"Go ahead," Jack said as he methodically…

As the call went through, Alexis tried to remember exactly when the last occasion had been that she'd called and talked with Jack. She couldn't remember but knew it had to have been months, maybe as much as half a year ago, as much as she'd been consumed by her family's disarray. Yet even prior to that there'd been only intermittent, haphazard contact, which was unfortunate because she and Jack had been extremely close as children.

Life had not been easy for Jack, specifically fifteen years previously when his wife and two daughters, aged ten and eleven, had been killed in a commuter plane crash. They had been on their way home to Champaign, Illinois, after having visited Jack in Chicago, where he was retraining in forensic pathology. When Jack moved east to New York City, ten years previously, Alexis had been hopeful they would see a lot of each other. But it hadn't happened because of what she'd said to Craig earlier. Jack was still struggling to get over his tragedy, and Alexis's children were a painful reminder. Alexis's oldest daughter, Tracy, had been born one month after Jack's tragic loss.

"This better be important, Soldano," Jack said without so much as a hello after answering the phone. "I'm not getting anything done."

"Jack, it's Alexis."

"Alexis! Sorry! I thought it was my NYPD detective friend. He's just called me several times on his cell from his car but keeps getting cut off."

"Is it a call you need to take? I can call you back."

"No, I can talk to him later. I know what he wants, which we don't have yet.

We have him well trained, so he's enamored with the power of forensics but he wants results overnight. What's up? It's good to hear from you. I never expected it would be you at this hour."

"I'm sorry I'm calling while you're at work. Is this a good time to chat, apart from your detective friend trying to get ahold of you?"

"Well, to be honest, I do have a waiting room full of patients. But I suppose they can wait since they're all dead."

Alexis giggled. Jack's new humorously sarcastic persona, which she'd experienced only a few times, was a marked change from his prior self.

He'd always had a sense of humor, but in the past it was more subtle and frankly rather dry.

"Is everything okay up there in Beantown? It's not like you to call during the day. Where are you, at work at the hospital?"

"Actually, I'm not. You know, I'm embarrassed to say I can't remember the last time we spoke."

"It was about eight months ago. You called me to tell me Craig had come back home. As I recall, I wasn't all that optimistic about things working out and said so. Craig has always struck me as not much of a family man. I remember saying he was someone who made a great physician but not much of a father or husband. I'm sorry if that hurt your feelings."

"Your comments surprised me, but you didn't hurt my feelings."

"When I didn't hear back from you, I thought I had."

You could have called me if you'd thought as much, Alexis thought but did not say. Instead, she said, "Since you asked, things are not so good up here in Beantown."

"I'm sorry to hear that. I hope my prophecy hasn't come to pass."

"No, Craig is still at home. I don't think I mentioned last time we talked that Craig has been sued for malpractice."

"No, you didn't mention that tidbit. Was this after he'd come back or before?"

"It's been a difficult time for all of us," Alexis said, ignoring Jack's question.

"I can imagine. What's hard to imagine is him getting sued with as much of himself as he directs toward his patients. Then again, in the current medical-legal malpractice environment, everybody is at risk."

"The trial has just started today."

"Well, wish him good luck. Knowing his need to be number one in the class, I imagine he's taken what amounts to public censure pretty hard."

"That's an understatement. Being sued for malpractice is difficult for all doctors, but for Craig it is especially tough in terms of his self-esteem. He put all his eggs in one basket. The last eight months have been pure hell for him."

"How has it been for you and the girls?"

"It's not been easy, but we have been managing, except perhaps for Tracy.

Age fifteen can be a tough time, and this added stress has made it worse.

She can't quite come to grips with forgiving Craig for walking out on us when he did and carrying on with one of his secretaries. Her image of men has taken a beating. Meghan and Christina have taken it more or less in stride. As you know, Craig never had the time to involve himself too much in their lives."

"Are things okay between you and Craig? Are things back to normal?"

"Our relationship has been in a holding pattern, with him sleeping in the guest room until this malpractice mess has been resolved. I'm enough of a realist to know his plate is pretty full at the moment. It's brimming, in fact, which is why I'm calling."

There was a pause. Alexis took a breath.

"If you need some money it's not a problem," Jack offered.

"No, money is not an issue. The problem is that there is a good chance Craig will lose the case. And with the public censure, as you called it, I think there is a good chance he'll fall apart, meaning, in the vernacular, a nervous breakdown. And if that happens, I really don't see reconciliation happening. I think it would be a tragedy for Craig, for me, and for the girls."

"So you still love him?"

"That's a difficult question. Put it this way: He's the father of my daughters.

I know he hasn't been the best father socially, not the best husband in a traditional storybook sense, but he's been a wonderful provider, he's always acted in a caring way. I fervently believe he loves us as much as he can.

He's a doctor's doctor. Medicine is his mistress. In a real way, Craig is a victim of a system that pushed him to excel and to compete from the moment he decided to become a doctor. There's always been another test and another challenge. He's insatiable for professional approbation.

Traditional social successes don't have the same import for him. I knew this was the case when I met him, and I knew it when I married him."

"Did you think he was going to change?"

"Not really. I have to say I admired him for his dedication and sacrifice, and I still do. Maybe that says something about me, but that's beside the point at the moment."

"I'm not going to argue with you about any of this. I've pretty much felt the same about Craig's personality, having gone through the same training system and felt the same pressure myself. I just couldn't have put it into words as well as you have. But that's probably because, as a psychologist, this is your area of expertise."

"It is. Personality disorders have been my bread and butter. I knew before Craig and I married that he had a lot of narcissistic traits. Now it might even have risen to be a disorder, since it's made aspects of his life dysfunctional.

The trouble is, I've been unable to convince him to see someone

professionally, which isn't surprising since narcissistic people in general have trouble admitting any deficiencies."

"Nor do they like to ask for help, since they see dependency as a sign of weakness," Jack said. "I've been down that road myself. Most physicians have a least a touch of narcissism."

"Well, Craig has a lot more than a touch, which is why he's finding this current problem so overwhelming."

"I'm sorry to hear all this, Alexis, but those dead patients of mine are starting to get restive. I don't want them to walk out without having been seen. Could I call you back this evening?"

"I'm sorry to be blabbing," Alexis said quickly. "But I have a favor to ask: a rather big favor."

"Oh?" Jack said.

"Would you be willing to fly up here and see if you could help?"

Jack gave a short laugh. "Help? How could I help?"

"You've mentioned in the past how often you testify at trials. With all that experience in the courtroom, you could help us. The insurance company lawyer assigned to represent Craig is experienced and seems competent, but he's not relating to the jurors. Craig and I have talked about asking for another lawyer but have no way of judging if that would be wise or not. The bottom line is that we are desperate and pessimistic."

"The vast majority of my courtroom appearances have been in criminal proceedings, not civil."

"I don't think that matters."

"In the one malpractice case I was involved in, I was on the side of the plaintiff."

"I don't think that matters, either. You are inventive, Jack. You think outside the box. We need a small miracle here. That's what my intuition is telling me."

"Alexis, I don't see how I could possibly help. I'm not a lawyer. I'm not good around lawyers. I don't even like lawyers."

"Jack, when we were younger, you always helped me. You're still my big brother. I need you now. As I said, I'm desperate. Even if it turns out to be more psychological support than actual, I would be so thankful if you'd come. Jack, I haven't pushed you to come to visit us since you've been here on the East Coast. I know it was hard for you. I know you have some avoidant traits, and that seeing our daughters and me, too, reminded you of your terrible loss."

"Was it that obvious?"

"It was the only explanation. And I'd seen some evidence of that kind of behavior back when we were kids. It was always easier for you to avoid an emotional situation than confront it. Anyway, I've respected that, but now I'm asking you to put it aside and come up here for me, for my daughters, and for Craig."

"How long is the trial supposed to take?"

"Most of the week is the general consensus."

"The last time we talked, there was something new in my life I didn't tell you. I'm getting married."

"Jack! That's wonderful news. Why didn't you mention it?"

"It didn't seem right after you told me the latest about your marriage situation."

"It wouldn't have mattered. Do I know her?"

"You met her the one and only time you visited me here at work. Laurie Montgomery. We're colleagues. She's also a medical examiner."

Alexis felt a shiver of distaste descend her spine. She'd never visited a morgue before visiting Jack's place of work. Even though he'd emphasized that the building was a medical examiner's office and that the morgue was merely a small part of a larger whole, she hadn't found the distinction convincing. To her it was a place of death, plain and simple, and the building looked and smelled as such. "I'm pleased for you," she said while she vaguely wondered what her brother and his potential wife might talk about over a routine breakfast. "What makes me particularly happy for you is that you've managed to process your grief about Marilyn and your girls and move on. I think that's terrific."

"I don't think one ever gets completely over such grief. But thank you!"

"When is the wedding?"

"This Friday afternoon."

"Oh my goodness. I'm sorry to be asking for a favor at such a critical time."

"It's not your fault, that's for certain, but it does complicate things, yet it doesn't preclude it, either. I'm not the one making all the plans for the wedding. My job was the honeymoon, and that's all been arranged."

"Does that mean you'll come?

"I'll come unless you hear back from me in the next hour or so, but I'd better come sooner rather than later so I can get back here. Otherwise, Laurie might start thinking I'm trying to get out of it."

"I'd be happy to speak with her to explain the situation."

"No need. Here's the plan. I'll come up on the shuttle late this afternoon or early evening after work. Obviously, I have to talk with Laurie and the deputy director, as well as clean up a few things here in my office. After I

check into a hotel, I'll call your house. What I'll need is a complete case file: all the depositions, description or copies of any evidence, and if you can, any testimony."

"You're not staying at a hotel!" Alexis said with resolve. "Absolutely not.

You have to stay at the house. We have plenty of room. I need to talk with you in person, and it would be best for the girls. Please, Jack."

There was a pause.

"Are you still there?" Alexis questioned.

"Yeah, I'm still here."

"Since you are making the effort to come up, I want you at the house. I really do. It will be good for everyone, although that might be selfish rationalization, meaning I know it will be good for me."

"All right," Jack said with a touch of reluctance in his voice.

"There's not been any testimony at the trial as of yet. The defense is giving its opening statement as we speak. The trial is very much still at the beginning."

"The more material you can give me about the case, the greater the chance I might be able to come up with some suggestion."

"I'll see what I can do about getting the opening statement of the plaintiff."

"Well, then, I guess I'll see you later."

"Thanks, Jack. It's starting to seem like old times knowing that you're coming."

Alexis ended the call and slipped her phone back into her bag. When all was said and done, even if Jack didn't actually help, she was glad he was coming. He would provide the kind of emotional support only a family

member could offer. She headed back through security and took the elevator to the third floor. As she entered the courtroom and allowed the heavy door to close as quietly as possible behind her, she could hear that Randolph was still describing the deleterious effect current-day medical economics was having on the practice of medicine. Choosing to sit as close as possible to the jury, she could see by their glazed eyes that they were no more engaged than when she had left. Alexis was even more pleased that Jack was coming. It gave her the sense that she was doing something.

5

NEW YORK, NEW YORK

MONDAY, JUNE 5, 2006

3:45 P.M.

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For a few minutes after hanging up with his sister, Jack sat at his desk and drummed his fingers on its metallic surface. He hadn't been completely up-front with her. Her assessment of why he'd avoided visiting her had been on the money, which he hadn't really acknowledged. Worse yet, he hadn't admitted it was still the case. In fact, it might even be worse now, since Meghan and Christina, Alexis's two youngest, were currently about the same ages as his late daughters, Tamara and Lydia. Yet he was caught in an emotional bind, considering how close he and Alexis had been back in Indiana. He was five years her senior, and the age difference was just enough for his role to be somewhat parental yet close enough to also be solidly brotherly. That circumstance, plus guilt from having avoided Alexis for the entire ten years he'd been in New York, made it impossible not to respond to her pleas in her hour of need. Unfortunately, it wasn't going to be easy.

He stood up and for a brief moment debated whom he should talk to first.

His first inclination was Laurie, although he was hardly excited about the prospect, since she was clearly uptight about the wedding plans; her mother

was driving her crazy and she was, in turn, driving Jack crazy.

Consequently, he thought perhaps speaking first to Calvin Washington, the deputy chief, made more sense. Calvin was the one who would have to give Jack permission to take time off from the OCME. For even a briefer moment, the hope that Calvin would say no to additional leave passed through his mind, since both Jack and Laurie were already scheduled for two weeks' vacation starting Friday. Being denied leave to go to Boston would certainly solve his issues of guilt toward Alexis and reluctance to confront Alexis's daughters, and the need to bring up the idea with Laurie.

Yet such a convenient excuse was not going to come to pass.

Calvin wouldn't say no; a family emergency was never turned down.

But before he'd even logged off his computer, rationality prevailed.

Intuitively, he knew he should at least try to talk with Laurie first, since if he didn't and she found out that he hadn't tried, there'd be hell to pay, as close as it was to the wedding date. With that idea in mind, he walked down the hall toward Laurie's office.

There was another reason Jack was not excited about the proposed trip to Boston, and that was because Craig Bowman was far from his favorite person. Jack had tolerated him for Alexis's benefit, but it had never been easy. From day one when Jack had just met the man, he'd recognized the type. There'd been several similar personalities in Jack's medical school, all of whom had been at the very top of his class. They were the type of individuals who made it a point to smother anyone with an avalanche of journal article citations supposedly confirming their viewpoint whenever they got into a medical discussion. If that had been the only problem, Jack could have lived with it, but unfortunately, Craig's opinionated ways were also sprinkled with an irritating degree of arrogance, grandiosity, and entitlement. But even that Jack could have found bearable if he'd been able to occasionally steer the conversation with Craig away from medicine. But he never could. Craig was interested only in medicine, science, and his patients. He wasn't interested in politics or culture or even sports. He didn't have time.

As Jack closed in on Laurie's office door, he audibly harrumphed when his mind recalled Alexis suggesting he had avoidant traits in his personality.

The nerve! He thought for a moment and then smiled at his reaction. With a flash of clairvoyance, he knew she was right and that Laurie would wholeheartedly agree. In many ways, such a reaction was evidence of his narcissism, which he had admitted to Alexis.

Jack poked his head into Laurie's office, but her desk chair was empty. Riva Mehta, Laurie's darkly complected, silky-voiced officemate, was at her desk and on the phone. She glanced up at at Jack with her onyx eyes.

Jack pantomimed by pointing toward Laurie's chair while raising his eyebrows questioningly. Riva responded by pointing downward and mouthing "in the pit" without taking the telephone receiver from her ear.

With a nod of understanding that Laurie was down in the autopsy room, undoubtedly doing a late case, Jack reversed course and headed for the elevators. Now if Laurie found out he'd gone to Calvin first, he'd have an explanation.

As per usual, he found Dr. Calvin Washington in his office next to the chief's. In contrast with the chief's, it was tiny and practically filled with metal filing cabinets, his desk, and a couple of straight-backed chairs. There was barely room for Calvin's two-hundred-fifty-pound frame to squeeze past his desk and lower it-self into his desk chair. It was Calvin's job to run the medical examiner's office on a daily basis, which was not an easy job considering there were more than a dozen medical examiners and over twenty thousand cases per year resulting in almost ten thousand autopsies.

On a daily basis there were on average two homicides and two drug overdoses. The OCME was a busy place, and Calvin oversaw all the pesky details.

"What's the problem now?" Calvin demanded in his basso profundo voice.

In the beginning, Jack had been relatively intimidated by the man's muscular bulk and stormy temperament. As the years passed, the two had

grown to have a wary respect for each other. Jack knew Calvin's bark was worse than his bite.

Jack didn't go into details. He merely said he had a family emergency in Boston that required his presence.

Calvin regarded Jack through his wire-rimmed progressive lenses. "I didn't know you had family in Boston. I thought you were from somewhere out there in the Midwest."

"It's a sister," Jack said simply.

"Will you be back in time for your vacation?" Calvin asked.

Jack smiled. He knew Calvin well enough to know that he was making a stab at humor. "I'll try my darnedest."

"How many days are we looking at?"

"Can't say for certain, but I'm hoping just one."

"Well, keep me informed," Calvin said. "Does Laurie know about this sudden development?" Over the years Jack had come to realize that Calvin had assumed an almost parental attachment to Laurie.

"Not yet, but she's at the top of my list. Actually, she's the only one on my list."

"All right! Get outta here. I've got work to do."

After thanking the deputy chief, who acknowledged him with a wave of dismissal, Jack walked out of the admin area and took the stairs down to the autopsy floor. He waved hello to the mortuary tech in the mortuary office and to the head of security in the security office. A waft of what New York City residents call fresh air came in from the open loading dock looking out to 30th Street. Turning to the right, he walked down the stained, bare concrete flooring past the big walk-in cooler and past the individual

refrigerated compartments. Reaching the autopsy room, he glanced inside through the wire-mesh window. There were two figures in full protective gear in the process of cleaning up. A single body with a sutured autopsy incision was on the nearest table. It was obvious the case was over.

Jack cracked the door and called out to ask if anyone knew the whereabouts of Dr. Montgomery. One of the occupants said she'd left five minutes ago.

Cursing under his breath, Jack retraced his steps and took the elevator back up to the fifth floor. As he rode, he wondered if there was any way to present the situation that would be easier for Laurie. His intuition told him she wasn't going to be happy with this new development, with as much pressure as her mother was putting on her about Friday's proceedings.

He found her in her office, arranging things on her desktop. It was apparent she'd just arrived. Riva was still on the phone and ignored them both.

"What a nice surprise," Laurie said brightly.

"I hope so," Jack said. He leaned his butt against the edge of Laurie's desk and looked down at her. There was no other chair. Not only did the medical examiners have to share offices in the outdated OCME facility, but the offices were small to begin with. Two desks and two file cabinets filled the room.

Laurie's questioning blue-green eyes stared back at Jack without blinking.

Her hair was piled on top of her head and held in place with a faux-tortoiseshell clip. A few wisps of hair curled down in front of her face.

"What do you mean 'I hope so? What in heaven's name are you going to tell me?" She was wary.

"I just had a call from my sister, Alexis."

"That's nice. Is she all right? I've wondered why you two don't stay more in touch, especially since she and her husband have been having their difficulties. Are they still together?"

"She's fine, and yes they are together. The call was about him. He's going through a difficult time. He's being tried for malpractice."

"That's too bad, especially since you said he was such a good doctor. I hate to hear that kind of story with what we medical examiners know of the doctors who ought to be sued."

"The bad doctors are much more risk-management-oriented to make up for what they lack in skill and know-how."

"What gives, Jack? I know you didn't come in here to discuss the malpractice crisis. I'm sure of that."

"Apparently, my brother-in-law's case is not going well, at least according to Alexis, and with the extent of his ego investment in being a doctor, she believes he'll decompensate if he loses. Furthermore, she believes that if that happens, the marriage and family will fall apart. If Alexis didn't have a Ph.D. in psychology, I might not give all this much credence, but since she does, I have to assume it's on the money."

Laurie cocked her head a few degrees to the side to view Jack from a slightly different angle. "You're obviously leading up to something, which I have a feeling I'm going to find upsetting."

"Alexis has pleaded with me to rush up to Boston and try to help."

"What on earth could you do?"

"Probably just hold her hand. I was as skeptical as you are and said so, but she practically begged me to come. To be honest, she tapped into my mother lode of guilt."

"Oh, Jack," Laurie murmured plaintively. She took a deep breath and let it out. "How long will you be away?"

"I'm hoping only a day. That's what I told Calvin." Then Jack quickly added, "I came here to your office first to talk to you, then stopped in

Calvin's office on the way down to the pit when I found out that's where you were."

Laurie nodded. She glanced down at her desktop and played with an errant paper clip. It was obvious she was torn between Jack's sister's need and her own. "I don't have to remind you this is Monday afternoon and our wedding is set for one thirty on Friday."

"I know, but you and your mom are doing all the work. The honeymoon was my job, and it's all arranged."

"What about Warren?"

"As far as I know, in his words, he's cool, but I'll check." Jack had had trouble deciding who was going to be the best man, Warren or Lou.

Ultimately, it had come to drawing straws, and Warren had won. Other than Warren and Lou, the only people Jack had invited to the affair were his office mate, Dr. Chet McGovern, and a smattering of his neighborhood basketball buddies. He'd specifically avoided inviting family for a multitude of reasons.

"And you?"

"I'm ready."

"Should I be worried about you going up to Boston and confronting your sister's daughters? You've told me in the past that was a problem for you.

How old are they now?"

"Fifteen, eleven, and ten."

"Weren't your two daughters eleven and ten?"

"They were."

"From what you've shared with me over the years about how your mind works, I'm worried that you might be set back from having to relate to

them. Where are you staying?"

"At the house! Alexis insisted."

"I don't care if she insisted. Are you comfortable staying there? If you're not, listen to yourself and stay in a hotel. I don't want you to be set back over this and possibly decide not to go through with the wedding. There's a chance your going up there could open old wounds."

"You know me too well. I've thought about everything you've said. My sense is that giving serious thought to the risk rather than ignoring it is a healthy sign! Alexis accused me of harboring avoidant traits in my personality."

"As if I wasn't aware of that, considering how long it's taken you to feel comfortable marrying me."

"Let's not get nasty" Jack said with a smile. He waited to be sure she understood he was joking, because what she had said was true. For a number of years, Jack's guilt and grief made him feel it was inappropriate for him to be happy. He'd even felt it should have been he who died, not Marilyn and the girls.

"It would be small of me to try to talk you out of going," Laurie continued in a serious voice. "But I wouldn't be honest if I didn't tell you I'm not happy about it, both from a selfish point of view and for what it could do to your mind-set. We're getting married on Friday. Don't call me from Boston and suggest that it be postponed. If you do, it would be a cancellation, not a postponement. I hope you don't take that as an unreasonable threat. After all this time, it's how I feel. With that said, do what you have to do."

"Thank you. I understand how you feel, and for good reason. It's been a slow road to normalcy for me in a lot of respects."

"When exactly are you going?"

Jack glanced at his watch. It was close to four p.m. "Right now, I guess. I'll cycle back to the apartment, grab a few things, then head out to the airport."

Currently, he and Laurie were living on the first floor of Jack's old building on 106th Street. They had moved down from the fourth floor because the building was under renovation. Jack and Laurie had bought it seven months previously and had made the mistake of trying to live in it while the work was being done.

"Will you call me tonight when you get settled?"

"Absolutely."

Laurie stood up and they hugged.

Jack didn't waste time. After cleaning up a few odds and ends on his desk, he descended to the basement floor and got his mountain bike from where he stored it. With his helmet and bicycle gloves on and a clip on his right trouser leg, he peddled up 30th Street and then headed north on First Avenue.

As usual, once he was on the bike, Jack's problems faded. The exercise and the attendant exhilaration took him to another world, especially during his diagonal transit of Central Park. Like a verdant jewel plopped in the middle of the concrete city, the park afforded a transcendent experience. By the time he popped back out onto Central Park West at 106th Street, the tension that his conversation with Laurie had caused was gone. It had been worked out of his system by the otherworldliness of the park's flower-filled interior.

Just opposite his building, Jack pulled up at the edge of the neighborhood playground. Warren and Flash were on the basketball court, shooting baskets in anticipation of one of the neighborhood's fast, furious, and highly competitive evening games. Jack opened the gate in the high chain-link fence and wheeled his bicycle into the playground.

"Hey, man," Warren called out. "You've come early. You running tonight, or what? If you are, get your ass out here cause it's going to be a party

tonight." Warren's impressively muscled, youthful body was completely hidden beneath his oversized hip-hop outfit. Flash was older, with a full beard that was beginning to gray prematurely. His biggest asset other than his jump shot was his mouth. He could argue any point and get most people to agree. Together they made an almost undefeatable team.

After brief hugs and ritualized handshakes, Jack told Warren he couldn't play because he had to go to Boston for a couple of nights.

"Beantown!" Warren remarked. "There's a brother up there who's cool and plays hoops. I could give him a buzz and let him know you're in the neighborhood."

"That would be terrific," Jack said. He'd not thought about taking his gear, but a bit of exercise might be just what the doctor ordered if things got emotionally dicey.

"I'll give him your cell and leave his on your voicemail."

"Fine," Jack said. "Listen! Is everything okay with your tux for Friday?"

"Not a problem. We're picking it up Thursday."

"Great," Jack said. "Maybe I'll see you guys Wednesday night. I could use a run or two before the big day."

"We'll be here, doc," Warren said. He snapped the ball from a startled Flash and drilled a long three-pointer.

6

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS

MONDAY, JUNE 5, 2006

7:35 P.M.

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Jack deplaned from the six thirty Delta Shuttle and allowed the clutch of people to carry him along. He assumed they knew where they were going.

In short order, he found himself curbside of the Delta terminal, and within five minutes the Hertz rent-a-car bus pulled up. Jack boarded.

He'd not been in Boston for some time, and thanks to the interminable construction of the airport, he didn't recognize a thing. As the bus wended its way among the various terminals, he wondered what kind of welcome he was going to find when he arrived at the Bowman homestead. The only person he could count on being hospitable was Alexis. As far as the others, he had no idea of what to expect, particularly Craig. And even Alexis he'd not seen in person for more than a year, which was going to make it somewhat awkward. The last time he'd seen her had been in New York City, where she'd come solo to attend a professional psychology meeting.

Jack sighed. He didn't want to be there in Boston, especially since he knew his chances of accomplishing anything were minimal, other than to pat his sister on the back and commiserate with her, and also since his going had

upset Laurie. He was confident Laurie would get over it, but she had already been under stress from her mother for the previous few weeks. The irony was that she was supposed to enjoy the wedding ceremony as well as the lead-up to it. Instead, it had become more of a burden. Jack had had to bite his tongue on several occasions when he'd been tempted to tell her she should have assumed as much. If it had been up to Jack, they would have scheduled a small, private affair with just a few friends. From his cynical perspective, the reality of major social events never lived up to romantic expectation.

Jack and his fellow passengers were eventually dropped off at the Hertz facility and without too much stress he found himself behind the wheel of a cream-colored Hyundai Accent that reminded him of an old-fashioned Minute Maid juice can. Armed with a poor map and a few slapdash directions, he bravely ventured forth and immediately got lost. Boston was not a city that was at all kind to a visiting driver. Nor were the Boston drivers. It was like a rally as Jack struggled to find the suburban town where Alexis lived. On his rare previous visits, he'd always met his sister in town.

Shaken but not down-and-out, Jack pulled into the Bowman driveway at a quarter to nine. It was still not completely dark, thanks to the approaching summer solstice, but the interior incandescent lights were on, giving the home what Jack assumed to be the falsely cozy appearance of the happy family. The house was impressive, like others in the immediate Newton neighborhood. It was a large two-and-a-half-story structure made of brick and painted white with a series of dormers poking out of the roof. Also, like the other homes, there was an expansive lawn, lots of shrubs, towering trees, and extensive flower beds. Below each window on the ground floor was a window box brimming with blossoms. Next to Jack's Hyundai was a Lexus. Inside the garage, Jack knew from one of Alexis's earlier conversations there was the de rigueur station wagon.

No one came flying out of the house waving a banner of welcome. Jack turned off the engine and for a moment entertained the idea of just turning around and leaving. Yet he couldn't do that, so he reached into the backseat for his carry-on bag and got out of the car. Outside, there were the familiar

noises of the crickets and other creatures. Save for those sounds, the neighborhood seemed devoid of life.

At the front door, Jack peered in through the sidelights. There was a small foyer with an umbrella stand. Beyond that was a hallway. He could see a flight of stairs that rose up to the second floor. Still, there were no people, not a sound. Jack rang the bell, which was actually chimes that he could hear distinctly through the door. Almost immediately a small, androgynous figure appeared bounding down the stairs. She was dressed in a simple Tshirt and shorts and no shoes. She was a lithe towhead with milky white blemish-free skin and delicate-appearing arms and legs. She threw open the door. It was obvious she was strong-willed.

"You must be Uncle Jack."

"I am, and you?" Jack felt his heart quicken. He could already see his late daughter Tamara.

"Christina," she declared. Then, without taking her greenish eyes from Jack, she yelled over her shoulder, "Mom! Uncle Jack is here."

Alexis appeared at the end of the hallway. As she approached, she exuded major domesticity. She was wearing an apron and wiping her hands on a checkered dishtowel. "Well, ask him in, Christina."

Although looking appropriately older, Alexis appeared pretty much the same as Jack remembered her back in their childhood home in South Bend, Indiana. There was no doubt they were siblings. They had the same sand-colored hair, the same matching maple-syrup eyes, the same defined features, and the same complexion, which suggested they'd been in the sun even when they hadn't. Neither was completely pale, even in the dead of winter.

With a warm smile, Alexis walked directly up to Jack and gave him a sustained hug. "Thanks for coming," she whispered in his ear. While still embracing Alexis, Jack saw the other two girls appear at the top of the

stairs. It was easy to tell them apart, since Tracy at age fifteen was more than a foot taller than Meghan at eleven. As if not sure what to do, they came down the stairs slowly, hesitating at each step. As they neared it was easy for Jack to see their personalities differed as much as their height.

Tracy's sky-blue eyes burned with a brazen intensity, whereas Meghan's hazel eyes flitted about, not willing to make eye contact. Jack swallowed.

Meghan's eye movement suggested she was shy and introverted just like Jack's Lydia.

"Come down here and say hello to your uncle," Alexis ordered goodnaturedly.

As the girls reached the floor level, Jack was surprised at Tracy's height. He was regarding her at nearly eye level. She was a good three to four inches taller than her mother. The other thing he saw was that she had two obvious piercings. One was on her nostril, topped with a small diamond. The other was a silver ring tucked into her exposed navel. Her attire included a cropped sleeveless cotton top that stretched across precociously impressive breasts.

On her lower half, she wore low-rise billowy harem pants. The outfit and accessories gave her a saucy sensuality as brazen as her stare.

"This is your uncle, girls," Alexis said as a way of introduction.

"How come you've never visited us?" Tracy demanded right off. She had both hands defiantly thrust into pants pockets.

"Did your daughters really die in a plane crash?" Christina asked almost simultaneously.

"Girls!" Alexis blurted, drawing the word out as if it were five or six syllables long. Then, she apologized to Jack. "I'm sorry. You know children.

You never know what they are going to say."

"It's all right. Unfortunately, they are both reasonable questions." Then, looking into Tracy's eyes, he said, "Maybe over the next day or so we could

talk. I'll try to explain why I've been a stranger." Then, looking down to Christina, he added, "In answer to your question, I did lose two lovely daughters in a plane tragedy."

"Now Christina," Alexis said, butting in. "Since you're the only one who's finished her homework, why don't you take Uncle Jack down to the basement guest room. Tracy and Meghan, you two head back upstairs and finish your work. And Jack, I assume you've not eaten."

Jack nodded. He'd wolfed down a sandwich at LaGuardia Airport, but that had long since disappeared into the lower reaches of his digestive tract.

Although he hadn't expected to be, he was hungry.

"How about some pasta. I've kept the marinara sauce hot, and I can throw together a salad."

"That would be fine."

The basement guest room was as expected. It had two high windows that looked into brick-lined window wells. The air had a damp, cool feeling like a root cellar. On the plus side, it was taste-fully decorated in varying shades of green. The furniture included a king-size bed, a desk, a club chair with a reading lamp, and a flat-screen TV. There was also a bathroom en suite.

While Jack pulled his clothes out of his carry-on bag and hung what he could in the closet, Christina threw herself into the easy chair. With her arms flat on the chair's arms and her feet sticking straight out into space, she regarded Jack critically. "You're skinnier than my dad."

"Is that good or bad?" Jack questioned. He put his basketball sneakers on the floor of the closet and carried his shaving kit into the bathroom. He liked the fact that there was a generous shower stall rather than a generic bathtub.

"How old were your daughters when they crashed in the plane?"