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Julia

Julia stumbled out of the kitchen in a daze.

She had forgotten all about her tea, and although she’d only drunk half her glass of wine, the room was spinning.

She was trying to remember Uncle James more clearly, but his image was a blur.

She recalled him often wearing a hat and having a genial smile, but otherwise her memories were murky and elusive.

He must have stopped coming to the lake when she was in her teens. But she’d been distracted at that age by boys and friends and hadn’t paid much attention. She didn’t think there’d been a falling-out, since Cormac had kept a picture of Uncle James on the wall.

A disturbing thought hit her like a punch to the gut.

The playroom. During the all-consuming fear of being trapped inside a locked room, Julia recalled hearing the sound of voices and a loud crash.

Had there been an argument, some sort of struggle?

And then, when they were finally let out, the red living room rug was gone, exposing the hardwood floor underneath.

What if…?

It was horrifying to even consider… but Julia thought she finally understood her aversion to the brown rug that had appeared soon after.

Subconsciously, she’d always known something was deeply wrong, and now she could see it in her mind: a very Mob-like image of a body rolled up in a bloody red carpet, being discreetly carted away.

It felt surreal to finally piece together what happened, after so many years of confusion and self-doubt.

Erika’s father was a salesman, a vague enough job to be anything—including a criminal, a fixer, or maybe even a hit man for the mob.

Julia supposed that Jimmy T could be the man Anna Olsen referenced in her letter—but she’d made it clear her gang-affiliated paramour resided at the lake, which pointed to Cormac.

And with her memory coming into sharper focus, Julia’s doubt was washed away.

It all fit, even the timing. It was in their teens, after David’s father died, that he became Cormac’s errand boy.

If David acted as the go-between for the two gangsters, it would explain why Uncle James stopped coming to the lake.

That could be how David first got involved with the Mob, James Tracey, and the porn trade.

But what did she know? She’d been young enough not to ask questions, and Uncle James, aka Jim Tracey, aka Jimmy T, was relegated to a vague memory and nothing more.

The picture of Cormac and Jimmy T in the kitchen revealed another disturbing connection.

Erika likely had known Fiona before this vacation started.

Sure, there was an age gap, but with such a close friendship between their fathers, those two must have crossed paths on more than a few occasions.

And yet they had acted like perfect strangers.

How David’s relationship with Fiona factored into all this was yet another question.

Julia staggered into the living room, determined to get some answers.

Erika took one look at her friend, and her demeanor shifted instantly. Was that fear in her eyes? “Are you all right? You’re deathly pale,” Erika asked.

Julia faltered. “Did you know her?” she said in a bleak whisper.

“Know who? What are you talking about?”

“Fiona,” said Julia, narrowing her gaze.

Erika flinched, betraying herself. Her complexion dulled. Her brilliant eyes lost their glimmer.

So it was true.

Julia shifted her attention to Rick, who looked like he’d taken a hard slap across the face. He knew as well. He must have been in on it. But in on what, exactly?

“Uncle James is Fiona’s father.”

Erika switched to a stony expression. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she said, her tone forced. She obviously wasn’t the actress Fiona had been.

Before Julia could confront her further, the front door flew open, and Taylor and Izzy strode in, apparently on a mission.

“We need to see Lucas. Is he upstairs?” Taylor asked, her speech hurried.

Julia nodded, noticing that Taylor and Izzy avoided eye contact with the two homeowners. They knew the name Jimmy T, but had they somehow connected the dots back to the Gallagher family?

Both kids bounded up the stairs without seeking permission.

Rick got to his feet. He approached Julia slowly, steadily, like a wolf closing in. Julia’s blood went cold.

Erika bolted from her chair, barricading herself between Rick and Julia.

“No, don’t,” she said, pressing her hands against her husband’s chest to hold him back. “It’s not her fault. She’s done nothing wrong.”

“But she knows,” he said.

Julia didn’t like the nervous flutter in his voice. She suddenly regretted letting her daughter and Izzy enter the home. Hopefully they’d be safe upstairs, but that didn’t help Julia.

Rick shoved Erika aside as if she were an empty paper bag. What did he plan to do? Julia froze, not knowing if she should fight or flee.

Before she could make a move, the front door came open for the second time in as many minutes. Julia swiveled toward the kitchen, surprised to see David make an appearance.

His face was plum-colored. He stormed into the living room, skin shimmering with a thin coating of sweat. His eyes were so wide they were primarily white.

“Good. Just the two people I was hoping to see,” David said, gesturing toward Erika and Rick. “Where is Fiona?”

“I… don’t know,” Erika stammered.

“Bullshit!” David spat. He shook his head in disbelief. “Blame is on me… partly,” he said, his tone softening. “I was too distracted by my hot new girlfriend to bother looking into her background. If I had, I would have found more lies than truths. You know what Detective Baker told me?”

Julia held a breath.

Oh, shit.

“She said that Fiona’s father is Jim Tracey from Bennington, otherwise known as your uncle James.

You must have known that your dad put me to work with Jimmy years ago.

Cormac and I were like family, but with Jimmy, it was always business.

I knew nothing about his personal life—I never met his family.

“But you were like family to Jimmy. You know what that means, Erika, don’t you?

” David inserted a long pause that put Julia on edge.

“You would have met Fiona at some point. For all I know, you even babysat her! So where is she? What did you two cook up and why? You’re going to tell me what the hell this is all about, right here, right now. ”

“Or what?” Rick braved a step forward.

David was ready. With one swift motion, he snatched a rifle from the gun rack mounted to the wall directly below Cormac’s portrait, and aimed the weapon at Rick’s chest.

“I’m pretty sure this is the gun you use when you go coyote hunting,” David said. “And I believe you were the one who told me that armed intruders don’t wait for you to load your weapon. Do you follow your own advice, Rick, and keep a loaded gun on the rack?”

David hefted the rifle higher. He squinted as he stared down the barrel, taking careful aim.

Rick swallowed hard, but otherwise he didn’t move a muscle.

“I guess that’s my answer,” David said. “Sit down and stay out of this,” he ordered.

Julia saw murder in her friend’s eyes. Rick must have seen the same, for he obliged without protest, parking himself in the closest chair. He might be bold, but he wasn’t stupid.

“Now, you. ” David swiveled until he had the rifle aimed at Erika. “Where is Fiona? I just spent hours getting grilled by Baker, who is convinced I killed her.

“Funny that you found the bloody shirt under my porch even after there was a K-9 unit nearby,” David continued. “So start talking, Erika. Because I’m running out of patience.”

Julia hadn’t realized fear had a smell, but a new odor permeated the air, something harsh and pungent.

“I… I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Erika said, stumbling over her words, but she regained her composure quickly.

“I don’t know anything about my father’s business and didn’t know Fiona until you pranced her around like your new trophy,” she insisted.

“I think I met Uncle James’ daughter once when she was a baby, so there’s no way I’d recognize her as an adult decades later. ”

Erika looked so confident, Julia started to believe her. Was it really that simple? A bizarre coincidence? But no, she had seen her friend’s fear. It was brief, but it was palpable.

Julia should have expected that the commotion might draw the teens, who surged down the stairs in one thunderous stampede.

She felt as if she were moving through molasses.

Her cry of warning got lodged in her throat, like those terrible nightmares where you watch tragedy unfold, paralyzed and unable to stop it.

By the time Lucas reached the bottom step, David had the gun pointed at his chest. Wisely, Lucas came to an abrupt halt.

Taylor screamed as she foolishly stood beside Lucas, putting herself in harm’s way and thinking with her heart rather than her head.

Thank God Izzy had the sense to pull Taylor away as she moved to stand next to Julia, though Lucas remained stuck in place with the gun trained on him.

Rick jumped to his feet. David didn’t even bother looking his way.

“Stop right there, Rick, because I have nothing to lose,” he said.

Julia watched David’s finger tighten on the rifle’s trigger.

“Stay back,” she warned. “He means it.”

Rick froze, following the order.

“If you take so much as a step in my direction, I will shoot,” David threatened. “Maybe the gun isn’t loaded, maybe it is, maybe there’s one in the chamber that you didn’t check for—are you willing to gamble your son’s life?”

The bravado drained from Rick’s face. Erika visibly trembled, her confidence gone now that Lucas was in the line of fire.

“Don’t test me,” David continued. “I’m a dead man walking if I don’t find Fiona. Jimmy T isn’t going to let this slide. No place will be safe for me, and that includes prison. So you’re going to tell me where Fiona is, right here, right now, or it’s your son who will pay the price. You decide.”

“Don’t hurt him, David, please,” Erika begged. “Put the gun away.” She dropped to her knees, hands clasped in front of her. “Leave my son out of this. I promise, I’ll tell you everything.”