by Ian Fox
He walked over to the telephone to call her, but changed his mind at the last moment. At 10:00 p.m. she might be dozing while watching a movie. She often did that when they were together and he always lay still so as not to wake her.
He went back to the open window. He watched three men walking along the pavement. How boring! With a weary look on his face, he glanced at his watch once more. The hand had moved by only two minutes, no one had called him, nothing was happening.
Two blocks down the road some boys were playing basketball. They ran after the ball and threw it at the basket. They laughed and talked loudly. Jerry watched them for a while, smiling. He remembered how it was when he was young, playing with his friends. Then he was carefree and life was one big adventure. Fun every single day. The crazy days of youth!
He stood by the window for a while longer and then a wicked thought occurred to him. What if I went home for a short while? Just to give Anita a hug. I’d take my cell phone with me, in case of an emergency. No. He shook his head. He’d never done anything like that before.
He stood still by the window, looking out and thinking. What could happen? Even if a patient was brought in and it was an emergency, I could be back in fifteen minutes. It’s nighttime and there’s no traffic. While they were preparing the patient for the operation, I’d be back. Yes, that’s what I’ll do. I’ll go home for a while.
He told the receptionist that he thought he might have forgotten to turn off the stove at home. He promised her that he’d be back in half an hour at the most. Of course she didn’t dare object.
“Don’t worry, Doctor, if we need you I’ll call you on your cell. It seems like a quiet evening, anyway. We’ve had very few people come in.”
“That’s good to hear,” he said, and rushed through the automatic double doors.
Running through the lobby, he looked around to see if anyone had seen him. If the boss found out about his little escapade, he’d be in trouble.
He drove along the main road thirty miles an hour faster than he should. If he was stopped, he might lose his driver’s license. In spite of this, he took the risk since the road was so familiar and he knew in which spots the police were likely to be. There, he reduced his speed and then speeded up again.
He got home in exactly eleven minutes. Never before having escaped from work like this, he was excited and his heart was beating fast.
He had to wait for the elevator and decided to take the stairs. He surprised himself as he ran like an antelope to reach Anita’s apartment as soon as possible. Before he went in, he smiled, knowing she’d be pleased to see him.
He put the key in the lock. To his surprise, the door was unlocked. Look at that. She forgot to lock the door.
He went in, listening, expecting to hear music or voices from the television in the living room, but instead he heard the sounds of pleasant, romantic music. Strange, she never listens to music like this with me. He took a few steps forward and came to the kitchen. No one was there. He gingerly went to the living room to say hello to Anita, but the living room was empty too. Where is she? Maybe she went for a walk and forgot to turn off the radio. He went back to the dining room and sat at the table and remembered that she had forgotten to lock the door. How is that possible? Anita never forgets anything. If it happened to me, she’d certainly tell me off. He put his elbows on the table and decided to wait for her.
Then he heard something that sounded like a gentle sigh. Jerry looked toward the bedroom, where the sound had come from. Is she in the bedroom?
He jumped up, but stopped in front of the door. It seemed strange that Anita would listen to music while sleeping. Something was wrong. The back of his neck started tingling and he could feel goose bumps on his arms.
Jerry opened the bedroom door and the shock almost knocked him over. He recognized Dr. Lawson’s back, moving up and down, and Anita sighing beneath him.
He stood there looking at them until the pressure in him reached the limits of his self-control. His mind went blank.
Chapter 86
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When Simon woke up in the morning, he felt terrible. He was surrounded by bare white walls. Frightened, he looked at the small window protected with metal bars. To his right he stared with disgust at a toilet bowl without a lid. Next to it was an old chipped sink without a mirror. He was sitting on a bed that was about twenty-five inches wide. He wanted to bang on the door, but it seemed pointless. For a moment he thought he might be dreaming and pinched his hand. His head hurt as he tried to remember what had happened, so he supported it with both hands.
He heaved himself up and splashed water on his face. The cold water pleasantly cooled his painful forehead. He lay down and tried to focus. While individual scenes came to him, he grimaced. It was horrible, terrifying.
Simon got up again and washed his face. The pain was slowly fading. Where did I go wrong? Why did Christine turn off her phone? Why did she tell them I was lying?
He kept wondering, rubbing his head with his fingers, pacing the small cell. I don’t understand why she turned off her phone.
He remembered the officer who had told him that at the hotel there was no sign of the receptionist he had described. Whenever I came there, that redhead was on duty, I’m certain. Who’s lying, damn it? What if the police are involved too?
He sat down on the hard mattress. Who’s behind it all? I don’t understand anything anymore.
Four hours later, as Simon was lying on the bed and staring at the ceiling, he gasped out loud. My God! I don’t believe it. What if she’s behind it?
This revelation was so painful that he thought his heart would stop beating. I’m such an idiot! What if she bribed the receptionist and the hotel owners? He remembered that the police mentioned a scalpel. He had seen her go into his office. On his desk, there was a tray of scalpels. She must have taken one then. He put his hand to his forehead. How stupid I am!
He ground his teeth. She hired somebody to kill Helen. Oh my God.
The truth was so cruel that he started feeling sick. With his hands on his stomach, he relived that horrifying scene when he had turned on the bedroom light. Helen was staring at the ceiling with glassy eyes. Her twisted mouth showed how much she must have suffered. He saw her neck and the blood gushing from it, over her face, and all around her.
Finally, he could stand it no longer. He rushed to the toilet, bent over, and vomited. While his stomach contracted in spasms, tears poured from his swollen eyes. His insides were burning. If only he could die at that moment.
Chapter 87
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She was feeling terribly tired after five hours of interviewing different people who had applied for the job. After Christine Vucci had fired Harold the butler, the cook managed to annoy her so much that Christine had a hysterical outburst, resulting in her firing all of the staff. So now she had no one to cook for her, nobody to clean her house, no driver. She told the gardener over the phone that he was useless and that she was hiring someone else.
The next morning she called an employment agency, asking them to send her some suitable people. Throughout the interviews she sat in an elegant chair, like a queen, asking her potential future employees various questions. Until then, Carlo had done this and had never allowed her to choose the servants. If she complained about one of them, it took ages for him to find another person. So she often kept her anger to herself rather than complain, knowing it would be months before Carlo did anything.
Finally, it was all up to her. She decided to have two chefs, one to cook exclusively Chinese and other Asian dishes, while the other one would be responsible for everything else. The gardener would have to be a strong man who would find it easy to pull out the wilted shrubs. That bent old man Carlo hired had been barely able to walk. For other servants, she wanted to choose young, handsome, muscular young men on which her tired eyes could rest, while the cleaners would have to be hardworking, slender girls, fit enough to run up and dow
n the stairs, keeping everything in tip-top shape.
After a few hours of tiresome interviews she had to admit to herself that choosing staff wasn’t such an easy task. No chef specialized in oriental cuisine, and all the cleaners were over thirty years old and considerably overweight. The only person she liked was a young man, tall and broad-shouldered, who mentioned that he had finished a massage course and did martial arts in his spare time. He had no service experience. He’s the only suitable one, she thought. He can learn everything else, but what I need most is massage and personal protection.
“The job is yours, young man,” she told him.
He banged a fist in his other hand. “Thanks, that’s so great. When can I start?”
“Immediately.”
She’d had enough of recruiting for that day. Tomorrow, I’ll call another agency and ask them to send me someone suitable. Since she had no cook, she ordered a pizza.
Her new employee stood there not knowing what to do.
“Let’s test your massaging talents. After all these interviews, I feel as I’ve been driving for hours.”
The young man stretched his arms, not believing his luck.
“Of course, madam. Where would you like to lie?”
They went to a room set up for resting and reading. Christine pressed a button on the CD player and the room was filled with calming music. Then she disappeared behind a stained-glass partition to change into a swimsuit. Only a minute later she was lying face down on her custom massage table.
“Just relax now,” he told her with a deep voice, and started gently kneading her neck muscles.
The pleasure made her whole body tingle. “Mmm, that’s awesome,” she purred, and closed her eyes. Life really is wonderful.
Chapter 88
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By six o’clock, John Melton was in a yellowed undershirt and ugly, old-fashioned exercise pants. On his feet he wore brown socks and faded sneakers. Overflowing with energy, he had decided that a half-hour run before work would do him good. It had been a few years since he had gone for a run—perhaps five or six.
He hung a blue cotton towel around his neck and set off. At first it went smoothly and he felt fitter than twenty years earlier. With his head held high and his arms bent, he ran at a steady rhythm.
After three minutes, the first problems started. He felt stabbing pains in his abdomen and had to stop. “Damn it!” he swore, and resumed at a walk instead.
Soon he gathered up courage to start running again. He found it more difficult to lift his feet, but that didn’t affect his motivation. While running, he circled his arms.
He didn’t last for more than a minute. His lungs couldn’t get enough air. Out of breath and holding his stomach, John flopped onto the nearest wooden bench. Who’d have thought that I’m so out of shape? I should do this regularly. He grimaced with pain and looked at a young woman rushing to work. What if I just stayed here and rested for a while? When the woman disappeared from view, he decided to get a newspaper. Only a few yards ahead he spotted a corner shop.
He bought a can of beer and, with a newspaper in his hand, returned to the bench. Seeing it was occupied he swore silently. He passed by it and trudged another hundred yards to sit at another bench. John opened the beer. Scanning through the newspaper, he got a shock that made him drop the can and spill the beer. His incredulous eyes stared at a large picture of Dr. Patterson being pushed into a police car. Judging by the expression on his face, Simon Patterson was terribly angry.
“Oh, my God,” John Melton said out loud. “That’s the face of a murderer.”
Then he read the headline: Neurosurgeon finally behind bars. An attractive young woman walked past John, but he took no notice. He was engrossed in reading about how the police now had enough evidence against Dr. Patterson and had arrested him.
“I knew he’d done it. I was certain.”
He quickly walked home. I have to show Maria. She’ll finally believe me.
Chapter 89
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When his rage had subsided, Simon started thinking about his fate. His first thought was to call the police and tell them everything. I’ll tell them that Christine was the one who killed Helen. She’s the murderer, not me. But something stopped him. He thought what would happen after he told them. Christine would deny it all. It would be hard to prove that she had hired someone to kill Helen. And even if the police did succeed in proving it, she would take revenge on me and tell them that I killed Carlo. That’s for sure. And then what? They’d put both of us in prison. All the newspapers would publish the horrific story. Everyone would be appalled by what we have done. I’d probably get a shorter sentence than her. When I got out, Carlo’s men would be waiting to take revenge. He sighed in desperation when he realized it would mean certain death.
No, I can’t do that. The longer he thought about it, the more aware he became of the fact that he was the victim of a carefully prepared plan. Christine thought this whole thing out very well. I can’t tell them anything about her. If I tried, she would tell them about me and then I’d be finished. Sooner or later they’d find me and kill me.
“Damn it!” He banged his forehead with his hand. This greedy bitch will not tell on me because I can’t tell on her. He couldn’t believe it. I’ll be convicted for a murder I didn’t commit.
He absently fingered the blanket while looking at the ceiling.
His first helpless scream filled the room. For a moment he felt as if the walls of the small cell were moving, trying to squeeze him. I can’t believe it. How could I have been so stupid? He felt as if he would explode. His jaw was trembling.
Then he could no longer restrain himself. He banged on the wall that separated his cell from the next one. He was so furious at Christine that he could have strangled her with his bare hands at that moment. He kept shouting and didn’t notice when the guards came. They had to call the doctor again to sedate him.
Chapter 90
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“Have you gone completely mad? How could you leave the hospital while on duty?”
Jerry dispassionately stared at the director’s desk. “Something like that has never happened to me before, but I was overcome by a sense of foreboding and had to go home.”
“While you were gone, a car accident victim was brought in. The nurse rang you, but you didn’t answer.”
Jerry’s lips started quivering. “I’m very sorry.”
“Because we couldn’t get hold of you, we tried Dr. Lawson. But he didn’t answer either.”
Jerry collapsed in a chair and covered his face with his hands.
Dr. Horras went on: “Then you suddenly turned up. They told me that you had blood on your face and wounds on your hands.” The hospital director put his hands on the table. “And then I heard that Dr. Lawson had to be hospitalized with a broken jaw and two broken ribs. Can you please tell me exactly what happened yesterday?” He had nearly shouted his last words.
Jerry was sobbing without tears. He was angry and sad at the same time and didn’t know how to begin. “Anita … my Anita ….”
“Yes, I’m listening.”
“I had to see Anita,” Jerry whispered. “I wanted to see her.”
“But not while you were on duty. How—”
“Then I found her with …”
A terrible thought made Dr. Horras’s jaw drop. “What, you’re not trying to tell me ….” He was unable to complete the sentence.
“Yes, I found her in the bedroom, with Lawson.”
“Oh my God. And then you attacked him.”
“Yes, something like that,” Jerry said with sadness.
“That’s just too much. Not only did you leave the hospital while on duty, but you attacked your superior and broke his jaw. Do you know at all …”
Jerry couldn’t believe his ears. “Didn’t you get what I said? Lawson was in bed with Anita. Has nobody told you that Anita and I …”
“
Yes, I have heard that you were seeing each other. Listen, Jerry, I really don’t know what to do with you.”
“With me? What about Lawson? You haven’t mentioned him once. Is it right for him to cheat on his own wife and sleep with my future wife?”
“Stop overdramatizing. Dr. Lawson is a highly respected neurosurgeon and you attacked him. I don’t know how you two can still work together. Have you thought of that?”
Jerry was at the end of his tether. “So I’m completely unimportant.”
“That’s not what I said, but …”
Jerry smiled to himself. “Life has a funny way of turning, doesn’t it? My superior seduces the woman I love.” He waved with his hand. “There’s nothing left for me at this hospital anyway. Good-bye, Dr. Horras. I think you’ll manage without me.”
“Wait, what are you saying?”
“I quit. I’ll write my resignation letter immediately.”
“Oh no you don’t. You’re not going anywhere. Now you’ve disabled my chief surgeon, you’re not going anywhere. Who else do you think will do the operations?”
“OK, I’ll stay until Dr. Lawson recovers.”
Dr. Horras wiped his face with a handkerchief and said, “Good. Listen, don’t write your resignation. I understand you’re angry, but think it over again. This hospital needs you.” He was regretting the things he had said, but he only wanted to frighten Jerry so that he’d never leave while on duty again.
