by Shari Lapena
Richard cuts him off anyway. He is standing by the enormous fireplace. He turns to Anne. “I’m so sorry, Anne, but the kidnappers have let us all down—again. I’d hoped to have Cora back tonight, but they didn’t show up. I brought the additional money, as arranged, but they just didn’t show.” He turns to Marco. “Of course, I didn’t let them have the money anyway, the way you did, Marco.”
Marco’s anger flares—Richard can’t resist the temptation to make Marco look like an incompetent fool.
“I told you not to tell her, to avoid this kind of distress,” Richard says. He turns to Anne again, his eyes sympathetic. “I’ve done everything I can to get her back for you, Anne. I’m so sorry. But I promise you, I won’t give up.”
Anne sags beside him. Marco watches Richard, the coldness he exhibited to Marco switched to warmth once he’s talking to his daughter. Marco sees the flicker of uncertainty in Anne’s eyes—she wants to believe her father would never hurt her.
Richard says, “I’m sorry your mother and I didn’t tell you earlier, Anne, but we were afraid this might happen. We didn’t want to get your hopes up again. The kidnappers got in touch with us and demanded more money. We’d pay anything to get Cora back, you know that. I went out to meet with them. But no one came.” He shakes his head in evident frustration and sorrow.
“It’s true,” Alice says, sitting down at the other end of the sofa beside her daughter. “We’re just devastated.” She begins to cry, holds her arms out, and Anne sinks into her mother’s embrace and begins to sob uncontrollably, her shoulders heaving.
Marco thinks, This can’t be happening.
“The only thing left to do, I’m afraid,” Richard says, “is to go to the police. With everything.” He turns and looks at Marco, giving him a cold stare.
Marco stares back. “Tell them, Anne, what you know,” he says.
But she looks at him from her mother’s embrace as if she’s already forgotten.
Desperately, Marco says, “The man who was murdered, Derek Honig. The police know that he took Cora from our place, that he took her to his cabin in the Catskills. But I’m sure you know this already.”
Richard shrugs. “The police don’t tell me anything.”
“Anne recognized him,” Marco says flatly.
Has Richard just gone a little paler? Marco can’t be sure.
“So? Who was he?”
“She recognized him as a friend of yours. How is it, Richard, that a friend of yours had our baby?”
“He wasn’t a friend of mine. I’ve never heard of him,” Richard says smoothly. “Anne must be mistaken.”
“I don’t think so,” Marco says.
Anne says nothing. Marco looks at her, but her eyes are turned away. Is she betraying him? Is she going to side with her father and hang him out to dry? Because she believes her father over him? Or because she is willing to sacrifice him to get her baby back? He feels the ground shifting under his feet.
“Anne,” Richard says, “do you think this murdered man, the man who supposedly had Cora, was a friend of mine?”
She regards her father, sits up straighter, and says, “No.”
Marco looks at her in dismay.
“That’s what I thought,” Richard says, eyeing Marco. “Let’s review what we know,” Richard says. He turns to his daughter. “I’m sorry, Anne, but this is going to be painful for you to hear.” He sits down in his chair by the fireplace and takes a deep breath before beginning, as if to indicate that this has all been very difficult for him as well. “The kidnappers got in touch with us. They had our names because the newspapers figured out that we had paid the original ransom of five million. The kidnappers sent us a package. In the package were a cell phone and a note. The note said that the cell phone was the one that the original kidnapper had been using to stay secretly in touch with the baby’s father, who was in on the plan. I tried calling the only number programmed into the phone. There was no answer. But I kept it on me, and finally it rang. It was Marco.”
“I know all about that,” Anne says woodenly. “I know Marco took Cora and handed her over to Derek in our garage that night.”
“You do?” her father says in surprise. “How do you know? Did Marco tell you?”
Marco stiffens, afraid that she’s going to mention the video.
“Yes,” Anne says, glancing at Marco.
“Good for you, Marco, for being man enough to tell her,” Richard says. He continues. “I don’t know exactly what happened, but my guess is that someone must have murdered the man in the cabin and taken Cora. And then duped Marco at the exchange. I thought all was lost, until whoever did it reached out to your mother and me.” He shakes his head regretfully. “I don’t know if they’ll get in touch with us again. We can only hope.”
Pushed to the limit, Marco loses control. “This is bullshit!” he cries. “You know what happened. You set this whole thing up! You knew my business wasn’t going well. You sent Derek to me. You got him to suggest the kidnapping—it wasn’t my idea. It was never my idea! You’ve been manipulating everything and everyone. Especially me. Derek pushed me to ask you for more money, and then you turned me down. You knew how desperate I was. And then right after you turned me down, there he was, in my darkest moment, with his kidnapping plan. You are the mastermind behind all this! Tell me, did you bash in Derek’s head?”
Anne’s mother gasps.
“Because that’s what I think happened,” Marco presses. “You killed him. You took Cora from the cabin, or you hired someone to do it. You know where she is. You’ve known all along. And you’re not out one goddamned penny. Because you were behind the swindle at the exchange. You had someone show up without the baby to take the money back. But you want me to go to jail.” Marco stops to catch his breath. “Tell me, do you even care if Cora lives or dies?”
Richard looks from Marco to Anne and says, “I think your husband is out of his mind.”
THIRTY-FOUR
Show us the note,” Marco demands.
“What?” Richard is momentarily caught off guard.
“The kidnappers’ note, you son of a bitch,” Marco says. “Show it to us! Prove to us that you’re in communication with them.”
“I have the phone. I didn’t keep the note,” Richard says, unruffled.
“Really. What did you do with the note?” Marco asks.
“I destroyed it.”
“And why would you do that?” Marco asks. It’s obvious to everyone in the room that he doesn’t believe there is a note, that there ever was a note.
“Because it incriminated you,” Richard says. “That’s how I knew it would be you on the other end of the phone.”
Marco laughs, but there’s no humor in it. It is a hard, disbelieving laugh, bordering on rage. “You want us to believe that you destroyed the note because it incriminated me? Is it not your intention to have me arrested for kidnapping and keep me away from your daughter for good?” Marco asks.
“No, Marco, that has never been my intention,” Richard says. “I don’t know why you would think that. I have never done anything but help you, you know that.”
“You’re so full of shit, Richard. You threatened me on the phone—you know you did. You set up this whole thing to get rid of me. Why else would you do it? So—if there was a note, you would never have destroyed it.” Marco leans forward toward Richard and says in a menacing voice, “There is no note, is there, Richard? The kidnappers aren’t in touch with you, because you are the kidnapper. You have Derek’s phone—you took it when you killed him, or you had your people do it. You knew where he had Cora because you arranged the whole thing. You turned on Derek—which you’d probably planned to do from the start. Tell me: What did you say you’d pay him to help you send me to jail for kidnapping?”
Marco sits back on the sofa; he sees Alice staring at him, horrified.
Richard calmly watches Marco as the younger man accuses him. Then he turns to his daughter and says, “Anne, he’s making all of this up to deflect your attention from his own guilt. I had nothing to do with any of this, other than trying my best to get Cora back. And trying to protect him from the police.”
“You’re a liar!” Marco says in desperation. “You know where Cora is. Give her back! Look at your daughter! Look at her! Give her back her baby!”
Anne has lifted her head and is now looking from her husband to her father. Her face is anguished.
“Shall we call the police, then?” Richard challenges. “Let them sort it all out?”
Marco thinks rapidly. If Anne won’t admit she knows Derek was an associate of her father’s, or if she’s not sure, Marco doesn’t have a leg to stand on. The police already see him as their prime suspect. Richard, the respected, successful businessman, can hand him over on a silver platter. Anne and her father both know that Marco took Cora from her crib and gave her to Derek. Marco still believes Richard is behind all this. But he has nothing on Richard.
Marco is fucked.
And they still don’t have Cora.
Marco believes that Richard will keep Cora hidden forever if necessary, just so that he can win.
How can Marco make Richard think he’s won, so that he’ll give Cora back?
Should Marco confess to the police? Is that what Richard wants? Perhaps once he’s arrested, the “kidnappers” will miraculously get back in touch with Richard and return the baby unharmed. Because despite what Richard says in front of Anne, Marco knows Richard wants him hung out to dry for this. He wants Marco to go to jail but doesn’t want to look like he’s the one who turned him in.
“Fine, call the police,” Marco says.
Anne starts to cry. Her mother rubs her back.
Richard reaches for his cell phone. “It’s late, but I’m sure Detective Rasbach won’t mind coming out,” he says.
Marco knows he is about to be arrested. He needs a lawyer. A good one. There’s still some equity in the house, if Anne will agree to let him mortgage it further. But why would any woman agree to mortgage her house to defend her husband on charges of kidnapping their own child? Even if she were willing, her father would dissuade her.
As if reading Marco’s mind, Richard says, “I need hardly tell you that we won’t be paying for your defense.”
They wait in tense silence for the detective to arrive. Alice, who would normally busy herself making tea for everyone, doesn’t even budge from the sofa.
Marco is desolate. Richard has won, the manipulative bastard. Anne has fallen into the family fold one last time, and forever. As long as she stands by her parents, everything will work out for her. Richard will find a way to return her baby to her. He will be a hero. They’ll take care of her and the baby financially while Marco rots in prison. All she has to do is sacrifice him. She has made her choice. He doesn’t blame her.
At last the doorbell rings. Everyone jumps. Richard gets up to answer the door, while the others remain sitting stone-faced in the living room.
Marco decides that he will confess everything. Then, after Cora’s safe return, he’ll tell the police about Richard’s role in all of this. They may not believe him, but surely they can investigate him. Maybe they can find a connection between Richard and Derek Honig. But Marco is pretty sure that Richard will have covered his tracks.
Richard ushers Detective Rasbach into the living room. The detective seems to take in the situation at a glance: he looks at Anne weeping in her mother’s arms at one end of the large sofa, Marco sitting at the other end. Marco knows how he must look to the detective—pale and sweating, he must look like an absolute wreck.
Richard offers the detective a chair and says, “I’m sorry, I know you don’t like it when we deal with the kidnappers and don’t tell you until after the fact, but we were afraid to do anything else.”
Rasbach looks grim. “You say they phoned you?”
“Yes, yesterday. I made arrangements to meet them with the additional money earlier this evening, but they didn’t show.”
Marco watches Richard. Wonders what the hell he’s doing. Phoned him? Either Richard is lying to the police or he’s lying to Marco and Anne. When is he going to tell the detective that Marco was the one who took Cora from the house?
Rasbach reaches into his jacket and takes out his notebook. He carefully writes down everything Richard tells him. Richard says nothing about Marco. He doesn’t even look at Marco. Is this all for Anne? Marco wonders. Is he showing her that he’s deliberately protecting Marco, even though they know what he did? What is Richard’s game here? Maybe Richard never had any intention of telling the police what Marco did—he just wanted to watch him twist in the wind. The absolute bastard.
Or is he waiting for Marco to throw himself on his sword? To see if he’s got the guts to do it? Is this a test, one he must pass in order to get Cora back?
“Is that everything?” Rasbach says finally, standing up, flipping his notebook closed.
“I think so,” Richard says. He plays the part of the concerned parent and grandparent perfectly. Smooth as glass. A practiced liar.
Richard sees the detective to the door while Marco slumps back in the sofa, exhausted and confused. If this was a test, he has just failed it.
Anne meets his eyes, for only a moment, then looks away.
Richard returns to the living room. “There, now do you believe me?” he says to Marco. “I destroyed the note to protect you. I just lied to the police. I told him the kidnappers called me—to protect you. I didn’t tell them about the note and the cell phone sent to me. Both of which incriminated you. I’m not the bad guy here, Marco. You are.”
Anne pulls away from her mother’s embrace and stares at Marco.
“Although I don’t know why I do it,” Richard adds. “I don’t know why you married this guy, Anne.”
Marco needs to get out of here, so he can think. He doesn’t know what Richard is up to. “Come on, Anne, let’s go home,” he says.
Anne has turned away again and doesn’t look at him.
“Anne?”
“I don’t think she’s going anywhere,” Richard says.
Marco’s heart sinks at the thought of going home without Anne. Evidently Richard doesn’t want him to go to jail. Perhaps Richard doesn’t want the public humiliation of having a convicted criminal for a son-in-law. Maybe the whole time all he wanted was for Anne to know what kind of man Marco was, to separate them. It looks as though he’s succeeded.
They all look at him, as if waiting for him to leave. Marco senses the hostility and reaches for his cell to call a cab. When his cab arrives, he is surprised when the three of them follow him outside, perhaps to make sure he leaves. They stand in the drive, watching him go.
Marco looks back at his wife, her father and mother on either side of her. He cannot read her expression.
Marco thinks, She will never come home to me again. I’m all alone.
• • •
Rasbach is uneasy on the drive back from the Drieses’ mansion. He has a lot of unanswered questions. The most important one being this: Where is the missing baby? He seems no closer to a solution.
He thinks about Marco. The haunted look on his face. Marco was exhausted, spent. Not that Rasbach feels any particular sympathy for him. But he knows there’s more to this than meets the eye. And he wants to find out what it is.
Rasbach has been suspicious of Richard Dries almost from the start. To his mind—perhaps it’s a prejudice, stemming from Rasbach’s own working-class background—nobody makes that much money without taking advantage of somebody. It’s much easier to make money if you don’t care who you hurt. If you have scruples, it’s much harder to get rich.
As far as Rasbach’s concerned, Marco doesn’t fit the profile of a kidnapper. To Rasbach, Marco ha
s always seemed like a desperate man thrown up against the wall. Someone who might do the wrong thing if pushed to it. Richard Dries, however, is a savvy businessman, a man of considerable wealth, which, rightly or wrongly, raises all sorts of red flags for Rasbach. Sometimes these people have a kind of arrogance that makes them think they’re above the law.
Richard Dries is a man who bears watching.
Which is why Rasbach has put a wiretap on his phones.
He knows that the kidnappers have not phoned him. Richard is lying.
He decides to also have a couple of officers quietly watch the house.
THIRTY-FIVE
In her own bedroom—she and Richard have had separate bedrooms for years now—Alice paces back and forth on the plush carpet. She has been married to Richard for a very long time. She wouldn’t have believed this of him only a couple of years ago. But now he is a man with all kinds of secrets. Horrible, unforgivable secrets, if what she’s just heard is true.
She has known for some time that Richard has been seeing another woman. It wasn’t the first time he’d cheated on her. But this time she knew it was different. She felt him slipping away from her, as if he already had one foot out the door. As if he were coming up with an exit plan. She’d never thought before that he would actually leave her; she didn’t think he had the guts.
Because he knew that if he left her, he wouldn’t get a cent. That was the beauty of the prenup. If he left her, he wouldn’t get half her fortune—he wouldn’t get anything. And he needed her money, because he didn’t have much left of his own. Like Marco’s, Richard’s business had not been doing well in recent years. He kept the unprofitable business going so people wouldn’t know that he’d failed, so he could pretend to be the big businessman. She’d been pouring her own money into the company just to help him save face. She hadn’t minded at first, because she loved him.
She doesn’t love him anymore. Not after this.
She’s known for months that this affair was more serious than the others. In the beginning she’d turned a blind eye, waiting for it to end, as the others had. After all, the physical part of their marriage had been over long ago. But as the affair continued, she became obsessed with finding out who this other woman was.
