David Rosenfelt - Play Dead

There are not many people around, just thousands of unattended boxes and crates. Security is either nonexistent or very subtle; I get the feeling that if one of the boxes had “ANTHRAX – IF YOU ARE WITHIN TWO MILES OF THIS CRATE, YOU WILL BE DEAD IN FOUR MINUTES” printed on the side it wouldn’t attract attention.

After about twenty minutes of intensive investigating, all I’ve really managed to do is get lost, to the point that I have no idea where my car is.

I happen upon a small building that contains a few glass-enclosed offices. A woman sits behind one of the desks, so I lean in and ask if she knows where Joel Marshal’s office is, since that’s where I parked my car.

She smiles. “Just walk in the direction you were going, and after the second building make a right.”

“Thanks,” I say, and then decide to try another question. “Do you happen to know where I can find Roy Chaney?”

She smiles again, ever helpful, and calls out, “Roy! Somebody here to see you!”

All this time I thought I was lost, when in fact I was relentlessly zeroing in on Chaney’s office. Within a few moments a man I assume to be Chaney comes out of a rear office and walks toward the doorway, where I am standing. He looks as though he’s pushing 40, pushing 5'10", and has already pushed past 240 pounds. I wouldn’t want to try to sneak any contraband chocolate cupcakes or potato chips into the country with this guy around.

“What can I do for you?” he asks.

“You’re Roy Chaney?”

He nods. “Yup. Who are you?”

“My name is Andy Carpenter. I’m an attorney representing Richard Evans.”

“Is that right?” he says as he walks past me and out the door, leading me to step out as well. It was a clumsy attempt to conceal that he does not want the woman at the desk to hear the conversation.

“Yes. I understand you replaced him when he went on trial.”

“That’s right. I didn’t know him, though. I mean, we never met. When I got here he was already gone.”

I’m not that great a judge of human behavior, but Chaney seems nervous. “But you took over his responsibilities?”

“Right.”

“Was there anything unusual about any of the things he was working on? Or any of the people he was working with?”

“Unusual like what?”

“Unusual like something which would have made someone want to get him off the job and out of the way. Do you remember anything like that?”

“No.” It’s far too quick an answer; this was five years ago, and he would have had no reason to be thinking about those days until my question. This guy is hiding something and is not at all good at it.

“You didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary with his work… anything that you might have reported to your superiors?”

“I haven’t done anything wrong,” he says. “I just show up and do my job.” It’s an answer completely unresponsive to my question, and when I get those kinds of answers, I usually assume they are both unresponsive and untruthful.

I give him my card and tell him that he should call me if he thinks of anything. As I’m leaving, he says, “You trying to get Evans out of jail?”

I nod. “I’m doing more than trying.”

Laurie calls on my cell phone as I’m leaving the port area.

“Andy? Where are you?” is how she starts the conversation.

“Newark,” I say.

“You’re kidding,” she says.

“I am?”

“Are you serious?” she asks.

“Why would I lie about being in Newark? And why are we having this inane conversation?”

“Because I’m in Newark, also. At the airport.”

“Are you serious?” I ask.

“Why would I lie about being in Newark?” she asks, and then laughs. “I got someone to cover for me… We switched vacation times. There was a flight and I rushed to catch it; I tried your cell but it didn’t go through. Can you pick me up?”

“Gee, I sort of had plans for tonight,” I say as I race at high speed toward the airport.

“Okay, I’ll hitch a ride with the good-looking guy I sat next to on the plane.”

“Or I can change my plans.”

I’m at the terminal within ten minutes, and Laurie is waiting for me outside baggage claim.

She looks fantastic, which does not come as a major surprise. A long flight is not going to affect that; she could go through three wash cycles at Kevin’s Law-dromat and come out looking one corsage short of ready for the prom.

As I pull up, I’m faced with a choice. I can get out and help her get the suitcases into the car, or I can let her do it herself. My instinct is to get out, but it means that our hug and kiss hello will take place out in public, surrounded by travelers. If she gets in, we can do it in the car, in relative privacy.

It’s decision making like this that is the reason they pay me the big bucks.

I get out, put the suitcases in the trunk, and we do the hug and kiss routine for all Newark Airport to see. It’s not ideal, but it’s not half bad, either. In fact, it’s so not half bad that I briefly consider whether to take a room at the airport hotel.

Five minutes into our ride, Laurie says, “Is this where you got shot at?”

I was so focused on getting Laurie home that I hadn’t even noticed that. “Just up ahead.”

“Is Marcus around?”

I shrug. “You know Marcus. He’ll show up if I need him.” Then it hits me. “Wait a minute-you switched your vacation and came here early because you were worried about me. You don’t think I can take care of myself.”

She smiles. “You can’t.”

I laugh. “Then it’s good you showed up.”

We get home, and Laurie spends five minutes petting and hugging Tara, then another five meeting and petting Reggie.

“You want something to eat?” I ask.

She shakes her head. “I want to get these clothes off.”

“Don’t let me stop you,” I say.

She smiles. “I was talking about your clothes.”

“Don’t let me stop you.”

* * * * *

GETTING OUT OF bed early has never been my strong point.

It usually runs counter to my enjoyment drive; the bed is comfortable, right near my television, and an easy stroll to the kitchen refrigerator. All in all, not a good place to leave.

Leaving it when Laurie is lying next to me is positively goofy, and I am simply not going to do it. Unfortunately, Tara and Reggie have a different point of view, and at six thirty their scratching on the door tells me in no uncertain terms that they are anxious to take their morning walk.

I get up and grab the leashes, resisting the impulse to leave an “I’ll be right back” sign on my side of the mattress. We walk for about twenty minutes, which is about nineteen minutes longer than I had planned. They just seem to enjoy it too much to cut it short.

Reggie has developed an interesting walking style. He keeps his nose close to the ground at all times, as if it were a metal detector. When he hears a sudden noise, like a car horn, his ears lift up but his nose stays down.

When we get back, my own ears alert me to an impending crushing disappointment. The shower is running, which means Laurie is out of bed, which in turn takes away my reason for getting back in. My day is officially starting, far too soon.

I grab a cup of coffee and head for the bedroom to get dressed. Laurie is already on the way out, in sweatshirt, sweatpants, and running shoes. It is one of her idiosyncrasies that she showers before and after exercising. “You want to go running?” she asks.

“I’d sooner go root canaling,” I say, and she leaves.

She comes back maybe ten seconds later. “Miss me?” I ask.

“Let me have your cell phone,” she says, her voice serious.

I get it off the table and hand it to her. “What is it?”