Eleven Hours. Paullina Simons

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      ‘Was he going in the same direction she was going?’

      ‘Well, I don’t know if it was in the same direction.’ Alex pointed to the mall aisle. ‘You see, either someone is walking to the left or they’re walking to the right. They either disappear behind the wall to the right or they disappear here to the left. Occasionally they may go into Dillard’s or sit near the fountain. But that’s it. I saw her going to the left, and I saw him going to the left too.’

      ‘Yes,’ said Rich in a raspy voice. ‘What time was that?’

      ‘I don’t know. Maybe a little after one. I went on my break at one-thirty.’

      ‘Alex, please take a ride with me, will you? To the police station.’

      ‘I’m not going anywhere,’ said Alex, looking nervous. ‘I’m not getting in a car with you. I don’t know you.’

      ‘Okay, then can I use your phone? I have to call the police.’

      They let him call the police, and then they waited. Rich called home, found out that Didi had not called or returned. He asked Ingrid to call his mother and ask her to come and take care of the children for him.

      ‘Is everything all right?’

      ‘Yeah, sure,’ said Rich, closing his eyes as he leaned on the counter for support. ‘We’re just – I’m just going to be delayed – listen, don’t worry. How are the girls?’

      ‘Hold on,’ said Ingrid. ‘Irene wants to talk to you.’

      Rich tried to put on his cheeriest voice. ‘Hi, honey. How was playgroup?’

      Three-year-old Irene didn’t want to talk about playgroup. ‘Daddy,’ she whined, ‘Manda won’t share Sing and Dance Barbie with me!’

      ‘It’s okay, honey,’ Rich said. ‘Where’s yours?’

      ‘Mine broke and now she won’t share hers!’

      In the background, Rich heard Amanda’s voice. ‘She broke hers and now she wants to break mine!’ Then, ‘Give me the phone! I have to talk to Daddy too.’

      Rich took a deep breath. He heard the phone crash to the floor, followed by piercing screams. Ingrid picked up the receiver and said, ‘Everything is all right.’

      ‘Good,’ Rich said. ‘Please call my mother.’

      ‘If you want, I can stay a little later,’ Ingrid said.

      ‘Thanks. I don’t know how late we’ll be, though.’

      ‘Is Didi having the baby?’

      And in the background, Irene shrieked, ‘Mommy’s having the baby! Mommy’s having the baby!’

      Rich tensely rubbed the bridge of his nose. All he wanted to do was hang up. ‘No, she’s not having the baby. Just call my mom, Ingrid, please.’

      He had no stomach to call his mother himself. He had nothing to tell her, anyway. He just needed her help. His mother was going to lose it no matter what. Ingrid had never called before to ask Barbara Wood to come over and help with the children. Rich knew that talking to his mother required too much of him, and he didn’t have the patience for it. Ingrid asked again if everything was all right, and Rich said yes, sure, but had to hang up. He could barely hold himself together.

      Five minutes later the police arrived. There were two officers – Officer Charles, a man, and Officer Patterson, a woman. Patterson did not seem particularly sympathetic and Rich took an instant dislike to her. She reminded Rich of the disapproving older woman in the parking lot. Like, what’s the matter, your wife is away from you for a few hours and you panic? What about when you leave us to go on your business trips and we can’t get in touch with you? What about when you go out with the boys and say you’re coming home at midnight and it’s three and you’re still not home? Don’t worry, Officer Patterson’s casual expression read. Your wife is probably at the movies.

      Officer Charles was talking, but through the din in Rich’s head he could barely hear him. Then he realized the din was there just so he couldn’t hear Charles speak, because Rich didn’t like what he was hearing. Something about not jumping to conclusions.

      Rich wasn’t sure if he needed to respond to that or just get in his car and go home. He said, ‘I thought you came to help me. If you can’t help me, then let me talk to someone who can.’

      The officers tried with little effect to be more helpful. ‘Could your wife have gone into labor?’ said the woman officer. ‘Could she be in the hospital somewhere?’

      Shaking his head, Rich said, ‘We’re preregistered at Columbia Medical. If she was having a baby, that’s where she would go, and they have my number. Also she has it. She’s not there. I called them. And no one’s called me.’

      ‘Could she have been in an accident?’ said Charles.

      ‘Yes, yes, she could have,’ Rich said impatiently, failing despite his best wishes to talk slowly, calmly, reasonably. ‘No, absolutely. You’re so right. She could have been in an accident.’ He paused. ‘But not in her own car. Because our car is parked out –’ and he flung his arm for emphasis – ‘there.’

      Officer Charles stared at him. ‘Perhaps she had an accident in someone else’s car?’ he said.

      ‘Maybe she met a friend and decided to spend the afternoon with him or her,’ Officer Patterson suggested.

      Rich rubbed his eyes, shaking with frustration, and other things. ‘Oh, dear Jesus! We had a lunch date at one. She didn’t show up. She has the cell phone with her –’

      ‘Maybe it ran out of power,’ said Patterson.

      ‘You mean to tell me that my wife decided to stand me up after calling me and asking me to meet her early?’ he said loudly. He may have even shouted. The officers asked him if he wanted to go upstairs and talk to them privately in the security offices. Rich refused.

      ‘Could she still be in the mall, maybe?’ said Charles, while Patterson looked at Rich disapprovingly.

      ‘Okay,’ said Rich. ‘She buys a pretzel from Alex at twelve twenty-five, at which point she’s accosted by a stranger who offers to carry her bags. She refuses. He follows her –’

      ‘He goes in the same direction she’s heading,’ Officer Patterson corrected him.

      ‘Of course, excuse me. At twelve-thirty she calls my office and asks me to meet her a little early for lunch. That’s unique in my experience.’

      ‘Maybe you’re prejudging your wife,’ said Officer Patterson. ‘There’s a first time for everything.’

      Rich faced the male officer. ‘She shops for a little while longer, and then Alex sees her heading that way.’ Rich pointed. ‘Which is where her car is parked. I know because it’s still there. The man is walking in the same direction she is. I know you say it’s a coincidence, but how many can we have in one day?’ Rich could not stop moving. ‘If my wife met me for lunch, then I’d say everything’s hunky-dory and СКАЧАТЬ