Harm's Reach

30

The meeting room smelled of fresh shower gel and toothpaste. Conor Gorman, his messy dark hair still wet, was sitting at the edge of the sofa, his knees wide, his forearms balanced on his thighs, his head bowed. He was dressed in black jeans, a gray T-shirt and scuffed black biker boots. He had the look of a wanderer, like someone who didn’t belong, not just on a sofa covered with bright fleeces in the forced cheer of The Darned Heart Ranch, but on any sofa anywhere — because that’s what ordinary people did. They sat on sofas and were ordinary. The only difference was that not many ordinary people had the small, quiet might of suited lawyer Christopher Bergin beside them. He stood up and shook hands with Ren and Janine.

It was only then that Conor looked up. He fixed first Ren, then Janine, with the palest blue eyes, stark under the thick lines of his eyebrows.

This is that dark Irish thing that women love.

He had just turned seventeen, but there was something magnetic about him that went beyond his years, something sorrowful that came from his core.

‘I’m so sorry about your aunt,’ said Ren.

He raised an eyebrow. He looked around as if he would find a punchline or a set of handcuffs.

‘Thank you,’ he said.

He stared down at the floor. The chain around his neck hovered, drawing attention to its ugliness. The rest of his jewelry looked more his style: two twisted red ropes on one wrist, a black G-Shock watch on the other, a black and silver band on his right thumb. Ren could see how strange a fixture Conor Gorman would be in the Princes’ lives, how he wouldn’t blend in. He would be like a rubber mark on a marble floor.

‘How are you holding up?’ said Ren.

He shrugged.

‘Is being here helpful?’ said Ren.

He hesitated before he answered a tentative, ‘No.’

‘Then why are you here?’ said Ren.

‘To make the Princes happy...’ said Conor. ‘They paid a lot of money for this, it’s what Aunt Laura wanted...’ He shrugged again. ‘I know I have issues... but...’

‘Conor, can you tell me what happened the day that your Aunt Laura was murdered?’ said Ren.

‘I left the ranch—’

‘Let’s start with how your aunt came to be close by,’ said Ren.

‘She was coming to meet me,’ said Conor. ‘I had spoken with her on Saturday night.’

‘How did she get a hold of you?’ said Janine. ‘Cell phones are forbidden at the ranch, right?’

‘She called the front desk, pretended she was Ingrid Prince... she did a good Americany Swedish accent...’ He tried to smile, but the words had caught in his throat and he ended up fighting back tears.

‘And why wouldn’t Laura have just said who she was?’ said Ren.

If she wasn’t hiding something...

‘I don’t know,’ said Conor. ‘I asked her, but she just said she didn’t want to get into it. She told me I was to meet her at twelve on Monday.’

‘Did she say why?’ said Ren.

‘No,’ said Conor, ‘I said “But I’m not allowed out of here — just come to the ranch.” She was like “I won’t make it by tomorrow, and then I’ll have to wait until formal visits next Sunday. And I have to see you this week.” She said to meet by the little stand of dead trees on Stoney Pass Road... She’d seen them on Google Maps.’

I knew it!

‘How did she sound to you on the phone?’ said Ren.

Conor shrugged. ‘Just... normal.’

‘Anything else?’ said Ren.

‘No,’ said Conor.

‘Was Laura the type to hide her emotions?’ said Ren. ‘If she thought, for example, that telling you something might worry you.’

‘Laura always looked out for people,’ said Conor. He wiped away tears. ‘This is so messed up...’

‘Did she express any concerns about her pregnancy to you on the night she called?’ said Ren.

‘No — I had no idea she was pregnant.’

‘Do you know the circumstances of the pregnancy?’ said Ren.

‘What do you mean?’ said Conor.

‘Did you know that Laura was acting as a surrogate for the Princes?’ said Ren.

His eyes went wide. ‘No.’

‘How do you feel about that?’ said Ren.

He shrugged. ‘Weird. I mean... in general. I guess I don’t understand going through all that for someone else. Aunt Laura was a good person. She and Ingrid were close. And Robert...’

‘And Robert what?’ said Ren.

‘Well... just I guess he gets people to do what he wants...’

‘What do you mean by that?’ said Ren.

‘Just he’s that kind of guy,’ said Conor. ‘He’s a nice man, I guess, but he likes to be in control.’

Hmm.

‘Do you like Robert?’ said Ren.

A flicker of something crossed Conor’s face. ‘Yes.’

‘You can be honest, here,’ said Ren. ‘You have to be honest... by law.’

He nodded. ‘I did like him. I do like him. He can be intimidating, that’s all. He’s a rich guy... he’s just different to regular people...’

‘Different how?’ said Ren.

‘I don’t know...’

‘And how do you get along with Ingrid?’ said Ren.

His face softened. ‘Good. I like Ingrid.’

‘And did you have a problem with her insisting you stay on at the ranch after your aunt’s death?’ said Ren.

‘That was Robert,’ he said.

‘No — it was Ingrid,’ said Ren.

Conor frowned. ‘Who told you that? Robert?’

Ooh — you do not like that man.

‘How did Robert get along with Laura?’ said Ren.

‘Good,’ said Conor. ‘They liked each other a lot. Aunt Laura’s very smart; they had lots to talk about.’

‘Did you ever get the sense there was anything more between them?’ said Ren.

‘No. No... no way.’ He paused. ‘But then, I’ve been away a lot...’

Ren nodded. ‘OK, back to when you were meeting Laura.’

‘I was coming from rehab that day,’ said Conor. ‘I forged a note from the Faules saying that I had chores at the abbey, so that the driver would let me out there. When he was gone, I walked to where I was to meet Aunt Laura...’ He stared at the ground, preparing for the next part. ‘She was already dead.’

‘I’m so sorry that you had to find your Aunt Laura — that you had to see her that way,’ said Ren.

‘That’s... that’s when I found out she was pregnant...’

Oh, dear God.

‘That must have been a terrible shock,’ said Ren. ‘I’m so sorry.’

‘What time was that at?’ said Janine.

‘It was about — I don’t know — twelve thirty by the time I made it there?’ said Conor. He was clenching his jaw. His knee started bouncing up and down. ‘It was terrible.’

‘What did you do?’ said Janine.

‘I freaked,’ said Conor. ‘As I was walking toward the car, I could see this darkness on the windscreen. I thought it was shadows from the trees or something. It was... blood. I pulled open the driver’s door. She was dead. I knew she was. But I pulled her back to just... to just make sure she was... to check that she definitely wasn’t still breathing... but I knew, I knew...’ He welled up.

‘It’s OK,’ said Ren. ‘Take your time.’

‘Then... I couldn’t really move her back. And I was afraid I’d, you know, destroy evidence. I panicked. I ran back to the ranch.’

‘And did you have blood on your clothes?’ said Ren.

‘Yes,’ said Conor. ‘I did.’

‘What did you do with them?’ said Ren.

‘Put them in the garbage,’ said Conor.

‘Did anyone see you?’ said Ren.

‘I guess not,’ said Conor.

‘Did you sit inside the car?’ said Ren.

‘No,’ said Conor.

‘Are you sure about that?’ said Ren.

He nodded. ‘Yes.’

‘Conor, we found your fingerprints on the dash on the passenger side of the car...’

He started to cry. ‘I don’t know,’ he said. ‘It’s all a blur. I guess I sat inside. I don’t want to think I did. The car was horrible.’ He shook his head. ‘I remember now. I... I wanted to get something to clean my hands. I was... covered in blood. I... thought there might be something in there... a cloth, whatever.’

‘Did you find anything?’ said Ren.

‘No,’ said Conor. ‘No.’ He rubbed his face.

‘Conor, why didn’t you tell the Faules about what happened?’ said Ren. ‘Or why didn’t you call the authorities?’

He looked up at her, fear flickering in his eyes.

Ren thought of the ranch, the burnt-out car, the Faules’ rehab facility plans, the murder of Laura Flynn, the terrible collision of circumstances that could destroy a business like The Darned Heart overnight.

Oh my God. Did you tell the Faules and they silenced you?