by Suzi Weinert
51
Saturday, 7:41 PM
“Zayneb, are you in danger?” Roshan asked with concern when they returned to her house.
“I…I don’t think so. But if anything ever happens to me, please find a way to watch over my girls, especially little Safia. And if…if the worst should happen, tell the police what you know.”
“Your talk frightens me. McLean has safe houses where abused women get help and guidance. Or we could call the police to stop him or put him in jail. A restraining order would keep him away from you. Let me help you make a better choice. At least stay with me tonight. Or if you think he’d come after you here, I’ll give you money for a hotel until you decide what to do next.”
“Thank you, dear Roshan, for caring so much. Getting the doll should solve their problem. Your help tonight made that possible. I must go now.” She hugged Roshan and hurried out the front door to her own porch.
The men waited at the door as Zayneb arrived. Mahmud snatched the doll from her. “Is this it?” Ahmed nodded as his host passed him the toy. He squeezed the doll’s soft torso for the hidden packets. Feeling none, he jerked open the doll’s clothes and tore apart the newly stitched seam. He fought for control. “What was hidden is gone. But where?”
Mahmud grabbed his wife roughly by the arm, but Ahmed put up a warning hand. “Tell us exactly what happened at that house.”
“Roshan went inside. I stayed in the car but they asked to meet me also. Roshan took me into their house. The husband and wife were friendly. They said their granddaughter who bought the doll should decide whether to trade it for the substitute doll we brought. The girl said yes, gave us this doll and we brought it straight home. I did exactly what you told me to do.”
“You removed nothing from the doll yourself?”
Zayneb looked stricken. “Of course not. I held the doll on my lap during the trip home while Roshan drove. It did not leave my hands for one minute.”
“They handed it to you in the way it is now?”
“Yes, the granddaughter carried it to us in the living room from the kitchen and gave it to me when she took the new one we brought.”
“Anything else we should know?”
“As Allah is my witness, I did what you asked and I told you everything that happened.”
“Go, then, and wait for me upstairs.” The raw anger in Mahmud’s voice scared her but she obeyed instantly. She heard the men close the study door as she hurried up the steps.
Trapped by circumstance, Ahmed had no choice now but to confide his plight to Mahmud. “Hidden inside the doll were packets containing 290 highest quality diamonds. Add ten more I left with the Russians this morning for their expert to assess and the total is 300. From the Great Leader’s own hands, I brought these stones nearly 10,000 miles sewn into my ragged clothes. When the Russians phone me accepting the diamonds, they’ll expect the remaining diamonds to pay for the weapons, arms and vehicles needed for our attack. That meeting is Monday morning. We have until then to produce the missing stones.”
Mahmud pondered. “What hands touched the doll after it left your room? Zayneb took it to Roshan’s sale next door. Would she remove the stones? I don’t think so. She is too simple a woman to think of that. Then the Jennifer woman and her grandchildren took the doll home. The people in that house must know where the diamonds are. Shall we confront them tonight? We can invent a story about how you own the diamonds and ask for your property back. They may choose to return your property the easy way or we can wrest it from them the hard way.”
“And what if they deny knowledge of the diamonds or admit they found them but refuse to return them? This is a fortune worth millions of dollars,” Ahmed pointed out. “They’ll want to keep it.”
“So what next? We can’t get the diamonds back if we don’t confront them, but when we do they will tell the police. So we must kill them. There’s no other way.”
Ahmed sighed. “Yes, you are correct. But when the dead family is found, you said police will search tirelessly for us. Yet how could police trace our connection?”
“Wait, finding diamonds would seem big news for this family,” Mahmud said. “How many others have they told? If those others tell police about the gems, they’ll know the family’s dead because someone wanted their diamonds back.”
“But even if they know why the murders happened, how can they know who killed them?”
“Tonight they met Roshan and saw Zayneb. If others are told of this, police can follow that trail.”
“Get balaclavas to cover our faces and two silenced-pistols from your basement stash. Let’s solve this tonight.”
Thirty minutes later their car nosed into the Shannons’ residential community and down the dark street toward their house. Lights on behind their shade-drawn windows indicated the family was at home. As they approached, Mahmud uttered a strangled cry. “Allah, why do you curse us when our mission is for your great glory?”
They stared, frozen, at the police cruiser parked in front of the house.
52
Saturday, 8:32 PM
“Mom, this diamond story you’ve told us would be unbelievable for anyone but you,” Hannah said, noting nods also from Adam and her father as they sat on the sun porch.
Adam cleared his throat. “As it turns out, this may be part of an even bigger picture. What do you know about clairvoyance?”
“Now there’s a segue for you,” Jason chuckled.
Adam smiled. “Just hear me out before you decide. What do you know about clairvoyance, Dad?”
“Not much.” Jason searched his experience. “I’ve read psychics-for-hire scam gullible people into paying for pronouncements or predictions. Some skillful psychics make clients dependent enough to fear making decisions without the psychic’s input—that input available only for a fee. Or the psychic weaves a story about the client but leaves out the punch line, which the client must pay more to hear. Believe it or not, these charlatans can gather devout followings.”
“What about the other kind who don’t charge, don’t want publicity and are more puzzled than proud of their visions?”
“We could look it up on the internet, but the dictionary might give us a quick answer.” Jennifer grabbed the one above the kitchen desk. “Okay, let’s see what Merriam-Webster has to say. ‘Clairvoyant: unusually perceptive, having the power of discerning objects not present to the senses.’ Okay, next we’ll try psychic: ‘of or relating to the psyche; lying outside the sphere of physical science; sensitive to nonphysical or supernatural forces.’ And here it defines psyche: ‘the soul, the self or the mind.’ ”
“How about ‘premonition’?” Adam asked.
Jennifer flipped pages. “‘Premonition: previous warning or presentiment.’ And presentiment is ‘a feeling that something is about to happen.’”
“So, it’s all murky, unscientific stuff?” Hannah speculated.
“Science.” Jennifer flipped more pages. “‘Knowledge covering general truth or the operation of general laws especially as obtained and tested through scientific method.’ Which points us to scientific method: ‘the rules and methods for pursuit of knowledge involving finding and stating the problem, the collection of facts through observation and experiment and the making and testing of ideas that need to be proven right or wrong.’”
Jason rubbed his chin. “Well, it’s no surprise that I look at this as an engineer since I am one. Science regards paranormal stuff mostly as bunk because of inconsistent testing results. Tests must be repeatable to qualify as new discovery.”
“How did they test, Dad?” Hannah asked.
“One study hid shapes and symbols in one room and asked blindfolded psychics in another room to identify what was pointed to. Some scored better than others but the results were spotty and nowhere near 100 percent. Another study had a blindfolded psychic press a button when he thought someone behind him was staring at him. The government investigated ESP and paranormal communication with Stargate and other mil
itary intelligence studies. They reported mixed conclusions, but who knows if they revealed what they really learned?”
Hannah shifted in her chair. “Why this clairvoyant-talk? Aren’t we figuring out the diamonds?”
Adam smiled. “Open-minded detectives look at all clues to see how they might fit together. Police get cases where someone ‘feels’ or ‘senses’ something’s wrong, and investigation shows they were right. So we try to consider it all to figure what’s relevant and what isn’t. What I’m about to tell you seems weird—or it did until tonight. Normally, I wouldn’t divulge a name relating to police business, but when you hear my story, you’ll know you would have found out anyway.”
They exchanged curious looks. Jennifer smiled at Hannah’s obvious pride in her husband, now the center of attention.
Adam described Veronika Verontsova’s visit to the police station and her vision. “Seeing your photo in the McLean Connection upset her even more. She insisted you’re involved somehow in this danger near McLean. She thinks talking with you might help her better understand her vision. She noticed your name under the newspaper picture and said if I didn’t give you her phone number she’d get yours from the phone book and call you anyway. Then just before leaving, she had vibes about me: said I had a new wife, considered a career change and lived in an old house on a farm.” He omitted her warning of danger for him at the house. “Weird or what?”
Incredulous, Jennifer said, “You’re kidding about this, right?”
“No, Ma’am.” He extracted a paper from his pocket. “Here’s her number if you want to phone her. I ran her name through NSIS but nothing came up. If you meet her, consider a public place, not her house or yours, to stay on the safe side until we know how she fits in.”
“Actually she fits in pretty well,” Jennifer mused. “Add her story to what we learned earlier tonight and you get something like this: this guest from another country, I forgot his name…”
“Ahmed,” Jason supplied.
“…Ahmed had access to diamonds, which he hid in the doll. Unknown to him, Zayneb put the doll in her neighbor’s garage sale. We bought it. Roshan remembered my license plate, which the men next door used to learn my name and address.”
Adam frowned “They’d need a privileged computer link for that.”
“We’d never have found the diamonds except for the freak coincidence of Alicia’s curiosity because of a classmate’s botched surgery.”
Adam looked thoughtful. “You say Zayneb told you her husband and his guest both come from the Middle-East. Maybe they’re peace-loving, but if we factor in the clues in Verontsova’s vision, maybe they’re not. Maybe they have a very different agenda for the diamonds to fund.”
“Terrorism?” Jason guessed.
They all sat silent, considering the chilling impact of this logic.
“Whatever their motive, they clearly want the diamonds back. They’re convinced you have them or know where they are. If desperate enough, they may persuade you to return them.”
Hannah looked uncomfortable. Were here parents vulnerable again? “This is very scary talk.”
“Yes, it is, because potentially this is a very scary situation,” Adam confirmed.
53
Saturday, 8:47 PM
Jennifer broke the tension by looking at her watch. “It’s time to put the Grands to bed.”
Jason stood, “I’ll do that tonight, Jen. You catch your breath. Which story shall I read to them?”
“How about more chapters in the book I started last night? It’s on their nightstand. After this, we have one more night to finish it before they go, so judge accordingly.”
“We’re going to run upstairs to unpack and get settled,” Hannah said. “Back in a little while.”
Alone in the living room, Jennifer leaned back in the easy chair. This had seemed like an extra long day, yet it wasn’t even 9:00. She’d just closed her eyes when she heard light tapping on the front door. Peering out the sidelight she saw Tony illuminated by the porch light.
“Too late for me to drop in for a glass of wine?”
“No, Tony, of course not.” She gave him a warm hug, locked the door and reset the alarm. “You and the children make it through the day all right?” she asked as they walked to the sun porch and sat at the table. She knew Tony liked the same wine she did and poured two glasses of pinot noir.
“Yes, a lot for the kids and me to get ready for tomorrow’s funeral. We’ve been busy. I just didn’t want another minute to go by without…without thanking you for driving me to the hospital and for the dinner you brought last night. You’re a beautiful person and a precious friend. I told this to my kids and thought I ought to tell it to you, too.” He put his hand over hers affectionately.
“Let us know if there’s anything we can do to make this a little easier for you or the children.”
“Just be here when I need to hear a friendly voice. Is that Adam’s car in front of the house?”
“Yes, they’re spending the night.”
“Still happy little love birds?”
“Definitely.”
He looked into her eyes. “Do you remember those days when you couldn’t wait to be with the person you love, couldn’t wait to touch them, when your heart jumped each time the phone rang, when every word they spoke seemed magical?”
She smiled. He must be reliving his early life with Kirsten. How sad to face future years without his loving companion. Maybe he’d eventually find someone new, as had many widowed friends who married again. But mere days after his wife died was way too soon to mention this to Tony.
“Will you do anything differently when your children go back to their own lives in a few days?”
“My vet business is well established and I like my job, so that will continue. Kirsten’s sudden death traumatized the kids, so I’ll try to be supportive with each of them.”
He downed his wine. “Got to go. Just had to drop by to let you know how much I… appreciate you and Jason.” He pulled her to her feet and they walked to the foyer. “Maybe you’d be willing to take me to one of those garage sales some weekend so I could learn the ropes. Seems like a shame to reach my age and know nothing about them.”
“Sure, if you’re serious, why not? But aren’t you at the clinic on Saturdays?”
“Geez, you’re right. Well, we’ll have to think of something else then.”
Emotion clouded Tony’s face. He hugged her goodnight. As she eased out of the embrace his lips touched hers. She couldn’t hide her surprise. “Just a little kiss between old friends?” he murmured. An act of loneliness, she thought. He kissed her again, his passion proving this no accident.
Confused, Jennifer gently extricated herself from his arms. He must be more fragile than she realized after his wife’s death. She thought how deprived of love she’d feel if Jason died. Would any expression of affection seem better than none at all? Under other circumstances, this pleasant man might appeal to her as a date or suitor were she single. But now she chalked up his behavior as a widower’s lonely despair. Yet in that one instant her friendly neighbor and long-time friend had introduced a new dimension to their relationship—an uncomfortable one—at least for her.
She opened the door and shooed him outside. “Sleep well tonight. We’ll see you tomorrow,” she called as he walked away.
As she locked and chained the door, she realized the chain would stop Becca when her key opened the door later tonight. She dialed her daughter’s cell phone. “Let us know when you get home so we can unchain the door…. Why? Oh, just a new wrinkle in the diamond saga. We’ll tell you all about it when you get home…. By the way, Hannah and Adam are spending the night. They’re in the bedroom next to the Grands. See you later.”
Jason came down the stairs. “We did the whole ritual. They even told me their best thing that happened today and their good deed. It turned into a marathon.”
“Good work and thanks. The day’s events have worn me down. I’m really tir
ed, how about you?”
He nodded. “A hectic, unusual day for us both—and mostly an emotional roller coaster.”
“Then let’s ask Hannah to let Becca in when she gets home later. They’ll want to talk until late anyway but can sleep in tomorrow, whereas I’ll be up early with the Grands.”
Upstairs, Jennifer removed makeup while Jason tapped on Hannah’s door, delivering the Becca message. By the time Jennifer finished at the sink and dressed for bed, Jason dozed with the TV clicker in his hand. She removed it gently as she slipped into bed beside him. He didn’t stir.
As she lay awake in the dark she wondered idly what it would be like if Tony lay next to her instead of her husband. She considered the huge effort to start over with a new person, essentially a stranger. She’d invested so many years in discovering and accommodating Jason that they’d become like two working parts of one unit, two halves of one whole. Over their forty-year history, many shared memories and jokes were known only to the two of them.
Sure, Tony was a pleasant, appealing man, well known as a friend but unknown as a companion. But for her, attraction went beyond logic, appeal or availability; it involved the heart. The comparison of these two men only pinpointed how much she loved Jason.
As he slept curled on his side, she gently spooned against him, feeling the slumbering warmth of his familiar contours until sleep’s relaxation at last softened the smile on her face.
54
Saturday, 9:33 PM
At Mahmud’s house, Zayneb prepared for bed, turned out the lights and lay awake. Would her god spare her or punish her effort to deceive her husband by earning money at the sale?
