I brought out a steaming plate of food and set it down on the table. Tom threw his leg over the back of the chair and started shoveling forkfuls into his mouth before his rear hit the seat. Dennis and I sat on the sofa fascinated. Tom resembled a famished bear fresh out of hibernation – we couldn’t take our eyes off of him.
The plate was nearly clean before Tom stopped for a breath. With gravy smeared on his lips, he turned toward me with a grin. ‘Sorry for my horrible manners. I was ravenous and this is delicious, Libby. It’s the best meat loaf I’ve ever had. I’m surprised that you can cook like this.’
‘Following a recipe in the kitchen is a lot like following procedure in the lab. One step at a time until you’re done. I’m glad you’re enjoying it.’
‘If you say so,’ Tom replied and dug back in until every remaining morsel had disappeared into his mouth.
‘You want seconds of anything – or everything?’ I asked.
Tom patted his stomach and said, ‘I couldn’t eat another bite. First hot meal I’ve had in a long time. Thank you.’ He carried his plate into the kitchen.
‘Just leave it in the sink, Tom. I’ll clean up later,’ I said.
Tom returned to the living room and slouched into the chair. ‘Dennis explained your plan, Libby. I have a few concerns. First of all, how can you be sure that Crenshaw won’t lock the two of you up when you mention that you know where I am?’
‘I’m not, actually.’
‘And then he could come and drag me out of your house?’
‘He could.’
‘And even if he agreed to any of the terms of an arrest, can you be certain that he will abide by them?’
‘No, I can’t.’
‘But like I said,’ Dennis interjected, ‘Libby has the connection with General Groves that trumps anything Crenshaw can do.’
I didn’t expect Dennis to say that to Tom. For all I knew, Groves wouldn’t even remember my name any longer. I almost said so but when I looked into their faces, I realized that their belief in my ability to pull strings from on high was something they needed to have, but I wouldn’t lie. ‘I will use that avenue if I need to do so but there is no guarantee of its success.’
‘You’re just being modest, Libby,’ Dennis said with a wave of his hand.
‘I’m still not sure,’ Tom said. ‘Even your most optimistic outcome will keep me locked up for years, if not for the rest of my life. It’ll be like being down in the mine and everything caving in on you and knowing no one can ever set you free. I know I deserved to be punished but I don’t know if I can handle that.’
‘I say that we all sleep on it,’ Dennis suggested. ‘I’ll stay out here on the sofa. If anyone comes in the middle of the night, I can stall them, Libby, and you can get Tom out of the window.’
‘That’s crazy, Dennis,’ I said with a laugh. ‘Whatever makes you think someone would come here tonight?’
Before he could respond, a hard pounding on my front door echoed through the flat-top.
THIRTY-FIVE
I started toward the door but Dennis stepped in front of me and said, ‘Get back from the door, Libby. Tom, go to the bedroom and open the window.’
The pounding stopped. Once Tom was out of sight, Dennis looked at me and I nodded. He jerked open the door.
Ruth stumbled inside as if she’d been leaning against it to listen.
‘Libby, thank the dear sweet Lord that you are here,’ Ruth said.
‘Ruthie, what is wrong?’
‘They came back. This time they wanted to know about some red-headed scientist named Tom. I told them I didn’t know him and didn’t think I’d ever met him. They said that I was lying. I told them I’d swear on a Bible if they brought one along. Of course, they didn’t. But they said, “Libby Clark told us you’ve been dating him.” Now, Libby, I know you’d never tell them anything like that but do you even know who they’re talking about?’
‘Tom,’ I shouted, ‘you can come out now.’
As Tom’s head came into view, Ruth’s jaw dropped, she wiped her hands on her dress and shifted her weight from one foot to the other.
‘Ruthie, this is Tom, the red-headed scientist. Tom, this is my good friend Ruthie.’
‘Maybe I’d better go. They could have followed her over here,’ Tom said.
‘Aw, shucks,’ Ruth said. ‘Nobody followed me. Big Sally took care of that – she was my lookout. You know Sally, right, Libby?’
‘I don’t think I remember her,’ I said.
‘Oh, sure you do, Libby. She’s that big girl that can stick two fingers in her mouth and whistle loud enough to raise the dead.’
I nodded my head. ‘Now, I remember. I think my ears were ringing for a week.’
‘She watched till I was around the bend. If she saw anything suspicious, she was gonna whistle.’
‘What if she whistled and you didn’t hear it?’ Tom asked.
‘Libby, tell him. You could hear that whistle at least halfway to Knoxville,’ Ruth said.
‘She would have heard Shirley’s whistle, Tom. Trust us on that. Sit down a minute and please try to relax.’
‘Yea, well, can we trust her?’ Tom asked.
Dennis jumped to Ruth’s rescue. ‘Tom, don’t you remember her? Ruth is the sister of Irene – the administration and military tried to cover up her murder to protect a scientist. You can’t have forgotten what we did. It was only three years ago.’
‘So, what’s the point?’ Tom asked.
Dennis threw both arms up in the air and turned in a circle. Face-front again, he said, ‘Tom, you sure make it difficult for anyone to help you. Libby and I are going out on a limb to negotiate a bearable surrender to authorities for you. If we say you can trust Ruth, then accept it as a fact.’
‘I trust no one,’ Tom said, with an outward thrust of his chin. ‘There’s probably a reward you’re hoping to collect.’
‘That’s it. You’re talking gobbledygook, Tom,’ I said. ‘You want to spend the night and let us negotiate for you in the morning, fine. If not, just leave. Right now, I need to get over to Charlie’s house and let everyone know that the situation is going according to plan.’
‘No,’ Tom said, ‘you will not inform anyone.’
‘Tom, don’t be ridiculous – these are your fellow Walking Molecules. If we don’t communicate with them soon, they’ll be storming the flat-top wanting to know why.’
Tom scowled and shoved his hands in his pockets and paced around the constricted space. When his feet came to a rest, Tom said, ‘Okay. Fine. They need to be told. But if you leave, Libby, I’m leaving, too.’
‘I’ll go, Libby,’ Ruth volunteered.
‘Thank you, Ruthie. But it needs to be me or Dennis – otherwise they might think it’s a trick. It would be unproductive for me to leave, Dennis. You’re going to have to run over but you can use the car.’
‘I really don’t—’ Dennis began.
‘Hush, Dennis,’ I said. ‘You can get there and back in no time at all. We’ll be able to handle any problems that arise, won’t we, Tom?’
Dennis didn’t look very pleased with the idea but he went anyway. As soon as the car pulled away, I said, ‘Tom, you are filthy and you look tired. Go take a shower and climb into bed. There’s shampoo in there – feel free to use it.’
‘But what if …?’
‘Leave the bedroom window open a bit – it’ll be easier to slip out if the need arises. We won’t let you down, Tom.’
He gave us both a distrustful look before turning away and going into the bathroom. In a few minutes, I heard the shower running. Once he was cleaned up and settled into bed, I grabbed my night clothes out of the room and returned to Ruth.
‘Oh, Libby! You look exhausted. Why don’t you turn in for the night, too?’
‘Not until Dennis gets back – I need to know there were no surprises at Charlie’s place.’ I was really too tired for conversation. I just leaned back in the chair and listened to Ruth talk about her friends in the dorm.
I heard someone bounding up the steps and jumped up to answer the door.
‘No, you don’t, Libby. You go back in the bedroom and let me see who’s there.’
The steely resolve in Ruth’s voice made me do as she said without argument.
I came out of the bedroom when I heard Dennis say, ‘Ruth! I’m so glad you’re still here. I was hoping to talk with you for a little while.’
‘I hate to be a poor hostess but I’m going to bed. Night, Ruthie. Just let yourself out. Pick a night when you can come over for dinner and we’ll do it. Night, Dennis. Feel free to use the car to take Ruth back to the dorm. Night, all.’
G.G. was already sprawled on my pillow when I walked into the bedroom. I scooped him up and climbed into bed and he purred me to sleep.
I woke up in the middle of the night thinking I heard a bear, but no, it was Tom sprawled spread-eagle, mouth wide open in the other bed, making more noise than quarreling squirrels. I drifted back to sleep and didn’t stir till dawn.
I sat up, stretched and looked over to the other side of the room. Tom had already risen. I pulled on my robe and walked into the living room where Dennis sipped on a cup of coffee.
‘Fresh pot in the kitchen, Libby,’ Dennis said, lifting his cup in the air as if making a toast. ‘I like your friend, by the way. She’s a salt of the earth type, a refreshing antidote to all the secrets and subterfuge around this place.’
‘Is Tom in the kitchen?’
Dennis jerked to his feet. ‘I thought he was in the bedroom with you.’
‘No. Did he leave?’
‘If he did, it was before I woke up. Ruth left a note in the kitchen for you before she left. But it can’t be about Tom. We were both laughing at his snoring when she went out the door.’
I rushed into the kitchen anyway and picked up Ruth’s note. Underneath it was another folded piece of paper with my name on it written in different handwriting. I opened it and saw it was from Tom and read it out loud.
I know you mean well, Libby. But I don’t know if staying at your place while you two are negotiating is a good idea and I didn’t want to argue about it. Crenshaw could prolong the discussion while he sends soldiers out to pick me up and then laughs in your face. Just negotiate with him and tell him I’ll be back in touch with you. And don’t waste your time looking for me at that old shack. I won’t be going back there again. Thank you and Dennis for everything. The Running Molecule, Tom.
Dennis and I stared at each other for a moment without saying a word. I broke the silence. ‘Let’s see if we can catch Crenshaw before he leaves his house this morning.’
‘Yeah, I think he’ll be more cooperative there than in his office where soldiers will be at his beck and call. But we have to hurry.’
‘We’ll take the car. I’ll get dressed as quickly as I can.’
THIRTY-SIX
Lieutenant Colonel Crenshaw opened his front door, shaking his head. ‘What now?’
‘We’ve been in communication with the person responsible for the train derailment and the lab pranks,’ I said.
Crenshaw’s eyes shifted between me and Dennis. ‘How long has this been going on? How long have you had this knowledge?’
‘We saw him yesterday,’ I said, dodging the whole truth.
‘Where is he now?’
I shrugged and Dennis said, ‘We don’t know. He said he’d be back in touch.’
‘Are you claiming you don’t know how to initiate communication with him?’
‘Yes, sir,’ we said in unison.
‘Why are you here if you can’t deliver him to the authorities?’
‘He’s given us the responsibility of negotiating the terms of his surrender,’ I said. ‘And he’ll get that information from us at a time of his choosing.’
Crenshaw sighed. ‘Come in, sit down, I’m sure you remember how to get to the living room, Miss Clark. I’ll get my wife to bring in some coffee.’
Dennis followed me over to the sofa. Crenshaw walked in and Mrs Crenshaw placed a tray on the coffee table. We fixed our cups and sipped while we waited for Crenshaw to begin the negotiations.
The lieutenant colonel shifted back and forth in his chair as he opened and shut his mouth a few times before speaking. ‘Let’s start with what, to me, is obvious. This person committed murder and, at the very least, needs to be locked up for the rest of his life.’
‘Actually sir, he is guilty of manslaughter but not murder,’ I said.
Crenshaw ran an open palm across his face. ‘Nothing is ever simple with you, is it, Miss Clark? You see everything as gray when realists like me know that the black and white are clearly defined. I imagine your opinion is based on the information the killer gave you. So why don’t you tell me who he is and what he had to say. I need to know what I’m dealing with before I can agree to any conditions.’
‘I’m sorry, sir, but until we reach some accommodation on our requests, I can’t give you his name but I can tell you his story.’ I explained about the death of Tom’s father and the stranger he met on the train on the way home.
‘Wait a minute. Who was this stranger?’ Crenshaw asked.
‘I don’t know, sir,’ I said.
‘I don’t think he knew who the man was,’ Dennis added.
‘Sounds like an espionage agent to me. Was the stranger German or Japanese?’
‘We don’t know, sir. He didn’t say,’ I answered
‘Did he give you any description of that man on the train?’
We shook our heads.
‘Of course not,’ Crenshaw said. ‘Go on with his story.’
I went through the sequence of events and his failed attempt to get the train to stop before anyone was injured or killed.
‘You expect me to believe, that the person responsible is a fine, upstanding, patriotic citizen – an adult, not a child – who lost control of his own mind when his father’s death made him an orphan. What is he? A scientist or a wounded grizzly?’
Dennis and I sat quietly, hoping it was a rhetorical question. I certainly didn’t want to confirm that Tom was a scientist but I didn’t want to lie, either.
Crenshaw made an upward gesture with his hand. ‘Go on. What do you want me to do with the treasonous killer?’
‘We want you to keep him here on the reservation for the duration of the war.’
‘I probably would have done that anyway. What else?’
‘We want him to be able to have visitors every day,’ I said.
‘No. You are asking far too much,’ Crenshaw said.
‘How often are you willing to allow him to have visitors?’
‘I didn’t say he could have visitors,’ Crenshaw protested.
‘You implied that, sir. Didn’t he, Dennis?’
‘Sounded that way to me, too,’ Dennis replied.
‘We’ll table that for the moment,’ Crenshaw said. ‘What else?’
‘We want him to get his meals from the officer’s mess.’
‘He’ll get fed. Let’s leave it at that,’ Crenshaw said. ‘Anything else?’
‘Just one more thing: we want any criminal charge reduced from murder to manslaughter.’
‘That’s one promise I cannot make because I won’t be able to keep it. Whether he faces a military tribunal or a criminal court, the disposal of his case is out of my control.’
‘But you do have influence, Lieutenant Colonel Crenshaw. Will you advocate for a lowering of the charge?’ I asked.
‘I can’t say right now. I’d have to question him about his story and make my own decision about its credibility.’
‘I don’t know if he will accept that condition,’ I said. ‘Back to the visitation …’
‘I don’t think I can do that,’ Crenshaw said.
‘Can’t do it or won’t do it, sir. We both know that it is totally within your power to grant that request.’
‘Every day would be too disruptive.’
‘We can accept every other day,’ I suggested.
; ‘Until I speak with him, I will not make any determination on the frequency of visits, Miss Clark.’
‘You’re agreeing to set up a visitation schedule, correct?’
‘I will allow some visitors. But I will not commit to a plan ahead of the apprehension of the perpetrator.’
‘I expected more flexibility from you, sir,’ I said. ‘You’ve only agreed to one out of four of our requests. After all, at this point in time, you do not know with certainty who was responsible. And even if you think you do, you have no idea of where to find him.’
‘I assure you, Miss Clark, we can deploy enough assets to hunt him down. If you want to make this a voluntary situation where your friend is not at risk of losing his life in a capture, then those are my conditions. He stays here for the duration and I will establish a visitation policy after he is in custody. If you can’t accept that, I will have you both arrested for obstructing justice.’
‘The two of us are willing to accept those terms, sir. But the final decision is not for us to make. We will present it to him and proceed from there.’
‘You do that, Miss Clark. I need to get to my office. You can let yourselves out.’
THIRTY-SEVEN
Before anything else that morning, I hoped to find a note outside of my front door under the Mason jar on my landing. No luck. Where are you, Tom O’Malley? I began to wonder if I’d misjudged him. Was he really as distraught about the deaths of the railroad workers as he said? Was he so twisted about his father’s death and the stress of our jobs that he had descended into madness? Would that mean that he was manipulating us for a nefarious purpose?
I walked to work in the rays of a rising sun that turned the treetops on the opposite horizon to gold. Spring in this part of Tennessee stirred up nostalgia for the carefree days of April and May in the hills of Virginia before my stepfather came into my life. The images of my mother from that time resembled the faces of the beautiful women Botticelli created on canvas. How did she let it all slip away?
Does she think of that life sitting behind bars suffering with cancer and knowing each day might be her last? Or is she haunted by the bad years since my father’s death? Not long ago, I wanted her to suffer, but now I hope she’s focused on the former. I pray that she dies in peace. I shook these worrisome thoughts away as I entered the lab.
Sabotage in the Secret City Page 17
