The Anniversary (32 page)

brain pressure. The high-tech equipment should have reassured 26

him, but it just made him more anxious.

27

A nurse came into the room and adjusted Melanie’s bed. She 28

had rosy cheeks, curly hair, and a calm, efficient manner. She ex-29

amined Melanie’s eyes with a flashlight, pushing back the lids.

30

Then she checked the fluid level in the intravenous feeding bag.

31

“Do you see any changes?” Jamison asked. He couldn’t help him-32

self. “Don’t worry,” she said soothingly. “There’s still plenty of 33

time.” But the edge of pity in her voice gave him a hopeless 34

feeling.

35 S

When the nurse left, he pulled his chair closer. Visitors in in-36 R

tensive care were normally limited to family, but with the help of 1 7 6

2nd PASS PAGES

13713_01_i-vi_001-344_r4jn.qxd 4/21/03 8:03 AM Page 177

T H E A N N I V E R S A R Y

a pal in the NYPD he’d managed to talk his way in. Which still 1

begged the question: What was he doing here? He had an 2

arrangement with Leeds Associates to consult on outside cases. It 3

was one of the terms he’d negotiated when he’d joined the pri-4

vate firm. Until now, he’d scheduled these consultations around 5

his paying clients. This time, though, he’d dropped everything, 6

without a second thought.

7

As an FBI profiler, he’d spent more than a decade studying so-8

ciopaths, delving into the darkest parts of their deeply troubled 9

minds. He’d met Melanie shortly before Gage’s execution, still 10

immersed in the death-row interviews that became his best-11

known work. They’d known each other so briefly, and yet he’d re-12

membered her. They came from totally different worlds, but he’d 13

sensed a kindred spirit.

14

If they’d met in other circumstances, would the feelings have 15

been the same? Impossible to answer that. The facts were what 16

they were. He thought about their first meeting back in Ten-17

nessee, both of them running on adrenaline and coffee as the 18

hours ticked down. They’d shared the same obsession, and that 19

had created a bond. Melanie hadn’t said a lot — as Gage’s attor-20

ney, she couldn’t — but he could tell that she was drinking in 21

every word he said. And it certainly hadn’t hurt that she was so 22

damn pretty. Tall and blonde with that deep blue gaze, at once 23

skeptical and earnest.

24

Of course, he hadn’t said any of this. He couldn’t at the time.

25

He was with the FBI. She was one of Gage’s lawyers. Besides, 26

even more to the point, both of them were married. The night af-27

ter Gage’s execution, he’d sat up with her all night. Later, he 28

wondered what might have happened if both of them had been 29

free. After his divorce, he’d briefly thought about getting in 30

touch with her. But he’d assumed she was still married. And what 31

would have been the point?

32

He glanced at his watch. Fifteen more minutes. He wondered 33

where the hell her family was, hoped someone would be here 34

soon.

S 35

He leaned forward a little more, bracing his hands on his knees.

R 36

1 7 7

2nd PASS PAGES

13713_01_i-vi_001-344_r4jn.qxd 4/21/03 8:03 AM Page 178

A M Y G U T M A N

1

“Melanie. Can you hear me?”

2

No response. Nothing.

3

That brief window of consciousness seemed like a mirage. Just 4

yesterday she’d talked to him, begged him to call Callie Thayer.

5

She’d been groggy, her voice weak, but she’d gotten her point 6

across.

7

The NYPD had released Melanie’s apartment late yesterday af-8

ternoon. Under cover of getting her some personal items, Jami-9

son had slipped in. Even though he’d known what to expect, the 10

sight had been a shock. All that white upholstery. All that dried 11

red blood. On an arm of the couch was a trail of handprints, as if 12

she’d tried to stand up. The image had seared itself into his mind.

13

He wished he hadn’t seen it.

14

The slope-bellied super watched him closely as he opened 15

closets and drawers. Picked out a nightgown, some bedroom slip-16

pers, a pink quilted robe. He’d had no idea where to look, but 17

he’d acted like he did. Relieved, he’d found the watch and note 18

still safe in a dresser drawer.

19

A slight ripple, a movement, beneath the crisp sheet. At first 20

he thought he’d imagined it, and then he heard a sound.

21

“Noooooo . . .” The word was uttered softly, a barely audible 22

moan.

23

In an instant, Jamison was on his feet, rushing to the hall.

24

“She said something,” he called to a nurse. “I think she’s wak-25

ing up.”

26

Back at Melanie’s bedside, Jamison held her hand. The nurse 27

walked briskly into the room with the neurosurgery resident. The 28

young doctor, dark-eyed and intense, stood across from Jamison.

29

“Ms. White, can you hear me?” he asked. “Can you open your 30

eyes?”

31

Jamison’s eyes were on Melanie’s lips, waiting for her to speak.

32

For several minutes, nothing happened, then it came again.

33

“No-no-no!” she mumbled. Her voice was louder now. She 34

seemed almost agitated, as if she were afraid.

35 S

“It’s okay,” Jamison told her. “You’re safe here. No one will hurt 36 R

you. The person who hurt you is gone now. Everything’s okay.”

1 7 8

2nd PASS PAGES

13713_01_i-vi_001-344_r4jn.qxd 4/21/03 8:03 AM Page 179

T H E A N N I V E R S A R Y

“Nooooooooo,” Melanie said. Her eyes fluttered open. For an 1

instant, she seemed to look straight at him, then her eyelids shut-2

tered down. But after a moment, her lips trembled.

3

“Not,” she said.

4

Not what?
Jamison wondered. And then his body tensed. She 5

hadn’t been saying no at all; she’d been saying something else.

6

Something that confirmed what at some level he’d suspected all 7

along.

8

He leaned so close to Melanie’s face that his cheek brushed her 9

hair.

10

“
Note.
Is that what you’re saying? Did you get a note like Cal-11

lie’s?”

12

For a moment, nothing happened.

13

Then she squeezed his hand.

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

S 35

R 36

1 7 9

2nd PASS PAGES

13713_01_i-vi_001-344_r4jn.qxd 4/21/03 8:03 AM Page 180

Monday, May 1

C

1

a l l i e sheered off I-91 onto Route 2A, heading east toward 2

Boston. In something under three hours she was crossing into 3

Maine. She passed through the shipbuilding town of Bath, through 4

picturesque Wiscasset. Shortly after noon, she stopped for lunch, 5

at a place called Moody’s Diner.

6

Inside, she sat in a green vinyl booth and waited for a menu.

7

Even months before tourist season, the room was bustling. Single 8

diners, mainly men, ate at the yellow counter. At a neighboring 9

booth two gray-haired women worked on pieces of pie. “Chow-10

dah?” Callie heard a waitress ask a couple seated nearby. She’d 11

forgotten how Mainers dropped their
r
’s, how distinctive the ac-12

cent was.

13

Her lobster roll came toasted, with sides of coleslaw and shoe-14

string fries. She ate quickly, eager to get back on the road. When 15

she’d placed the call to the Maine state police, she’d been afraid 16

they’d want to come to Merritt. She’d been relieved to find that 17

they were more than willing to let her come to them. Merritt was 18

such a small town. People noticed things. As it was, she’d still 19

had to explain this unexpected trip. She’d told Rick she needed 20

a night alone, time to rest and think. She and Martha had just 21

finished up the Fifth Reunion report, so under the circumstances 22

the story almost made sense. With profuse thanks to Mimi, she’d 23

packed Anna off to the Creightons’.

24

She almost missed the state police barracks. It looked like a 25

small white house. She pulled into a circular driveway and parked 26 S

right in front. After giving her name to a receptionist, she took a 27 R

1 8 0

2nd PASS PAGES

13713_01_i-vi_001-344_r4jn.qxd 4/21/03 8:03 AM Page 181

T H E A N N I V E R S A R Y

seat on a turquoise couch. But before she had time to settle in, a 1

man was coming toward her.

2

“Jack Pulaski.” He held out a hand. His grip was firm and 3

warm. He was of middling height, with a low-key demeanor, 4

dressed in a light gray suit. Brown hair, brown eyes, a pleasant 5

face, nothing the least bit striking. But for some reason, as she 6

looked at him, Callie felt somehow safer.

7

Pulaski’s office was small and neat, looking out on a patch of 8

grass. He had the requisite office fittings — file cabinet, guest 9

chairs, desk. There were two picture frames on his desk, though 10

Callie couldn’t see the pictures. A wife, she assumed. A couple of 11

kids. That’s what she’d expect. On the edge of the desk sat a brass 12

nameplate: Jackson D. Pulaski, Detective.

13

He asked if she wanted something to drink.

14

“Water would be great.”

15

When he came back, glass in hand, another man was with him.

16

“This is Stu Farkess,” Pulaski said. “He’ll be here with us to-17

day.” Farkess was taller than Pulaski, thin, with red hair and a 18

spray of freckles.

19

For a time, the three of them made small talk. The weather —

20

warm for this time of year; her drive — the directions were per-21

fect. Callie knew that they were trying to put her at ease, and, to 22

an extent, it worked. She felt the muscles in her back unclench, 23

her grip loosen on her chair. By the time they touched on the rea-24

son for her visit, Callie’s hands lay in her lap.

25

“Now, Callie,” Pulaski said — they’d quickly moved on to first 26

names — “when we talked on the phone, you expressed concern 27

about keeping this confidential. We want to respect your wishes 28

on that. Like I said before, we’ll do everything we can. Now, if 29

this comes to trial, well at that point, you might have to testify.

30

We can’t do anything about that. But as for the investigation it-31

self, there’s no reason that what you tell us today can’t stay be-32

tween us and other investigators working on the case.”

33

“And the media?” Callie asked. “What about reporters?”

34

“You don’t need to worry about that. We tell them very lit-S 35

R 36

1 8 1

2nd PASS PAGES

13713_01_i-vi_001-344_r4jn.qxd 4/21/03 8:03 AM Page 182

A M Y G U T M A N

1

tle in any ongoing investigation. They won’t even know about 2

you.”

3

“Thank you.” He seemed so earnest, so genuine, Callie liked 4

him more and more. A part of her knew that it was tactical, that 5

she was just succumbing to technique. But another part of her 6

didn’t care. She liked him all the same.

7

“So why don’t we start with the watch you found,” Pulaski 8

said. “If you can tell us how you came to have it.”

9

She’d already rehearsed this part in her mind, and now she 10

went over it. How she’d hidden the Easter basket in the drain-11

pipe, filled it with chocolate eggs. How, by the next morning, 12

when Anna found it, the contents had been replaced.

13

As the two men listened to her, Callie felt the strength of their 14

attention. Their expressions stayed calm and easy, but she sensed 15

they were missing nothing.

16

“Now, this Easter egg hunt,” Pulaski said. “It’s for the whole 17

neighborhood?”

18

“That’s right,” Callie said.

19

“So the kids look for eggs and baskets all over the place, not 20

just in their own yards.”

21

“Yes.”

22

“So that particular basket, there was no way of ensuring that 23

your daughter would be the one to find it?”

24

“I guess not,” Callie said reluctantly.
Unless, unless
. . . A 25

thought surfaced, then disappeared before she could quite grasp it.

26

“Still, you have some reason to think that the basket was 27

meant for your daughter. You think that the person who hid the 28

watch intended for her to find it.”

29

“Yes.”

30

“Could you tell us why you think that?”

31

She felt it rushing toward her, the moment of no return. For 32

the first time in almost ten years she would tell her secret to 33