Harlan Coben - Play Dead

Laura’s message was the last one on the machine. Colin had a seminar on Saturday and would probably not be able to join her, but of course Judy would go to the ceremony. She had been very fond of David from the beginning and to Laura’s initial surprise, Judy had even been a big fan of his.

‘You’re dating David Baskin?’ Judy had said to her niece. ‘I think he’s the greatest player I’ve ever seen.’

‘I never knew you liked basketball.’

‘Love it. When I lived in Manhattan, I had season tickets to the Knicks games. I’ve followed your boyfriend’s career since he was a Michigan Wolverine. You don’t like basketball?’

‘I do now.’

Judy laughed. ‘Well, tell that handsome superstar that he better get me some tickets.’

‘Will do. When you coming down this way?’

‘In two weeks.’

‘Will you stay with me?’

‘Of course.’

‘Great. I’ll see you then, Aunt Judy.’

‘Goodbye, Laura.’

Judy took a deep breath. Poor Laura. Poor David. She reached for the phone and dialed Mary’s number.

‘Hello?’

‘Hello, Mary.’

‘Where have you been?’ Mary nearly shouted. ‘I’ve been trying to reach you for days.’

‘So I gathered. I went away for a few days.’

‘Don’t you call in for messages? Suppose somebody had to reach you in an emergency?’

Judy closed her eyes. ‘I was distracted. I forgot. Now, what’s the big problem?’

Mary did not answer right away. ‘Stan Baskin.’

‘David’s brother?’

‘Right.’

‘What about him?’

‘He’s living with Gloria.’

Judy almost wanted to laugh. ‘So?’

‘So?’ Mary shot back. ‘Don’t you realize what this means?’

Judy sighed deeply. ‘Why don’t you try being happy for Gloria, Mary? Hasn’t she suffered enough? The situation is hardly the same as it was with David and Laura.’

Mary paused. ‘I know,’ she said quietly, ‘and I want to do what’s best for my daughter.’

‘Is Stan Baskin a nice guy?’

‘I don’t know,’ Mary admitted. ‘I haven’t even met him yet.’

Judy nodded. Now she understood why her sister was so upset. ‘You’re going to have to if they stay together.’

‘I know. I’m just so scared. Suppose he recognizes – ’

‘It’s been thirty years,’ Judy cut in. ‘And anyway, it’s a risk we’ll both have to take. For Gloria’s sake.’

‘Both?’

‘Are you and Laura still speaking?’

‘Yes.’

‘Then she told you about the ceremony at Boston Garden on Saturday. I’m sure Stan Baskin will be there. So will I.’

‘You’re coming down for it?’

‘Yes.’

‘I’m so grateful, Judy. I need your support so badly.’

‘I’m not coming down for you,’ Judy said coldly. ‘I’m coming down for Laura and to pay my respects to David.’

‘Judy?’

‘Yes?’

‘It will never end, will it?’ Mary began. ‘Every time I think it’s over, it comes back to haunt me. Was it that awful, Judy? Was what I did so terrible that it should harm my children like this? Was it that unforgivable?’

Judy thought for a moment. In truth, it was not so unforgivable. But sometimes this indiscriminate world did indeed have a pattern, a pattern like a set of dominoes. We knock down one small tile and without realizing it, we trigger a reaction that topples countless others. Had this particular chain reaction finally reached the last tile and stopped? Had David’s death marked the end of this destructive chain? Judy hoped so.

But she doubted it very much.

T.C. drove back to his office. Serita was good, damn good, but T.C. had been up against better. She was lying. No doubt about it. And she didn’t feel good about doing it either. If she had been sure lying was the right thing to do, T.C. doubted her poker face would have revealed anything. Even now, T.C. was not nearly as confident as he pretended to be. But what else could he do? If he assumed she was telling the truth, it left him with nothing to go on. If he assumed she was lying, ah, well, that was a different story.

Okay, T.C. thought, let’s assume Serita is lying. What does that mean? T.C. tried to organize the facts in his head. Fact 1: Laura had seen Corsel. Fact 2: She now knew about the timing of the money transfer. Fact 3: She had discovered that David’s call had come from the Pacific International Hotel in Australia. Partial Conclusion: Knowing all of the above, Laura would never just give up and forget about it. Query: Where would she have gone next?

T.C. did not buy Estelle’s story about Laura on some secret fashion trip. What kind of crap excuse was that? He could understand trying to hide a certain excursion from your competition, but from her family and friends? Hardly Laura’s style. She trusted her friends. She would tell them, especially now when so many people were worried about her.

But she doesn’t trust me.

Sad to say but T.C. had to accept the truth. Somewhere along the way, Laura’s trust in him had disintegrated. She had not told him about her second visit to Corsel’s office; she had not told him what she had learned about David’s death. And if Laura had still trusted him, she would have. If she had still trusted him, Laura would have wanted his help.

T.C. shook his head. Those damn suspicions of hers just made everything all the more difficult. But all of this was an aside, an aside that was bringing him nowhere in a hurry. He had to find out where Laura was and what she was up to. He had questioned Laura’s parents, her sister, her best friend. Nothing. Could Laura have really gone somewhere without telling anyone? And if so, why? Unless she wanted to protect them. Unless she was doing something that could prove dangerous to her family and friends. Unless…

He stopped his car and sprinted to a nearby phone booth. He put a quarter in and dialed the unlisted number. It was picked up after the second ring.

‘Sherman’s Paper Supplies.’

‘Stu, it’s T.C.’

Stuart Sherman repeated, ‘Sherman’s Paper Supplies.’

‘Damn you FBI bigshots and your codes. Who the hell remembers? Can’t you do a voice print or something?’

‘We have a special on yellow paper today.’

T.C. thought. ‘Oh right. Do you have any yellow paper with pink and aqua lines?’

There was a moment of silence. ‘Hey, T.C. Long time no speak. What’s happening?’

‘Not much. Don’t you ever get sick of playing spy with all those codes?’

‘Nah,’ Stu replied. ‘It’s the reason most of us join.’

T.C. laughed. ‘And the reason I only work with you on special occasions.’

‘What phone booth you at?’

T.C. squinted. ‘The number is 617-555-4789.’

Stuart typed the number into his computer terminal. ‘Okay, it’s clean. What do you need?’

‘Quick request. Can you tell me if Laura Baskin traveled on any flights from the United States to any city in Australia? She may have used the name Laura Ayars.’

‘No problem,’ Stu said. ‘When do you need it by?’

‘Right away. I’ll hold.’

‘Okay, but it’ll take a few minutes. Say, how was the coroner we found for you in Australia?’

‘He worked out well, but he was from Townsville, not Cairns.’

‘Townsville?’

‘It’s about an hour flight from Cairns,’ T.C. said. ‘I had to fly him in.’

‘Ah what the hell, T.C., this business wouldn’t be any fun if there weren’t a few bugs in the system. How about Hank? How did he do for you?’

‘He’s still the best surgeon around.’

‘And the most discreet,’ Stu added. He paused a second. ‘Oh, and don’t worry, T.C. I’m not going to ask you what this is all about. It’s none of my business, right?’