age discrepancy, but she was not the least bit confused about the man’s identity: “He is Harch.”
“Perhaps it’s just a strong resemblance,” Mrs. Baker said.
“No,” Susan insisted. “It’s him, all right. I recognized him, and I saw him recognize me, too. And I don’t feel safe. It was my testimony that sent him to prison. If you’d have seen the way he glared at me in that courtroom ...”
McGee and Mrs. Baker stared at her, and there was something in their eyes that made her feel as if this were a courtroom, too, as if she were standing before a jury, awaiting judgment. She stared back at them for a moment, but then she lowered her eyes because she was made miserable by the doubt she saw in theirs.
“Listen,” McGee said, “I’ll go take a look at this guy’s records. Maybe I’ll even have a word or two with him. We’ll see if we can straighten this out.”
“Sure,” Susan said, knowing it was hopeless.
“If he’s really Harch, we’ll make sure he doesn’t get anywhere near you. And if he isn’t Harch, you’ll be able to rest easy.”
It’s him, dammit!
But she didn’t say anything; she merely nodded.
“I’ll be back in a few minutes,” McGee said.
Susan stared down at her pale, interlocked hands.
“Will you be okay?” McGee asked.
“Yeah. Sure.”
She sensed a meaningful look and an unspoken message passing between the doctor and the nurse. But she didn’t look up.
McGee left the room.
™We’llget this straightened out real quick, honey, ∫ Mrs. Baker assured her.
Outside, thunder fell out of the sky with the sound of an avalanche.
Night would come early. Already, the storm had torn apart the autumn afternoon and had blown it away. The twilight had been swept in ahead of schedule.
™ Hiname’s deÆnitelyBill Richmond,∫ McGee said when he returned a few minutes later.
Susan sat stifØy in bed, still disbelieving.
The two of them were alone in the room. The nurses had changed shifts, and Mrs. Baker had gone home for the day.
McGee toyed with the stethoscope around his neck.™ And he’s deÆnitelyjust twenty-one years old.f
™ But you weren’t gone nearly long enough to’ve checked out his background, ∫ Susan said. ™ Ifall you did was read through his medical records, then nothing has really been proved. He could have lied to his doctor, you know.f
™ Well,it turns out that Leon-Dr. Viteski, that is-has known Bill’s parents, Grace and Harry Richmond, for twenty-Æveyears. Viteski says he delivered all three of the Richmond babies himself, right here in this very hospital. ∫
Doubt nibbled at Susan’s solid conviction.
McGee said, ™ Leortreated all of Bill Richmond’s childhood illnesses and injuries. He knows for an absolute fact that the kid was only eight years old, living in Pine Wells, just doing what eight-year-olds do, when Ernest Harch killed Jerry Stein, thirteen years ago, back there in Pennsylvania.”
“Three thousand miles away.”
“Exactly.”
Susan sagged under a heavy burden of weariness and anxiety. “But he looked just like Harch. When he stepped out of the elevator this afternoon, when I looked up and saw that face, those damned gray eyes, I could have sworn ...”
“Oh, I’m certain you didn’t panic without good reason,” he said placatingly. “I’m sure there’s a resemblance.”
Although she had come to like McGee a lot in just one day, Susan was angry with him for letting even a vaguely patronizing tone enter his voice. Her anger rejuvenated her a bit, and she sat up straighter in bed, her hands fisted at her sides. “Not just a resemblance,” she said sharply. “He looked exactly like Harch.”
“Well, of course, you’ve got to keep in mind that it’s been a long time since you’ve seen Harch.”
“So?”
“You may not remember him quite as well as you think you do,” McGee said.
“Oh, I remember. Perfectly. This Richmond is the same height as Harch, the same weight, the same
“Perhaps it’s just a strong resemblance,” Mrs. Baker said.
“No,” Susan insisted. “It’s him, all right. I recognized him, and I saw him recognize me, too. And I don’t feel safe. It was my testimony that sent him to prison. If you’d have seen the way he glared at me in that courtroom ...”
McGee and Mrs. Baker stared at her, and there was something in their eyes that made her feel as if this were a courtroom, too, as if she were standing before a jury, awaiting judgment. She stared back at them for a moment, but then she lowered her eyes because she was made miserable by the doubt she saw in theirs.
“Listen,” McGee said, “I’ll go take a look at this guy’s records. Maybe I’ll even have a word or two with him. We’ll see if we can straighten this out.”
“Sure,” Susan said, knowing it was hopeless.
“If he’s really Harch, we’ll make sure he doesn’t get anywhere near you. And if he isn’t Harch, you’ll be able to rest easy.”
It’s him, dammit!
But she didn’t say anything; she merely nodded.
“I’ll be back in a few minutes,” McGee said.
Susan stared down at her pale, interlocked hands.
“Will you be okay?” McGee asked.
“Yeah. Sure.”
She sensed a meaningful look and an unspoken message passing between the doctor and the nurse. But she didn’t look up.
McGee left the room.
™We’llget this straightened out real quick, honey, ∫ Mrs. Baker assured her.
Outside, thunder fell out of the sky with the sound of an avalanche.
Night would come early. Already, the storm had torn apart the autumn afternoon and had blown it away. The twilight had been swept in ahead of schedule.
™ Hiname’s deÆnitelyBill Richmond,∫ McGee said when he returned a few minutes later.
Susan sat stifØy in bed, still disbelieving.
The two of them were alone in the room. The nurses had changed shifts, and Mrs. Baker had gone home for the day.
McGee toyed with the stethoscope around his neck.™ And he’s deÆnitelyjust twenty-one years old.f
™ But you weren’t gone nearly long enough to’ve checked out his background, ∫ Susan said. ™ Ifall you did was read through his medical records, then nothing has really been proved. He could have lied to his doctor, you know.f
™ Well,it turns out that Leon-Dr. Viteski, that is-has known Bill’s parents, Grace and Harry Richmond, for twenty-Æveyears. Viteski says he delivered all three of the Richmond babies himself, right here in this very hospital. ∫
Doubt nibbled at Susan’s solid conviction.
McGee said, ™ Leortreated all of Bill Richmond’s childhood illnesses and injuries. He knows for an absolute fact that the kid was only eight years old, living in Pine Wells, just doing what eight-year-olds do, when Ernest Harch killed Jerry Stein, thirteen years ago, back there in Pennsylvania.”
“Three thousand miles away.”
“Exactly.”
Susan sagged under a heavy burden of weariness and anxiety. “But he looked just like Harch. When he stepped out of the elevator this afternoon, when I looked up and saw that face, those damned gray eyes, I could have sworn ...”
“Oh, I’m certain you didn’t panic without good reason,” he said placatingly. “I’m sure there’s a resemblance.”
Although she had come to like McGee a lot in just one day, Susan was angry with him for letting even a vaguely patronizing tone enter his voice. Her anger rejuvenated her a bit, and she sat up straighter in bed, her hands fisted at her sides. “Not just a resemblance,” she said sharply. “He looked exactly like Harch.”
“Well, of course, you’ve got to keep in mind that it’s been a long time since you’ve seen Harch.”
“So?”
“You may not remember him quite as well as you think you do,” McGee said.
“Oh, I remember. Perfectly. This Richmond is the same height as Harch, the same weight, the same
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