It was early Tuesday morning when Jerry Berlin stopped by the lab to see Don.
“You alone?”
“Sure.”
“Sarah?”
“I haven’t seen her this week.”
“I guess it’ll take a few days. There’s a slight problem. I just got a call from the police. There was an autopsy on Saville yesterday afternoon. They say his injuries aren’t consistent with death by a fall from the web.”
“What? We know he fell. Sarah told us.”
“Right, but I can’t tell them that, can I?”
“What’s the trouble, exactly?”
“The lieutenant won’t specify. He says he wants to interview everyone who was at the party. I’ve already asked Bernice to Xerox the guest list for him. So it’s likely you’ll be questioned. And Sarah.”
Don shrugged. “I think I can handle it.”
“It’s purely routine,” said Jerry, “and it’ll take a few days, even if they have several cops taking statements. There were over eighty people here Saturday night. But it is important that you and Sarah agree what time you left the party.”
“I must have left around twelve-thirty.”
“Yes, but she was around until just before two-fifteen, when the body was found.”
“Okay, if I’m asked, I’ll say we left about two.”
“Will you make sure Sarah says the same?”
“If I see her.”
“You’d better call her. Tell her what’s happening, but don’t scare her. Just make sure you synchronize your statements. It wouldn’t be wise for me to contact her. And, Don...”
“Yeah?”
“If you can manage it, say nothing to her about the autopsy report. We don’t want to add to her anxieties at this stage.”
Don doubted whether Sarah was the anxious type. Even after Saville’s death, she had been well in control. But he agreed to do as Jerry suggested.
This was the start of Meg’s senior year. She knew how important the first classes would be, but there was no chance that she would get there for days to come. She was exhausted from lack of sleep. She kept the light on all night, and as soon as she closed her eyes and began to drift off, horrible images jerked her awake. Even if she had found the physical strength, she was terrified of going anywhere near the campus. In her own room she kept supposing she detected movements just at the edge of her vision, so how could she think of moving around the place where she had suffered the worst shock of her life? For her, the campus could be infested with giant spiders.
She had to hold on to her sanity. Distinguish facts from fears. There had been a sequined net jacket on the lawn outside the gym on the night of the party. It had been exactly like the jacket Sarah Jordan had been wearing. And there had been a huge dead spider under it. All facts.
She was not certain that it was Sarah’s jacket. Or that there was any connection between Sarah and the dead spider. Fears.
Another fact: Bernice had said it was a girl who had fixed the invitation. Not Don. He had not expected to see Meg there. So it must have seemed to him that she had crashed the party with the aim of pursuing him all evening. Nothing could have been likelier to antagonize him. The way he had treated her, with polite, petrifying coolness, was understandable now.
The girl who had fixed the invitation could only have been Sarah. She had set her snare and lured Meg there, like prey.
Why?
It could only be to hurt her and destroy the last traces of her relationship with Don.
She had done it to get Don for herself.
Don went out at lunchtime and called Sarah from a public phone booth.
“Yes?”
“This is Don.”
“Oh.” Her voice was toneless.
“How are you now?”
“Okay.”
“We haven’t seen you in the lab this week.”
“No.”
“I mean, no one’s agitating. We expected you would need a few days to get over things.”
“Things?”
She wasn’t making this easy for him. “Saturday night.”
“That’s history. I’ve been redecorating my apartment.”
So much for Jerry’s theory about Sarah’s state of anxiety. “So you really are okay?”
“Didn’t I just say that? I’ll show my face there later in the week. I hate the first week. All those kids straight out of high school.”
It sounded as if she wanted everything settled before she made her entrance. “Sarah, Jerry asked me to call you. It’s about the inquiries into what happened at the party. The police are interviewing everyone who was there. They’re working through the list.”
“So?”
“So they’ll want to talk to you sometime.”
“They’ll have to wait. Tomorrow is my hang-gliding day.” She sounded unconcerned. “You can come if you want.”
“Thanks, but I’m tied up. Listen, we’d better make sure our stories tie in. Shall we say we left around two and took a cab back to your apartment, and I said good night and went home?”
“I’ll buy that.” Her voice had an edge of sarcasm.
He ignored it. “They’ll probably ask if you spoke to Rick during the evening.”
“That’s a fair assumption.”
“If Jerry wants to know when you can come in to make a statement, shall I tell him Thursday?”
“Whatever.”
“Well, enjoy your hang-gliding tomorrow.”
“I intend to.”
“‘Bye, then.”
She had already put down the phone.
Against all self-respect, all judgment, he still loved her.
When he went to pick up the lab key from Bernice, she was taking an Alka-Seltzer. To make light of it, he made some remark implying she had been at Jerry’s scotch bottle during the morning, but she said, “No, it’s worry. It always gets me like this: I made a stupid mistake this morning, and I’m afraid to fix it up.”
“Can I help?”
“Is that door closed? Well, Jerry asked me to photocopy the list of guests at the party on Saturday, because the police want to interview everyone. I did it right away, four copies, and put them on Jerry’s desk. The police are already using them. Only I remembered just before lunch that there’s a name missing from the list. Someone I invited after the list was drawn up. I did it as a kind of favor to someone in the department.”
“Sarah?”
She was wide-eyed. “How did you know?”
“She told me. It’s Meg Kellaway’s name that’s missing, isn’t it?”
“That’s right. What shall I do? I don’t want to tell Jerry I added someone to his list.”
“He must have seen her there.”
“Yes, but Jerry’s not that observant at parties. Besides, I don’t even think he knows her. He wouldn’t have known if she was on the list. There was really no risk that he would find out.”
“Does he have to?”
“What happens if someone mentions Meg’s name in their statement? The police are going to ask Jerry why her name isn’t on the list, and that blows it for me. I feel so stupid!”
“Can’t you tell Jerry, appeal to his sense of chivalry by making a full confession?”
Bernice shook her head. “You don’t know what Jerry’s like just now. He’s really uptight about the accident. He’ll blow his stack.”
“Would you like me to tell him?”
“No, I’ll just have to sweat this out by myself. I figure there’s a chance that Meg’s name won’t come up. But thanks anyway. You won’t...”