Mercy. David Kessler

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      Susan White had been agonizing over the report on Eyewitness News. It was all too much. It couldn’t just be a coincidence. She thought that the face looked familiar. But it was the name that made it impossible to ignore.

       Dorothy Olsen.

      Dorothy had been a sensitive girl but not too talkative. She had never made it clear why she came to England for a procedure that could be done just as easily in America. It wasn’t as if she was a health shopper, seeking free medical treatment under Britain’s National Health Service. This was a private clinic and she had paid a lot for the procedure.

      Susan had asked her about it once, but she had just clammed up. It wasn’t that she was shy or secretive, it was just that she had made it clear that she found it too painful to talk. Of course she may have told the doctors, but Susan doubted that she told them more than she had had to.

      The nurse speculated that it might have something to do with opposition from within her own family. And also, Nurse White reflected, there might be some very complicated background to the whole case.

      But none of this was what was troubling her now. It was the timing. The news report hadn’t specified the exact date but the reporter had said nine years. That was about right. Could it be the same person? The reporter had also said something about Dorothy disappearing on the night of her ‘high school prom.’ According to the records, Dorothy had first approached them in May.Was that when high school proms took place? Susan White didn’t know.

       Maybe it’s someone else with the same name…or maybe someone deliberately took her name.

      The trouble was, there were just too many things in common: the name, the face, the date. It was too much to dismiss as a coincidence.

      Her mind was racing into unfamiliar territory. Maybe there was another explanation. Like what? Twins? An identical twin using her sister’s name? Not very plausible. There was nothing in the Eyewitness News report about a twin sister—something they would surely have mentioned if it had been the case, if only for the human interest angle.

      There was no getting away from it. Susan knew that she had to act. Time was of the essence. She found a set of master keys and used them to open one of the offices. She wanted to use the phone without anyone else overhearing. The person she called was Stuart Lloyd, the Chief Administrator who had gone home for the day.

      ‘Hallo.’ She recognized the voice of Elizabeth, Stuart’s wife.

      ‘Oh hallo, Mrs Lloyd. It’s Susan White from the clinic. Is Stuart—Mr Lloyd—there?’

      ‘He’s eating dinner.’

      ‘Oh I’m sorry.’ Susan didn’t know how to play it. ‘Look, I know this…I mean…would it be possible to have a quick word with him?’

      There was a tense silence.

      ‘Can he call you back?’ The voice was sharp, showing the irritation even while trying to hide it.

      Susan White knew that this might mean in five minutes, two hours—or never. And she couldn’t take a chance on that.

      ‘It’s rather urgent.’

      ‘Just a minute,’ said Elizabeth Lloyd, even more stiffly.

      In the silence that followed, the nurse strained to hear the voices in the background. But she didn’t need to strain for long. Through part of the brief exchange at least, the voices were somewhat raised. When silence returned, the nurse tensed up, anticipating a possible storm.

      ‘Yes, Nurse?’

      It was her boss.

      ‘Stuart, listen, I’m sorry to bother you at home like this. But I’ve just seen a report on one of the American news channels. It was about a murder over there.’

      ‘What on earth has that got to do with us?’

      ‘The victim’s name was Dorothy Olsen.’

      ‘Good God!’ Lloyd muttered under his breath.

      ‘We have to do something. We can’t just ignore it.’

      Stuart was silent for a few seconds.

      ‘We have to be careful. We’re not just talking civil negligence or malpractice here, don’t forget. There’s also that small matter of fiddling the dates.’

       11:28 PDT

      ‘We’re bringing you this special report from outside the building that houses the state governor’s San Francisco office for a special, exclusive report about the latest developments in the Clayton Burrow case.’

      Martine Yin was delivering her usual smooth, polished performance. Not a strand of the glossy, jet-black hair out of place, the skin smoothed and softened by foundation, the eyelashes defined by just the right amount of mascara, the man’s waistcoat that made her look professional yet sexy—the whole picture perfectly crafted to tell the story and sell the story-teller.

      ‘This station has learned that Governor Dusenbury has offered clemency to Clayton Burrow on the condition that he reveals where he buried the body of eighteen-year-old Dorothy Olsen, whom Burrow murdered some nine years ago. The governor made the offer in a private meeting earlier today with Alex Sedaka, Clayton Burrow’s lawyer.

      ‘However, this station is now in a position to reveal that this meeting was not quite as private as it was supposed to be, because also present at the meeting was Dorothy Olsen’s mother, Esther. But the most surprising aspect of this whole new development is that it was Esther Olsen who convinced Governor Dusenbury to make this extraordinary offer. It is not entirely clear what motivated Mrs Olsen to make such a generous request on behalf of the man who murdered her daughter. But there appears to be evidence that Mrs Olsen is suffering from a serious, potentially life-threatening illness and she wants to be able to give her daughter a proper burial while there is still time.’

      Martine stopped and held the nation in her gaze.

      ‘What is also not clear is how Burrow responded to the offer. His lawyer visited him in San Quentin this morning immediately after his meeting with the governor. But Mr Sedaka was tight-lipped when he left the penitentiary after relaying the offer to his client. Since then, neither Mr Sedaka nor the governor’s office has been ready to answer questions.

      ‘Martine Yin, Eyewitness News, the state governor’s office, San Francisco.’

       11:33 PDT

      ‘How the fuck did she find out!’

      Alex had barely got through the front door of the office when Juanita told him about Martine’s broadcast. In the face of Alex’s explosive response, she didn’t so much as bat an eyelid, let alone flinch.

      Juanita was a dark-haired, super-fit Latina beauty, with penetrating eyes СКАЧАТЬ