Painted Ladies

16

The fax from Crosby finally arrived in my office on Monday morning. There were eight names on it. Three of them were women. One of them was Melissa Minor. I sat back in my chair. Melissa Minor. Minor wasn’t an exotic name. But it wasn’t particularly common, either. I could not remember, in the course of my lifetime, meeting anyone named Minor. And now on the same case in a matter of days I encounter two?

I swiveled around and picked up my phone and called Crosby.

“Spenser,” I said. “Thanks for the fax.”

“Maybe I’ll change the department motto,” Crosby said. “Stay mum and be helpful?”

“Needs work,” I said. “Can you get me the name of Melissa Minor’s mother?”

“Who’s Melissa Minor?”

“One of the students in Prince’s seminar,” I said.

“Oh, hell, I didn’t even read the list,” Crosby said. “When they sent it to me, I had my secretary fax it on over.”

“Sure,” I said. “Can you get me her mother’s name?”

“Yeah, they’ll have that.” I could hear the smile in his voice. “Where they probably send the tuition bill.”

“Lemme know,” I said.

“Call you back,” Crosby said. “This is exciting. I almost feel like a cop.”

“Try to remain calm,” I said.

We hung up.

While I waited, I looked out my window at the corner of Berkeley and Boylston. While I’d been spinning my wheels, we’d settled into December, and every commercial enterprise that would support a Christmas decoration had several. It hadn’t snowed yet. But it was cold, and the young women who worked in the area were bundled up so that it was less fun to watch them walk by than it was in the summer. But it wasn’t no fun. And though my commitment to Susan was absolute, that was no reason not to survey the landscape.

The phone rang.

“Mother’s name is Winifred Minor,” Crosby said. “No father listed. Mother lives in Charlestown. Employed at Shawmut Insurance on Columbus Ave.”

“You know if the father’s deceased?” I said.

“Don’t know nothing about the father,” Crosby said. “I asked about that. Told me in the admissions office that when she filled out the forms she simply drew a line in the space where it said ‘father’s name.’ ”

“What’s the address?” I said.

Crosby gave it to me. I thanked him and hung up. I sat for a while, looking at nothing. Then I got up and walked around my office, which isn’t really big enough for walking. I stood at my window and looked down at Berkeley Street. Then I sat down again. The more information I got, the less I understood.

“Hello,” I said to no one. “Any Minotaurs in there?”