Sight Unseen(3)
“Really? We haven’t had time for her to wonder if I’m threatening your virtue.”
“It’s not my virtue Mom’s concerned about.” She accessed the call. “Hi, Mom. I’m with Dean Halley now. I didn’t no-show, and I haven’t scared him off yet.” She looked inquiringly at Dean. He shook his head. “No, he thinks I’m weird, but he’s sticking with me.”
“Brave man. I knew I could count on him. He’s a fine teacher and a great guy. You have to admit I did a good job of bringing you two together. Now all you have to do is cement the relationship.”
“A relationship neither one of us wanted from the beginning. Why, Mom?”
“You know the answer. Dean is steady and wonderfully normal. He’s as close to the guy next door as I could find. That’s what you need, Kendra. Dean could lead you away from all those police and FBI types and make you enjoy it. He’s intelligent, gorgeous, and has a sense of humor. The only thing he’ll want from you won’t be anything more complicated than sex.”
She chuckled. “I told Dean you wouldn’t be concerned about my virtue.”
“Screw virtue. I’m concerned about your life. I want you safe.”
“I know, Mom,” she said gently. “And that’s the only reason I gave in about tonight. I love you and wanted to give you the chance to play Mother Teresa and save me from myself. You’ve done that all my life and done a great job. Tell me, are you missing it?”
“Maybe a little. You were my whole life for quite a while.” She cleared her throat. “But that doesn’t mean that I’m not right in this. Now, do you like Dean?”
“We haven’t had time to—” She glanced at Dean. “Yes, I like him. At first, I thought that he was too pretty, but maybe he can’t help that. And he doesn’t try to dodge, and I think maybe he’s honest.”
Dean smiled, still staring out the windshield. “You do know I can hear everything you’re saying, right?”
“You didn’t put him through any hoops?” Diane asked.
“Not intentionally.” She had just spotted blinking lights ahead. “Look, Mom, I have to go. I’m in his car and I—”
“You’re going out to dinner?” Diane sounded pleased. “That’s progress.”
“Yes, isn’t it? I’ll talk to you later, Mom.” She hung up.
“You’re very close,” Dean said quietly. “I thought so when Diane was talking about you to me. But you just confirmed it.”
“I love her. She made me what I am. Both physically and mentally.” She grimaced. “Well, maybe not quite. I take full responsibility for my faults and the wild oats I’ve sown. She had nothing to do with them.”
“Wild oats? You’re a music-therapy teacher.”
“Who after I began to see believed that the wine of life should be tasted to the last drop.”
“Really?” He looked intrigued. “Diane never mentioned wild oats to me.”
“She wouldn’t. You’re her idea of the wholesome guy next door. She wouldn’t want to scare you away.”
“I notice you didn’t disillusion her … yet.”
“No. I’ll have to probe a little more.” She smiled. “Guy-next-door types generally bore me. It shows a lack of courage to reach out.” She held up her hand to stop him from answering. “Later. Those lights up ahead is our destination. We’re going to have to run the gauntlet.”
* * *
“MA’AM, YOU’LL HAVE TO GET BACK in your car and clear out. Authorized personnel only.”
Kendra and Dean had driven around the two-mile-long line of stopped cars that extended from the bridge, down Laurel Boulevard and across the 1-5 freeway. A stocky, female traffic cop was holding back the curious onlookers, mostly joggers and dog walkers, angling for a glimpse of the chaotic scene.
Kendra turned back toward Dean, who had just parked his car on the side of the Prado Road that transitioned to the bridge’s two-lane roadway. She motioned for him to join her.
The traffic officer glared at him and raised her walkie-talkie as she would a lethal weapon. “Sir, don’t even think of leaving your car there. I have a tow truck on speed dial.”
Kendra waved him over again. Dean hesitated, then climbed out of the car.
The stocky cop shouted something that was lost in the roar of the circling news’copters. Kendra surveyed the scene behind her. There had to be someone she knew here. She had assisted in a few police investigations in the past few years, but none of them involved the accident-investigations cops now on the bridge snapping photos and taping off the scene.