Secret Prey

room with a piece of paper in her hand. ‘‘If there’s anything unusual in the record, they’re going to want to know ASAP.’’
    ‘‘All right,’’ McClure said. ‘‘I’ll get some of the computer cowboys on the way in.’’
    ‘‘They’re on the way,’’ Baki said, lifting the sheet of paper so they could see a list of names. ‘‘All of them.’’
    MCDONALD WAS SHAKEN OUT OF BED AT EIGHT forty-five; Audrey was up with a cup of coffee.
    ‘‘What?’’
    ‘‘Board meeting at ten. Nancy Lu called an hour ago. I let you sleep as long as I could. You’ve got to be good,’’ she said.
    ‘‘Coffee?’’
    ‘‘Yes,’’ she said. ‘‘You go get cleaned up. I’ll get your suit . . . the charcoal one, I think, since O’Dell’s dead. Wouldn’t that be appropriate?’’
    ‘‘Whatever . . .’’ And he staggered off to the bathroom.
    THE POLARIS BANK’S BOARD OF DIRECTORS MET AT EXACTLY ten o’clock in emergency session. All the members were present, plus Bone and McDonald. Bone showed up at the last minute wearing jeans, a motorcycle jacket, and cowboy boots. Wilson McDonald raised an eyebrow at the costume, and turned to see if Brandt had gotten it.
    Before anyone else could say anything, Oakes blurted, ‘‘What in the Sam Hill is going on here? Jim? Wilson? Anybody?’’
    Wilson McDonald steepled his fingers: ‘‘There’s no reason to think that the O’Dell incident is related to the bank. I understand drugs were discovered in her apartment last night . . .’’
    ‘‘Drugs?’’ Brandt buried his hands in his face. ‘‘Sweet bleedin’ Jesus. Is the press gonna find out about this?’’
    ‘‘I would think that the police would make every effort to keep this private. However, I think there’s a good possibility that Susan, as with any drug user, was involved with very unsavory people . . .’’
    ‘‘Bullshit,’’ Bone snapped. He was chewing on an unlit cheroot, scowling. ‘‘It’s gonna get in the papers. I’d be surprised if it’s not out by tomorrow. And her dealer was a waiter at The Falls.’’
    ‘‘How do you know about this drug thing, anyway?’’ Anderson asked querulously, looking from Bone to Mc-Donald. And to Bone: ‘‘How do you know her dealer?’’
    ‘‘The police told us about the drugs,’’ Bone said. ‘‘ Several of us were questioned last night. Another person told me who her dealer was. Told me in confidence.’’
    ‘‘We may have to know who it is,’’ McDonald said.
    ‘‘If the cops ask, I might tell them,’’ Bone said. ‘‘But right now, nobody knows that I know, except the person who told me, and the people in this room. If it gets out of this room, it’ll hurt the bank and I’ll want to know why it got out.’’ He looked straight at McDonald.
    ‘‘What kind of drugs?’’ asked Bose, toying with a string of pearls.
    ‘‘Just an old piece of hash and a little pot,’’ Bone said. ‘‘Nothing serious.’’
    ‘‘Nothing serious?’’ McDonald said. This time his eyebrows rose almost to his hairline. ‘‘Nothing serious? How can you say it’s nothing serious?’’
    ‘‘Because it’s not,’’ Bone said.
    ‘‘I’d disagree,’’ McDonald said. ‘‘I think this must be handled very carefully . . .’’
    ‘‘More bullshit,’’ Bone said. He looked at McDonald over the walnut table, his eyes glittering. ‘‘And I’m getting pretty goddamned tired of your bullshit, Wilson.’’
    ‘‘Listen, pal,’’ McDonald said, but Bone’s voice rode over his.
    ‘‘First, it’s not important,’’ he told the board. ‘‘If it were heroin or cocaine or crack or methamphetamine, it’d be much more important. With this, it’s a misdemeanor, and we simply issue a press release saying that we were unaware of any drug use on O’Dell’s part, say it may have been related to her glaucoma.’’
    ‘‘Glaucoma,’’ McDonald said. ‘‘I didn’t know she had glaucoma.’’
    ‘‘Neither do I, dummy, but by the time the newspapers find out for sure that she didn’t, nobody’ll give a shit.’’
    McDonald was half out of his chair: ‘‘You’re asking to be hit in the mouth, Bone. I’m no damn dummy and I want an apology.’’
    Bone waved him down into his chair, closed his eyes: ‘‘I’m sorry, I apologize. But I’ve been here half the night, ransacking O’Dell’s files with Gene McClure. We’ve established that her department is apparently completely on the