“Maybe you should get hold of Dr. Spock.”
Silence. She looked at my hands where my chin was resting.
“Your hands are very strong-looking,” she said.
“Want to see me crack a walnut?” I said.
“Are you married?” she said.
“No.”
She smiled again. It was a good one. Hundred, hundred-fifty watt. But I’d seen better. Susan could have smiled her right into the woodwork. She moved her body slightly in the chair. She remained trim and upright, but somehow a wiggle came through.
I said, “If you bat your eyes at me I’m calling a policewoman.”
She wiggled again, without moving. How the hell does she do that?
“I’ve got to trust you,” she said. “I have no one else. I must turn to you.”
“Hard,” I said. “Hard for a woman alone, I’ll bet.”
Wiggle. Smile. Sigh. “Yes, I’ve got to find someone to help me. Will it be you?” She leaned forward slightly. She moistened her lower lip. “Will you help me?”
“I would gather stars,” I said, “out of the blue.”
“Don’t make fun of me,” she said. “I’m desperate.”
“What are you desperate about?”
“My son. His father has taken him.”
“And what would you like me to do?”
“Bring him back.”
“Are you divorced?”
“Yes.”
“Do you have custody?”
“Yes, of course. I’m his mother.”
“Does his father have visitation privileges?”
“Yes, but this isn’t a visit. He’s taken Paul and he won’t bring him back.”
“And the court?”
“There’s a hearing, and Mel’s being subpoenaed but they can’t find him.”
“Is Mel your husband?”
“Yes. So I’ve spoken to the police and they said if they could find him they’d serve him a summons. But you know they aren’t going to look for him.”
“Probably not. They are sometimes busy,” I said.
“And so I want you to find him and bring my Paul back.”
“How’s the boy feel about all this?”
“Naturally he wants to be with his mother, but he’s only fifteen. He has no say. His father has simply taken him and hidden him.”
“Mel misses Paul that much?”
“He doesn’t miss him. He doesn’t care about Paul one way or the other. It’s merely his way of getting at me. He doesn’t want me to have Paul.”
“So he took him.”
“Yes.”
“Good deal for the kid,” I said.
“Mel doesn’t care about that. He wants to hurt me. And he’s not going to.”
There was no wiggle when she said the last sentence. “I want you to bring that kid back to me, away from his father. Paul is legally mine.”
I was silent.
“I can pay any reasonable fee,” she said. “I got an excellent alimony settlement.” She was quite brisk and business-suity again.
I took in some air and let it out through my nose. I looked at her.
She looked back.
“What’s the matter,” she said.
I shook my head. “It does not sound like a real good time,” I said.
“Mr. Spenser,” the lower lip moistened again, mouth open a little, tip of the tongue running along the inner
