Chapters (128)

I laughed. “A little too perfect for my taste. Didn’t you think they were trying too hard?”

It was Kayla’s turn to laugh. “What can I say? They like me.”

“Three dates in a week. Had to give them ideas.”

Kayla smiled. “Gave me some ideas. Want to hear?”

“Like what? Give me an example, a for-instance.”

“My house isn’t far.”

“You’re a doctor. Must know a lot about human anatomy.”

“And you’re a psychologist, so you know the human psyche, right?”

“Sounds like a lot of fun.”

And it was.

But then the Job got in the way again.

Chapter 103

“I’LL BE OUT THERE TOMORROW. That’s the best I can do. I’ll book a flight to L.A. right now.”

I couldn’t believe the words were coming out of my mouth, even as they did.

I had been on the phone with Fred Van Allsburg for less than a couple of minutes, and my response was pretty much automatic, almost as if I’d been programmed to answer in a certain way. What was this, The Manchurian Candidate? What part was I playing? Good guy? Bad guy? Somewhere in between?

I was definitely eager to meet with Mary Wagner again, drawn by curiosity, almost as much as by obligation. The LAPD hadn’t been able to get her to talk to them, apparently not for days. So they wanted me to come back to California to consult. And I needed to do it—something still bothered me about the murder case, even if Mary was as guilty as she appeared to be.

Of course, I wanted the trip to be as short as possible. In fact, I left everything packed except my toothbrush when I got to the hotel in L.A. It probably helped me feel as though the trip was more temporary.

Anyway, my interview with Mary Wagner was scheduled for ten o’clock the following morning. I thought about calling Jamilla, but decided against it, and right then I knew that it was completely over between us. A sad thought, but a true one, and I was sure that we both knew it. Whose fault was it? I didn’t know. Was it useful or important to try to place blame? Probably not, thought Dr. Cross.

I spent the night going over the past week’s reports and transcripts, which Van Allsburg had messengered over to me. According to everything I read, the three children—Brendan, Ashley, and Adam—seemed to be the only thing on Mary’s mind.

It made my direction pretty clear. If the children were all that Mary could think about, that’s where we’d begin tomorrow morning.

Chapter 104

AT 8:45 IN THE MORNING, I found myself in a different but identical-looking room to the one where I had last interviewed Mary Wagner.