The kettle in the kitchen begins to whistle slightly. I rise to attend to it, and as I do, my guest’s gaze travels to the mantel, very close to where I am now standing.

Color drains from Belinda Bigelow’s face and her mouth drops open.

“Are you all right?” I ask.

She lifts her hand and points to the mantel. “That picture . . .”

I turn to look at my wedding portrait. “That’s me and Mr. Hocking on our wedding day last year.” I turn back around. Belinda is rising on unsteady legs and then moving forward and reaching for the photograph, nearly falling over the hearth to get to it.

I reach out to steady her as the woman grabs the frame. “Whatever is the matter?” I ask.

Belinda Bigelow is now holding the photograph of Martin and me in trembling hands. She raises her head to look at me and her eyes are shimmering with alarm.

“What is it?” My own heart is pounding now. I can feel the collision of worlds—mine and hers—even before the next words are out of her mouth.

Belinda points to Martin’s face in the portrait. “That’s James,” she says, her voice barely above a whisper. “That’s my husband.”

The teakettle in the kitchen begins to scream.

9

INTERVIEW WITH MRS. SOPHIE HOCKING

CONDUCTED BY AMBROSE LOGAN, U.S. MARSHAL

CASE NUMBER 069308

Official transcript

San Francisco, CA

November 6, 1906

QUESTION: Now, Mrs. Hocking, if we could return to the morning of the earthquake. You stated earlier that you and your stepdaughter, Katharine, were inside the house on Polk Street when the earthquake struck, but Mr. Hocking was away on business. You further stated that you did not see your husband that day, nor any day after that. Correct?

ANSWER: Yes.

QUESTION: And if the earthquake had not occurred, when would you have been expecting Mr. Hocking to return home?

ANSWER: Martin did not keep to a schedule I could rely on, sir. I never knew exactly when to expect him.

QUESTION: How long had he been gone on the day of the quake?

ANSWER: Two days.

QUESTION: Why was it your husband did not keep a schedule you could rely on?

ANSWER: It is the nature of his business. He assesses risk for an insurance company and he has to be out and about to do it. He doesn’t know how long each appointment will take until he gets there.

QUESTION: Can you tell me the name of the insurance company he works for?

ANSWER: I’m afraid I cannot.

QUESTION: Are you saying you do not know the name of your husband’s employer?

ANSWER: He likes keeping his work separate from his life at home, and that’s fine by me.

QUESTION: I see. Mrs. Hocking, I need to ask you a very important question now. A man matching your husband’s description was seen leaving San Rafaela twenty miles south of here late on the evening of April 17—that is, of course, the night before the earthquake. Your husband’s automobile was found six miles north of San Rafaela on the morning of April 18, the day of the quake. The automobile had run out of gasoline on the road to San Francisco. I’m thinking he had to walk the rest of the way home, which would have him arriving here sometime during the early-morning hours. That being the case, I’m wondering if there’s anything about your earlier statement you’d like to revise.