they wore in the cold water lay in the hall awaiting maintenance. With them stood the pair of outrageously bright yellow Wellingtons.
As Maggie turned, Sam stood on tiptoe to put the last glass up, his arm outstretched and his face unselfconsciously young and attractive. “Yeah, good idea,” he said. At which Maggie's own face suddenly was suffused with such melting affection that it embarrassed me to look at it.
Maggie gave the sink a final, unnecessary wipe. When she finished, there was nothing but her usual good humor in her expression.
But I’d seen, and so had Jonathan Raines, whose sympathetic sorrow he concealed by frowning down at his hands. She dumped me, he’d said lightly, but I sensed he didn’t feel light about it.
Maggie must have picked something up from the cooling of the atmosphere, as well. “You could get her back, you know,” she said quietly to Raines. “You could call her and apologize.”
He looked up gratefully. “It's too late now, I’m afraid. But thanks for the thought, Maggie.”
“Come on, Mags, work to do,” Sam broke in, and a moment later I heard them chattering happily, dragging their gear out onto the porch to ready it for tomorrow.
“You two could get to the bottom of it,” Raines said when they had gone, meaning Ellie and me. “What happened to Hayes, for example, why he vanished. All I need to know, and more. You could find out because everybody knows you, and they’ll talk to you.”
Ellie sat down across from him. “We’ve tried,” she said. “We got out Hayes's papers in the library, old issues of newspapers, everything we could find.”
It struck me, then, the other thing I’d been wondering about Raines. A zing of suspicion went through me as I thought just how unusual it was.
“How’d you know where to find the plastic wrap? Where I keep the butter and condiments and so on? And how in the world did you know the dog biscuits are on top of the refrigerator?”
But his answer was ordinary enough. “Oh, well.” He shrugged modestly. “That's not hard. Things are usually where you expect them to be, aren’t they? If you think about it.”
He let out a heavy sigh. “Only not this time. And the trouble is, I can almost smell it. You have no idea the difference it would make to me, and it's here, but I don’t have the tools to get at it,” he finished, his voice hardening in frustration.
Then he caught himself. “The information, I mean,” he added. “About Jared Hayes, to write my dissertation. Get the degree.”
“Jonathan,” I began. Stop lying to me, I was about to say to him. Play straight with us and we might even be able to help you.
But at his mention of Hayes, the lights dimmed suddenly once more and flared again. Up in the attic, something thumped loudly and threateningly three times.
Monday whined. “It must be unnerving,” Raines said, angling his head sympathetically. “Having things so unsettled.”
I could have told him how unnerving it was. But Raines hadn’t confided anything, so I didn’t, either, and that worked out in the end about as well as it always does.
“Squirrels,” I said shortly. “They get into the attic and bump the wires and knock things over.” I was annoyed, so I didn’t feel like telling him anything but a few ground rules.
“Listen,” I began sternly. “You’re welcome to stay here—”
Back in the city, one of Raines's cousins had once saved my bacon. I won’t bore you with the details; suffice it to say that when Raines's relative finished chatting with the district attorney, my wealthy client no longer had a room reserved for him at a federal prison and I wasn’t being sued anymore.
“—as long as you want,” I finished.
Noting my tone, Raines eyed me contritely. And mad as I was at him, I still liked this strange creature with his gold shark's tooth necklace, his thick spectacles, and custom-tailored shirts.
“However,” I went on briskly, noting with satisfaction that my
As Maggie turned, Sam stood on tiptoe to put the last glass up, his arm outstretched and his face unselfconsciously young and attractive. “Yeah, good idea,” he said. At which Maggie's own face suddenly was suffused with such melting affection that it embarrassed me to look at it.
Maggie gave the sink a final, unnecessary wipe. When she finished, there was nothing but her usual good humor in her expression.
But I’d seen, and so had Jonathan Raines, whose sympathetic sorrow he concealed by frowning down at his hands. She dumped me, he’d said lightly, but I sensed he didn’t feel light about it.
Maggie must have picked something up from the cooling of the atmosphere, as well. “You could get her back, you know,” she said quietly to Raines. “You could call her and apologize.”
He looked up gratefully. “It's too late now, I’m afraid. But thanks for the thought, Maggie.”
“Come on, Mags, work to do,” Sam broke in, and a moment later I heard them chattering happily, dragging their gear out onto the porch to ready it for tomorrow.
“You two could get to the bottom of it,” Raines said when they had gone, meaning Ellie and me. “What happened to Hayes, for example, why he vanished. All I need to know, and more. You could find out because everybody knows you, and they’ll talk to you.”
Ellie sat down across from him. “We’ve tried,” she said. “We got out Hayes's papers in the library, old issues of newspapers, everything we could find.”
It struck me, then, the other thing I’d been wondering about Raines. A zing of suspicion went through me as I thought just how unusual it was.
“How’d you know where to find the plastic wrap? Where I keep the butter and condiments and so on? And how in the world did you know the dog biscuits are on top of the refrigerator?”
But his answer was ordinary enough. “Oh, well.” He shrugged modestly. “That's not hard. Things are usually where you expect them to be, aren’t they? If you think about it.”
He let out a heavy sigh. “Only not this time. And the trouble is, I can almost smell it. You have no idea the difference it would make to me, and it's here, but I don’t have the tools to get at it,” he finished, his voice hardening in frustration.
Then he caught himself. “The information, I mean,” he added. “About Jared Hayes, to write my dissertation. Get the degree.”
“Jonathan,” I began. Stop lying to me, I was about to say to him. Play straight with us and we might even be able to help you.
But at his mention of Hayes, the lights dimmed suddenly once more and flared again. Up in the attic, something thumped loudly and threateningly three times.
Monday whined. “It must be unnerving,” Raines said, angling his head sympathetically. “Having things so unsettled.”
I could have told him how unnerving it was. But Raines hadn’t confided anything, so I didn’t, either, and that worked out in the end about as well as it always does.
“Squirrels,” I said shortly. “They get into the attic and bump the wires and knock things over.” I was annoyed, so I didn’t feel like telling him anything but a few ground rules.
“Listen,” I began sternly. “You’re welcome to stay here—”
Back in the city, one of Raines's cousins had once saved my bacon. I won’t bore you with the details; suffice it to say that when Raines's relative finished chatting with the district attorney, my wealthy client no longer had a room reserved for him at a federal prison and I wasn’t being sued anymore.
“—as long as you want,” I finished.
Noting my tone, Raines eyed me contritely. And mad as I was at him, I still liked this strange creature with his gold shark's tooth necklace, his thick spectacles, and custom-tailored shirts.
“However,” I went on briskly, noting with satisfaction that my
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