The Girl in White Pajamas Page 14

  Even his pilgrimage back to Boston six months after Shoeberg’s death seemed carefully orchestrated. He just happened to be in the neighborhood, knocked on the door to offer condolences, the widow Shoeberg answered and the sparks flew. This was the story fed to the press and anyone else in Boston who cared to swallow it.

  It wasn’t until two years later that a farmer found an old deserted clunker parked in the woods off one of his fields. Strangely, the vehicle identification number was filed off. With no one claiming the car, he thought it would make a good first car for his son. But the kid complained that every time he drove, the car smelled like someone had been using it for a toilet.

  But those were the days before O.J. Simpson helped make DNA a household word.

  ****

  After travelling through the Callahan Tunnel, the Escalade moved up the road to Logan Airport and its many signs and terminals. When they pulled up to the departure area of Terminal C, Bogie opened the door and quickly moved to the back. He and Randy pulled suitcases out of the SUV while Rose stood next to Ann holding her hand. Rose gave Ann a quick hug, embraced Amanda and gave Randy a playful punch on his upper arm before she jumped into the Escalade and sat next to her father and kissed him on the cheek. She glanced back at the sleeping child and smiled. “I feel like I’ve been through Mission Impossible. Bogie and his timing! You should have seen that limo driver’s face when Randy had him pull over so I could jump in!” Thinking about it, Rose laughed.

  Ann cried as Elizabeth McGruder sat in a courtesy wheelchair next to her with her mouth twisted, spewing curses and threats at Ann. Amanda was obviously upset by the whole scene and looked to Bogie for help. As Randy handed their tickets and ID’s to the baggage handler, Bogie walked to Elizabeth and bent down in front of her. He spoke in a low voice. “Shut your mouth and don’t open it again until you reach Palm Beach! We’re getting you out of here so you won’t be facing murder charges. Do you understand me?”

  Elizabeth McGruder’s eyes opened wide and she looked wild and confused; but some spark of recognition forced her to be quiet. Bogie reached over to his sister and hugged her. “You take care of yourself!”

  Ann nodded and wiped her eyes.

  Bogie went to Amanda and hugged her and smoothed her hair. “Have a safe flight, Princess. I love you.”

  She hugged him. “I love you more.”

  He shook hands with Randy as he looked over the small group. “You ready to bail out yet?”

  Randy smiled. “No, sir. It’s almost like being with my own family.”

  Darryl beeped the horn when a state cop stood yelling for him to move and had no interest in his retired BPD status. Bogie waved and ran to the Escalade trying to understand who wanted to kill Bailey so bad that they were unconcerned whether they killed Isabella as well.

  27 GROWING MUSHROOMS AND PUMPKINS

  When Bogie and Isabella walked up the basement stairs of the house in Weston, they were greeted by a man with short dark hair, olive skin and a mark on his cheek that resembled a bullet hole. Jesus Hernandez stood at the top of the stairs grinning. “Ooorah!” He pumped a fist in the air.

  The corner of Bogie’s mouth twitched before he said, “Hoorah! The Marines never get anything right! How goes the battle?”

  The two men grinned and bumped fists. “We’re not losing, just advancing in the opposite direction,” Jesus said.

  Isabella studied these two men who seemed to be speaking another language. She extended her hand and said, “Hello, my name is Isabella!”

  Jesus smiled. “You look just like a little doll!”

  Isabella studied him with those ice-blue, penetrating eyes then walked into the dining room where her mother was working at her computer. Bailey turned around in her seat at the small desk in the corner. She smiled and opened her arms. “Izzy! I missed you!”

  The little girl ran to her mother, and they hugged. “Oh, Mommy, I had such a wonderful day!”

  Bailey studied her. “At a funeral?”

  Isabella nodded. “I met a lot of people. They’re my family. They all love me! There were so many people. Pop Pop, he’s my grandfaddah, Grandma, Aunt Annie. My sister, her name is Mandie. Randy’s her fin-an-see.” When Bailey looked at her questioningly, Isabella added, “They’re getting married. Missus Trudie and Mister James were very nice to me. They all know me. We went to Grandma’s house. Mister James opened the door and said, ‘Hello Isabella!’ Just like that! They loved my stories! I sang the Winnie-the-Pooh song and Grandma cried. She said it was beautiful. I wanted to sing more, but some people came to the house to cry or something.” Isabella continued telling and retelling her day as Bailey smiled and nodded.

  “You must be tired,” Bailey said.

  Isabella shook her head. “We drived to the airport. I took a nap in Pop Pop’s car. Then they all left. They never said goodbye,” she sadly said.

  “I’m sure you’ll see them again,” Bailey reassured her.

  Isabella nodded. “That’s what Da-dee said.”

  Kim walked through the archway between the dark living room and dining room. The moment Isabella saw her she went to her. “Kim! Wait till I tell you what happened today!” Kim nodded as Isabella again went through the list of people she met, the stories she told and the songs she sang.

  “Wasn’t it sad?” Kim asked

  Isabella shook her head. “Grandma cried and Aunt Annie cried but everybody else was okay. Oh, and somebody screamed. I didn’t see who it was because Da-dee grabbed me and picked me up so I missed it.”

  Kim looked at the little girl and smiled. “Are you hungry?”

  Isabella shook her head. “We were eating little sandwiches. They were very cute. I’ll make them sometime. Then Missus Trudie brought me in the kitchen and gave me cookies. I’m thirsty, though. Could I have a juice box?”

  Kim opened the refrigerator. “Apple or grape?”

  “Apple.”

  Kim smiled as she handed the juice box to Isabella. Isabella pulled the straw off the box and pushed it through the top. “Did everyone like your clothing?” Kim asked.

  Isabella sipped and nodded. “I was so beautiful!” After thinking for a moment, she added, “They liked my eyes. They are my eyes, not Da-dee’s eyes.”

  As Isabella continued describing every detail of her day to her mother and Kim, Bogie motioned for Jesus to follow him into the living room. Bogie turned to the smaller, muscular man. “Did you have Tommie go through her client lists?”

  Jesus nodded. “We got a list from her uncle Rubin, and Tommie went through them. There weren’t that many.” He shook his head. “Nothing there.”

  “What about the other employees? Somebody knows her schedule and where she works and lives?”

  “Dude! There are only three people working there, her, the uncle and the receptionist.”

  “What about the pre-school?”

  “Angel’s checking that out. He had to wait till the end of the day. The teacher didn’t want to talk in front of the kids.”

  “And before she worked for Rubin?”

  Jesus shook his head. “She was in West Virginia for six months after she left Mintz Levin. That’s where Isabella was born.”

  “I know,” Bogie said softly. “Where does that leave us?”

  “In the dark with the other mushrooms,” Jesus said. “Somebody’s feeding us bullshit.”

  Bogie nodded in agreement, and they returned to the kitchen as Isabella sang her rendition of the Winnie-the-Pooh song for her mother and Kim so they could appreciate how she knocked the audience dead in Boston.

  Bailey looked up at Bogie. “She’s all wound up! She’ll be up for hours!”

  Bogie shrugged and said, “I was looking for somebody to help me fix a music box. Do you know anyone like that?”

  Isabella immediately said, “I could help you! I can take them apart.”

  Bogie looked at Bai
ley and winked. “Why don’t we go upstairs and work on one of them?” he asked Isabella as she nodded.

  As soon as they reached the top of the stairs, Isabella said, “I have to go potty.”

  Bogie gestured with his hand for her to use the bathroom. When he turned on the light he noticed the bathroom was dirty. But with Rose’s ‘shut up’ advice swirling around in his head, he said nothing. After she washed her hands, Isabella excitedly led the way to her room. When Bogie reached over to turn on the lamp on the dresser, Isabella shook her head. “It’s broken,” she said.

  “What happened?” Bogie asked.

  Isabella shrugged as Bogie watched her. “I wanted to see how it worked. I took it apart. Then it didn’t work anymore. Don’t tell Mommy. She said I’m destruct...”

  Realizing she was unable to finish the word, Bogie offered, “Destructive?”

  Isabella nodded. “I’m not destructed. I just wanted to see how it works.”

  Bogie took the lamp off the dresser then reached up and unscrewed the glass globe on the ceiling light fixture so they’d have more light. Studying him Isabella asked, “Are you desruptive, too, Da-dee?”

  Bogie shook his head. “No, I also like to know how things work.”

  They sat on the floor with the lamp disassembled while Bogie explained how the electrical cord ran through the base. When Bogie reassembled the lamp and placed it back on the dresser, he turned to Isabella. “Well, Pumpkin, you want to try it now?”

  She looked at him and started giggling. “Pumpkin! Pumpkin! I’m not a pumpkin!”

  Bogie’s mouth twitched. “Sure you are! Look at that beautiful head of pumpkin-colored hair.”

  Isabella pushed the switch on the lamp and it lit up showing off Winnie-the-Pooh, Eeyore, Tigger, Piglet and Roo all playing in the enchanted woods. The little girl grinned with satisfaction as she watched the characters.

  “Are you ready to try a music box?” Bogie asked.

  She nodded and chose a lovely white and gold piano with parts sitting on the lid. Bogie reached in his breast pocket and took out a pair of half-glasses and put them on. Isabella watched as he took a small instrument from his keychain and opened the music box. He carefully laid out all the pieces then added the ones that she’d stacked on top to the mix. He slowly explained to her how each of the parts was connected so that it would make music when it was wound up. He replaced the pieces, closed the piano music box and handed it to her. “How about some music?”

  Isabella excitedly wound the music box and beamed as Lara’s Theme from Doctor Zhivago played. Bogie was surprised that Bailey hadn’t chosen one with ‘Mistral Gagnant’ or ‘Le Vieux Piano’ playing since she was very much a Francophile. As they sat on the floor smiling, pleased with themselves, Bogie looked up and saw Bailey standing in the doorway watching them.

  Looking at Bogie but speaking to Isabella she said, “It’s time for your bath, Izzy.”

  The child sighed. “I want Da-dee to give me my bath.”

  Bailey smiled and said, “I figured as much.” Then she walked away.

  After scouring the tub with cleanser he found under the sink, Bogie ran a bubble bath for Isabella. She walked into the bathroom naked carrying a small, pink nightgown. Her eyes lit up when she saw the bubbles. “How do you know how to make bubble baths?” she asked.

  “Don’t forget Mandie was a little girl once. I used to run bubble baths for her.”

  Isabella considered this then asked, “Didn’t she have a mommy?”

  Bogie shook his head.

  “What happened to her?”

  “She moved away when Mandie was little,” Bogie said.

  “Oh! Mandie must have been so sad! You must have been so sad!”

  “We got over it!” Bogie said as he handed her a washcloth. “Remember, you have to wash your face and then start cleaning all the nooks and crannies.”

  “Nooks and crannies,” she repeated and laughed.

  He nodded. “All the moving parts.”

  By the time Bogie rinsed her off with the shower, it was obvious that Isabella was worn out. He dried her then helped her put on her nightgown. “Where are your slippers?”

  She shrugged. “I think they got too small for me.”

  “Remind me to get you some tomorrow. You don’t want to walk around downstairs without shoes. You could get glass in your feet. Stand right here and I’ll get a pair of your sneakers.”

  Bogie walked to Isabella’s room and bent down to get her sneakers. He noticed that she had hung up her dress and coat, put her fancy shoes neatly in the row of shoes at the bottom of the closet. She’d placed her underwear in a small basket in the corner of the room. Yes, Pop was right. No DNA test was needed for this child.

  After Isabella kissed her mother and Kim good-night, she went upstairs with her father so he could read her the story of Winnie-the-Pooh and the Blustery Day. She fought to stay awake through the story and was sound asleep when it ended. Bogie replaced the ceiling light globe and turned on the small lamp on the dresser.

  Bogie was finally able to relax. He hung up his suit pants next to his jacket and put on a pair of shorts and a tee shirt. He grabbed the reading glasses from the jacket pocket and headed for the stairs with his laptop bag. As Bogie walked down the stairs, his phone vibrated. He looked at the caller ID. “Hi, Princess. Did you get there safe and sound?”

  “Barely.”

  28 GUILT – THE GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING

  When their plane reached an altitude of twenty thousand feet, it leveled off and the flight attendants brought the drink cart down the aisle. Although other passengers were satisfied with a snack and soft drink, the McGruder women insisted on two tiny bottles each of scotch and gin. As Ann and other passengers relaxed, Elizabeth became increasingly agitated. “I don’t know why I let you talk me into going to Palm Beach. They’d better have the house ready. I hate it when we get there and the place is stuffy. You had the staff air out the rooms, didn’t you?”

  Ann looked at Elizabeth. “Mother, I already explained to you that the house is being renovated. We’re going to be staying in a hotel until it’s ready.”

  “Then why the rush to go there?” Elizabeth asked a bit too loud.

  When Ann put a finger across her lips and shushed her mother, Elizabeth became irritated. “We’re not in church! We’re on a damn plane!”

  Amanda and Randy took out their ipods and ear buds. Music was the answer. If she got louder, they’d turn up the music.

  They were the last passengers off the plane since Elizabeth required wheelchair assistance. She was becoming belligerent and wasn’t pleased when the smiling skycap rolled her wheelchair quickly down the jetway hoping she’d stop complaining. When they entered the gate with bright lights and pastel colors, Elizabeth did calm down a bit until she saw a portly man sporting a gray buzz cut, wearing a green uniform with a star on his chest. She trembled as John Carpenter approached her. Before he could speak, she said, “I had nothing to do with it! He was the one who did everything. I’m innocent!” John nodded then gestured for a woman with large dark eyes, black hair, bright red lipstick and a snug red jumpsuit to approach. Margarita didn’t offer her hand but touched the armrest of the wheelchair. “Elizabeth, I’m Margarita. I’m here to help you.” Her voice was soothing and reassuring. When she watched the wild fluttering in Elizabeth’s eyes subside, she touched her hand. “Everything will be okay!”

  John Carpenter walked to his son and shook his hand as Dolores Peabody moved to Amanda and embraced her. “Welcome to our family,” Dolores said then beamed. With a nudge from Randy and a slight hesitation, John Carpenter moved to Amanda and hugged her. “Good to have you back,” he finally said.

  Margarita and Elizabeth were escorted to the elevator by the skycap while the others took the escalator down to baggage claim. Carlos, wearing a tight black Marlins tee shirt, stood at the bottom of the escalator beaming as th
e group descended. The muscular man grinned as John Carpenter pointed a finger at him and said, “Wonder what you’ll be wearing when the Pirates kick their ass?” The longstanding feud between John and Carlos was based on Carlos’ devotion to the Miami Marlins and John’s blind allegiance to the Pittsburgh Pirates. John, like many of his fellow Buckeyes, cheered for the Pirates over their own Cleveland Indians or Cincinnati Reds. That was probably the only thing that John and Bogie ever agreed on, they both were Pirates fans.

  Carlos shook Randy’s hand and hugged Amanda. “Congratulations!” he said to both of them.

  Ann and Dolores walked next to each other. Dolores was as short as Ann, she was toned and fit. She looked about fifteen years younger than Ann, but in fact she was fifteen years older. Dolores turned to Amanda and said, "I understand Bogie’s staying in Boston for a while.”

  Amanda nodded. “He’s looking out for Bailey and my little sister.”

  Dolores smiled. “She’s definitely your sister?”

  “Without a doubt!” Randy offered. “Those eyes! She looks right into your soul!”

  John Carpenter paused as he watched his sister’s marital hopes evaporate. He thought, ‘Just what Palm Beach needs, another killer!’

  *****

  Weston, Massachusetts

  Bogie walked into the dining room and set his lap top down on the dining room table. He placed the cord on the table to remind himself to charge the computer overnight. The computer booted up and Bailey, still staring at her computer screen, asked, “How long have you known about Isabella?” When he didn’t answer her, she turned around and said, “How—”

  “I heard you the first time. I just don’t like talking to someone’s back.” He paused then asked, “You want the truth?”

  “Oh course I want the truth!”

  “Since she was three months old, when you brought her to Boston.”

  “And you never said anything?” Bailey asked indignantly.