Audra McGee

LEONARD

I watched as Annette looked at the television once more, sipping champagne. She sighed, leaning back in her seat she rubbed a nervous hand in her platinum locks. "Annette? You alright? You seem worried."

She looked at me, "I'm just nervous, that's all."

"Why?"

"Just wondering what's waiting in New York, it's been years since I have been there. I never thought I would come back to it." she sighed.

"You don't like New York?"

"No, I hate it there too many memories. None of them are pleasant."

"A penny for your thoughts."

She smiled, "Just some family issues, same ol', same ole."

"You told me your parents were bakery owners born and living in Nantucket."

She looked at me, standing up, "Really. Don't know what I was thinking there."

"What are you hiding? Why are you hiding anything? You were the one who made the rule in this relationship that we are honest with one another, no secrets, I've told you everything what do you think is so horrible that you have to keep it hidden? Tell me we can work through this."

She looked at me, "No, we can't work on this, Leonard. I've kept it hidden too long."

I sighed, "I'm confused, are you telling me really eighteen and not twenty-three?"

"No, I'm twenty-three this secret is worse than an age lie."

"Come on, my love, tell me, it can't be that bad."

She sighed, "I'm a murderer, Leonard."

"How are you a murderer?"

"Two people didn't die that night, Leonard. Your mother's dead, but your sister, was fortunate enough to make it out alive, she's well taken care of."

"You murdered my mother?"

She looked at me, then at the floor, " Yes, yes I did. My father told me that if I didn't do it, then he would kill her, then he would kill me, to silence me, I was fourteen. I knew your mother was seeing my father, though my mother tried to hide that she knew, she too ended up dying because of my father's greed and lust. I escaped from his clutches a year later, I fled to Nantucket, changed my name, and made up a new life to hide the fact that I was Audra McGee. A fatal affair with two wonderful women lost in the triangle."

I looked at her, "Where is my sister, Annette?"

She looked at me, " You've seen her and played with her, she's Riley, the little girl from Nantucket. I raised her and when I moved to Nantucket, I gave her to the Calloway's I knew since my father was out to kill me I had to make a life for myself and Riley, she's your sister, not mine."

I looked at her then at the table, "How did you get Riley if my mother was already dead?"

"I'd rather not say, but she's safe and your mother didn't feel a thing."

I looked at her, "Since you know your way around New York, we're departing ways once we land. Find your way back to safety, you did it once, you can do it again."

I stood up, walking past her into the private cabin. I sat down pouring myself some champagne getting my phone from my pocket, redialing Nicolae's phone number, it rang once and went to voice mail. I sighed, leaning back in my chair, I looked through my contacts seeing a contact that I hadn't talked to in years, I smiled dialing the number, in one ring I sighed, "Grace, how are you doing, my lovely morbid flower?"

She laughed, "Still morbid, more today than back then. How have you been? You and the little lady married yet, or have you been missing me?"

"We're not together, I broke up with her. Secrets broke us up, personal secrets."

"Ah, the little lady has some skeleton haunting her family closet."

I sighed, "You have no idea."

"I know that tone, you're furious. You want to have some fun when you land?"

"Fun?"

"Cigarettes and wine for me and Scotch for you, the way you sound, you need it on the rocks. With a little extra fun on the side, if you know what I mean."

I laughed, "Glad someone hasn't forgotten about me."

"Like I would forget you, my dark knight. Our friends didn't call us the Joker and Harley Quinn for our innocence," She laughed, "Whatever innocence the two of us had."

"Those were nicer times, nights at your parent's country club, leaving our rooms disheveled. Our excuses lamer than ten-year-old." I laughed.

"The only people we were fooling were ourselves, good times."

I took a sip of champagne with a sigh, "This drink isn't getting me hammered fast enough."

"What are you drinking?"

"Champagne."

"The way you're talking you're going to need something stronger than that, perhaps some rest would do you good, maybe a hot shower."

I sighed, pouring the champagne into the trash can. Placing the glass on the table, "Have you heard from Nicolae, he called me earlier and I tried calling him, it went to voice mail, you live in New York still, don't you."

"I live Beaumont-Sur-Mer, but I'm staying in New York to deal with history. Nicolae is resting in his room with Charmaine, he's had a rough morning."

" What happened after he called me this morning?"

"J.M. Enterprises happened, Nicolae gave us a scare, but he walked away with minor injuries. J.M. Enterprises is one less employee than they were yesterday."

"Grace, is it true that our mother got murdered, over an affair gone wrong? A love child sparked this feud."

She sighed, "Yes, it's true, Roseline had threatened to go clean with the affair, and the child if McGee kept refusing to pay child support, that night he had silenced your mother, struck her with a steel pipe twice. After that, he gutted her, the baby gone. My guess he killed the child too."

I bit my lip, "Our mother cut open, and the baby was gone?"

Graceona sighed, "It looked like a horror film in that room. But I suspect that McGee, had someone deal with that."

I threw the glass across the room as it shattered, " Manipulative little liar."

"Leonard?"

I looked out the window to see us landing at the New York Airport, " How long will it take for you to come to the airport, I'm landing now."

"I'll be there in five minutes, I have a feeling you have your own information you have to add in this, case. I'm on my way."

"Stay on the phone with me, please. Keep me from doing something that will get me put in the news for murder."

Graceona was silent, "I know a good bar."

"I need a hotel and a bar."

"I know an excellent hotel as well."

"What would I do without you, Harley Quinn?"

"You'd be in jail for murder or violence. But I know behind every great man is a brilliant woman. Perhaps you can leave Nantucket behind and join me in Beaumont-Sur-Mer, start over."

I smiled, "A fresh start, sounds nice."

Once the plane landed, I got from the plane, walking to the parking lot, " I may need to touch up on my French."

"You'll be fine."