Upon A Pale Horse

TWENTY-TWO In the Clear

When two days had gone by with excruciating slowness, Jeffrey practically ran from the office at lunch time, the now-daily walk part of his attempt at exercise, he’d told his secretary, who hadn’t given the remotest sign of caring. He was getting better at checking his reflection in shop windows, looking for a tail, and didn’t see anything ominous as he ordered his sandwich and stood in line to pay, a predictable creature of habit who would hopefully lull any watchers into somnolent boredom.

He rushed to eat and then made his way to the pay phone to call Jakes.

The gruff PI’s voice was matter-of-fact when he came on the line. “The car’s not in her name. It’s actually owned by a company out of Virginia. Evendale Industries. Ever heard of it?”

“No. Doesn’t ring any bells.”

“Name doesn’t come up on any lists, which is neither good nor bad. Means she has no criminal record. We’re waiting for a more thorough search, though. Should be in by the end of the day.”

“Where does that put us?”

“Nowhere good. I also did a reverse on the business number, and it comes up as unlisted. Which doesn’t necessarily mean anything. Lots of businesses have unlisted numbers. Depends on what they do, of course.”

“Of course.”

“I took a drive over to the address that was listed on the card, and there’s an office building there, so it’s not a vacant lot.”

“Then it sounds like she’s clean, right? I mean, the car could have any number of explanations, correct?”

“Anything’s possible. Why don’t we wait to see what else comes up before we throw a party, though, okay? All we’ve got right now is that she has no criminal record and is driving a company-owned car. I’m doing some research on what Evendale is, and that should be in around the same time as the in-depth search. So how do you want to play this? Call me again tomorrow?”

“That seems best. How much have you burned so far?”

“You’re almost through your grand. The in-depth search will cost me a few hun. Figure we’ll eat fifteen hundred by the time we’re done.”

Jeffrey paused, digesting the number without comment. “Listen. If I needed to hire a reliable car for a day, without any paperwork, you know anybody who could handle that?”

“Depends. You going to rob a bank?”

“No. I just want to run an errand and not use my car. It’s pretty high-profile.”

“An errand, huh? Well… I have a Ford Taurus that’s not being used. I suppose I could let you have it for the day for a hundred bucks. When do you want it?”

“A hundred bucks!”

“Or you can rent one from any of the agencies for thirty or forty.”

Jeffrey thought fast. “No, rental cars are going to look too new. Fine. I’ll pay the hundred. I’ll need it on Saturday. First thing in the morning.”

“I’ll drive it into work. You know where my office is?”

“I remember the address. I can find it.”

“Suit yourself.”

“Thanks for the good work. I’ll call you tomorrow, same time.”

“I’ll be here.”

Jeffrey was walking on air as he returned to the office. It looked like Monica was the real thing. Nothing could have made him happier, and as a sea of gray-skinned clerk and low-level bureaucrat faces surged towards him, he questioned just how far out of touch with reality his brother’s note had pushed him. Not everything was some plot, and not everyone was bad.

Now he had to figure out how to get away on Saturday so he could get to Virginia and hunt down the professor. The car solved the biggest problem — how to make it a hundred and fifty miles into the wilds without being tracked or going on record as renting something — but he still had to figure out how to lose Monica for the day.

As he waited for the elevator, he was confident he would think of something.

After all, he had so far.

That night their lovemaking was especially tender, their connection even deeper than usual, probably because he was more at ease now that Monica had been vetted. He’d taken her to an Italian restaurant in Georgetown for dinner, and the conversation had been easy, the wine flowing like water as they savored their meals. Upon their return to the condo they’d turned the lights low and Jeffrey had made them each his version of a Cosmo, and they’d bantered about his upcoming trip and the weather finally turning warmer.

He shifted on the bed and stroked her bare stomach, the skin twitching at his gentle touch as he ran his fingers along the slight rise of her abdomen, and she squirmed and moved closer to him, purring like a contented jungle cat. He pulled away and closed his eyes, reveling in their mutual joy, and felt as close to love as he’d ever experienced. Which made it all the harder to deceive her, but he had no choice.

“That was incredible. As usual. You’re amazing, Monica. Truly.”

“About time you realized it,” she said playfully, her eyes closed.

“I do. I’m glad I met you. It’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”

“So far so good.”

He hesitated. “I’m going to have to abandon you on Saturday, so if you need some ‘me’ time to yourself, that would be your big chance.”

Her eyes popped open in surprise. “Why? What’s up on Saturday?”

He put his arm over his forehead and stared at the ceiling, unable to meet her gaze. “Just a bunch of BS I’ve been putting off. I need to spend most of the day rooting around in my crap that’s in storage, and look through Keith’s, too — I’ve put it off long enough. I’ve been so busy I haven’t had time to think since I got here, but I have to do it sometime. I need some of my stuff, and I wasn’t really thinking when I told the movers to keep it all.”

“But we’ll still hook up Saturday night, right? I don’t have that many more shots at you before you run off to Switzerland.”

“Absolutely. I just need the day to go through my stuff and sort it for long-term storage, and maybe look around for a cheaper place. It’s costing me a king’s ransom to keep it there.”

Monica seemed mollified by his explanation, and he pulled her closer, the lie now told, his deception an ugly necessity. She leaned her head back and invited him with a glance, and then he was consumed by her again. Their bodies joined in concert, a harmonious rhythm that was as effortless as it was by now familiar.