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Gone was the bottle in her grip. Instead, she held a child, young and full of trust as she clung to Hanna’s gentle talons. Hanna could see her now, the little girl in the white nightdress, face streaked with decades of tears but smiling now as she passed beyond pain.
Tears dripped down her face as she opened her eyes. She worked fast as they fell, yanking the corks from the bottles to send the souls skyward. Now the sparrows flew, one after the other, feet spreading then gripping as if they grabbed something midair to carry it on.
Then the bottles stood open to the air, empty but for the gruesome reminders of deaths that had long gone forgotten. Those trophies no longer symbolized the suffering of souls, but the triumph of a freedom too long unrealized. Hanna stood alone once more, the only sparrow in the rose garden, and smiled at the vast sky above her.
“You’re next, Stuart,” she said softly. “You and your Janette. Come to me. It’s all right. Come to me and I’ll help you leave this place.”
She expected the gust of cold air, the touch of icy fingers on her hand. Instead, she felt Stuart’s presence in the shadow of the house. He didn’t take her hand when she reached out towards him.
“Stuart, it’s okay. It won’t hurt. You can leave, now.” She stretched her hand out again. “Please. I can keep looking for your body, and Janette’s, and have them properly buried. But you don’t have to stay.”
All she felt from him was a stubborn determination. Then he disappeared, drew back into the house and away from the salvation she offered him. Confused, she stared at the place where she had sensed him, and murmured, “Why do you want to stay? What am I missing?”
The sound of a car pulling into the driveway at the front of the house interrupted her musings. Hanna hurried to gather the bottles back into the bag so she could head back inside. She had to shower and dress, and didn’t want to have to rush her preparations as she had last night.
She had nearly reached the staircase when the front door opened. Moments later, and she would have missed Darlene, clad in her wrinkled party dress from the night before and bandages to cover where IVs had broken her skin. At first, she walked with small steps, her shoulders hunched and movements slow as if she still suffered from weakness.
Her posture changed as she caught sight of Hanna. Darlene stood straighter. Her shoulders rolled back, her chin lifted, and one side of her lips lifted in a sneer – until her gaze landed on the bag Hanna still carried over her shoulder.
In Darlene’s eyes, Hanna saw the blackest anger, a hatred deep enough to kill. Or worse than kill, to maim, to hurt, to destroy in every way the woman could conceive. She opened her mouth to speak, and Hanna braced herself for the argument to come.
It never did. Gregory’s voice said in a deep, resonant tone, “Mother. You’re home. Hanna, go on and get ready, if you would. Mom and I need to talk about how she’s going to stay in her room tonight if she still wants a roof over her head tomorrow.”
Discretion was the better part of valor. Hanna fled up the stairs with her bottles before either of them made Gregory’s life harder.
15
Sparrow’s Fall
“Nervous?” Hanna asked Gregory, though she could see the answer at a glance.
He stood ramrod straight, fussing with the fit of his shirt for the fourth time since they’d met downstairs. His drawn face and tense shoulders showed a man wound tight, a cable pulled taut enough to snap. She couldn’t tell if the high-stakes dinner had riled him up, or his mother’s arrival home, or perhaps the lack of downtime for the last few days.
All of them, maybe. I hope he can relax once his guest arrives. He’s much more charismatic when he’s at ease.
“Very.” Gregory gusted a heavy breath out between flattened lips. “I’ve never felt like this company belonged to me. It was an echo of my grandfather. The shadow I stood in, even after he died. I wanted to do well to honor his memory, not because I held any personal investment in it.”
She stepped close to him so she could take his hand. “That’s changed, now?”
“Yes. Last night, I realized, that disconnect I felt was because I had nevertriedto make the company my own. I have been a guest in my own life. No more.” He squeezed her hand, eyes bright. “I care about this so much more than I thought I did. For me, for Martin and how people treat him, for you… Tonight is the first and most important step into the rest of our lives.”
“And you will do just fine.” Gently, she drew his hand up to rest on her chest, over her heart. “I love you. You are going to knock him dead.”
One of his arms wrapped around her to pull her close. “I love you, too. I’m lucky to have an understanding girlfriend who supports me. This is one of the most important meetings I’ve ever had. Maybe the most important thing I’ve done. I’m truly taking control of my grandfather’s company. Doing it my way and making a difference. And here you are, right by my side.”
“This isyourlife.Yourlegacy. You know I would do anything to help you realize it.” She drew back so she could smile at him.
His smile had warmed again, turned fond. “Just like you know I would do anything to help you realizeyourdreams. This isn’t all about me. I want to build this into a company we can both be proud of.”
“I’m already proud of you,” she told him.
“That means everything to me.” A motor rumbled in front of the house, and a flash of lights hit the windows as a car pulled in. “They’re here. Should be him and his wife. This guy has a few rough edges, but for the moment, he’s integral to what I need to do. I intend to buy him out later so I never have to talk to him again.”
“I’ll smile, make polite conversation that doesn’t have to do with the remains in the basement, and try to help you guide the conversation towards the natural conclusion that the board is bad for the health of the company.” Hanna straightened her skirt.First planned dinner as his girlfriend and partner in crime. You’ve got this, Hanna.
Gregory took her hand and led her to the door. While one of the staff would usually answer it, she knew Gregory would have wanted to do it himself. He winked at her, then turned the handle.
“Steve! And Julia. Welcome to Greenhill Hall,” Gregory said as the door swung open.
