She really was playing right into Alice’s hands.
Marshall gasped. “Alice looks totally crazy. Is she crazy now?”
Grady shook his head. “That’s a yes.”
Alice hid her delight. “I guess she always was, I just didn’t want to see her that way.”
They all watched as the Rothman guards surrounded Bennie, penning her like a stray dog. She gestured wildly, trying to push past them, but they closed the circle swiftly. People on the street reacted by scattering, or laughing. Suddenly a white TV newsvan pulled up, its doors slid open, and a crew jumped out with videocameras on their shoulders. Emily Barry emerged from the front seat, smoothing her red hair.
“Here comes Film at 11,” Marshall said, but Grady pointed to the right.
“Forget the TV people. Look who’s coming, over there.”
Alice looked over, cursing silently.
Chapter Sixty-seven
Mary was walking back to the office with her parents, Fiorella, and Judy, when their way was blocked by a growing mob, gawking at a homeless person making a fuss on the sidewalk. She led them around the crowd toward the building, but when she got closer, she did a double-take. The homeless person was Alice Connelly, raving like a lunatic. She was dressed in her usual skimpy clothes, but she had bruises all over and her hands were bandaged. Rothman security guards surrounded her like a forest of Sequoias.
“Judy, that’s Alice!” Mary pointed.
“Oh my God!” Judy’s mouth fell open. “What happened to her?”
“Let’s get my parents out of here. They never met Alice, and I don’t want them to.”
Ten feet away, Alice yelled at the top of her lungs. “
“Ms. Connelly!” boomed a huge Rothman guard. “You’re being served with a court order, requiring you to remain a hundred yards away, at all times.” He pressed the order into her hand, but Alice threw it back in his face, and still he kept talking. “We have informed the police that you’re attempting to enter the premises unlawfully, and they should be here any minute.”
“She will not get away with this! Not while I draw breath!”
The crowd surged forward, gawking and laughing. TV cameras kept rolling. Police sirens blared in the distance. Mary’s mother was too short to see what was going on, and her father shielded her and Fiorella with his arm, shocked.
“YO, AIN’T THAT BENNIE? MARE, WHAT THE HELL’S SHE DOIN’?”
“No, Pop, come this way.” Mary tugged him by his arm, but he couldn’t hear her over the noise.
“BENNIE! OVER HERE, BENNIE! NEED HELP?”
“Pop, no! That’s Bennie’s twin, not Bennie!” Mary shouted, too late.
“DiNunzio?” Alice struggled harder against the Rothman guards, kicking and biting so fiercely, she was able to move them closer to the building. “DiNunzio, it’s me, Bennie! That’s Alice up there! She tried to kill me!”
“Stay away from my family!” Mary held up a straight arm while Judy hustled her parents and Fiorella away.
“DiNunzio!” Alice shouted. “That was me who called you from the hospital! Remember, I wanted you to walk Bear!”
“You’re sick!” Mary got mad. “You know how much Bennie loved that dog, and the day he died, you called her about him! That’s disgusting!”
“Bear’s
“Help!” Mary shouted, and the Rothman guards regained control and dragged Alice backwards.
“Ms. Connelly, you’re not permitted within a hundred yards of Bennie Rosato, Mary DiNunzio, Judy Carrier, Grady Wells-”
“
Suddenly two Rothman guards appeared at Mary’s sides, took her by the elbows, and hurried her toward the building. She spotted another one helping her parents and Fiorella into a cab, and a third escorting Judy to the building. The Rothman guards left Mary in the lobby, and she joined Judy at the security desk, gathering with Steve and Herman. They were all catching their breath when they heard a new surge of noise from the crowd, and Mary turned around just in time to see Alice stick her splint into the eye of a Rothman guard, then break free and run off.
“She’s getting away!” Mary said, shocked. “They didn’t stop her!”
“They can’t.” Steve shook his head. “Rothman isn’t supposed to restrain, and the cops will pick her up in no time. She embarrassed them by escaping, and they’re not about to let that happen. You okay?”
“Fine. That Rothman guard will need a doctor. Should we call one?”
“We will, but they’re tough, those guys. Get ’em a bullet to bite on.”
Mary looked at Judy. “Did my parents get in the cab, safe and sound?”
“Yes.” Judy wiped her brow. “They were upset, though. You might want to call them when we get upstairs.”
“I will.” Mary managed a smile. “They’ll never come in town again. Sushi, and now this.”
“I know, right?” Judy smiled back. “Let’s go up and see how Bennie is. Thanks, everybody.”
“Yes, thanks, guys.” Mary walked Judy to the elevator bank, swiped her reader card, and hit the UP button. They went into the elevator, and when the doors closed, she rested against the side wall, decompressing. “That was a scene, huh?”
“Yeah, I’ll say.”
“I’m so glad we got that court order. It saved our asses, and Bennie’s.”
“You think?”
“I know. Don’t you?”
“Maybe.” Judy shot her a look, uncharacteristically grave. “I have a question for you.”
“What?”
“What if that was really Bennie, outside? And the woman upstairs is really Alice?”
“Huh?” Mary looked at her like she was crazy, because she was, if she thought that. “You’re kidding, right?”
“Not really.” Judy’s eyes were troubled, and her mouth formed an unsmiling line. “What if?”
“That’s absurd. Alice got to you with her mad scene. It’s like Bennie told me, she plays mind games.”
“It’s not what Alice said.” Judy’s tone grew quiet. “It’s what Fiorella said.”
“Please tell me this is a joke,” Mary said, incredulous. “Fiorella’s even nuttier than Alice. She’s a fake witch queen.”
“Fiorella said that Bennie was evil, the first time she met her.”
“For which she apologized, at lunch. Fiorella’s crazy, a drama queen.”
“Really? What if she called it? What if she had it right, the first time? What if that really is Alice, in our office, masquerading as Bennie?”
“Are you insane?” Mary stood up, recovering. “Then where’s Bennie? Is she that crazy lady outside, dressed exactly like Alice?”
“It’s possible.”
“No, it isn’t. Why? How? I was with Bennie on Saturday, and she didn’t look like that. She looked normal, like herself.”
“They’re identical, Mare. Maybe you were with Alice, and thought it was Bennie.”
“Judy.” Mary rolled her eyes. “Why are you saying this?”
“Because of something Fiorella said to me, before I put her in the cab.”
“What did she say?”
“Family meeting.” Judy pressed the red button with her thumb, and the elevator stopped.
