Cory looked a question at Alex and had his mouth open to spit it out, but she waved it aside before he could say the words. No-no, its okay. You can take it. This is something I need to, uh She paused to take a breath. Eve, this is Matts brother. Matt Callahan, my, uh
Eves smile went out like a light. Oh yeah! Matt-your old partner-right. Sowell. Okay, I guess you She cocked her head to give Cory a long look, eyes glittering with curiosity and something Alex couldnt define, then shrugged. Hey, Im gone. See you later. Her head vanished and the door thunked closed.
Look, Cory said, if you need to go take care of something, I can wait.
Alex waved a hand at the chair shed vacated and settled her own backside onto the edge of her desk. No, its just thatwell, the kids from Las Colinas Academy are kind of a special bunch, is all. Teenagers. Theyre all mentally disabled.
As he took the relinquished chair, the visitors eyes lit up with a new kind of interest, and Alex remembered what Matts brother Wade had told her-that their long-lost and recently found older brother was a journalist. A reporter, and a fairly famous one at that. You take disabled people down the river rapids?
Oh yeah, sure. We take all kinds-physical and mental disabilities both. These people come every year. Have a ball, too-you should see em. But hey, Eve can take care of things. Shes a guide-also a friend. She wont mind.
She drank the last of the water in the bottle, then looked around for a place to put it. Finally she set it on the desk with great care, as if shed never done such a thing before. After that there was no place else to put her eyes that wasnt Matts brother Cory. And since he looked way too much like Matt, she went on staring at the bottle. The silence stretched.
Which they both broke at the same time.
You said you wanted to-
I guess Wade told you I-
Corys face broke into Matties smile as he gestured for Alex to go first.
So she did, in a voice gone gruff and edgy again. Yeah, soWade said you got separated from him and Matt when you were little, or something?
I did. Cory still smiled, though there was a deep sadness in his eyes now, and Alex remembered the way Matt used to smile like that, sometimes, in a way that made her heart ache. That last dayHow much did Matt tell you about his childhood?
She shrugged and shifted the empty water bottle from one spot to another on her desktop. Just that he was adopted-he and Wade-when they were little. He told me he had a happy childhood, though. Said his adoptive parents were great-older, but nice. Good people. I dont think he even remembers anything before that.
Cory nodded. Wade didnt, either. Actually, I was hoping you could tell me-
So, what happened? She broke in on the question, hoping to stall it. How did you guys get separated?
He smiled again, wryly, and his eyes told Alex he was onto her tactic and okay with it-for now. Wasnt just us guys, actually. We have two sisters, too. Twins. They were toddlers at the time. He hitched a shoulder apologetically. Havent had any luck finding them, yet.
Alex glared fiercely down at her hand and the empty bottle, daring the burn in her eyes and the ache in her throat to produce tears. She won that battle but didnt trust her voice, and finally just shook her head.
Our father was a good man, before Vietnam changed him, Cory said softly into the silence. I was born before he left, old enough to remember how he was then. I remember his gentleness, and the way he liked to tell me stories. Then he was gone. And he never came back. Some stranger came in his place. Wade and Matt were born after that, and then the twins. But Dad never told them stories. Hed drink instead. And hed have flashbacks. At those times, Mom would lock us kids in the bedroom and tell me to look out for them-keep them safe. Then shed try to talk Dad back from whatever hell hed gone to. She tooka lot from him, to keep him from hurting us, or himself.
He drew a hand across his face, and the movement caught Alexs gaze like a magnet and held it fast so she couldnt look away even though she wanted to.
Thenone night I guess she couldnt bring him back. He tried to break down the door to the bedroom where us kids were hiding. I dont know exactly what happened, butanyway, that night he shot her, and then himself.
God The whispered word slipped from her before she could stop it.
We were taken away to some sort of shelter-a group home. I dont remember much about it. Then we were divided up among several foster homes. I kept running away from mine, trying to keep in touch with the others. I was considered a disruptive influence, I guess, because nobody would let me see them. Eventually, I landed in juvenile detention. While I was there, Wade and Matt and the twins got adopted by two different sets of parents. I got out when I was eighteen, of course, but nobody would tell me where they were. Nobody would tell me anything. Which was probably a good thing, I suppose, in retrospect. I was angry enough, I dont know what Id have done if Id been able to find the little ones. Kidnapped em maybe. Something stupid, Im sure.
Sohow did you find them? I mean, after so long-that had to be, what, twenty-five years ago?
Well, it hasnt been easy. I have my own resources, but we didnt make any real headway until we hired a P.I. who specializes in this kind of thing-reuniting adoptees with biological parents. A man named Holt Kincaid. Hes the one that made this happen. He found Wade first. Up in Portland. And Wade put us in touch-
With Matt. She folded her arms across her middle and frowned at him, concentrating on keeping all traces of emotion out of her voice. Sohave you seen him? How is he? How does he look? Does he still have the smile, now that he cant walk? Cant climb, cant do any of the things we both loved to do.
Matt, you mean? Ive talked to him, Cory said. On the phone, a couple of times. Im on my way to meet him now. But I wanted to He shifted abruptly, leaned forward and propped his forearms on his knees, hands clasped between them, head bowed in what seemed almost an attitude of prayer. After a moment he cleared his throat and looked up at her. I wanted to talk to you first, he said carefully. I need to know what Im in for.
Alex pushed away from the desk, scooped up the water bottle and went to drop it into the recycling bin that stood beside the door to the warehouse. What can I tell you? she said without turning. I havent seen him since he left rehab.
I mean, about the accident. You were with him when it happened.
She shrugged. We were rock climbing, he fell, broke his back, now hes paralyzed. Thats about it.
Come on. The smile in his voice made it a gentle rebuke. That much I got from Wade.
She spun back to him, firing questions in a breathless rush, again hoping maybe with the sheer volume of them she might hold him off a little longer. How is Wade, by the way? I didnt even ask you-he told me he got shot? Whats up with that? And he said hes getting married? Man, thats justI didnt think Wade would ever settle down. I dont think cops do too well with relationships. So Im really surprised. Whats she like? Have you met her?
I have, Cory said, while his eyes regarded her steadily from behind the rimless lenses in a way that made her feel he could see inside her head. And knew how desperately she was trying to avoid this-talking about Matt. Thinking about Matt. Tierneyssomething special. He paused, then added with a secret little smile, I think she and Wade will do well together.
What about you? She tilted her head back, still smiling at him, though his steady eyes told her it wasnt fooling him one bit. Are you married?
And she watched his face light up in a way that altered his whole being. It reminded her of watching a film of a land blooming from winter into spring in fast-forward. Yes, I am. My wifes name is Sam-Samantha. Shes the reason for all this, you know. The reason I decided to start looking for the little ones.
Wow, Alex said, her own smile hanging in there, resolute and meaningless. Sounds like theres a story there.
Several, actually.
Cory studied the young woman facing him with arms folded and smile firmly in place, barricades she struggled valiantly to maintain. She wasnt tall, hed noted, but looked wiry and fit, with long, thick dark hair worn in a single braid. Not beautiful, but definitely attractive. Her skin was a warm golden brown, with a sprinkle of freckles across her nose and the tops of her cheeks that gave her face a poignancy she probably wasnt aware of and would have hated if shed known. Beyond any doubt, her eyes were her best feature, hazel fringed with thick black lashes. They had a brave and haunted look now, and he felt a deep sympathy for her, along with an aching sense of familiarity.
I know what youre doing, Alex Penny. I know because its what I used to do. Ask the questions to keep from having to answer any. Concentrate on someone elses story to avoid having to tell your own.
He said gently, Id gotten very good at burying everything that had happened to methe loss of my family. That, along with the anger. Fortunately, Id learned to channel that anger into writing, and I think I took to writing about-and reporting on-wars because on some level I was trying to understand what had happened to my dad. But I never let myself think about my brothers and sisters. That was an emotional minefield I didnt cross-didnt even want to try. Sam changed all that. But not before I almost lost her, trying to keep my secrets.
There was a silence, one that seemed longer than it was. Then she let out a breath and unfolded her arms, and although she remained distant from him, she relaxed enough to lean against the wall. Okay, so what do you want to know?
How did it happen? How did my brother fall?
I dont know. She slapped that back at him, defensive again, chin thrust out. The rigging failed. Thats all I know. Believe me, if I-
Im not blaming you for what happened, Cory said quietly.
Well, swell, that makes one of us! Her eyes seemed to shimmer, but with anger, not tears. Then she lowered her lashes to hide them, and after a moment went on in a wooden voice, as if reciting something shed committed to memory long ago.