Play Dead (2010)

by Harlan Coben

  The reporters filed out without another word. The players dressed quickly now, silently. But Mark just continued to sit with his head between his hands. Clip headed over to the corner locker where Mark sat alone, away from his teammates. He put his hand on Mark's shoulder as several players left the room and headed upstairs.

  'Are you okay?' Clip asked.

  Mark nodded.

  'Look, I know you don't like making appearances or talking to the press. Fine, that's up to you. But David meant a lot to these guys. I know you're not a social guy, and I guess you don't want to make friends with your teammates. That's also up to you. As long as you're doing your job, I won't say anything. You understand?'

  Mark looked up. 'Yes.'

  'So while I don't like your closed-mouth act, I let it go,' Clip continued. 'But I don't want you to do something that will alienate your teammates.'

  The last of the Celtics filed out, leaving Clip and Mark alone in the towel-cluttered locker room. 'As long as I do the job on the court,' Mark began, 'what's the difference?'

  'I'm not saying that you have to be buddy-buddy with the other guys. But it doesn't pay to piss them off . . .'

  'But -- '

  'Or me,' Clip pronounced, his voice getting louder and shakier. His face turned deep scarlet. 'I've got to draw the line somewhere, Mark, and I don't give a shit how great of a player you are. David Baskin meant a lot to these guys -- and to me. If you're disrespectful to his memory, I don't care if you're the Messiah. I'll sit you so far down the bench you'll be lucky to see the game. Is that understood?'

  Mark wanted so much to stand up and hug the angry, frail-looking man who stood before him. 'I guess so.'

  Clip calmed down, the scarlet ebbing away from his complexion. His voice softened. 'You're already being compared with David,' he said. 'You shoot like him, you move like him, and you've taken his position.' He stood and moved toward the door. 'Get dressed now. We'll go together.'

  Mark nodded. Any further resistance would only draw attention to himself. He began to shiver uncontrollably, frightened of entering the Blades and Boards Club. His teammates would be there. T.C. would be there. But most of all, the row of people who had been sitting with T.C. would be there. He had managed to avoid even looking in that direction, not even catching the eye of T.C. for fear he would see someone else. And though he had not seen her, he knew that she had been there, could feel her from the moment she had entered the building. Now his body felt cold as he realized that, like it or not, Mark Seidman would have to face her for the first time. The pit of his stomach contracted.

  At long last, Mark Seidman would meet Laura Baskin.

  Chapter 21

  Laura stood with Earl and Serita. She had already greeted David's old teammates with embraces and kind words. All of them were there, except for Clip and that mystery guy. Laura could still not believe what she had seen on the court. It was more than Mark Seidman's play, fantastic as it had been. Now she understood what Earl had been talking about at his penthouse. There was something disquieting about Seidman. The way he played -- so like David technically but without one slice of emotion. Emotion had always propelled David to play his best. He fed off his affection for his teammates and off his love for the game. His face showed it in every jumpshot, every pass, every rebound. But Mark Seidman seemed motivated by something else, something abstract and impersonal. He looked like a reluctant warrior trying to survive the fiercest of battles so he could just go home.

  But then again, he was so like David. Mark Seidman had taken David's place in the line-up, played the same position, displayed the same unshakable concentration, but weirdest of all, he had that quick-release jumpshot. Like David, Mark Seidman made the ball appear to float gently toward the basket, as though an invisible hand were guiding it in the air. Laura could not take her eyes off him. Every move Mark Seidman made on the court jabbed at her insides. So like David. So like her wonderful, beautiful David. Even now Laura felt herself trembling.

  She stopped herself as Clip entered the room, shaking off her ridiculous thoughts about the Celtics rookie. Clip turned toward her. His smile reached his sad eyes. It was a soothing smile, the smile of an old friend who had come to help. She began to make her way to where he stood.

  Then Mark Seidman walked in.

  Laura froze. She did not glance at him just yet. She could not explain why she felt it necessary to avoid seeing him. But she did. Clip took Mark Seidman's arm and began to whisk him about the room, introducing him to Laura's parents, Serita and T.C. Finally, Clip brought Mark Seidman over to where she stood.

  'Laura, this is Mark Seidman,' he said. 'Mark, this is Laura Baskin.'

  She slowly lifted her head toward him. Without warning, her gaze locked onto his. A powerful blow struck her midsection. Her eyes dodged for cover from the onslaught while his did the same. She had looked at him for less than a split second, but there was no mistaking the unspeakable pain in his contorted eyes.

  'Congratulations on a good game,' she managed.

  'Thank you,' came his soft voice. 'I'm sorry about your husband.' They shook hands. Mark's face flushed with her touch. He quickly released his grip. 'Please excuse me.'

  Clip tried to keep hold of Mark's arm by subtly locking him in place, but Mark slipped through and hurried to the other side of the room. Embarrassed, Clip raised his hands toward Laura and shrugged. 'What can I tell you?' he said. 'Mark is painfully shy.'

  'Earl told me,' Laura replied.

  'He's a strange sort. Good player though.'

  Laura nodded. Clip excused himself and made his way toward the Celtics coaching staff.

  That was when Laura spotted Stan wobbling toward her.

  After downing a good number of beers during the game, Stan had been hanging out near the fully stocked bar throughout the reception. Now Stan was most definitely drunk. Completely inebriated. He could barely stand. Laura scanned the room. Gloria was nowhere to be seen.

  When Stan finally reached where she was standing, he threw his arm around her shoulders, leaned over, and quickly kissed her. 'You've got some hot bod, Laura.'

  'Bastard!' she hissed.

  'Now, now, don't make a scene,' Stan slurred, his arm still around her for support. 'It was only a peck on the cheek.'

  'What do you want, Stan?'

  Stan teetered but steadied himself quickly. He kept his arm around Laura's neck and pulled her closer to him. 'God, you're rude, sis. Has anyone ever told you that before?'

  'You're drunk.'

  'No shit, Sherlock. I'm drunk. So what? Does that mean I can't come over and say hello and see how you're holding up? Can't you at least be civil on a tragic occasion like this?'

  Laura chortled. 'You'd spit on David's grave for a dollar.'

  He pulled her closer and whispered, 'Or even half that much.'

  Laura considered slamming her fist into his groin, as she had done that day he attacked her in her office, but the thought of making a scene and then trying to explain her behavior kept her temper in check. Instead, she smiled as though nothing was wrong and said, 'Get away from me, pig.'

  'But, Laura, I have good news for you. The charade is about to end.'

  'Where's Gloria?'

  'Powdering her nose. But listen to me. It's over. Tonight.'

  'What are you babbling about?'

  His body swayed back and forth. 'I don't need you or your sister's goddamn money anymore.'

  'Stan, I don't know what you're talking about nor do I care. Just get the hell away from me.'

  'All in good time,' he said. 'But don't you understand? It's over. I'm leaving.'

  'Great. Nice knowing you. Bye.'

  Stan smiled, his red eyes trying to focus in on hers. 'Aren't you forgetting one small detail?'

  'Such as?'

  'Gloria.'

  'What about her?'

  He shrugged, nearly toppling from the effort. 'She loves me, you know. I can let her down nice and easy. Tell her how I'm not good enough for her and all
that bullshit. Or I can crush her, tell her that I was just using her, that's she's nothing but a useless whore.'

  Laura let the rage build inside her but her face remained calm. 'If you do that,' she said evenly, 'I'll kill you. I swear it.'

  'Threats, Laura? You should know better than that.'

  'What do you want, Stan? I thought you said you didn't need money anymore. And why the hell were you acting so weird at the game?'

  'Patience, my lovely flower. You are indeed correct. I do not need your money.'

  'Then why don't you just leave my sister in peace?'

  'Nothing would please me more. But life is not that easy. First, you must do something for me.' Stan grabbed her by the shoulders, turning her body so that they faced one another.

  'What?' she asked.

  He smiled. 'I want you to sleep with me. Just once. Do me that one little favor and I won't harm your sister.'

  As Laura felt herself begin to gag, she realized that to an onlooker she and Stan appeared to be just a happy, good-looking couple. They were both smiling, facing one another, Stan standing close with his hands on her shoulders. Appearance vs. reality. People were probably smiling sweetly at them, commenting on what a nice couple they made . . .

  ... but right now, Laura was looking at Mark Seidman and he did not appear to be smiling. For the first time that evening, Mark Seidman's cool exterior had cracked. Laura was puzzled. Mark Seidman stood behind Stan, glaring at them, his face twisted into a look of intense hatred.

  Why?

  'Well,' Stan said, his breath reeking from liquor, 'I'm waiting.'

  Laura's eyes swung back to his. 'You're drunk.'

  'That fact has already been established,' he replied. 'I'm still waiting for an answer.'

  'How about this? Go to hell.'

  Stan shook his head. 'You're not being smart, Laura. Really you're not. You should think this through first.'

  'Think this through, Stan: you are the most repulsive creature I have ever met. I hate you.'

  'Do you know why you hate me?'

  'Do you want the list in any particular order?'

  He laughed. His feet shuffled underneath him, allowing him to maintain his balance. 'Laura, why don't you stop deceiving yourself? Admit to yourself at least why you hate me.'

  'Okay, Stan, I'll bite. Why do I hate you?'

  'It's because you find me attractive,' he said, spittle flying with his words. 'Very attractive. You want me, Laura. You want me very badly. And that makes you feel guilty. It makes you feel like you're being disloyal to David. So how do you compensate for that? You create this ugly illusion, an illusion you're able to hate.'

  'You're sick, Stan,' Laura shot back. 'When I first saw you with Gloria tonight, I was actually stupid enough to think that maybe you did give a half a damn about her. But I won't ever forget the truth, Stan. I won't ever forget you're a piece of shit.'

  His smile did not waver. 'Yes, but a piece of shit who is going to have his way with you.'

  'Not a chance.'

  'Ah, Laura, you're using emotion again. Didn't I warn you about that? Pretend this is a business decision. If you sleep with me tonight, I'm gone forever. I will be nothing but a pleasant memory for Gloria. If you don't, I'll destroy her. Think about it, Laura. What is Gloria's life worth to you? Does she matter so little that you wouldn't sacrifice your widow-virginity for her?'

  Laura said nothing.

  Stan's smirk of satisfaction raked across her heart painfully. 'I see you're starting to think about this practically. That's smart, Laura. Just one quick boff and I'm history. You can even close your eyes if you want. And of course, if your lovely bod decides it can't just have Stan for one night, that it craves more of what I have, I'll stay with you for a while. We'll make it our little secret.'

  Laura swallowed away her nausea, not believing what she was about to say. 'What guarantee do I have you will actually leave?'

  Stan smiled. He had her. 'You don't trust me?'

  'Not at all.'

  'Well, you're going to have to, my love,' he explained. 'Life is a gamble. You'll have to make your choice and live with it. But either way, I'm leaving tomorrow. So if you find Gloria in the bathroom with her arteries bursting blood, you know you made the wrong decision.'

  Across the room, Laura spotted Gloria. Her sister began to walk toward them.

  'I'll meet you at your place at midnight,' Stan whispered.

  Laura watched him stagger toward her sister. Gloria looked so beautiful, so happy, so delicate, eyeing Stan worriedly as he stumbled his way toward her. She is concerned for his welfare, Laura thought, concerned about that no-good son of a bitch. And Laura could do nothing about it. She was powerless against him and right now that meant just one thing.

  Laura turned away. David was already dead. She had arrived too late to save him from the clutches of the Pacific or a still unknown murderer. But Gloria was still with her, still alive.

  And Laura still had the opportunity to save her.

  Anger glazed Mark's eyes as he glared at Laura and Stan. He still could not believe it. Stan. Stan was here in Boston. Why the hell hadn't T.C. told him? But the answer was obvious. Now that David Baskin was dead, Mark Seidman was to be told nothing.

  A familiar voice snapped him out of his semi-trance. 'Excuse me.'

  Mark swiveled his head toward a tall woman with auburn hair. Judy Simmons. He had figured Judy was going to show up for this event, and that made him very afraid. Laura's aunt was no fool and, more to the point, Mark was sure that she was the only person who had any real chance of discovering what had really happened to David Baskin.

  'Yes, Miss . . .' he feigned forgetting her name.

  'Simmons,' Judy finished for him. 'Judy Simmons. I'm Laura Baskin's aunt.'

  'Yes, of course.'

  She scrutinized him closely, spending a long time on his face. 'I just wanted to say, Mr Seidman, that you played a wonderful game tonight.'

  'Thank you.'

  'Where did you learn to play like that?'

  Mark shrugged. 'Nowhere special. Around.'

  'Well you play like no rookie I've ever seen.' She stopped, her eyes narrowing. 'You look very familiar to me, Mr Seidman. Have we met before?'

  'I don't believe so.'

  'Funny, I know I've seen you somewhere,' she continued. 'Were you ever on the campus of Colgate College?'

  'No.'

  'Maybe I knew your mother. Yes, that's it. Seidman, Seidman. Even the name rings a bell.'

  'My mother died a good number of years ago.'

  Once again, Judy studied his face. She had seen his reaction at Laura's conversing with Stan Baskin, but this time, his expression remained composed. 'I'm sorry.'

  'Will you excuse me, ma'am?'

  Judy simply stared at him, saying nothing. Her eyes did not wander off his face as he smiled weakly, nodded, and moved toward the exit.

  It can't be, she told herself. Just calm yourself down. Mark Seidman is just another amazing sports story. That's all. Stop making something out of nothing.

  But she knew it was not true.

  Stan stumbled down the empty hallway at the Boston Garden and into the abandoned men's room on the top floor. He had been drunk plenty of times before, plenty, but man, did he feel out of control and sick tonight. His head spun like a 78 on an old victrola. His mouth felt like someone had poured sand down his throat. And his stomach, his goddamn stomach felt like a training ground for grenade launchers.

  He looked at himself in the mirror, fear clutching his neck and throat. There was more than just booze working on his head, his mouth, his stomach. He had never been so terrified in all of his life, and yet an opportunity had sprung forward that exhilarated him. Money. All he wanted. All he needed. It was right in front of him now. He would ask for one hundred grand right off the bat and then cash in on new installments whenever he deemed it necessary. He could have everything he ever wanted if . . .

  ... if he would only shake hands with the devil.r />
  Stan staggered away from the mirror. Sometimes he was such an idiot, especially when it came to Laura. When was he going to learn to keep his big mouth under control? Christ, he was drunk. Maybe he should apologize for what he said, but no, that would do no good. Laura would just spit on him. Why did he always do things like that? Why did he always slide backwards into his darkened, vile pit whenever he was one step away from getting out of it for good? He had drunk too much, seen Laura, and wham, his lust for vengeance on David rose up in him. Why? The poor guy was dead now. Why in the face of Laura's awesome beauty did his old hatred always emerge anew?

  He unzipped his fly in front of the urinal. The truth was he did not want to leave quite yet. He could have the money and keep Gloria -- though it could get a little messy. After all, the source of his money supply was a member of her family.

  Yes, blackmail was on his mind, plain and simple. But this was no ordinary blackmail scheme. He was not planning on blackmailing an ordinary wrongdoer.

  He was going to blackmail his father's murderer.

  Stan grabbed onto the sides of the urinal and steadied himself. Sweat made his clothes cling to his skin uncomfortably. After all these years he had finally seen his father's killer again. Most sons would cry for blood against such a demon. They would demand biblical justice, an eye for an eye, death. But not Stan. Too many years had passed to play vengeful gunslinger and frankly, Stan was gutless in the ways of violence, always had been. He could report it to the police, but who would believe him? Who would trust the word of a man who waited thirty years to let anyone know that he had witnessed his father's murder? And with his police record? No way. Forget it.

  No, Stan decided, he would have to wreak his own type of vengeance against the killer of his happy childhood. He would let the murderer live in constant fear of being discovered -- and make a nice profit for himself in the process.

  A rush of nausea swept through him. Sure as God made green apples he was going to vomit. No doubt about it. He hated throwing up but then again, who likes it? It had to be done. Best to get it over with. Besides, maybe he'd feel better after sacrificing a few of those Molotov cocktails to the porcelain gods.