The Cove

between this house and the one next door.

    "You're sure it was a man?"

    "Yes, I'm sure. I can see his hand opening the handle on the French doors. He's wearing gloves, black leather gloves."

    "Did you see his face?"

    "No, he-" Her voice froze. She began to shake her head, back and forth, back and forth. "No," she whispered, looking toward those French doors. "It's not possible, it's just not possible."

    "You see him now, Sally?" Quinlan's voice was steady and unhurried.

    She looked at James, then at her mother, at Scott, and finally at Dr. Beadermeyer. She said, "Maybe they're right, James. Maybe I am crazy."

    "Who was he, Sally?"

    "No, no, I'm crazy. I'm delusional."

    "Who was he?"

    She looked defeated, her shoulders bowed, her head lowered. She whispered, "He was my father."

    "Ah," Quinlan said. Everything was falling neatly into place, though not yet for the others.

    Noelle whispered, "Your father? Oh, Sally, that's impossible. Your father was lying dead on the floor. I saw him, I went down on my knees beside him. I even shook him. It was your father. I couldn't be wrong about that."

    Scott waved his pipe at her, shaking his head, saying, "She's bloody crazy, crazier than we thought. Your father's dead, Sally, just like Noelle said. I saw him dead too. Don't forget there were the two of us."

    Dr. Beadermeyer said, "It's all right, Sally. It's another symptom of your illness. Will you come with me now? I'll call your father's lawyer, and he can come and make sure this man doesn't take you to jail."

    Quinlan let all their voices float over him for a moment. He stood up and walked to Sally. He took her hands in his. "Well done," he said, leaned down, and kissed her.

    "You bastard, that's my wife! I don't want her, but she still is my wife."

    He kissed her again. "Everything makes sense now." He turned to Dr. Beadermeyer. "Now it all fits. You're a plastic surgeon, Norman. You must be very good at it. Where did you find the man whose face you reworked into Amory St. John's?"

    "You don't know what you're talking about. The murdered man was Amory St. John. No one doubted it. Why should they? There were no questions."

    "That's because there was no reason to doubt it. Why would anyone check dental records, for example, if the wife of the deceased identified the body, if the face on the body looked like all the faces on all the photographs on the desk? It does bother me though that the medical examiner didn't see the scars from the surgery. You must be very good, Norman."

    "God, did you really do that, Doctor Beadermeyer?" Scott said. Did you really plan with Amory St. John to kill another man and have him take Amory's place? Was he planning to leave me to take the fall? Dammit, it's the truth, isn't it? I'd be the one blamed because he was supposedly dead. And I didn't do all that much, I swear. There was Sally, but that was necessary because we knew she'd read several short messages that I'd forgotten were in my briefcase. There wasn't any choice. I went along with him because I had to."

    Quinlan hit him again, this time in the jaw. He rather hoped he'd broken it.

    Beadermeyer looked down at Scott, who was now lying on his side, unconscious. "What a piece of nothing he is, but that's not my problem. Now, Quinlan, all this is nuts. Amory St. John was the one who died. I've had enough of this. I'm sorry, Sally. I've tried to help you, but now I just don't care. I'm leaving."

    "When the devil leaves hell, Doctor Beadermeyer," she said. "That's when I'd go with you."

    "Best you find another comparison, Sally," Quinlan said. "I know for a fact that the devil roams all over the world. We've got two of his little minions right here. So Sally's father is still paying you. That surely answers the rest of my questions."

    "I'm leaving," Dr. Beadermeyer said and walked toward the door.

    "I don't think you want to leave just yet," Dillon said, stepping into the room.

    "When that worm wakes up I want to hit him," Noelle St. John said. "Well, maybe I won't wait." She walked over to Scott and kicked him in the ribs. "As for you," she said to Dr. Beadermeyer, "if only Mr. Quinlan will give me a rubber hose, I'll work you over but good. What all of you did to my daughter-Jesus, I'd like to kill you."

    "I'll make sure you get that rubber hose, Noelle," Quinlan said.

    "I'm going to sue all of you. Police brutality, that's it, and libel. Just look at poor Scott."

    Sally went over and kicked Scott in the ribs.