A Necessary Evil

'Okay. Well, I hope you have a restful day off.'

'Thanks, Dena.'

'I'll see you on Monday. Oh, wait, I almost forgot.' She left the door open and Gwen could hear her scurry back into the reception area, probably to her desk. Seconds later she came in with a manila envelope.

'This was left for you.'

Gwen watched her place the envelope on the corner of her desk. She could see there was no return address, no indication who it was from, but already she knew, and immediately she felt as if the air had been knocked out of her.

'Did you see who left it?'

'No. It must have been when I was fixing coffee or maybe when I stepped out to make copies.'

'What time?'

'Excuse me?'

'What time did you notice it?'

Gwen tried to get rid of the alarm from her voice, but she may not have been as successful as she'd like to be, because Dena was looking at her with concern.

'Gosh, I'm not sure exactly. It was between Mr. Rubin's and Mr. Campion's appointments.'

Gwen tried not to stare at the envelope. Of course, he must have brought it with him. But wasn't that a bit risky, or perhaps ballsy was a better term? Would he actually bring it with him and simply place it on her receptionist's desk? Could he have slipped this time and left his fingerprints on it? Surely he wouldn't have worn gloves in the July heat.

'Is it something important?'

Gwen had briefly forgotten about Dena and did her best not to let it show on her face. She shrugged as if it were no big deal. 'I doubt it. If it was important, the person who left it wouldn't have just placed it on your desk without an explanation, right?'

'I suppose. And I really wasn't gone that long to make the coffee, although that new contraption you bought takes a little more time.' She smiled as if to make sure Gwen knew she was only joking, giving her a hard time about the fancy gourmet coffeemaker Gwen had made a fuss over. 'So I'll see you on Monday.'

But Dena stayed in the doorway and when Gwen didn't respond, she added, 'Maybe you should take off and get started on that relaxing time.'

Gwen glanced up at the girl and returned her smile. She was the first one she had hired in years who seemed to have a genuine concern for her. Others had been wonderfully precise _ not one of Dena's top skills __ but they lacked what Gwen could only describe as warmth, something she believed essential for the person outside her office door who greeted and cared for the mentally fragile patients who sometimes came through those doors.

'I'll take that under serious consideration. Now, go get out of here and enjoy what's left of your weekend.'

'Yes, ma'am.'

And she left, gently closing the door behind her. For a moment Dena had almost made her forget about the envelope.

She picked it up by a corner with only her forefinger and thumb, careful in case there were fingerprints. She hadn't noticed the slight bulge at the bottom. With her other hand she reached for a letter opener and tucked it under one of the flaps, holding firm as she slit the envelope open. Then she took a deep breath and turned the envelope over, letting the contents slide to the top of her desk. This time there was no note and she even peeked inside to make sure it didn't get stuck to one of the sides. The only thing in front of her was the bulge, a plastic bag, zipped shut, the contents of which looked like a single gold earring.

CHAPTER 19

Omaha, Nebraska

Nick knew he should wait.

He grasped the steering wheel a bit too tight, took the left turn a little too wide. He wasn't even sure why he was angry, but he knew he should wait until he calmed down. It would be better if he and Tony sat down across a table from each other, over a cup of coffee or maybe even a beer. It would be better if he waited.

He glanced at Tony who was staring out the passenger window of the rental car. That was one bad thing about his trips back to Nebraska. He missed his Jeep. There was a lot of thinking a guy could do taking the long way home in his Jeep. He could let off some steam by getting off the beaten path, kicking up some dirt, feeling the challenge of some rocks and mud beneath him. It just didn't work in a rented Oldsmobile Alero.

The Jeep wasn't the only thing he missed. Over the last several years there were plenty of things that made him feel as if he was split between two homes, maybe even two worlds. Some days his move to Boston felt like the right choice, the best thing that had happened to him. It had allowed him to get out from under his father's shadow and expectations. Besides, he liked his job as deputy prosecutor for Suffolk County. He had met some incredible people, including Jill. But on days like today, it felt as though he had never left Nebraska, that it simply wasn't possible when there were still so many connections, so many pieces of himself that had stayed behind. So much of who he used to be still floated to the surface, despite his attempt to change and to move on. His impatience _ as he was certain his sister, Christine, would be happy to agree __ was one of those flaws.

'What the hell's going on?' Nick blurted out, deciding he couldn't wait.

'Pretty weird, huh? That something like that could happen?'

'No, what's weird is that you think you can pull something over on me.'

'Excuse me?'

Finally he had his friend's attention diverted from the passing scenery.

'Detectives Carmichael and Pakula might have let you get away with all that dancing around because they don't know you. I know you, Tony. You're not fooling me. And you know what, you didn't fool those detectives, either. They'll be bringing you in again for more questioning.'

'What are you talking about? I already answered all their questions.'

'Oh, yeah, you answered their questions, all right. You know what it reminded me of?' Nick tried to calm his anger down a notch. 'Remember in sixth grade when we kidnapped Mrs. Wilkes's antique vase off her desk because she always made us come up with those stupid poems about it?'

'They were supposed to be haiku.'

'Yeah, well, see, that's even more lame.'

'I remember,' Tony said, but from the look on his face Nick could tell he had a different memory of the event, one that didn't instill shame and guilt like Nick's.

'We hated that ugly vase,' Nick continued. 'We wanted it gone. But we really were just going to hide it in the closet for a while. Make her sweat, then find it and be her heroes.'

'Still sounds like a brilliant idea,' Tony said, laughing.

'Yeah, brilliant. Only you dropped it.'

'It slipped out of my hands.'

'And it shattered into a thousand tiny pieces.'

'It was an accident.'

'Principal Kramer called us into his office,' Nick said, now pleased that Tony's renewed memory was not quite as pleasant as his initial one. His sudden defensive tone was accompanied by his arms crossed over his chest, and his interest in the scenery was no longer convincing. 'He asked if we stole Mrs. Wilkes's vase. You told him no. It wasn't a lie because we called it kidnapping. He asked if we broke the vase. You told him no. That wasn't a He either because you accidentally dropped it. I felt like we were back in Principal Kramer's office again. You sidestepped all of Detectives Carmichael's and Pakula's questions.'

He took a long glance at his friend, catching his eyes if only for a brief moment. 'I gotta ask, Tony. What the hell are you lying about?'

Nick expected more sidestepping. He expected Tony to get angry with him. Instead, he simply said, 'I can't tell you, Nick.' And he looked away, to stare back out the window, closing the subject and keeping Nick completely