“Yes, they adopted her.”
“Could I have their number?”
Nagle hesitated. His eyes swept the desktop; they’d lost their sparkle.
“Is there a problem?”
“Well, I promised the aunt I wouldn’t say anything to anybody about the girl. She’s very protective of her niece. EvenI haven’t met her yet. At first the woman was dead set against my talking to her. I think she might agree eventually but if I gave you her number, I doubt very much she’d talk to you, and I suspect I’d never hear from her again.”
“Just tell us where she lives. We’ll get the name from Directory Assistance. I won’t mention you.”
He shook his head. “They changed their last name, moved out of the area. They were afraid somebody in the Family would come after them.”
“You gave Kathryn the names of the women,” Kellogg pointed out.
“They were in the phone book and in public records. You could’ve gotten them yourself. Theresa and her aunt and uncle are very unpublic.”
“Youfound them,” Dance said.
“Through some confidential sources. Who, I guarantee, want to stay even more confidential now that Pell’s escaped. But I know this’s important…. I’ll tell you what I’ll do. I’ll go see the aunt in person. Tell her you want to talk to Theresa about Pell. I’m not going to try to persuade them. If they say no, that’s it.”
Kellogg nodded. “That’s all we’re asking. Thanks.”
Looking over the bio, Dance said, “The more I learn about him, the less I know.”
The writer laughed, the sparkle returning to his face. “Oh, you want to know the why of Daniel Pell?” He dug through his briefcase, found a stack of papers and flipped to a yellow tab. “Here’s a quote from one of his prison psych interviews. For once he was being candid.” Nagle read:
“Pell: You want to analyze me, don’t you? You want to know what makes me tick? You surely know the answer tothatone, Doctor. It’s the same for everybody: family, of course. Daddy whipped me, Daddy ignored me, Mommy didn’t breastfeed me, Uncle Joe did who knows what. Nature or nurture, you can lay everything at your family’s feet. But if you think too much about ’em, next thing you know, every single relative and ancestor you ever had is in the room with you and you’re paralyzed. No, no, the only way to survive is to let ’em all go and remember that you’re who you are and that’s never going to change.
“Interviewer: Then whoareyou, Daniel?
“Pell (laughing): Oh, me? I’m the one tugging the strings of your soul and making you do things you never thought you were capable of. I’m the one playing my flute and leading you to places you’re afraid to go.
And let me tell you, Doctor, you’d be astonished at how many people want their puppeteers and their Pied Pipers. Absolutely astonished.”
“I have to get home,” Dance said, after Nagle had left. Her mother and the children would be anxiously awaiting her for her father’s party.
Kellogg tossed the comma of hair off his forehead. It fell back. He tried again. She glanced at the gesture and noticed something she hadn’t seen before—a bandage protruding above the collar of his shirt.
“You hurt?”
A shrug. “Got winged. A takedown in Chicago the other day.”
His body language told her he didn’t want to talk about it, and she didn’t push. But then he said, “The perp didn’t make it.” In a certain tone and with a certain glance. It was how she told people that she was a widow.
“I’m sorry. You handling it okay?”
“Fine.” Then he added, “Okay, not fine. But I’m handling it. Sometimes that’s the best you can do.”
On impulse she asked, “Hey, you have plans tonight?”
“Brief the SAC, then a bath at the hotel, a scotch, a burger and sleep. Well, okay, two scotches.”
“Have a question.”
He lifted an eyebrow.
“You like birthday cake?”
After only a brief pause he said, “It’s one of my favorite food groups.”
Chapter 26
“Mom, look. We deck-orated it!D-E-C-K. ”
Dance kissed her daughter. “Mags, that’s funny.”
She knew the girl had been bursting, waiting to share the pun.
The Deck did look nice. The kids had been busy all afternoon getting ready for the party. Banners, Chinese lanterns, candles everywhere. (They’d learned from their mom; when it came to entertaining, Kathryn Dance’s guests might not get gourmet food, but they were treated to great atmosphere.)
“When can Grandpa open his presents?” Both Wes and Maggie had saved up allowance money and bought Stuart Dance outdoor gear—waders and a net. Dance knew her father’d be happy with anything his grandchildren got him but those particular items he would definitely use.
“Presents after the cake,” Edie Dance announced. “And that’s after dinner.”
“Hi, Mom.” Dance and her mother didn’t always hug but tonight Edie clasped her close as an excuse to whisper that she wanted to talk to her about Juan Millar.
The women walked into the living room.
Dance saw immediately that her mother was troubled.
“What is it?”
“He’s still hanging in there. He’s come to a couple of times.” A glance around to make sure, presumably, that the children were nowhere nearby. “Only for a few seconds each time. He couldn’t possibly give you a statement. But…”
“What, Mom?”
She lowered her voice further. “I was standing near him. Nobody else was in earshot. I looked down and his eyes were open. I mean the one that’s not bandaged. His lips were moving. I bent down. He said…” Edie glanced around again. “He said, ‘Kill me.’ He said it twice. Then he closed his eyes.”
“Is he in that much pain?”
“No, he’s so medicated he can’t feel a thing. But he could look at the bandages. He could see the equipment. He’s not a stupid man.”