“Still?”
“We’re married, and this is your home. Come home.”
“Katie.” We were both calm now. “Come with me instead.”
“What do you mean?”
“I want you with me. I’m escaping. Will you come?”
“You don’t need to escape, Jason.”
“I do! You know me. You see what I’m becoming.”
“But we can handle it, together,” she said. “Don’t do this.”
“I have to.”
“You don’t have to! Don’t you care about me?”
“I care about you more than anything,” I said. “Please come with me.”
There was a deep sigh, almost a sob. “Don’t leave me.”
“I’ll be home this evening. We’ll figure it out, Katie. We’ll be together.”
But there was something cold in her voice when she replied. “But you won’t change your mind.”
“I won’t.”
Eric called at eight.
“Are you okay?” he said.
“I’m okay. I checked Melvin’s will to make sure-you’re set for life.”
“Oh. That’s not why I called.”
“I know. I just wanted to tell you.”
“Thanks. I was just calling because… I think maybe you’re making a mistake.”
“I’m not changing my mind.”
“Come on, Jason.” It just didn’t sound like him. “If you think you were wrong before, couldn’t you be wrong now instead?”
“No!” I wasn’t used to him pushing me. “I said I’m not changing my mind.”
“I think you should.” And there was something cold in his voice, as well.
Fred called at eight twenty.
“Is Jacob Rosenberg working for you?”
“Good morning to you, too. Yes, he is. He’s on the board of the foundation.”
“I know who he is. He’s filed SEC papers concerning the change of ownership of your stocks.”
“That’s what I told him to do. He works fast.”
“And news travels fast. I am not the only one who will hear about this. You must reconsider!”
At that moment I felt sorry for him. “I won’t. You’ll be better off without me.”
“Everyone will be better off without you. But your divestment plans are disastrous. They must be stopped.”
“Don’t hold your breath.”
“I won’t. I will take more effective measures.”
“Stay out of it.” Now I felt murderous toward him. “You can go down, too, Fred. In fact, you’re a big part of what I’m trying to demolish.” A very big part-very, very big. “And by the way, you’re fired.”
“I won’t rant.” His voice was very cold. “Just be warned.”
“You too.”
Nathan called at eight forty.
“I’m worrying about you, Jason.”
“That would be justified,” I said.
“What should I be doing?”
“Tell me I’m doing the right thing.”
There was dead air, then he tried. “I believe you are. But it’s your decision.”
“Fred disagrees with both of those statements.”
“What about Katie?”
“She’s not happy.”
“I’m sorry. I could talk to her.”
She was going to be homeless soon. Maybe she could take advantage of some of his programs. “Maybe later. Right now it wouldn’t help.”
“If I can help at any time, please tell me.”
“I will. Thanks.”
At nine, Stan Morton called.
“What are you doing?!”
“I’m sitting in my office, looking out the window,” I said.
“Your silence is deafening. I can’t get anybody at the statehouse to tell me what you’ve told them to do. So I called Forrester at his house. He’d never pass a chance to cut down Harry Bright. What do I get? A very uncharacteristic ‘No comment.’ What kind of gag have you tied on to everybody? I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“I’m not telling anybody to do anything. They’re on their own.”
“Really.”
“And Forrester will be his insufferable self soon enough.”
“Okay,” he said, and I could hear the suspicious look on his face. “So what’s the story here?”
“I’d tell you but I’m tired of talking about it.”
“If you’re tired, I’ll send a reporter over with a pillow.”
“I’ll tell you tomorrow.”
“I’m taking that as a promise.”
“Whatever. Good-bye, Stan.”
Jacob Rosenberg called at nine twenty-five.
“I have a couple papers for you to sign.”
“I’m just sitting here,” I said.
“Then I’ll be right over.”
I was ready to make my own calls.
“Get me Senator Forrester’s office in Washington.”
“I don’t think he’s there yet,” Pamela said. “He was flying back this morning.”
“It doesn’t matter. I just need to talk to somebody to deliver a message.”
I stood by her desk as she levered and forced, and after only a few moments she had a person. I took the call on Pamela’s phone.
“What may I do for you, Mr. Boyer?” said the person.
“Please give my regards to the senator,” I said. “Tell him that he’s free. He can do whatever he wants. I don’t care if the blathering idiot rots in Washington, but he better get his own machine to get elected because mine is out of business. And tell him to keep Tweedleleine and Tweedlevieve away from my family or I’ll change my mind and tell the newspaper everything about him spying for the Communists.”
The person recovered fast. She must have had plenty of practice. “Mr. Boyer-”
“Nyet, comrade. I will say no more.”
Pamela couldn’t approve of my behavior, as much as she wanted to. “You shouldn’t burn all your bridges,” she said after I’d hung up.
“I like to watch the flames.”
“You might need friends later on.”
“Not Forrester. And not Fred. I don’t want friends like them.”
It was almost ten when Jacob arrived. Lawyers are supposed to be precise with words, but his “couple papers” was not.
“Did you work all night?” I said, looking at his stack.
“Six of us did.”
“I’m glad you’re taking this seriously.”
“Well, Mr. Boyer, time is against us. The faster this gets done, the better, before we start getting
