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“I’m here,” Hanna told her, but she didn’t go closer. She stayed back in case a sniper was out there, ready to target her the moment she stepped into view. However, she could still see her mother’s face through the glass. “What happened to you?”
Isabel shook her head. “I don’t know. I was driving, coming out here, and I got so dizzy.” Some of her words were slurred. “Uh, I had to stop...and when I got out to try to get some fresh air, I stumbled and fell.” She paused again. “I saw the lights to your house and walked toward them.”
“Is it possible someone drugged you?” Jesse came out and asked.
Isabel lifted her head, peering directly at him. Her eyes were definitely unfocused, so that part wasn’t an act. “I don’t know,” she repeated.
“They can do a tox screen on her at the hospital,” Hanna heard Jesse murmur. “We can find out what she’s taken or been given.”
“What were you eating or drinking before you came here?” Jesse pressed, shifting his attention back to Isabel.
Isabel responded with another headshake and more slurred, mumbled words. They were obviously going to have to wait for the effect of the drugs to wear off before they got any answers, but Hanna decided to try one more question.
“Why did you need to see me?” she asked.
Isabel groaned and lifted her head. “Because I’m sorry. So sorry.”
Hanna sighed since her mother had obviously come here to rehash her guilt over stirring up Arnie so he’d confront Jesse. “We’ll talk about that after you’re out of the hospital. I’ll call Dr. Warner and let him know what’s going on.”
The doctor might even have some insight about a possible bad side effect from medication Isabel was taking for her recovery from the stroke.
“You were so mad,” Isabel went on, as if talking to herself. “That’s the worst argument we’ve ever had. Even worse than the other ones about Jesse.”
That got Hanna’s attention. “What do you mean? What argument?”
Isabel closed her eyes. “The one about the money.” She was definitely getting groggier, and Hanna didn’t think it was a good idea for her to sleep. Not until they knew what had caused this.
“Stay awake, Mother,” Hanna snapped, hoping that Isabel would respond to the stern tone. She did. Well, in part. She opened her eyes anyway. “What argument did we have about money?” Hanna demanded.
“The money you found in my account,” Isabel muttered as if it were something that Hanna was well aware of.
Hanna glanced at Jesse to see if he knew anything about this, but he only shook his head. This was the first either of them was hearing about it.
“Too much money in there, you said,” Isabel rambled on. “You saw my bank statement lying on my desk, and you said it had too much.”
Hanna definitely didn’t recall any of this either. “Why was the money in your account?” she asked.
“A favor. That’s all. That’s what I tried to tell you. It was just a favor. But you said it looked like money laundering to you.”
Sweet heaven. A single deposit wouldn’t have caused her to come to a conclusion like that. There must have been a pattern.
“How much was this favor?” Hanna pressed.
“A hundred thousand, added in increments...” Isabel stopped, groaned, but then shook her head as if trying to clear it. “Added in increments of just under ten thousand.”
Hanna couldn’t be sure, but she thought those amounts wouldn’t have been reported to the IRS or some other government agency.
“You said you knew the money couldn’t be mine because you’d just had a meeting with my accountant about those bad investments I’d made,” Isabel continued.
Again, this was news to Hanna. She hadn’t known about the investments, the meeting with the accountant or these mystery funds.
In the distance, Hanna heard the sirens and knew the ambulance would be there soon. Once they took Isabel to the hospital, heaven knew how long it’d be before she got to talk to her again. She wanted to clear all of this up now.
“Who put the money in your account?” Hanna went on.
“A friend,” Isabel said, her voice barely audible now, and she closed her eyes again.
“What friend?” Jesse and Hanna demanded in unison.
