ôOne baby, Max,ö he whispered. ôSheÆs only having one baby!ö
I smiled.ôI know.ö
ôOne baby I can handle. I think.ö His face clouded a little. ôOr maybe not.ö
ôOf course we can handle one baby,ö I said. ôBesides, babies arenÆt dangerous, you know. TheyÆre not live grenades that can go off any second.ö
ôSays you,ö he said, and his frown had returned. I had the impression that as long as that baby hadnÆt been born, my friend would continue to fret and worry. Then again, Dooley always frets and worries. If itÆs not about babies, itÆs about the sky falling or some terrible disease laying waste to the entire family. He watches too much television, I guess.
WeÆd finally arrived at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Blandine, and we all got out. It was a modest little home on a quiet street. I wondered now how the Karats had discovered the likeness between Cotton and Eric, but I was sure the manÆs wife would tell us all about it.
Mrs. Blandine was a short, stocky woman with a bob of dark hair and a square face. SheÆd been crying, I saw, which meant that either sheÆd been peeling onions, or someone had already broken the news to her.
ôIÆm very sorry to say that I have some bad news for you about your husband, Mrs. Blandine,ö said Chase as we stood on the porch.
ôI know!ö the woman wailed. ôHeÆs dead, isnÆt he!ö
ôHow did youàö
ôWe heard the news this morning,ö said a man, stepping to the fore. He looked very much like Cotton Karat, or indeed Eric Blandine, only there was more of him. Twice as much, actually, a lot of it centered around his waistline, and the rest evenly distributed across his face and neck. It was uncanny. As if Cotton Karat was donning a fat suit. ôIÆm EricÆs brother Fabrizio,ö the man explained.
ôHow did you hear about what happened?ö asked Chase as we stepped into the house.
ôThe company lawyer called,ö Fabrizio explained. ôTobias Pushman. Asked us to refrain from comment in case we heard it on the news. And reminded us that Eric signed a nondisclosure agreement which extended to his immediate family.ö
ôThey donÆt want us to talk to the media,ö said Mrs. Blandine, sniffling as she took a seat on a baggy couch and grabbed a handful of tissues from a box on the coffee table.
ôIÆm very sorry for your loss,ö said Chase.
ôIÆm going to sue them, you know,ö said the newly widowed woman. ôThey killed him!ö
ôWe donÆt know that, Maisie,ö said Mr. Blandine, patting the womanÆs hand. HeÆd taken a seat next to her, and was playing the part of the consoling relative to perfection.
ôOf course we do!ö Maisie cried, lifting a teary face to her brother-in-law. ôThey asked him to pretend to be Cotton Karat and now those crazies killed him! This would never have happened if he hadnÆt listened to them.ö
ôIt wasnÆt as if he was in a position to refuse,ö said Fabrizio quietly.
ôWhat do you mean?ö asked Odelia.
ôI mean they put a lot of pressure on my brother.ö
ôThey practically forced him,ö said Maisie. ôSaid that if he didnÆt do what they wanted they were going to have him fired. So he decided to play along. And then there were those stock options, of course.ö
ôThe stick and the carrot,ö said Fabrizio wryly. ôFirst they threatened him, then they dangled stock options in front of his nose. Said that if the stock went up, heÆd be on velvet.ö
ôHow much, if I may ask?ö asked Chase.
ôTen,ö said Maisie. ôAt todayÆs stock price that means five thousand, and if the stock went back up to a thousand, like it was before Cotton screwed up, ten thousand.ö
ôHow long was he going to have to pretend to be Cotton?ö
Maisie shrugged.ôCouple of weeks. A month, maybe. It all depended on how long it took Cotton to get his act together.ö
ôSex addiction,ö said Fabrizio tersely. ôFirst time I heard of it.ö
ôOh, itÆs a thing,ö Maisie assured him. ôSome Hollywood actors have it.ö
ôIÆll bet they do,ö Fabrizio grumbled. It was obvious he didnÆt have a high opinion of Cotton Karat.
ôI noticed how CottonÆs girlfriend Ebony Pilay wasnÆt at the award ceremony at Town Hall yesterday,ö said Odelia.
ôThey dumped her,ö said Maisie. ôBy text, if you please. She wasnÆt happy, I can tell you that. Came into the office and started screaming all kinds of abuse at my Eric. Poor sweetheart didnÆt know what to do. ItÆs not his fault these people are inhuman. They told him they bought her off, but instead they told her to take a hike. She didnÆt take it well.ö
ôEbony came into the office yesterday?ö
ôShe did. And she was furious. WouldnÆt you be? A supermodel like her? Dumped by text? She was screaming bloody murder!ö She then seemed to realize what she was saying, for she quickly glanced to her brother-in-law. ôNot that I think sheÆs capable of murder, mind you. But she definitely was very upset, and quite rightly so.ö
ôItÆs that lawyer,ö said Fabrizio. ôHe cooked this all up.ö
ôNot just the lawyer. Him and Diedrich are in this together.ö
ôCottonÆs dad set up this whole business with your husband?ö asked Odelia.
ôHe most certainly did. Wants to protect the Karat GroupÆs bottom line, doesnÆt he?ö
ôHow did your husband get roped into this, Mrs. Blandine?ö asked Chase.
ôEric has always been teased about his resemblance to Cotton. His colleagues all call him Goldie, for karat gold? And a couple of weeks ago there was a factory visit by the big brass. Though only Tobias showed up. Norm must have told him about Eric, cause a couple of days ago he was suddenly in NormÆs office, along with Diedrich himself.ö
ôHold onùare you saying your husband worked for the Karat Group?ö
ôYeah, in one of the groupÆs warehouses. TheyÆve got plenty, spread out across the country. EricÆs worked there for years. Hard work, but the pay isnÆt too bad. At least you have to give them that. They take care of their own. Not like some of those bloodsuckers.ö
I watched as she picked up her used tissue, and carefully tucked it away in a shoebox. When the others watched on, she said, with a touch of embarrassment,ôI dry them and reuse them. Same for teabags. Did you know you can still get a decent pot of tea out of a teabag thatÆs been used twice before? People these days throw away stuff too quickly.ö
ôMaisie here is your true environmentalist,ö said Fabrizio warmly. ôSheÆs the queen of recycling.ö
ôItÆs just a habit,ö said Maisie. ôDrives Eric up the wall sometimes.ö Her face crumpled. ôOh, my poor Eric! Who would want to kill my sweet, sweet husband!ö
ôWhen did you last talk to Eric, Maisie?ö asked Chase.
ôLast night around eight. He called every night. ThatÆs when he told me about Ebony barging into his office yesterday, and also about that paint those terrible people threw on him, ruining a perfectly good suit. Though he assured me those spots were going to come out. Tobias had promised him theyÆd pay for the dry-cleaning.ö
ôDid you notice anything out of the ordinary when you talked to him?ö asked Odelia.
ôYou mean apart from the Pilay woman and those duck-loving freaks?ö
ôYes, apart from that.ö
Maisie shook her head.ôHe sounded a little rattled, but wouldnÆt you be if you were attacked twice in one day, first with a bucket of paint and then by some furious model?ö
ôHe didnÆt mention that he was planning to meet someone last night?ö
ôNo, he didnÆt say anything about that. You mean he went out there to meet his killer?ö
ôHe must have received a message or a phone call,ö said Chase. ôWhy else would he head down to a duck farm in the middle of the night?ö
ôHe hadnÆt been there before?ö asked Odelia.
ôNo, never. IÆve never even heard of that place.ö
ôItÆs those duck lovers, isnÆt it?ö said Fabrizio. ôThey probably kidnapped him and then killed him, mistaking him for that Cotton Karat.ö He gritted his teeth. ôMy brother should never have gone along with this crazy business. If he hadnÆt, heÆd still be alive today.ö
At this, Maisie picked up one of the used tissues and loudly blew her nose in it.