The Third Twin Part 35

"Every day."

"Oh, good, that makes me feel better. I talked to her once, then the next time I called she was at lunch."

"The people who answer the phone are really unhelpful. We have to get Mom out of there soon."

She'll be there a lot longer if I get fired today. "I'll talk to you later." "I'll talk to you later."

"Good luck!"

Jeannie hung up. She noticed there was a steaming mug of coffee on the bedside table. She shook her head in amazement. It was only a cup of coffee, but what astonished her was the way Steve knew what she needed. It seemed to come naturally to him to be supportive. And he didn't want anything in return. In her experience, on the rare occasions when a man put a woman's needs ahead of his own, he expected her to act like a geisha for a month in grat.i.tude.

Steve was different. If I'd known men came in this version, I would have ordered one years ago. If I'd known men came in this version, I would have ordered one years ago.

She had done everything alone, all her adult life. Her father had never been around to support her. Mom had always been strong, but in the end her strength had become almost as much a problem as Daddy's weakness. Mom had plans for Jeannie, and she was not willing to give them up. She wanted Jeannie to be a hairdresser. She had even got Jeannie a job, two weeks before her sixteenth birthday, was.h.i.+ng hair and sweeping the floor at the Salon Alexis in Adams-Morgan. Jeannie's desire to be a scientist was utterly incomprehensible to her. "You could be a qualified stylist before the other girls have graduated college!" Mom had said. She never understood why Jeannie threw a tantrum and refused even to take a look at the salon.

She was not alone today. She had Steve to support her. It did not matter to her that he was not qualified-a hotshot Was.h.i.+ngton lawyer was not necessarily the best choice to impress five professors. The important thing was that he would be there.

She put on her bathrobe and called to him. "You want the shower?"

"Sure." He came into the bedroom. "I wish I had a clean s.h.i.+rt."

"I don't have a man's s.h.i.+rt-wait a minute, I do." She had remembered the white-Ralph Lauren b.u.t.ton-down Lisa had borrowed after the fire. It belonged to someone in the math department. Jeannie had sent it to the laundry and now it was in the closet, wrapped in cellophane. She gave it to Steve.

"My size, seventeen thirty-six," he said. "Perfect."

"Don't ask me where it came from, it's a long story," she said. "I think I have a tie here somewhere, too." She opened a drawer and took out a blue silk spotted tie she sometimes wore with a white blouse, for a snappy mannish look. "Here."

"Thanks." He went into the tiny bathroom.

She felt a twinge of disappointment. She had been looking forward to seeing him take off his s.h.i.+rt. Men, she thought; the creeps expose themselves without being asked; the hunks are as shy as nuns.

"Can I borrow your razor?" he called.

"Sure, be my guest." Memo to self: Do s.e.x with this guy before he becomes too much like a brother. Memo to self: Do s.e.x with this guy before he becomes too much like a brother.

She looked for her best black suit and remembered she had thrown it in the trash yesterday. "d.a.m.n fool," she muttered to herself. She could probably retrieve it, but it would be creased and stained. She had a long-line electric blue jacket; she could wear that with a white T-s.h.i.+rt and black pants. It was a bit too bright, but it would serve.

She sat at her mirror and did her makeup. Steve came out of the bathroom, looking handsomely formal in the s.h.i.+rt and tie. "There are some cinnamon buns in the freezer," she said. "You could defrost them in the microwave if you're hungry."

"Great," he said. "You want something?"

"I'm too tense to eat. I could drink another cup of coffee, though."

He brought the coffee while she was finis.h.i.+ng her makeup. She drank it quickly and put on her clothes. When she went into the living room, he was sitting at the kitchen counter. "Did you find the buns?"

"Sure."

"What happened to them?"

"You said you weren't hungry, so I ate them all."

"All four?"

"Uh...in fact there were two packets."

"You ate eight eight cinnamon buns?" cinnamon buns?"

He looked embarra.s.sed. "I get hungry."

She laughed. "Let's go."

As she turned away he grabbed her arm. "One minute."

"What?"

"Jeannie, it's fun being friends and I really like just hanging out with you, you know, but you have to understand this isn't all I want."

"I do know that."

"I'm falling in love with you."

She looked into his eyes. He was very sincere. "I'm getting kind of attached to you, too," she said lightly.

"I want to make love to you, and I want it so bad it hurts."

I could listen to this kind of talk all day, she thought. "Listen," she said, "if you f.u.c.k like you eat, I'm yours."

His face fell, and she realized she had said the wrong thing.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to make a joke of it."

He gave a "never mind" shrug.

She took his hand. "Listen. First we're going to save me. Then we're going to save you. Then we'll have some fun." He squeezed her hand. "Okay."

They went outside. "Let's drive together," she said. "I'll bring you back to your car later."

They got into her Mercedes. The car radio came on as she started the engine. Easing into the traffic on 41st Street she heard the news announcer mention Genetico, and she turned up the volume. "Senator Jim Proust, a former director of the CIA, is expected to confirm today he will seek the Republican nomination in next year's presidential election. His campaign promise: ten percent income tax, paid for by the abolition of welfare. Campaign finance will not be a problem, commentators say, as he stands to make sixty million dollars from an agreed takeover of his medical research company Genetico. In sports, the Philadelphia Phillies-"

Jeannie switched off the radio. "What do you think of that?"

Steve shook his head in dismay. "The stakes keep getting higher," he said. "If we break the true story of Genetico, and the takeover bid is canceled, Jim Proust won't be able to payfor a presidential campaign. And Proust is a serious bad guy: a spook, ex-CIA, against gun control, everything. You're standing in the way of some dangerous people, Jeannie."

She gritted her teeth. "That makes them all the more worth fighting against. I was raised on welfare, Steve. If Proust becomes president, girls like me will always be hairdressers."

39.

THERE WAS A SMALL DEMONSTRATION OUTSIDE H HILLSIDE Hall, the administrative office building of Jones Falls University. Thirty or forty students, mostly women, stood in a cl.u.s.ter in front of the steps. It was a quiet, disciplined protest. Getting closer, Steve read a banner: Hall, the administrative office building of Jones Falls University. Thirty or forty students, mostly women, stood in a cl.u.s.ter in front of the steps. It was a quiet, disciplined protest. Getting closer, Steve read a banner: Reinstate Ferrami Now!

It seemed like a good omen to him. "They're supporting you," he said to Jeannie.

She looked closer, and a flush of pleasure spread across her face. "So they are. My G.o.d, someone loves me after all."

Another placard read: U.

can't do this to JF.

A cheer went up when they spotted Jeannie. She went over to them, smiling. Steve followed, proud of her. Not every professor would get such spontaneous support from students. She shook hands with the men and kissed the women. Steve noticed a pretty blond woman staring at him.

Jeannie hugged an older woman in the crowd. "Sophie!" she said. "What can I say?"

"Good luck in there," the woman said.

Jeannie detached herself from the crowd, beaming, and they walked toward the building. He said: "Well, they they think you should keep your job." think you should keep your job."

"I can't tell you how much that means to me," she said, "That older woman is Sophie Chapple, a professor in the psychology department. I thought she hated me. I can't believe she's standing up for me."

"Who was the pretty girl at the front?"

Jeannie gave him a curious look. "You don't recognize her?"

"I'm pretty sure I've never seen her before, but she couldn't take her eyes off me." Then he guessed. "Oh, my G.o.d, it must be the victim."

"Lisa Hoxton."

"No wonder she stared." He could not help glancing back. She was a pretty, lively-looking girl, small and rather plump. His double had attacked her and thrown her to the floor and forced her to have s.e.x. A small knot of disgust twisted inside Steve. She was just an ordinary young woman, and now she had a nightmare memory that would haunt her all her life.

The administrative building was a grand old house. Jeannie led him across the marbled hall and through a door marked Old Dining Room into a gloomy chamber in the baronial style: high ceiling, narrow Gothic windows, and thick-legged oak furniture. A long table stood in front of a carved stone fireplace.

Four men and a middle-aged woman sat along one side of the table. Steve recognized the bald man in the middle as Jeannie's tennis opponent, Jack Budgen. This was the committee, he presumed: the group that held Jeannie's fate in its hands. He took a deep breath.

Leaning over the table, he shook Jack Budgen's hand and said: "Good morning, Dr. Budgen. I'm Steven Logan. Wespoke yesterday." Some instinct took over and he found himself exuding a relaxed confidence that was the opposite of what he felt. He shook hands with each of the committee members, and they told him their names.

Two more men sat on the near side of the table, at the far end. The little guy in the navy vested suit was Berrington Jones, whom Steve had met last Monday. The thin, sandy-haired man in a charcoal double-breasted pinstripe had to be Henry Quinn. Steve shook hands with both.

Quinn looked at him superciliously and said: "What are your legal qualifications, young man?"

Steve gave him a friendly smile and spoke in a low voice that no one else could hear. "Go f.u.c.k yourself, Henry."

Quinn flinched as if he had been struck, and Steve thought, That will be the last time the old b.a.s.t.a.r.d condescends to me.

He held a chair for Jeannie and they both sat down.

"Well, perhaps we should begin," Jack said. "These proceedings are informal. I believe everyone has received a copy of the rubric, so we know the rules. The charge is laid by Professor Berrington Jones, who proposes that Dr. Jean Ferrami be dismissed because she has brought Jones Falls University into disrepute."

As Budgen spoke, Steve watched the committee members, looking eagerly for signs of sympathy. He was not rea.s.sured. Only the woman, Jane Edelsborough, would look at Jeannie; the others did not meet her eyes. Four against, one in favor, at the start, he thought. It was not good.

Jack said: "Berrington is represented by Mr. Quinn."

Quinn got to his feet and opened his briefcase. Steve noticed that his fingers were stained yellow from cigarettes. He took out a sheaf of blowup photocopies of the New York Times New York Times piece about Jeannie and handed one to every person in the room. The result was that the table was covered with pieces of paper saying piece about Jeannie and handed one to every person in the room. The result was that the table was covered with pieces of paper saying GENE RESEARCH ETHICS: DOUBTS, FEARS AND A SQUABBLE GENE RESEARCH ETHICS: DOUBTS, FEARS AND A SQUABBLE. It was a powerful visual reminder of the trouble Jeannie had caused. Steve wished he had brought some papers to give out, so that he could have covered up Quinn's.

This simple, effective opening move by Quinn intimidatedSteve. How could he possibly compete with a man who had probably thirty years of courtroom experience? I can't win this, he thought in a sudden panic.

Quinn began to speak. His voice was dry and precise, with no trace of a local accent. He spoke slowly and pedantically. Steve hoped that might be a mistake with this jury of intellectuals who did not need things spelled out for them in words of one syllable. Quinn summarized the history of the discipline committee and explained its position in the university government. He defined "disrepute" and produced a copy of Jeannie's employment contract. Steve began to feel better as Quinn droned on.

At last he wound up his preamble and started to question Berrington. He began by asking when Berrington had first heard about Jeannie's computer search program.

"Last Monday afternoon," Berrington replied. He recounted the conversation he and Jeannie had had. His story tallied with what Jeannie had told Steve.

Then Berrington said: "As soon as I clearly understood her technique, I told her that in my opinion what she was doing was illegal."

Jeannie burst out: "What?" "What?"

Quinn ignored her and asked Berrington: "And what was her reaction?"

"She became very angry-"

"You d.a.m.n liar!" Jeannie said.

Berrington flushed at this accusation.

Jack Budgen intervened. "Please, no interruptions," he said.

Steve kept an eye on the committee. They had all looked at Jeannie: they could hardly help it. He put a hand on her arm, as if restraining her.

"He's telling barefaced lies!" she protested.

"What did you expect?" Steve said in a low voice. "He's playing hardball."

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"Don't be," he said in her ear. "Keep it up. They could see your anger was genuine."

Berrington went on: "She became petulant, just as she is now. She told me she could do what she liked, she had a contract."

One of the men on the committee, Tenniel Biddenham, frowned darkly, obviously disliking the idea of a junior member of faculty quoting her contract to her professor. Berrington was clever, Steve realized. He knew how to take a point scored against him and turn it to his advantage.

Quinn asked Berrington: "What did you do?"

"Well, I realized I might be wrong. I'm not a lawyer, so I decided to get legal advice. If my fears were confirmed, I could show her independent proof. But if it turned out that what she was doing was harmless, I could drop the matter without a confrontation."

"And did you take advice?"