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“Mrs. Poplov?” he called. “I saw you run in here. Please come out.”
From behind the boat, Sophie stood and pointed the gun straight at his face.
“Leave me alone,” she said. “Or I’ll shoot.”
“Whoa,” said the frat boy, and lifted his hands. “Please don’t. My name is Jeremy. Jeremy Klein. I’m an attorney. Dr. Elizabeth Parks’s attorney? I’m not here to hurt you. I’m here to help. With good news. I swear it.”
Good news? Sophie stared at the boy, confused. What good news?
“Please put the gun down.” He laughed nervously. “My God. Please…”
Sophie studied him. He seemed genuinely frightened.
And unarmed.
“What do you want?”
Klein looked around. “Do you know these people? Are we—could we be trespassing here?”
Suddenly Sophie felt foolish. How would the bikes and the woodwork protect her? Jeremy’s English seemed perfect. No trace of a Russian accent.
“Can we speak out here?” he kindly asked. “I work for Tolles and Associates, a law firm? We handle trusts and estates for the Parks family?”
Sophie took a deep breath and nodded. Quietly, calmly, she rounded the boat and wove through the garage toward the bright light of day, holding the handgun at her thigh.
Jeremy stepped back and gave the young mother a little room. He turned and walked toward the sidewalk, pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket, and wiped his brow. Then blew his nose.
Sophie approached and slipped the gun back into her purse.
“Wow,” he said. “I’ve never been held at gunpoint before. Geez. That was intense. Thanks.”
“It’s not loaded,” Sophie said softly.
“That’s good for me. Good for you, probably, too. Anyway. Let’s walk back to your sister.”
“Cousin,” said Sophie.
Unless this was a trick, she wasn’t in trouble. They headed back down the block in step. Sophie studied Klein’s face for a moment. He was so young, around Ivan’s age.
“Sorry to scare you, but now we’re even,” Jeremy said. “I know this is strange, but we’ve been looking for you for quite some time. You worked for Dr. Parks, correct? In Bel Air?”
Sophie nodded.
“And you know about the break-in? The girls? The robbery?”
“Yes. It was all over the news,” Sophie said.
“Then you heard that Dr. Parks shot the two girls, in self-defense? The girls and her son were trying to rob and kill her?”
Sophie nodded. “Yes. It was sad. Her own son. They said he was high on drugs.”
Jeremy nodded. “Yeah,” he continued. “He was. And he was in a fatal accident later that morning. Did you know that? He passed away from his injuries, after driving off a cliff on Mulholland Drive.”
“No,” Sophie admitted. “No. I hadn’t heard that. We haven’t cleaned for her lately. No.”
“Right.” Jeremy’s face darkened. He sensed that Sophie knew less than they had assumed. He stopped walking.
“And Mrs. Poplov? Are you aware that Dr. Parks is dead, too?”
