Free Reilly 02 - Invasion of Privacy by Perri O'Shaughnessy Page A

hill, but this time they took the main trail to the house. Rivulets of melting snow ran down it, making the walking harder.
    Up close, the A-frame needed a paint job, and the porch needed new supports.
    A man sat at the oak table near the window, smoking. Young, blond, and strapping, wearing a blue baseball cap, a dirty plaid jacket, and muddy boots, he looked a lot like the man Nina had met on her last trip here, Jerry but with a stubble instead of a beard. This must be his son.
    "Go home, Ralphie," Terry said. "I’m busy now."
    "I got here firs t ," the young man said. "You promised."
    "Get lost."
    "Is she the lawyer lady?" He talked deliberately, with slight pauses between words, as if the language made sluggish progress from his mind, only to get stuck in his throat.
    "None of your business," Terry said, but he got up to stand by her, reeking of gasoline and oil. He reached a hand out absentmindedly to pat Terry’s arm. She pulled her coat away, making a face. "You’re filthy."
    "Pleased to meet you," he said to Nina. "I like your coat collar. Is it mink?"
    "It’s fake," Nina said. "I don’t wear real fur."
    "But you wear leather shoes, I bet," he said with a laugh.
    Terry, who had had enough, said loudly, "Ralphie, I said get going!" She herded him to the door, opened it, and invited him out.
    "I’m going, I’m going." He stubbed out the cigarette on the hardwood floor and stomped out in his heavy boots.
    "Jerk-off," Terry said contemptuously, watching his retreat down the path. If Ralph was her lover, the relationship was definitely doomed. She made sure the door closed behind him, then turned to Nina, who was wondering at the heavy furniture, the Early American oils on the walls.
    "My parents’ stuff. I never bothered to take any of it down. I basically live in my studio," Terry said. "Let’s get this over with quickly. I know nothing about your kid being missing."
    "You broke into the house and trashed my room," Nina said. "I saw you."
    "Really? Prove it."
    "Where is he?"
    "Read my lips. I don’t know."
    "Okay," Nina said. "I think I can make a report to the police that’s going to guarantee you get picked up on a seventy-two-hour psychiatric hold. Maybe they’ll let you go at that point, maybe they won’t. You familiar with the inside of a mental hospital, Terry? Oh, I see you are."
    Terry’s face had paled. "You can’t do that. I’m your friggin’ client!" she cried.
    "Not anymore."
    "I don’t have your kid. Look around. He’s not here."
    She wouldn’t tell Nina to look if Bobby was there. Her heart sank. "You trashed my room last night, didn’t you?"
    "What if I did?" Terry asked, with genuine curiosity. "You going to get me arrested for reading your love letters?"
    "You hit me on the head," Nina said. "You tried to hurt me."
    "Looks like you’ve survived," Terry said, "so far."
    Nina said, "Don’t bullshit me anymore. And don’t come around trying to bully me or scare my family. I’ve got a gun and I will use it if I have to." She didn’t, but Terry didn’t have to know that. "I won’t be off guard next time."
    As soon as she said it, she wished she hadn’t mentioned a gun. That could magnify the seriousness of Terry’s vandalism and incite her. There were already too many nuts with guns running around.
    Because she still hoped to find Bobby, she searched the small untidy house thoroughly. Terry didn’t try to stop her. There was no sign of him. In the bedroom Terry took off her coat and tossed it onto the bed, where it lay in a furry heap, like an exotic pet. Under the kitchen sink Nina found her letters, out of order, some of them torn.
    Terry had followed her around, saying nothing. She eyed the box, her expression, for once, blank.
    "You’ve got it back. I just borrowed it. So let’s forget the whole thing," she said.
    "Why do you care about my personal business?"
    "Just checking something."
    "Checking what?"
    "To see if you are who I thought you might be."
    "And who is