“And the circumstances were sufficiently traumatizing . . .” Dix said.
“The shameful secret,” Jesse said.
Dix nodded.
“Every woman’s shameful secret,” Jesse said.
“To one degree or another,” Dix said.
“He might need to keep going over it,” Jesse said.
Dix shrugged.
“Might,” he said.
“Either because he is hoping it won’t be true this time?” Jesse said.
“Or because he wants to reaffirm the essential baseness of women,” Dix said.
“And the pictures would be evidence,” Jesse said. “Proof of the secret.”
“Maybe,” Dix said. “You’ve interviewed the victims?”
“Of course.”
“Did he touch them?”
“No. He never got close to them,” Jesse said.
“Threaten them?”
“Just along the lines of ‘Do what I say and you won’t get hurt,’ ” Jesse said.
“Verbally abusive?”
“No,” Jesse said. “Course, it might not be that.”
“True,” Dix said.
“Might be something entirely different,” Jesse said.
“Might,” Dix said.
“So what difference does it make?” Jesse said.
“None that I can see,” Dix said.
“So why are we talking about it?”
“It’s your session,” Dix said.
Jesse was silent for a moment.
Then he said, “Maybe it’s better than talking about me.”
Dix nodded and looked at his watch.
“Or maybe you think it is,” Dix said. “Let’s talk about that next time.”
31
SUIT CAME into Jesse’s office and sat down across the desk from him.
“And now,” he said, “this update from swingers’ correspondent Suitcase Simpson.”
“You converted yet?”
“I been trying to,” Suit said. “But like I told you, no single guys.”
“Maybe you could bring Cissy Hathaway,” Jesse said.
“That’s over,” Suit said. “She’s too old for me.”
“Lotta people are,” Jesse said. “Whaddya got?”
“I been talking to Kim Magruder—Kim Clark—like you said.”
“And?”
Suit shrugged.
“I feel kind of bad for her,” Suit said. “I mean, she was the golden girl, you know, going steady with the star quarterback.”
“Chase Clark,” Jesse said.
“Yeah, and he knocked her up. And she was real Catholic and”?Suit shrugged?“they had to get married.”
“And produced Missy,” Jesse said.
“Yep. They got a little boy, too. Eric.”
“Why do you feel sorry for her?” Jesse said.
“One, because she’s married to Chase Clark, who’s a fucking jerk. Two, because she doesn’t like the swinging thing. But does it because she thinks she has to, to save her marriage.”
“She say so?”
“Not exactly. But I’m pretty sure,” Suit said.
