But if Harry was dead, that in itself raised another question—could it just be a coincidence, another guy with the same name, or a pseudonym picked out of the hat that just happened to be linked to Sparrowhawk? It seemed unlikely, and certainly less likely than the other explanation . . .
Whoever had given that card to Grasset—or rather, whoever had ordered someone to give that card to him, had calculated that Grasset would in turn give it to Finn, or at least pass on the name. They were goading Finn, perhaps in the hope of bringing about the breakthrough they’d been working toward for at least two years.
He felt sick at the possibility that even Jonas’s death and the implied threat against Hailey had been part of that goading. For a few moments he weighed up the possibility, setting it against the other scenario of information paranoia, first one seeming more likely, then the other.
Finally he let it go, realizing that it hardly mattered, that in one way or another Jonas was dead because of him. He’d inadvertently set that death in motion six years ago and had given it traction with every year he’d allowed to slip past, believing that doing nothing and living beneath the radar would be enough.
They had come after him, though, even earlier than he’d realized—at first passively and now actively. And it wouldn’t stop unless he made it stop, or gave them whatever it was they wanted.
He reached up and pressed the buzzer. The muffled conversation stopped, there were soft footsteps, and Hailey opened the door. She smiled and he wanted to tell her that she wasn’t to open the door anymore, but he held back as he saw how strained that smile was, and the fragility that lay beneath it.
He smiled back and said, “There are some things I need to discuss with you and your parents.”
“Sure, come in. I told them Jonas was killed—is that okay?”
“Of course.”
As he walked into their living room, Ethan stood and shook his hand and said, “This is a terrible business, just terrible.”
Finn wasn’t sure he liked Ethan’s tone, but then Debbie settled any doubts about what they were thinking when she said, “You must feel awful.”
“Mom!”
Finn said, “I do feel awful. If Jonas and Hailey hadn’t spied on Gibson, none of this would’ve happened. True, six months from now it might have been Adrienne and me who were killed out of the blue, but at least I’d have felt good about myself.”
Ethan looked defensive. “Steady, Finn, Debbie didn’t mean anything . . .”
Finn shook his head. “You’re right, I’m sorry. And the truth is, it does all lead back to me. I’m the common denominator, and I’m trying to fix it, but nothing I do now solves the problem of that boy lying in the morgue.”
Hailey made a barely distinguishable sound—a whimper, possibly even a word—and sat down. He looked at her. None of them appeared able to reply, and Ethan gestured for Finn to sit and lowered himself heavily into an armchair.
Still nobody spoke and so Finn said, “And while you’re holding that thought, while you’re still heading from being grateful for me bringing your daughter back to wishing you’d never met me, there’s something else I need to tell you.”
They all looked at him, but it was Hailey who said, “It’s what Monsieur Grasset wanted to talk to you about, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. Apparently last night someone from the same outfit as Gibson was looking around the apartment next door—”
Debbie said, “I knew it, didn’t I, Ethan? I swore I heard someone in there.”
“Grasset went to investigate, but the guy was asking about Hailey, saying he’d heard she’d disappeared, had they found her, that kind of thing, pretending to be concerned, as you’d expect.”
Debbie looked desperate. “But . . . I think I spoke to Mr. Gibson the day he was leaving.”
“I don’t think you did,” said Ethan. “I saw him, but I don’t think I spoke to him.”
“Even so, he might have heard about Hailey, so it could have been a normal thing for his colleague to ask about her.”
“It could have been,” said Finn. “But it wasn’t. Grasset thinks he saw Gibson driving the car that the guy left in. I think the two of them probably killed Jonas earlier in the evening, then came over here. They might have had other reasons for coming, but I think it’s a matter of some concern that they wanted to know about Hailey.”
Ethan looked at him accusingly and said, “What are you talking about? Hailey doesn’t know anything. They killed Jonas because he was poking his nose in, but there’s no reason for them to want to harm Hailey.”
“Ethan, there was no reason for them to kill Jonas—these are not reasonable people we’re talking about. Now, it’s possible I’m being overcautious, but I’d rather be overcautious and assume that Hailey might be at risk than let our guard down.”
“You kept telling me I wasn’t in danger.”
He looked at her and said, “And that’s what I believed. It might also still be true, but I’d prefer to play it safe.”