Devlin was ready with a believable lie. “I doubt if Charlotte had any idea of what the future held. So we went. Early. I had more vacation days. We went out on Wednesday. The fifteenth. Maryellen was always able to smile her way publicly through anything we were going through privately, and this visit was to be no exception. She wanted to say that we’d had a wonderful time out on the Island. I was sick enough to be nasty and keep her wondering if I would perform as ordered. On Wednesday night I just started drinking, pissed as hell with her. I didn’t sleep, didn’t even try to go to bed. My recollection—for what it’s worth—is that Jack and Joe set about the same pace. In the morning I was brooding again about what she could have told Levitt.”

“Did you ever find out?”

“I already knew. It was stupid and pathetic, and explained perfectly why she wouldn’t tell me. She told Levitt that we were planning to have a family.”

“What was she doing, springing a surprise on you?”