He sighed, rubbing his jaw.
“I’m sorry. I had no other way of letting you know.”
“It’s okay,” Jason told her. “Not your fault. It’s good that you’re here. I want you to tell mom that everything’s going to be fine.”
She pulled her hand away. “I can’t, Jason. I didn’t even tell her where I was going today. I refuse to get Mom’s hopes up.”
“I’m never going back to prison, Tracy. I won’t stop until I find Dirk’s killer.”
Tracy’s head fell forward and her shoulders dipped.
“You know I didn’t kill Dirk.”
When she met his gaze again, her expression was hard to read, but she didn’t say a word.
Her reaction pissed him off.
His own sister made him feel as if he were an annoyance, doing anything he could to make her life more difficult. “Do you have any idea what it’s like being in prison? For the past eight years, it’s as if I’ve been living on a different planet. I’ve had to learn a new language, traditions, how to fit in and stay alive. It’s been all about survival, which isn’t living at all. The only thing that got me through each day was staying focused on the day I would break out of there. I’m not a murderer and I’m not going back.”
“I’m sorry. You’re right. I can’t imagine what it’s been like for you.” She sighed. “I guess I always hoped you would be granted parole.”
His sister didn’t have a clue. “I got life in prison, Tracy. My lawyer made sure of that. No chance for parole. Ever.”
“So, what now?”
“I’ve already paid Mike Gabaldon a visit. I got the scumbag to admit he was paid off. Just as I thought.”
“Mike Gabaldon? Your lawyer?”
“That’s right.”
“What did he say?”
“Not much. Whoever paid him to keep me in prison has done a decent job of staying out of the picture.”
“Have you talked to anyone else?”
“I think it’s best if I keep you out of this. I never should have asked you to meet with me.”
“What do you need your computer for?”
“There’s a lot that’s not adding up. I thought maybe I would find some info there. I have to get going. How’s mom holding up?”
“She’s doing as well as can be expected under the circumstances. There are federal agents are all over the place. Mom kicked them out of the house, but the men in black are lined up on the street right outside the front door. All the neighbors are talking. You know how Mom hates that.”
The waitress brought his coke, then asked Tracy is she wanted anything.
She declined, and then quickly filled him in on family news: Aunts and uncles, cousins he couldn’t remember. Mom, it turned out, had recently been laid off from her job at a Macy’s Department store.
“If you and mom need money,” he told her, “I could talk to Colin and see what he can do to help you two until I can get my hands on my share of the business. There’s got to be close to three million in the account, and that doesn’t include stock.”
She pulled at her hair on the side of her head, a nervous habit she’d developed when she was just a kid. “Don’t worry about us,” she said. “We’ll be fine.”
He noticed the rock on her left finger. “Something you want to tell me?” He gestured at the ring.
“Oh, this.” She swallowed. “I’m engaged.”
He frowned. “Since when?”
“Oh, gosh…it’s been a while. Beginning of the year.”
The sound of her voice, the way she looked at him, the fact that she’d hadn’t been to prison to visit him in the past two years…it all made him look at her in a new light. He leaned forward, his gaze roaming over every bit of her face. “You look different, Tracy. Younger. Did you have something done to your face?”
“What? Me?” She smiled, but it was an uncomfortable, anxious smile at best. “Of course, not. My fiancé is doing well, but I would never waste his money on something like that.”
“What’s his name?”
“Benjamin Finch. He’s a banker.”
He felt his jaw tense.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“I just can’t help but wonder why you and Mom didn’t feel the need to tell me you were engaged.”
“It’s my fault. Mom wanted to tell you, but I asked her not to.” Tracy looked away, feeling guilty no doubt. “I didn’t want you to feel like you were missing out.”
“That’s real nice of you, Sis, but its bullshit. When you visited me in prison—when you were still coming—I couldn’t look into your eyes without seeing shame. Or maybe it was disgust I saw there. You really believe I killed Dirk, don’t you?”
She said nothing.