'He sounded upset.'
It was hard to imagine what could upset William Tobias. The slender police chief was as unflappable as an accountant. Alan shook out his umbrella and hung up his raincoat, then sat behind his large desk and dialed across the street to police headquarters.
'What's up?' Alan asked.
'We've got another one.' it took a moment for Alan to figure out what Tobias was talking about.
'Her name is Victoria Miller. Twenty-six. Attractive, blond. Housewife.
No kids. The husband is with Brand, Gates and Valcroft, the ad agency.'
'is there a body?'
'No. She's just missing, but we know it's him.'
'The same note?'
'On the bed on the pillow. 'Gone, But Not Forgotten.' And there's another black rose.'
'Was there any sign of a struggle this time?'
It's just like the others. She could have disappeared in a puff of smoke.'
Both men were silent for a moment.
'The papers still don't know?'
'We're lucky there. Since there aren't any bodies, we've been handling them like missing persons cases. But I don't know how long we can keep this quiet. The three husbands aren't going to just sit around. Reiser, the lawyer, is on the phone every day, two or three times a day, and Farrar, the accountant, is threatening to go public if we don't come up with something soon.'
'Do you have anything?'
'Not a thing. Forensics is stumped. We've got no unusual fibers or hairs. No fingerprints. You can buy the notepaper at any place. The rose is an ordinary rose.
Ditto the black dye.'
'What do you suggest?'
'We're doing a computer search on the m.o. and I've got Ross Barrow calling around to other police departments and the FBI.'
'Are you looking into possible connections between the victims?'
'Sure. We've got lots of obvious similarities. The three women are around the same age, upper middle class, childless, housewives with executive-type husbands. But we've got nothing connecting the victims to each other.'
Tobias could have been describing Tina. Alan closed his eyes and massaged the lids.
'What about health clubs, favorite stores, reading Circles? Do they use the same dentist or doctor?' Alan asked.
'We've thought of all those and a dozen more.'
'Yeah, I'm sure you have. How far apart is he working?'
'It looks like one a month. We're into what? Early October? Farrar was August and Reiser was September.'
'Christ. We better get something going soon. The press will eat us alive once this breaks.'
'Tell me about it.'
Alan sighed. 'Thanks for calling. Keep me up-to date.'
'You got it.'
Alan hung up and swiveled his chair so he could look out the window.
Man, he was tired. Tired of the rain and this asshole with the black rose and Tina and everything else he could think of. More than anything, he wanted to be by himself on some still-soaked beach where there were no women and no phones and the only decision he would have to make was about the strength of his suntan lotion.
No one ever called Elizabeth Tannenbaum stunning, but most men found her attractive. Hardly anyone called her Elizabeth, either. An 'Elizabeth' was regal, cool, an eye catching beauty. A 'Betsy' was pleasant to look at, a tiny bit overweight, capable, but still fun to be with. Betsy suited her just fine.
Betsy could — also be a bit frazzled at times and that was how Betsy Tannenbaum felt when her secretary buzzed her just as she was stuffing the papers on the Morales case into her briefcase so she could work on them at home this evening, after she picked up Kathy from day care and cooked dinner and straightened the house and played with Kathy and…
'I can't take it, Ann. I'm late for day care.'
'He says it's important.'
'It's always important. Who is it?' I
'He won't say.'
Betsy sighed and looked at the clock. It was already four-thirty. If she got Kathy by five and rushed to the store, she would not be done cooking until six. On the other hand, if she did not keep bringing in clients she would have all day to shop. Betsy stopped pushing papers into her briefcase and picked up the phone.
'Betsy Tannenbaum.'
'Thank you for taking the call. My name is Martin Darius.'
Betsy caught her breath. Everyone in Portland knew who Darius was, but he did not call many of them.
'When does your staff leave?' Darius asked.
'Around five, five-fifteen. Why?'
'I need to speak to you this evening and I don't want anyone to know about it, including your secretary.
Would six be convenient?'
'Actually, no. I'm sorry. Is there any way we can meet tomorrow? My schedule is pretty open then.'
'How much is your normal fee, Mrs. Tannenbaum?'
'One hundred dollars an hour.'
'if you'll meet me at six tonight, I'll pay you twenty five hundred dollars for the consultation. If I decide to hire you, you will be extremely pleased by the fee.'
Betsy took a deep breath. She dreaded doing it, but she was going to have to call Rick. She simply could not afford to turn down that kind of money or such a highprofile client.
'Can I put you on hold, Mr. Darius? I have another obligation and I want to see if I can get someone else to take care of it.'
'I can hold.'
Betsy dialed Rick Tannenbaum on the other line. He was in a meeting, but his secretary put her through.
'What is it, Betsy? I'm very busy,' Rick said, making no attempt to hide his annoyance.
'I'm sorry to bother you, but I have an emergency.
A client needs to meet me at six. Can you get Kathy at day care?'
'What about your mother?'
'She's playing bridge and I don't have the number at her friend's house.'
'Just tell the client you'll meet him tomorrow.'
'He can't. It has to be tonight.'
'Damn it, Betsy, when we separated, you promised you wouldn't do this to me.'
'I'm really sorry,' Betsy said, as angry at herself for begging as she was at Rick for making this so difficult. 'I rarely ask you to pick up Kathy, but I need you, this once. Please.'
Rick was silent for a moment.
'I'll do it,' he answered angrily. 'When do I have to be there?'
'They close at six. I really appreciate this.'
Betsy hung up quickly, before Rick could change his mind.
'Six will be fine, Mr. Darius. Do you know the address of my office?'
'Yes,' Darius said, and the line went dead. Betsy put the phone down slowly and sank into her chair, wondering what business a man like Martin Darius could possibly have with her.
Betsy glanced at her watch. It was six thirty-five and Darius had not arrived. She was annoyed that he had kept her waiting after she had put herself out, but not annoyed enough to jeopardize a twenty-five-hundred-dollar
