean did I see all the evidence you compiled about my real parents and how you kidnapped me and forged documents so it would look like I was your own? Yes, I saw all that. Hand me the pliers there.”
Anger simmered inside of me but my hands were steady as I sta pled the mouth closed and stuffed the inside with cotton, giving Leeann a little fullness back in her face like she had before she’d gotten so sick.
“I don’t see why you’re so angry. You would have been an orphan abandoned in a foreign country if we hadn’t taken you. Do you know what happens to American infants that don’t have someone to claim them? They’re sold—either into slavery or to be prepped for the sex trade.”
“And I provided a good cover for whatever scheme you and Mom were caught in the middle of.”
His lips twitched. “That too. But never doubt that you were ours.”
I ignored him and went to work finding the
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