Thank you for reading and for the wonderful reviews, I will keep the chapters coming! l
Chapter Nine
We were on our way back from Logan Airport after dropping my mother off for her short flight back to the Midwest. Miss Isles was nuzzled in the back seat of the Bentley Bentayga keeping to herself while watching the traffic zip by and I was zoning in and out while steering us back to the estate. The goodbye was short and sweet, with promises of seeing each other at least once every few months, even though it would never be enough.
The piercing ringtone shattered all tension in the confines of this vehicle. It would be nearly impossible to not listen to the one side of the conversation taking place behind me. She had answered her cell phone immediately and nodded her head and moved her eyes across the empty space in front of herself making me believe that whomever she was talking to her had a mouthful to say before they let her get a word in edgewise.
"Yes… yes mother I understand. I will have my driver head in that direction now." A coldness began to creep into this luxury SUV that was not welcomed. "The Mandarin Oriental, please."
I silently patted myself on the back because I knew how to get there from our location without needing to use GPS. We arrived in record time, and I knew this because her impatient mother wasn't out front ticking her foot like the second hand of a clock.
Miss Isles rolled the window down briefly as if to signal her and minutes later she fled from the double doors, seeming annoyed that she had to open it herself while the closest bellhop helped a woman with several pieces of luggage instead of her. I inwardly rolled my eyes as I exited the car to politely open the back door for the anxious woman. She didn't even chance a look in my direction as she slid in the back seat.
"Maura dear, we have no time to waste. We must set the house properly and I do not have the confidence that you can do this on your own. There are only a few hours until all my guests will be arriving. I trust you haven't gotten rid of the dining room furniture?"
"No mother, I have not gotten rid of any furniture."
"Good. Then the set up should go quickly. Luckily I have my catering team on standby and they are already preparing tonight's meal."
I could hear the clench of Miss Isles' teeth while she bit back the words she wanted to say. We drove just about the rest of the way in a forced peace until I turned my head to the side to watch for oncoming traffic on one of the last three turns I was going to have to make. The profile of my face must have been observed very closely when I made this slight motion.
"Maura. Is this the same woman you brought as a date to my installation? She doubles as your driver? Have I not warned you before about mixing business with pleasure? We instilled these rules in you when you were younger for a reason, dear. Your father and I both cautioned you to not get too close to the help here, whether you hired them not…"
Constance Isles had droned on with this until I pulled up to the front of the estate. Maura hadn't even made a sideways glance in my direction nor defended me in any way. I felt a stab of pain in my chest as she escaped from the vehicle with an apprehensive silence. Though I did attempt to rationalize with myself that she and her spiteful mother had quite a bit of last minute planning to do for some dinner party she was organizing and it may have caused a level of irritation that I couldn't quite understand. I offered a sympathetic look to Miss Isles as she spun her perfectly wavy honey and golden locks around to give me one last view. Her face had been stern and fixed into a grimace. I was hoping vehemently it was not aimed at me.
I couldn't hear or see anything, but I knew the buzz of a large gathering taking place a few hundred yards behind me was aiding in the sinking feeling I couldn't fathom. The look she gave me, the silence she treated me with… I was torturing myself with this, sitting here alone in my house. I tried to read. I tried to watch some television. I tried everything to rid the growing feeling. I wanted to step out and drive and catch a breath of fresh air, but was afraid I may not be readily available if I was needed to cart someone around right away. A sense of feeling trapped wound me tightly. To loosen the hold I did fifty push ups and paced around the house straightening up things that had already been tampered with minutes before. I folded and re-folded throw blankets on the back of the couch and the foot of my bed. I was fuming too badly to want to take a bath for fear my body would scald the water even more.
Getting my mind away from the torment I was putting it through, I thought it best to give my mom a call for a distraction, of sorts.
"Janie! What a surprise!" Her delight doused my heated skin with cold water.
"Hey Ma," and with those two simple words she knew everything.
"What's wrong honey?"
"Nothing."
"Jane Clementine Rizzoli… Tell me what is wrong this instance."
"After we dropped you off at the airport Maura's mother called and her and her whole mood shifted and now there is this massive dinner party happening at the estate and she was so rude to me, Ma. So incredibly rude to me."
"Who, Maura?" She asked, unbelieving.
"No, her mother, Constance. Though, Maura did nothing to defend me and I don't know… I think I'm just distressing myself at this point."
"Janie you can't read too much into it. She's a good woman and has a high opinion of you and values you. And I'm your mother… That's not something I would just readily admit to."
I chuckled at her honesty.
"Besides," she continued. "I heard you two last night on the porch… You telling her about Hoyt... What she said in response…." I let her words seep in. "You two are unique. I would maybe just let this blow over, sweetheart. Give it just a little bit of time."
I felt better already. "Thanks, Ma," I smiled into the mouthpiece of the cell phone so she could hear it.
"You are welcome. You're my daughter, and I love you, and I will always be here to talk some sense into you."
I chuckled again. "I love you too, Ma."
"Okay, now I gotta go honey. Even after my flight back this morning, your father is waiting for me make dinner. His patience is getting thinner and thinner lately."
"Tell him I say hi and I love him too."
"Will do baby, enjoy the rest of your night."
We hung up and my head was clearer. I decided to sit in the rocking chair and read, all in an effort to keep my mind occupied.
"Miss Rizzoli, could you please exit here, I would like to stop by the office for a few hours."
I veered to the Panorama to the ramp on the right and smoothly drove to her office building that she had not been to in weeks after admitting that she despised being there.
"Thank you, I will be done in four hours. Please be out front with the BMW 7 series. I am going to arrange dinner plans and will let you know the destination then."
I nodded my head stoically. This is how it had been for the past week. The personality I once saw peek out, gone without notice, replaced by an icy demeanor always covered in some fancy giant sunglasses. Anytime I would let her attitude grind my gears, I repeated the words my mother told me, 'give it time.' It had severed as my mantra for the past several dozen car rides we have shared this week. She has kept herself busier than from when I first started driving her. My old detective senses were telling me she was hiding from something. But I did well enough to shush them and push them aside.
Needless to say, there have been no rocking chairs, no shared bottles of wine, and no shy laughter - just short and sharp instructions that pierce through me like daggers multiple times a day. I thought my best reaction to this sudden change was no reaction at all. I just let it all happen. I wasn't trying to outsmart her; I was just simply trying to get by until her mood shifted back. Though hope was fading, quickly, with each car ride and each 'Miss Rizzoli' I endured.
For the two hours I was going to have to wait, one hour to head back to the garage and one hour to bring it back to the city, I chose a cool sandwich spot called Cutty's that I have yet to try. The line was out the door, but I had some time to waste, so I planted myself at the end and waited for the chain to move. After five minutes and no one shuffled forward even an inch, I leaned against the building and hoped whatever I ended getting in the end would all be worth it.
Another ten or so minutes passed and the line had graced forward about a foot. By this point, I was hoping I'd have time to eat the damn sandwich by the time they got to me at the very end of the line. Just as I was about to peek my tall and lean frame over the heads of those standing ahead of me, someone slid in a spot behind me and cleared their throat loud enough for me to hear it. I turned quickly to address whoever it was then swiftly folded my arms across my chest.
"You guys followin' me?"
"No no, the pork rabe is the best sandwich in town. You ever had it?" Detective Korsak sounded honest, but I still wanted to stand my ground.
"No, first time here." I was stiff and unwavering.
"We only venture down here once a week during a rough case. Old man here can't think without that damn sandwich." Detective Frost chimed in next to him.
"So you wait an hour in line just so you can do some real thinking?"
They looked at each other and smiled before Detective Korsak spoke up. "Never have, never will. Follow us."
The three of us journeyed to the front of the patient crowd and the older office nodded in the direction of the man behind the counter. He formed the number three with his hand and the Cutty's employee acknowledged him. Two minutes later, a bag was passed over the counter.
"Here you are detectives," the worker winked in my direction. "New partner, huh Korsak?"
And like just like that we were walking to the back patio to indulge in these.
"That was pretty impressive," I said as soon as we were all seated.
"You think that's impressive, wait 'til you take a bite of that." The younger officer was animated as he unwrapped the wax paper and took a big chomp of the bread.
I followed suit and did the same. Damn. That was good. I could see what the wait was for. We each ate through half of our late lunch in a hungry silence until Korsak wiped his beard and mustache down with a handful of napkins.
"Frost, you think the director of the rehab home has motive?"
"Nah, she was clean with an air tight alibi. Phone records didn't raise any flags. I'm thinking we take another look at the clinic, ask around, see if her picture flares any moods."
"Could try that. Such a shame. She was a talented guitarist. Good voice too."
"Yeah, wasted her time at open mics though."
"Same sets, same places, for months…"
I finished my sandwich. I knew what they were doing. They were trying to rope me in to this conversation. I was falling for it too. A big part of me had missed all of this breakdown on case, even though it was more frustrating than anyone could imagine.
"Who replaced her?" I spoke up and they both raised their eyebrows at me. "At the open mics? You said same sets and same places…. That's the only constant you have from what I'm hearing…"
Detective Korsak smiled knowingly from the side of his mouth and Frost mimicked the gesture. They changed the subject to the Red Sox and the Cubs, keeping the rest of the conversation as neutral as possible before they said they had to get back to the station. I thanked them once again for lunch and told them I'd probably run into them again soon. They snickered at the comment before heading out.
While driving Miss Isles to her dinner reservation at some upscale restaurant, my phone had rang several times. The fist time startling us both because the ringer was all the way up and I silenced the call before seeing who it was. The second time, it jarred the air in the car again as I offered an apology. The third time, Miss Isles spoke angrily at me.
"Miss Rizzoli, you are on my time, I suggest you turn your phone off and do the only thing you are here for. Drive."
I bit my tongue and made the slightest of nods before turning my phone off, never taking my eyes from the road in front of me.
"I will be done in ninety minutes. Let's hope you no longer have any distractions deterring you from doing your job properly."
She exited the car hastily then composed herself in a quick breath and closed the door. When she rounded the corner, I saw her kiss the cheek of some woman and link arms with a feigned happiness on display for those around.
Still reeling my neck back into position with the whiplash I just endured from the irritability of my employer, I turned the ignition off where I was parked on the side of the restaurant and leaned my head back, closing my eyes. I remained like this until I heard the back door open precisely and hour and a half later and the icy voice of the socialite commanded that I take her back to the estate for the evening.
The bitter part of me wanted to ask if someone spit in her food, but I remained silent and robotic as I pulled into the horseshoe drive way. "That will be it for the night Miss Rizzoli. I hope whoever was the cause of distraction from your job is aware they put your employment on the line with their incessant behavior being just as abysmal yours has been."
She slammed the door and clicked her five inch heels to the entrance while my head spun around once more. I had forgotten to put my phone back on. I zipped back in the garage and ushered myself into the house tossing my keys on the counter while starting up my cell phone.
Fifteen missed calls and thirty-four text messages.
I called back the number immediately.
"Ma?"
"Janie! Your father…"
"Ma what's wrong?" The room had begun to spin.
"Your father was rushed to the hospital…" She hiccupped a sob, "we think he had a heart attack." Another sob escaped her. "I need you now Janie. Please... They don't know… Just no one knows... They just don't know…"
I don't even remember hanging up the phone while I rushed to the back door of the estate and began knocking with an anxious force.
"Miss Isles, I…" I began frantically.
She pushed the door open with a clenched jaw. "The nerve you have banging on the door of my home like that. I will not stand for these manners Miss Rizzoli. Especially when I have given you more than you will ever be able to give to yourself. You came here with nothing, now I expect you to leave the same way." She slammed the door in my face.
I didn't have time to remain stunned as I ran to the garage to grab my own car and peel out of the driveway faster than I have ever reversed before. I don't remember the drive to the airport at all, or if I will ever see my car again because I left it parked in a loading zone as I ran inside and bought a ticket for very next flight into Chicago.
