“But I don’t think he wanted to be there—Clive I mean,” Olivia said, looking puzzled. “At one point he tried to explain himself—something about danger to his brother. When push came to shove and he knew we were to be killed, he attacked that ugly hulk of a man who had chained us to the beds and practically starved us of food and water.”
Paris looked at Hugh and said, “There is no punishment that will satisfy me.” She buried her face in her hands, overwhelmed at learning the details of what they had endured.
“They have been punished, Mum. They’re dead. Anyway, Clive temporarily got the best of the big guy, but shortly before that they struggled with a gun and Valerie was shot. They continued to struggle, and I remember the gun sliding into the room where we were.” Paris shook her head in disbelief but signaled her daughter to continue. “Clive— or whatever his name is—was— looked very fit. He held his own from what I could hear. He must have knocked the other guy silly for a minute before he got attacked again. Then Ben broke through the door and distracted the man. There was just enough time for Clive to free our wrists from the handcuffs. He told me to run, but I didn’t want to leave Valerie. He said if I didn’t go, I’d die. By that time the man had attacked Ben. I ran and it’s all a blur after that. I’m not really sure I’ve got it all straight.”
Hugh assured her that no one could account correctly for every moment when under such stress. He explained what he knew, that Ben and the man had fought, and that Valerie had managed to get off one fatal shot. Olivia said that Valerie’s shot was a miracle and that now she deserved a miracle of her own. Ana entered the cubicle and inadvertently interrupted the conversation. Concerned for her other child as well, Paris stood up and tensed her body.
“Nothing serious with Ben,” Ana reassured them. “Just bruises and a little re-injury of the tissue around his shoulder joint. No broken ribs or internal bleeding. They have him icing his jaw and shoulder, and we’re waiting now to see if they’ll release him soon. He was advised to rest for a day or two.” Now that she had relieved their minds she wanted to get back to him. “We’re about three cubicles down. I’m going back to make sure he does as he’s told.”
When she had gone, Olivia became quite verbal about how she wanted Ben to be happy and hoped Ana would be right for him, but even though she had a good feeling about them, she would have to get to know Ana before passing judgment. Her strength was returning and she seemed almost euphoric. Then she started on the Ben-Valerie issue. She was sure that Valerie still loved him but knew it was over. She made a special point of the fact that in spite of great injury, and without thought for her own safety, she had managed to get to the gun, take some sort of aim and fire. Valerie’s concern was for Ben, not for herself. She put aside the self-centeredness that had been so damaging to their marriage. Olivia hoped that Ben would have an opportunity to thank her. Perhaps the animosity between them could be put to rest. After her comment that it’s always better to have an amicable divorce, she stopped chattering because a nurse came through with a tray of food. She set it before Olivia, kindly ordering her in Spanish to eat every bite in order to regain her strength. She complied.
* * *
The emergency room doctor had insisted that Ben lie down while waiting for the results of his jaw x-ray. Impatient and anxious to leave, Ben studied Ana as she sat beside the bed with her eyes closed. He wondered how she could relax at all considering the din outside their small curtained space. A moment later a nurse stuck her head in and told Ben there was an Inspector Macias waiting outside the emergency room.
Ben said, “If it’s allowed, send him in.”
“Sí, pero sólo cinco minutos,” she answered, turning away to fetch him.
The Inspector cautiously stuck his head through the opening in the curtains and said, “I’m told five minutes is my limit. Do you have any major injuries?” Ben shook his head no, and the inspector came into the cubicle. “Señor McKinnon, I have more information now than when we spoke at the Comisaria. El Superintendente de la Policía de Pamplona is now working with Interpol to bring this to a close. It is becoming evident how today’s events are related.” He paused a moment as his expression turned serious. “Yet it seems that you are directly related to another death.”
Ben put down the icepack and answered, “You must mean the man at the little house.”
“Yes. Can you explain what happened?”
“I was in a fight for my life with him, and my ex-wife managed to get off one shot that killed him.” Inspector Macias crossed his arms and looked at Ben quizzically. “I know it sounds unbelievable, but it happened. Surely you can’t be thinking that she’s culpable in his death.”
The inspector was quiet for a minute then asked, “Who was this man? What did he have to do with the events in London?”
It was painful for Ben to talk. Ana put the icepack in his hand and guided it back to his jaw then said she would explain. About twenty minutes later she finished telling the story of the attacks and kidnap attempts in London, the threats and demands received by Paris, and the coincidence of the women’s trip to Pamplona. Ana added that Olivia had been seeing someone new in London, and the same man had
