by Philip Cox
He sat in silence a few moments, thinking.
Then started the engine, left the lot and drove home.
Chapter Eighteen
‘Are we going on a mystery trip, Daddy?’ asked Nathan eagerly as he and Matt climbed into the taxi at seven o’clock the next morning.
‘Kind of. We’re going down to Auntie Gail’s place.’
‘Will she have candy?’
‘I would imagine so. I have to go to work until just after lunch time. You and Auntie Gail are going to have a few hours’ fun together, and then I’ll come back and take you home for dinner. Maybe pizza tonight.’
‘Cool,’ exclaimed Nathan and settled back down in his seat with his plastic Tyrannosaurus Rex at the rear of the taxi and started to study the buildings as they rushed past.
‘Tell me if you see any dinosaurs.’
‘Okay, Daddy.’
That was the last Matt heard from his son for most of the journey; much to his relief the subject of Ruth did not come up.
*****
Gail and her partner Ryan lived in a small but select apartment block in the West Medford area of Boston, halfway between the 93 Highway and the Mystic Lakes, which were around ten minutes’ drive from their street. Whenever they used to visit, Gail would suggest driving out to the lakes: Matt suspected it was not so much giving Nathan an opportunity to see some unspoiled countryside, more a desire to minimise the amount of time he spent in their third floor place, which was clearly not furnished with young children in mind. He and Ruth would wince every time Nathan climbed onto a comfortable but expensive leather sofa and pick up what looked like an antique ornament. When Nathan was younger, Ruth would always carry a small bottle of wood scratch remover, and if and when Nathan happened to cause a scratch or chip on a piece of furniture, she would dab the scratch with the remover, rub it furiously with a Kleenex, and hope that Gail wouldn’t notice.
The journey took only twenty-five minutes, much less than Matt had anticipated. He hoped that they were not too early for Gail, as it was his intention that the driver should wait while he took Nathan up to the apartment, then take him Downtown to work.
‘I’ll just need to take my son up to my friend’s apartment,’ Matt said as they arrived. ‘Will only be five minutes. Can you wait?’
The driver looked up at Gail’s building. The four floor block had a secure entrance and was surrounded by willow trees and bushes. Matt and Nathan would be out of view.
‘Tell you what,’ he said. ‘You pay me for the journey so far, and I’ll wait here ten minutes.’
Matt handed over the fare.
‘You will wait, won’t you?’ he asked. I have to go back Downtown straight away.’
‘I’ll stay here ten minutes,’ the driver replied. ‘That should be enough time, shouldn’t it?’
Matt nodded.
‘If it puts your mind at rest, save the tip till we get Downtown.’
Matt agreed this and hurried Nathan into the building, carrying a large plastic T Rex. He pressed Gail’s bell. Momentarily she answered.
‘Hello Gail, it’s us. Sorry we’re a bit early. Can we come up?’
‘Sure.’ There was a click and Matt was able to push the door open. They took the little elevator up to Gail’s floor, where she was waiting in the apartment doorway, already fully dressed.
‘Sorry we’re early,’ Matt said. ‘The journey was quicker than I expected. The traffic on the 93 was light this morning.’
‘No problem. I’ve been up since six. Ryan had to leave at seven. Hi, Nathan, come on in.’
‘My cab’s waiting downstairs,’ Matt said. I’ll be back just after three.’
‘That’ll be fine,’ Gail said, leading Nathan indoors.
‘Bye, Nathan,’ Matt called out. ‘See you this afternoon. Be good for Auntie Gail.’
‘Bye Daddy,’ Nathan called back.
‘Don’t worry. He’s always good,’ smiled Gail. ‘Has he had breakfast?’
‘About an hour ago.’
‘Well, I’ll see if he wants anything else now. Thought maybe we’d go down to the Lakes.’
What a surprise, Matt thought.
‘That would be nice,’ Matt said. ‘He always likes it there. See you later. I’ll call if I’m running late.’
‘Okay.’ Gail gave him a slight wave and closed the apartment door.
The elevator had gone, so Matt headed for the stairs and rushed down the two flights. To his relief, the taxi was still waiting. He climbed in, gave the driver his office address, and sat back breathlessly.
‘You only took seven minutes, sir. Plenty of time to spare,’ said the driver cheerfully as he headed back to the 93.
*****
Much to Matt’s relief, there was very little booked in his diary that day, so he should have plenty of opportunity to make the necessary calls he had to make. He had spent the time in the taxi trying to figure out what had happened to the spare car keys. He was positive he had seen them when he checked the other night. Positive. Maybe he hadn’t seen them. Maybe he hadn’t even checked; maybe he had dreamed it. He tried to remember the last time they had need of the spare keys. The only time he could recall was when Ruth had to make a business trip to DC. Matt had gotten a ride off José into work; later that morning Ruth had driven Downtown, parked the Toyota in a parking garage and caught the T up to Logan. Matt then picked up the car after work using the spare keys, and drove home. But that was months ago, and the keys had been in the drawer since then. One of a growing list of questions.
Another thing about which Matt was relieved: Debra was not working today. Not that he was surprised at that. For somebody who regularly lectured the staff at the branch about how they were working in a six day business, she seldom put in an appearance on a Saturday.
Once he had logged on his workstation and gotten his first cup of coffee, he decided to arrange a temporary car rental. He was about to dial when Larry turned the corner.
‘Hey buddy,’ Larry said. ‘Wasn’t sure if you were in today. Didn’t notice your car out back.’
‘Had to,’ replied Matt, cradling the phone in his hand. ‘To make up time I took off because my wife disappeared.’
‘Orders?’ Larry asked, inclining his head towards the closed door of Debra Grant Barber’s empty office.
‘U-huh.’
Larry shook his head sadly. ‘Any news?’ he asked.
‘Nothing yet. And the car was stolen.’
‘Je-sus. Where from?’
‘From out back. On Thursday morning.’
‘Damn, Matt. You’re not having much – well, you know what I mean.’
Matt nodded. Larry noticed he was about to make a phone call. ‘Catch you later, buddy.’
Holding the telephone handset between his chin and shoulder, Matt rummaged in one of his desk drawers and pulled out a copy of the Yellow Pages. He found that Avis had offices only ten minutes away in Center Plaza. He called.
‘Good morning, Avis Rental Government Center. Judy speaking, how can I help you?’
‘Oh, good morning, I need to rent a car for a couple of days.’
‘Until Monday morning then, sir?’
‘No, better make it until Tuesday.’
‘Three days rental, sir. What type of vehicle are you looking for: Standard Size, Full Size, Premium, Specialty -?’
‘I’m looking for the cheapest.’
‘The cheapest? Hold the line please sir; I’ll just check our system for availability. I’m pleased to say we can offer you a vehicle from our Subcompact range.’
‘That sounds ideal.’
‘The vehicle is a Hyundai Accent. Four doors, automatic transmission.’
‘How much for three days rental? From today?’
‘For rental today through Tuesday morning 9AM is $221.97.’
‘Yes, I’ll take it.’
‘Sir, if you have internet access you can log onto our site and pay only $210.87.’
‘No, I’m at work, so I can�
�t log on.’
‘In that case $221.97 is your charge, sir.’
Matt carried on the conversation and arranged to pick up the car from the lot behind the Center Plaza office after he had finished work that afternoon. He now had to return the car lunchtime Tuesday. Hopefully by then the Toyota had turned up, or he could arrange rental of a temporary replacement through his insurance company. Then at least he could collect Nathan himself later, and they could still make the trip to the Cape tomorrow.
His first appointment was booked for ten thirty. By now it was ten forty and there was no sign of them. He stood up, stretched and wandered over to the teller area. There were only three customers waiting in line; a very quiet morning. He grabbed another cup of coffee and headed for the restroom. As he stood at the urinal, he heard a flushing sound and Larry emerged from the stall.
‘Hey buddy,’ Larry said as he began washing his hands. ‘How’s it going, then?’
‘First one is booked for ten thirty. Still waiting on them.’
‘Lucky Queen Bitch isn’t in today,’ Larry said, pumping more liquid soap on his hands. ‘It was quiet yesterday too; you wanna know what she had us do? She had us call all our existing clients to get them in next week to discuss the bank’s latest products.’
‘I guess I have that pleasure to come next week,’ said Matt, zipping up.
‘Probably. But that wasn’t what I was asking. I meant how’s things going with you. Any news on Ruth?’
Matt joined Larry at the wash basin. ‘Nothing yet. The police have been asking a lot of questions: her friends, her routine, were we happy, our money situation…’
‘Surely they can’t think you’ve -’
‘I guess it’s just routine.’
‘Those withdrawals you asked me about the other day: do they have anything to do with it?’
‘Possibly. Possibly not.’
‘And Nathan?’
‘He keeps asking where his mommy is. I’ve been saying she’s away on business.’
‘But you can’t keep telling him that.’
‘No. I’ve decided to tell him the truth – or what truth a five year old can understand – tonight.’
‘And your car – that’s a real clusterfuck as well.’
‘Yeah; just what I needed. Reported that to the police, but they more or less just said call your insurance company. Did that just now. I made a claim, but luckily my policy gives me four days courtesy car rental while my claim’s being sorted. I already arranged something with Avis through Tuesday, so can get the courtesy car after then. So I’ll have seven days’ wheels at least.’
Larry patted Matt on the shoulder. ‘Shit, man; you’re really going through it. Don’t forget, if there’s anything you need…’
‘I know, Larry. Thanks.’
Larry stopped in the doorway. He looked over at the stall he had occupied, grinned and said, ‘And sorry about that…’
Matt scrunched up his nose. ‘I’m coming as well,’ he said, and hurried out behind Larry.
Chapter Nineteen
After an unproductive morning in which only one of his three scheduled appointments had shown up, Matt hurried down State Street to Avis Car Rental which was based opposite the Government Center. It was bitterly cold, and beginning to snow.
The block in which the offices were situated was undergoing some kind of renovation and was covered with canvas sheets, wooden hoardings and scaffolding. The scaffolding meant that the sidewalks on that block were quite narrow, and Matt had to fight his way through the crowds who were also attempting to take shelter from the weather.
After he had paid his deposit, shown his drivers licence, and completed all the requisite paperwork, the clerk behind the desk led Matt out back to the parking lot. Around twenty shiny new vehicles were parked here. The clerk checked the tag on the key fob and located the maroon Hyundai Accent which Matt had rented.
‘There’s a full tank of gas,’ the clerk said as Matt climbed in. ‘Please remember to fill up before you drop off at the end of the rental period.’
‘I will, yes,’ said Matt as he turned the key and pulled away. As he left the lot and turned into Cambridge Street he noticed the clerk standing by the door, watching him as he drove away. He also noticed the bus pull away sharply without indicating, and he managed to hit the brakes just in time. What he didn’t notice was the silver Audi A3 pulling away from its spot just a few yards up Cambridge.
It did not take Matt long to get used to driving the Hyundai, and he made his way around the one-way streets to the John F Fitzgerald Surface Road, then to the I-93 proper. Just as he passed the last set of signals before the 93, they turned amber, then red. He heard a couple of car horns sound behind, and glanced into the mirror. In the distance he could see a silver vehicle – he couldn’t pick out the make – shoot across the junction in spite of the red light. Obviously couldn’t hold his wad, he thought.
The Saturday afternoon traffic was heavy and slow, not helped by the snow which was falling heavily. At a quarter after four he was driving down the exit ramp for the streets to Gail’s place. He had a clear run off the Interstate and along Mystic Valley Parkway as far as the junction with Winthrop Street, where he hit a red.
After a minute or so the signal went to green and Matt moved away, followed by a blue SUV, a New England Tours bus, a silver Audi A3 and a red and white Coca Cola truck.
Gail and Ryan’s apartment block had a small parking lot at the rear of the building. Matt was quite familiar with it as he and Ruth would park there when they visited. Matt steered the Accent into the Right Turn lane, then into the parking lot. While he was waiting for a gap in traffic, the silver Audi and red truck passed him by.
After parking the car, he walked over to the building. Rather than wait for the elevator, he took the stairs up to their floor. Gail answered the door just as he knocked.
‘Saw you coming out the window,’ she said, standing in the doorway with Nathan who already had his coat on.
‘Everything okay?’ he asked Gail, whilst ruffling Nathan’s hair.
‘Absolutely fine,’ she replied. ‘We took a ride down to the Lakes for an hour or so; then it looked as if the weather was going to turn bad, so we came back and had pizza for lunch.’
Pizza for lunch. Great. No pizza for dinner then.
‘Yes, it’s just starting to snow,’ said Matt. ‘Snowing quite heavily in the city. Better get back before it gets any worse.’
‘Okay now. You take care,’ Gail said, beginning to close the door.
‘Say thank you to Auntie Gail,’ Matt told Nathan.
‘Thank you Auntie Gail.’
‘You’re very welcome,’ Gail smiled at Nathan, and slowly closed her door.
‘Let’s take the stairs,’ Matt said, as Nathan tried to reach up for the elevator call button.
They were halfway down the first flight of stairs when Nathan grabbed his head.
‘Mr Rex!’ he cried. ‘We left Mr Rex behind!’
Then with Matt trailing behind, he rushed back up to Gail’s floor and banged on her door. As Matt reached the door, Gail opened it. With an irritated look on her face, she had a cell phone in one hand, holding it to her left ear, and in her right hand she was holding out Nathan’s dinosaur.
‘Sorry,’ Matt mouthed as Nathan grabbed the dinosaur. Gail nodded and, continuing with her call, slowly pushed the door to.
‘Have a good time with Auntie Gail?’ Matt asked as he started the car and turned the heating level up slightly.
‘Cool,’ Nathan said. ‘She took me and Mr Rex to play by the side of the lake. Till it got cold.’
‘Did you see Uncle Ryan?’ Matt asked as he stopped at the entrance to the main road.
‘Nah. He was working,’ said Nathan, as he bounced the dinosaur up and down in his lap.
‘How about Denny’s tonight?’ Matt asked. ‘As you’ve already had pizza.’
‘Cool.’
‘I’ll take that as a yes,’ muttered Matt
as he pulled into the traffic.
*****
The nearest Denny’s was just off the main route to Logan International Airport, so Matt made a detour when they had been on the I-93 twenty minutes. Just after five they pulled up in the Denny’s lot, across the street from the East Boston Skatepark. The restaurant already had at least three other fathers with young sons sitting at tables. For an appetizer they shared a Basket of Puppies: ten miniature pancakes rolled in cinnamon and sugar, with a syrup dip. Matt then had a Club Sandwich and fries, and Nathan spaghetti and meatballs. All rounded off with apple pie and ice cream.
After the meal, Nathan yawned heavily as they got back into the car. As Matt waited for a break in the traffic in Meridian Street he had to blink as a car in the lot switched on its lights, illuminating Matt’s rear view mirror. Blinking again, he pulled into the traffic. To his relief, it had stopped snowing: there was a little snow settled on the sidewalks, but the roads were cleared.
Nathan was asleep by the time they reached home. Matt carefully reversed the Accent into the space in their parking garage, and gently lifted him out of the car and carried him round the corner to home. Nathan stirred slightly as Matt fumbled with the door keys, but remained asleep as Matt slowly took him upstairs and laid him on his bed. He would have to go without a bath tonight, and could get undressed if and when he awoke that night. Matt looked around: he had left the T Rex in the car. Forget it: that can wait till morning. He looked down at Nathan: poor little guy, he thought, it’s been a long day for him. Will be another long day tomorrow, with the drive to the Cape.
Matt quietly closed Nathan’s door, made a quick bathroom stop, then went back downstairs. Into the kitchen to make himself a cup of coffee, then into the living room and switched on the TV. It was American Idol. He turned the volume down, put his coffee cup on the table and went over to the window to pull the drapes. As he pulled them to, he looked up and down the road. There was no sign of the snow, thank God. A couple of cars passed by on the other side of the road. He could see three more parked on the street: two this side and one the other. He closed the drapes and sat down.
There were more than three cars parked on the street. Not for the first time that day, Matt had missed the fourth vehicle parked across the street, two buildings down.