“It’s astonishing you’d do anything to help him,” Berger added. “You’re quite the friend to him, I must admit. But if we’re talking motive? My guess? You hoped if you helped him, covered up for him, it would make what he did untrue. But now the world knows. You want to guess how many calls I’ve had today? About that goddamn column?”

“You should ask him. He was drunk. Don’t fire him.”

“Every rapist I’ve locked up was drunk or on drugs or both or it was consensual or she started it or it didn’t happen. I won’t fire him unless he brings it upon himself. I’ve decided this is Kay’s battle. Not yours. Not Lucy’s. Although I fear Lucy’s not likely to see it that way.”

“Kay’s dealt with it.”

Hands in her pockets to ward off the cold, Berger said, “Really. Then why this big to-do about her not knowing he works for me? Why the secret? I thought it was all about his walking off the job, decompensating because of you and Kay, because he was jealous—which has always been as obvious as the Empire State Building you seem fixated on. He decided it was time to let her go and clean up his act. Stupid me. I never called Kay to corroborate your story. I didn’t ask for references. Because I trusted you.”

“He’s tried. He’s tried harder than anyone I know. That should be obvious to you. You’re around him. You need to ask him about him. Let him tell you what he did,” Benton said.

“For the record, you lied to me.”

She was looking for a taxi.

“For the record, I didn’t lie. And he didn’t rape her.”

“Were you there?”

“She said it didn’t go that far. She never pressed charges. To her it’s a private matter. It’s not my place to talk about it with you or anyone. She didn’t even tell me at first. Yes, fair enough. Delusion, my head in the sand. Poor judgment, probably. But what was in the gossip column this morning is distorted. Go ahead and ask Marino. I assume he’s seen it. Or he will soon enough.”

“And Lucy? Just so I know what to expect.”

“She’s seen the column, of course,” he said. “She’s the one who called me about it.”

“I’m surprised she didn’t kill him on the spot, as much as she adores her Aunt Kay.”

“She almost did.”

“Good to know. Not so long ago, she would have. You owe me a favor.”

A taxi perilously swerved toward her and lurched to a halt.

“I need Kay to drop by the morgue tonight,” she said. “And you’re just the person to ask her.”

She climbed inside the taxi.