“Were you able to speak with Cyrus, little one?” Alexandria asked, looking almost afraid of the answer.
Everly shook her head. “No, Miss Alexandria. I didn’t speak to him. I don’t need to, do I?” She sat beside the older woman and took her hand. “It’s time, don’t you think?”
Silent tears slipped down Alexandria’s cheeks.
Jude turned to Cope, who shook his head. He obviously had no idea what Everly was talking about. “Time for what, honey?” Jude asked his niece.
“I’ll be right here with you,” Everly said, patting Alexandria’s hand.
Alexandria sighed. “Cyrus was always a wild child. I did everything in my power to protect him from himself, but in the end, I failed him. When my husband died, he left everything to Cyrus. I’d been born poor, and Lucius was under the impression I’d waste all of his money if he left it to me, which is why it all went to Cyrus. I wasn’t bothered because I knew my son would always take care of me. Until he didn’t.”
“What do you mean?” Cope asked.
“Cyrus sold the company my husband put all of his blood, sweat, and tears into. It should have been enough money to lasttwo lifetimes, but Cyrus started gambling, visiting strip clubs, buying jewelry, houses, boats he had no idea how to drive.” Alexandria took a shaky breath. “Meanwhile, the taxes on my New York penthouse were due; so were my utility bills. Cyrus had promised to give me a monthly allowance, but months went by with no money being added to the account. He wasn’t taking or returning my calls. I was desperate. If the taxes weren’t paid up, the state could take my home. Thankfully, it was in my name. It was the one thing Cyrus didn’t get when my husband passed. Although, I suppose if it was his, then he would have had his money man pay the bills.” Alexandria shrugged. She looked worn and tired, as if the effort took all of her strength.
“What did you do?” Ronan asked. “Did you lose your home?”
“No. I wish now that I had.” Alexandria shook her head. “I knew Cyrus came to Maine every summer, so I caught a flight to Portland and rented a car. I arrived at my rental house and planned to get a good night’s sleep. I figured I would go to see my son in the morning, but as I was starting to unpack, I got a text from Cyrus telling me he wasn’t going to pay any of my bills and that I was going to need to find a way to fend for myself.”
“Holy shit,” Fitz muttered. “Did he really mean it?”
“I never found out. After I read the message several times, I got back into the car and headed for the motel. All I could see was red. I knocked on his door, and when he answered it, I—” Alexandria paused, looking down at Everly.
“It’s okay, Miss Alexandria. I’m right here.” Everly patted her hand.
Jude couldn’t believe what he was hearing. It felt like a bad dream with the sky the color of blood and a mother spilling a story that was almost too hard to believe.
Taking a deep breath, Alexandria continued. “When Cyrus opened the door, he looked surprised to see me. He asked what I was doing there. I told him I wanted to have a discussion about the money. He said he was tired and that we could talk about things in the morning. I told him I couldn’t survive without his help, and he told me he didn’t know what I was talking about.” Alexandria paused, shaking her head as if she couldn’t believe what was to come.
Jude wondered if it hadn’t been Cyrus who’d sent that text after all. It could have been anyone with access to his phone, which made this story all the more tragic.
“I was angrier than I’d ever been in my life and scared that I wouldn’t be able to survive on my own. I reached into my purse and pulled out a knife I’d grabbed from the block in my rental house’s kitchen and plunged it into his heart.” Alexandria dropped her head and began to cry.
A lone white gull, etched against the bloodred sky, let out a screech, as if it were bearing witness to Cyrus’s pain.
“You killed your son?” Jude asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
Alexandria nodded. “I did. I knew Cyrus didn’t have a will, and as his next of kin, I’d inherit everything. Which I did, in time. Before I left the room, I saw my husband’s old messenger bag by the side of the bed. When I opened it, it saw it was full of cash. I grabbed it and the knife. I told my son I loved him and watched him die before leaving the room to drive back to my rental. I cleaned myself up, scrubbed the knife clean, and went to the airport to book a flight back to New York.”
“That explains why Cyrus didn’t want to tell us who killed him,” Fitzgibbon said.
“So, I suppose now you’ll want to arrest me.” Alexandria held out her wrists.
Ronan stepped forward, looking as if he were prepared to do that very thing, but stopped in his tracks. He turned to Fitzgibbon, who wore an uncertain look. Neither man moved or said a word.
Jude curiously watched what was going on. He waited for Fitzgibbon to read Alexandria her rights. For Ronan to call the Old Orchard Beach Police. Neither of those things happened.
Everly motioned Ronan closer. He knelt beside his daughter, who whispered something into his ear. Sitting back, Ronan looked between his daughter and Alexandria. He pressed a kiss to Everly’s head and motioned Jude and Ronan to follow him.
Ronan stopped about fifteen feet away from the others. “Everly said Alexandria has twelve days left. She even told me the time of day that she’d pass. I’m going to keep that to myself.” Ronan cleared his throat. “So, what are we going to do here?”
“Didn’t Everly tell you what would happen next? What we’d decide to do?” Jude asked.
Ronan grinned. “Maybe, but I want to hear what you all think.”
“With so few days left, I say we let this sleeping dog lie,” Jude said, not quite believing his stance on the matter.
“I hate to say it, but I agree with Jude,” Ronan said, looking sheepish.
