Ex’s and Oh’s Read online

  “There was an accident. Brian went overboard.”

  “It wasn’t your fault. It couldn’t have been.” Caroline’s voice was barely more than a whisper.

  “Did I ever tell you Andy’s best friend’s name was Brian Kerrigan? He and Andy were inseparable. They were best friends, but they were closer than brothers. They did everything together, and that day, they wanted to go sailing. I always made sure Andy took his cell phone with him. He tried to call me.”

  Caroline felt her heart constrict. She’d heard this story. Not this version, exactly, but the same set of circumstances. Two best friends had gone sailing. Only one of them returned.

  How could she tell Tori that now?

  “Andy was frantic. God. He was barely thirteen. He went in after Brian. But Brian had gone under and Andy couldn’t find him. He swam back to the boat and he called me. Me. He dialed my number because he didn’t know what else to do.”

  “There isn’t a word in the English language powerful enough to convey how horrible that must have been for you, for all of you, Tori.”

  Again, it was as if Tori hadn’t heard. Staring straight ahead at the current flowing gently along the channel, she said, “I heard my cell phone ringing.”

  Tori became quiet. Too quiet.

  “And?” Caroline asked. “You didn’t answer?”

  Her laugh filled with self-derision, Tori said, “I was a little busy.”

  Caroline knew it was too late to turn back now. Bad feeling or not, she said, “In what way?”

  “I was having mind-altering sex.”

  “You mean you and Shane?”

  “No. We were divorced by then. It was just some man I’d been seeing. I figured I’d get the message and return the call when we were finished, you know? Andy left me a voice mail. I’ll never forget my baby’s message. He was sobbing and panicked. He’d just seen his best friend drown. He needed his mother. Can you imagine how he must have felt, sailing that boat back to shore? Alone?” Tori’s voice rose to near-hysteria. “And I didn’t take the call until, well, you can imagine.” Finally, she turned and looked at Caroline. “I wasn’t there when he needed me.”

  “You’ve been there every day since.”

  “Obviously, that’s not enough, is it?” She looked at the water again. “I think he figured out what I was doing. Who I was with. He hates me. And do you know what, Caroline? I don’t blame him.”

  “My God.” Caroline didn’t know what else to say. Everyone makes mistakes seemed too simple; it’ll all work out seemed terribly naive. “Don’t a lot of teenagers say things like that?”

  “It was a first for Andy.”

  Caroline felt a little like she did when she agreed to take a difficult case. She had to sort through everything that had been said, and in the process try to discern what hadn’t been said. “Do you have any idea what instigated his outburst tonight?” she asked quietly.

  Instead of replying, Tori stood. “I have to go.”

  “Tori, wait.”

  “I can’t. Do you need a lift back to the summerhouse?”

  “I can walk, but Tori—”

  Tori was already hurrying away.

  “Where are you going?” Caroline asked, rising, too.

  “To find Andy. I’ve been pushing and pushing and pushing him to make new friends. I’m only pushing him away. I have to tell him I was wrong. Two years ago. And this summer.”

  “I’ll go with you,” Caroline said.

  Tori shook her head. In that instant she looked far older than thirty-seven. “I have to do this alone.”

  “All right, Tori. I’ll call Pattie, Nell and Elaine. We’ll be at my place. Call any one of us if you need anything. We’ll be waiting.”

  Tori left. And Caroline was left sitting under the hundred-year-old Hickory Tree, thinking it had all been too easy, her friendships, her relationship with Shane, her new life.

  Tori was wounded so deeply, Caroline couldn’t even imagine how she would feel when she learned about this relationship between Caroline and Shane. What were the chances her first friend in Harbor Woods would turn out to have once been married to the man Caroline had fallen in love with? What were the chances she would have become pregnant in the first place? Or that she would discover the clues that would bring her here? What were the chances Henry O’Shaughnessy’s death would stir up so many questions, or that the answers would be so far-reaching?

  Tori still didn’t know the half of it. Caroline never should have slept with Shane until she’d talked to Tori. Shane would have waited. That entire family was hurting, and Caroline was only making things worse.

  Could she be any worse at relationships?

  Slinging her bag over her shoulder, she walked home. She waited until she got there to call her friends. Pattie’s husband Dave said she’d already left for the movies. She called both Pattie’s and Nell’s cell phones, and left a message on each of them. Elaine wasn’t home, either.

  Caroline paced as she waited.

  It was liable to be a long night.

  Shane was watching television in the dark when the knock sounded on the cruiser’s hull.

  “It’s me, Shane. Dan Mitchell.”

  There were several reasons the local sheriff might pay him an unannounced visit after midnight. Every one of them scared the spit out of Shane.

  He was up on deck before Dan finished coming aboard.

  “It’s Andy.” By the time Dan said, “He’s all right, or at least he’s going to be,” a hole had blown through Shane’s left ventricle.

  Okay. Andy was going to be all right. Breathe.

  Damn.

  Shane ran his hands down his chest, settling them on the waistband of his jeans. The sheriff was here. And Andy was going to be all right. What did that mean? Andy was in jail? No. Juvie? Impossible. He rarely went out.

  “Where is he?”

  “He’s at the hospital getting stitched up.”

  Shane started for the pier, only to stop and backtrack for his shirt and shoes.

  “Shane, wait.”

  Something in Dan’s tone sent another kind of fear through Shane. Dan wasn’t in uniform. Balding now, he’d thrown on some clothes haphazardly. They’d been on the same baseball team when they were kids. They’d attended each other’s weddings and had gone fishing in the old days. The Mitchells held a barbecue every summer. Shane, Vickie and Andy used to go every year. After Shane’s divorce, Dan and Sharon both assured him nothing would change. But everything always changed.

  It had been Dan who’d come to the marina the day they’d found Brian. He was a decent man, and a good sheriff, which was why, when he told Shane to wait, Shane waited.

  “There was an accident,” Dan said, running a hand down his fleshy face. “A car accident.”

  “Andy was involved in a car accident? With Vickie?”

  “No.”

  “A pedestrian accident? Someone hit him?”

  “Apparently he was driving.”

  The right ventricle blew. Shane staggered. “Andy hasn’t taken driver’s ed. He’s barely fifteen. He doesn’t have his driver’s license.”

  “Yes, we know. One of my deputies is waiting to talk to him right now. Off the record, if he were my son, I’d call an attorney.”

  The horrors just kept coming. Through it all, Shane heard himself say, “Was he alone?”

  Dan shook his head.

  Shane didn’t recognize his own voice as he said, “Are the others—”

  “They were alive. The last I knew.”

  Later, Shane wouldn’t recall the drive to the hospital. He arrived fully clothed, so he must have gone below for his shirt and shoes. He was a mile away from his destination before he remembered Dan’s advice regarding an attorney. By rote, he took out his cell phone and punched in Caroline’s number.

  She answered on the first ring.

  “It’s Shane. Are you still out with your friends?”

  “No.” Caroline had been pacing. Tori hadn’t retur
ned her calls. Elaine, Nell and Pattie hadn’t heard from her, either. Caroline was feeling frantic.

  “Can you come to the hospital?”

  A dozen scenarios flashed through her head. “What happened? Are you hurt?”

  “It’s not me. It’s Andy. He’s in trouble, Caroline.”

  In the background she heard a voice over the intercom calling some doctor to E.R. “Which hospital?” Caroline asked.

  “County Memorial. In Charlevoix.”

  “I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

  The call was disconnected.

  Caroline stopped, her feet rooted in place. The night just kept getting worse.

  Thankfully, her professional demeanor kicked in. She located her keys and started her car on the first try. She drove within the speed limit. Barely. When her phone rang again, she placed it to her ear and calmly said, “Yes?”

  “Caroline, there are eight voice mails from you.”

  “Tori?” It didn’t sound like Tori.

  “Yeah, it’s me. Is everything all right with the baby?”

  “Yes.”

  There was silence on both ends.

  And then Caroline said, “What about you? Did you talk to Andy?” For all Caroline knew, Tori hadn’t been told about the accident yet.

  Tori broke down, and the sound cracked the outer edges of Caroline’s professional demeanor. “Where are you?”

  “I’m at the hospital,” Tori whispered. “I need you to come.”

  “I’m on my way.”

  “I knew I could count on you.”

  Tori couldn’t have realized that Caroline was literally already on her way. Caroline was put in mind of the first time she’d assisted Sheila Ross in an extremely difficult case. Just before springing a surprise on the unsuspecting opposition, meticulous, proper and hard-as-nails Sheila had muttered under her breath, “Stand back, ladies and gentlemen. The shit is about to hit the fan.”

  Tonight, Caroline couldn’t stand back. In this instance, she was going to walk directly into the foray. In a matter of minutes, Tori would realize the connection between Caroline and Shane. She and Shane both needed her. Caroline couldn’t let either of them down.

  The parking lot was well lit and contained a large number of cars. Shane and Tori weren’t among the people milling about the E.R. waiting room. Going directly to the desk, Caroline discreetly informed the nurse that she was an attorney and was here to speak with the Grady family. The kindly nurse led her past the area where Caroline had been examined several weeks ago.

  “Your attorney’s here,” the other woman said, rapping softly on a closed door.

  “Come in,” Shane said from inside.

  Professional mask in place, Caroline opened the door and went in. The room was small, the artificial lighting stark. There were the usual chrome-and-stainless-steel fixtures and sterile smell. Caroline was more interested in the three people looking at her.

  “Thank God you’re here,” Shane said.

  “That was fast,” Tori said at the same time.

  Since Tori didn’t pick up on the coincidence, Caroline spared a glance at Andy. He was wearing a hospital gown. The head of the bed was raised, and a sheet covered him to his waist. There was a bandage on his forehead just above his eyebrow.

  “Does that hurt?” she asked.

  He met her gaze briefly, very briefly, then averted his face. “I already told the deputy what happened. I don’t feel like repeating myself.”

  “You talked to the deputy without representation?” Caroline said. “Did he ask if you wanted it?”

  “I don’t think so. What difference does it make?”

  “For God’s sakes, Andy,” Shane admonished. “It makes a lot of difference. I asked Caroline to come here to help.”

  “You asked her?” Tori said. “What do you mean you asked her? I just called her not more than—” She broke off in mid-sentence, as if something just clicked. In a blink, her entire countenance changed. “You two know each other?”

  Shane said, “Yes.”

  Caroline said nothing, an answer that wasn’t well received by either of them.

  “No wonder you made such good time, Caroline. You were already on your way.” Tori Young could be snide with the best of them.

  Sparing another glance at Andy, Caroline said, “Let’s deal with this problem now and sort out the other situation later, shall we?”

  Tori glanced at Andy, too. “This is the woman you thought was chunky.” And to Caroline, “He’s the guy with the beard. Well, isn’t this cozy?” She started for the door.

  “Mom, are you leaving?”

  Her son’s question stopped Tori in her tracks. Facing him, she said, “I’m going to find that deputy who talked to you without my authorization. Hopefully he hasn’t left the hospital, because he’s going to need medical attention when I’m finished with him.” She looked back at Caroline, and then at Shane, and again at Andy. “I’m not leaving the hospital without you,” she said. “You can bank on that.”

  While the click of Tori’s heels grew fainter, Caroline closed the door, turning once again to the situation at hand. Shane looked like death. She would have liked to say something to ease his burden, but she focused her attention on Andy, and got down to business.

  “Let’s start at the beginning. In your own words, what happened?”

  Caroline couldn’t have been the only one fighting the need to massage her temples.

  An hour ago, Tori had returned with the offending deputy in tow. Sheepishly, he’d admitted that he’d forgotten to obtain the proper authorization to question Andy, who was a minor. Caroline would make certain anything Andy had told him was rendered insubmissible in court, if the situation went that far.

  Whether he wanted to or not, Andy had to begin again without the deputy present. His own words were sparse, but according to him, he’d willingly and knowingly gotten behind the wheel of an older boy’s car. Evidently, the others had been drinking, but Andy hadn’t. He hadn’t offered this information. It was in the police report Caroline demanded to see.

  They’d given Andy a Breathalyzer at the scene. There wasn’t so much as a trace of alcohol in him. Thank God for that, at least.

  Although the details were sketchy, Andy lost control and wrapped the car around a tree. Caroline would have to see the car. For now, she settled for viewing pictures. The only part of the car unscathed was the back door on the passenger side. The rest of the vehicle was mutilated, with the worst damage on the driver’s door.

  A nurse entered to check Andy’s vitals and bandages. His right ankle was swollen. They wanted to keep him for a few hours, at least, for they suspected he had a slight concussion.

  “All right, Andy,” Caroline said.

  Everyone looked at her.

  “What do you mean all right?” Tori demanded.

  “This is all I need from him right now. Perhaps he would like to rest now. I’d like to speak with the others involved.”

  Andy’s gaze darted nervously to Caroline before sliding away. Shane saw it, too. Without saying a word, he accompanied Caroline from the room.

  At the elevator, he said, “What do you think?”

  She allowed herself only one glance at his face. She wouldn’t have wanted to be him: the father of the boy to blame for an accident that had involved four other teenagers, two of whom were in serious condition.

  “I’d like to speak to the others before I venture to say what I think happened.”

  The corridor on the second floor was full of family members of the other teens. Caroline learned that one of the boys, Jason Schuler, was in surgery to close a head wound and set a compound fracture in his left leg. His girlfriend, who’d also been in the car, had been examined and released. Caroline noted her crutches. Although the other boy was in less serious condition than Jason, Caroline wasn’t allowed to see him, either.

  While Shane dealt with the shock, horror and blame in the parents’ eyes, Caroline noticed another teenaged girl
sitting by herself at the end of the corridor.

  “Hi,” Caroline said as she approached.

  The girl’s mascara was smeared, her face and arms scratched. She didn’t appear to be seriously injured.

  “It’s two in the morning. You probably noticed I’m going to have a baby. Mind if I sit down?”

  The girl inched over. Caroline took a seat. The girl remained huddled in her chair as far away as she could get.

  “I’m a friend of Andy’s family.”

  “I heard you were his attorney.”

  Caroline had to learn that news traveled fast in small towns. “I’m Caroline Moore. I am an attorney, but I’m not their attorney, per se.”

  “What does per se mean anyway?”

  “It means by, of, in itself, or as such.”

  Pretty, hopelessly young and scantily clad in a flimsy little top held up by spaghetti straps, the girl made a sound by releasing her breath through her pursed lips. It was short for It was a rhetorical question, stupid.

  Well then.

  “Which one is your boyfriend?” Caroline asked.

  The girl sniffled. “Chris. He’s not hurt as bad as Jason. Danielle’s a real basket case.”

  “Are your parents coming for you?”

  The girl sniffled again. “They’re out of town. They’re going to kill me. I’m staying with Danielle this week. Her parents are over there.”

  Clearly, the girl didn’t want to talk to Caroline.

  “If it’s any consolation,” Caroline said as if oblivious, “if Jason’s injuries were more serious, they would have airlifted him to a larger facility.”

  “Really?”

  Caroline nodded.

  “You’re saying people don’t die here?”

  So much for putting the girl’s mind at ease. Suddenly, Caroline understood why parents of teenagers worried. They were smart, sometimes reckless, untrusting of adults and they stuck together.

  “I saw pictures of the car.”

  The girl made no move to reply.

  “You must have been sitting in the middle in the back.”

  “So?”

  “Chris was on your left. That side of the car took the brunt of the impact with the tree.”

  “That’s what they tell me.”

  “I’d rather you tell me.”