“That’s why we joined swingers. I’d get sex out of it. I didn’t want to cheat on my marriage.
But I like sex. I need it. And he got something out of it without cheating on his marriage.”
Jesse nodded again.
“And it didn’t occur to you that he might be the Night Hawk?” Jesse said.
She shook her head.
“The closest I got,” she said, “was to think, Wow, here’s a guy with the same hang-ups Seth has. But then I’d think, Good, Seth has the swingers. ”
“Hard, anyway, to think your husband would do such a thing,” Molly said.
“But he did,” Hannah said. “He did, he did, he did.”
“It was you who told him we were going to have a meeting,” Jesse said.
“Yes,” Hannah said. “He calls me on his cell phone now and then. It’s awkward. I’m straining for conversation.”
“Did you tell him about having the meeting?”
“Yes.”
“Will you tell him about our conversation?” Jesse said.
“No,” she said. “The disgusting little pervert. How could he do this to me. I’ve tried, Jesus, I’ve tried. I wanted so much for this to work.”
“You love him?” Molly said.
“Half his female grad students were in love with him,” Hannah said. “Literary, masculine, adventurous. They thought he was Hemingway. And he cultivated it. Safari jackets, aviator glasses. He even used to have a beard.”
“And you were the one that got him.”
“Lucky me,” Hannah said.
“Do me a favor,” Jesse said. “Next time he calls, tell him about this conversation. I want him to know that you know, and I know.”
“I can’t talk to him anymore,” she said. “He makes me want to vomit.”
“It’ll help us finish this,” Jesse said. “He hasn’t hurt anybody yet, but he might. And he might miscalculate and get caught and somebody’s husband will kill him.”
“I don’t care,” she said. “After what he’s done to me? Fuck him.”
“Care about the women he may traumatize, care about the husband who might kill him and have to live with that for the rest of his life.”
She looked at Jesse for a while as if he puzzled her.
Then she said, “I hadn’t thought of it from that angle.”
“Tell him enough so he knows we know,” Jesse said.
Hannah nodded.
“How the hell am I going to write my dissertation?” she said.
66
“MY MOM said I should write you some kind of thank-you note,” Missy Clark said when she came into Jesse’s office. “But I said to myself, No, that sucks. I don’t even know what to say.
So I came to see you.”
“Good,” Jesse said, and gestured at a chair.
“I was right about you,” she said. “You’re nice.”
“I am,” Jesse said.
“When I saw you at the school, I thought, He’s a nice man .”
Jesse smiled.
“And you were right,” Jesse said.
“Well,” Missy said. “And don’t you know it.”
“I do,” Jesse said.
“My mom and dad are getting a divorce,” Missy said.
Jesse nodded.
“No more wife-swapping, “Missy said. “My mom promised.”
“How’s your brother?” Jesse said.
“He’s all screwed up, but my mom says he’ll get over it.”
Jesse nodded.
“And you?” he said.
“I’m okay,” Missy said. “As long as my dad stays the hell away from us.”
“He will,” Jesse said.
“What if he doesn’t?”
“Come and tell me,” Jesse said.
“Yes,” she said.
“Because?” Jesse said.
“You are the chief of police,” Missy said.
“Exactly,” Jesse said.
“I heard Mrs. Ingersoll isn’t going to be principal anymore,” Missy said.
“I think she’s taken a leave of absence,” Jesse said.
“And I heard she was getting divorced,” Missy said.
“I heard that, too,” Jesse said.
“Did somebody really take her picture with her clothes off?”
“Yes,” Jesse said.
“Was it the Night Hawk?”
“Confidential police information,” Jesse said.
“Oh, shit,” she said.
“Who am I?” Jesse said.
“I know,” Missy said. “I know, the chief of police.”
Jesse inclined his head.
“But I like you anyway,” Missy said.
“Thank you.”
“Why would anybody want a picture of Old Lady Ingersoll undressed?” Missy said.
“Different people need different things,” Jesse said.
“I bet she looks icky,” Missy said, “anyway.”
Jesse made no comment.
“Would you want to see her undressed?” Missy said.
“I don’t think she’s unattractive,” Jesse said.
“But would you want to see her?”
Jesse smiled.
“I just serve and protect,” Jesse said. “I don’t have likes or dislikes.”
“You like my dad?” Missy said.
Jesse smiled again.
“No,” he said.
“See,” she said.
“You like him?” Jesse said.
“I don’t think so,” she said. “I guess I should, you know, he’s my dad. You’re supposed to love your dad.”
“There’s no right or wrong to it,” Jesse said. “You have no control over who he is. But you have the right to control how you feel about him.”
She nodded.
“If I don’t love him, I don’t love him,” Missy said.
“It might be more complicated than that,” Jesse said. “But for now, it is what it is, and it’s not your fault.”
She nodded. They both sat for a moment without speaking.
Then Missy said, “Well, I just wanted to thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” he said.
She stood and went to the door and stopped and looked at him. Jesse waited.
“I’m a little scared,” she said. “I mean, my dad’s gone. My mom says she’s gonna be different. My little brother is weird. I don’t know what’s going to happen.”
“I’m here,” Jesse said. “Come see me anytime.”
She nodded and looked as if she wanted to say more. But she didn’t. She just smiled at him and left.
67
Jesse, you nosy bastard!
Proud of yourself? Because you think you know who I am? Nobody really knows who I am. Maybe not even I know who I am. Am I me? Or am I Mr. O? Or am I two people at the same time? Can you figure that one out, Jesse? You may have to. You had no business telling my wife about me. She told me you showed her my letter. She said she never wanted to speak with me again. I guess it can get lonely at the top, huh, Jesse? Or the people in the swingers’ group. They’ll gossip among themselves. They’ll compare notes. They’ll figure out who I am, and then it will be all over town. And my life is ruined. I’ll get fired from my job. I won’t be able to get another one anywhere. Academia is a closed club. The Mr. O rap will follow me everywhere I go. What I have to do, I know, is leave town and take Mr. O with me, and start over. I’ll change my name. Maybe I’ll be a professional hunter, or take people into the Grand Canyon on muleback. You know who I am, but you can’t find me and I’m about to disappear. Better move fast. I’ll give you a little help. Before I go I’m going to uncover one more secret, photograph it, and send you a copy. My farewell card, so to speak. You might be surprised when you find out who it is. Here’s a hint. She’s someone you’re close to!!! So stay alert, my friend. It’s your last chance. . . . And like they used to say in the movies, I WON’T BE
TAKEN ALIVE!
The Night Hawk
68
JESSE SAT in his office with Molly and Suit. The door was closed.
“We got anything on where Seth Ralston is?” Jesse said.
“Haven’t found him. Haven’t located his car. Moll says he used an ATM in the Bay State Mall to withdraw five hundred dollars, and another one in a hotel lobby in Cambridge, to take out another five hundred dollars.”
“That’s it?”
“That’s it,” Suit said.