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He nodded soberly. “Greenley claims Rivers is responsible for the change in growth strategy. Which leads one to ask, why?”
14
“Ihave one more stop to make. It won’t take long,” Reese hastened to assure him when he gave her a swift glance. “We’ll be home in time for lunch.” She’d already learned that Hayes was abnormally concerned about regular meals. “Then I can order those groceries you mentioned this morning.”
He pulled out of the parking garage and turned onto the street. “Why do I feel like I’m the one getting played now?”
“Because you have a suspicious mind?”
A corner of his mouth lifted. “With good reason, after seeing you in action. Okay. Where to?”
“Tranquility Lakes Mental Health Institute.” She already had the address pulled up on her cell and sat it on the center console.
“Where your brother lives?”
Just hearing the words aloud elicited a jitter in her pulse. “Yes. I want a look at it.”
“To what end?”
The question just added to the nerves that wanted to rise. “Eventually, I want to speak to Ben’s doctor.”Wantwas overstating things. She would have put off the meeting forever if she were able. A pool of dread formed in her stomach justthinking of talking to the provider who had treated her brother for years. Who would have a complete family history of the incidents leading up to Ben’s complete mental health break.
Dampness flooded her palms. It was unfair to equate the doctor with Reese’s response to anything related to her brother. The woman knew Ben better than anyone alive. And she’d be very aware of the circumstances that landed him in the residential facility.
After he’d left, Reese had lived in constant terror of Ben’s return. Her parents had wrapped her in a cocoon of isolation, rarely talking about him in her presence. From the rare occasions Julia had mentioned him, she’d learned that they’d never given up being reunited with their son. But their deaths had sent her brother into a downward spiral that he obviously hadn’t yet overcome with medications and therapy.
But Julia’s notes had included queries about the expenses associated with his stay at Tranquility Lakes. Ben’s doctor would be the best source for the answers. She just wasn’t sure she was ready for them.
“Where am I heading?”
“It’s about thirty miles. Just south of Escondido.”
He drove in silence for several minutes before saying, “I take it you’ve never visited him there.”
She turned her face to the window. “I haven’t seen my brother since I was seven. The only ones who visited him were my parents. I believe Julia tried a couple of times, but Ben refused.”
“Do you know what his diagnosis is?”
“I really haven’t gotten into the medical reports yet.” In her way, Julia had been just as protective of Reese as her parents had when it came to shielding her from any talk of her brother.
“Okay. The offer still stands.”
Puzzled, she looked at him questioningly.
“To read through them for you,” he elucidated.
“I’ll consider it.” Reese wasn’t even sure herself what she’d accomplish with this trip, but she hoped that being able to picture where her brother lived might provide her a foundation for the questions she was formulating for Dr. Sedgewick.
But she hadn’t imagined the physical toll it’d take. With each mile, her tension grew greater, until it felt like an anvil lodged on her chest. The therapist she’d seen after Thorne had observed that she had some unresolved issues from her childhood.No shit. But that wasn’t a topic she’d been willing to discuss with the woman. She’d just been intent on healing enough to get through the days without flashbacks and nightmares.
“Charming area,” Hayes noted. His observation woke Reese from her reverie. The city was notched into a valley, surrounded with foothills covered in coastal sage scrub, chaparral vegetation, pines, and oak trees. He turned off at the GPS app’s urging and drove a few more minutes before pulling through the opened gates onto a long private driveway. A discreet sign said Tranquility Lakes Mental Health Institute.
The facility sat well back from the road, a sprawling one-story structure painted gleaming white with a red clay tile roof. The landscaping featured large colored boulders and small decorative trees that probably cost a hefty price tag to keep alive in summer droughts. She could see three smaller detached buildings on one side of the structure.
There was a split in the drive, the right leading to visitor parking and the left to a staff lot. When Hayes would have taken a right, she stopped him.
“Enter the staff parking.”
“Why?”