Read Online (2012) Cross-Border Murder by David Waters - Free Book Online Page A

voice. “She doesn’t dispute your father’s innocence. Said she would be willing to talk to you. But not to me. You’re to call her next Monday.”
    “Why not before?”
    “She’s going out of town. She despised her husband. Called him cold and arrogant. Said he had known about your father’s affair. He had not been the least bit jealous. He had found it amusing.” I ran out of things to say.
    “So why didn’t you take me with you?”
    “I don’t know.” I began to walk across the quadrangle. “Anyway she wouldn’t have told you anything more, at least not in my presence.”
    “How do you know.”
    “She said so.”
    “So why didn’t you call me? I could have tried to see her last night.”
    “Because she said she was going out of town, that she would speak to you next week. And not before. Besides by then you had gone out to see a movie.”
    “Only because you didn’t return my damn call!”
    “I know. Look, I’m sorry. But I told you I prefer to work alone.”
    “I know that! But you can at least let me know when you’re going to talk to someone. I’m not always going to insist on tagging along. I mean, I don’t intend to play Dr. Watson to your Sherlock Holmes!”
    I grinned. “I’ve apologized. From now on I’ll keep you informed.”
    She sighed. She knew there was no point in continuing the argument. “Is she really a lesbian now?”
    “I’m pretty sure of it.”
    I thought of her father. And the pointlessness of his affair. I wondered if she was thinking of him as well. We sat on a bench in the center of the quadrangle. I lit a cigarette and stared out into space.
    “What are you thinking about?” She said finally.
    “Everyone in that group seemed to be living lives that were a lie. Except Monaghan maybe.”
    “Do you include my father in that category?”
    “There must have been a brief period when he lied about the affair.”
    She shook her head. “He may have tried to keep it a secret. But I don’t think he lied about it when my mother confronted him. My parents had their faults, but I never saw them as liars. And what about Gooden?”
    “When I spoke to him yesterday, he lied to me about how well he knew Monaghan. That is, of course, if we believe Hendricks. But then Hendricks may have been lying to me too. He obviously doesn’t like Gooden.” I gave a disgusted laugh. “What a strange maze we’ve walked into. Odd, too, isn’t it, how Hendricks seemed to enjoy yesterday talking about a period which must have been very unpleasant for him at the time. Hanging out with a group that barely tolerated him. Probably even despised him. Maybe it was the booze. I don’t know. It just struck me as a bit unusual.”
    “I can understand that.”
    “Can you? Well I can’t.”
    “I bet you’ve never belonged to a self-help group.”
    “No. Can’t say that I have.”
    She tossed her head in mock wonderment. “Man, you do live in a patriarchal world!”
    “Stop being simplistic.” I said. “It doesn’t help.”
    “Okay, okay.” She said. “But you should understand that it’s almost a policy for women to meet in small groups to share past experiences. And this may come as a surprise to you, but we do get relief, and even some pleasure from it. You and I were probably the first people Hendricks had a chance to talk to about an essentially negative period in his life. It was probably cathartic! And yes, even pleasurable.”
    I shrugged. “Bully for him, then.” But I didn’t quite buy her explanation. “He seemed to hold a lot back for someone who wanted catharsis,” I muttered. The uneasiness he exhibited still bothered me.
    “So what do we do next?” Gina asked, changing the subject.
    “Go back to my place. Examine the stuff we got from Joe Gibbs. Organize a visit to the Symanskys.”
    “For when?”
    “This weekend.”
    “Why not strike while we’re hot?” She said with just a hint of sarcasm. Understandable, perhaps. She was probably still riled about my