Free 5 Alive After Friday by Rod Hoisington

recently faced Vicki in the courtroom.
Then back to the phone, “Mel, that’s great she wants to help. Would you mind if
we interviewed her? Your people already have plenty to do.” Mel thanked her and
they hung up.
    Martin said, “She might know something about his
background. You want me to talk with her?”
    Sandy nodded. “You dealt with her in court. Contact
her. Turn on that Bronner charm. See if you can get any private info out of her.
We need to know everything about Cal Boyd. Then we’re off on a great start.”
    “Meanwhile,” Sandy said. “I’m driving over to
Sarasota and talk to the mother. Maybe she knows where her son last lived.”
    They had started for the elevator, when Judy
stepped up and asked if she could talk to Martin for a moment. Sandy said, “Okay,
I’ll see you when I get back from Sarasota.” And got on the elevator.
    Judy sat and Martin took the chair beside her
desk. He didn’t like the looks of this. She was very serious. He saw the
troubled expression on her face. “Oh, gosh, your daughter’s sick,” was the
first thing that came to his mind.
    “No, she’s not the problem.” She lowered her head
and spoke to her clasped hands. “There’s no good way to tell you this. I want
you to know that I truly value knowing you—”
    He knew what those words were leading up to. “Judy,
no!” He had sensed she was putting some distance between them lately but
thought it was his own insecurities. They had gone out on several dinner dates,
and she’d abruptly cancelled the last one. Instantly, he felt a heaviness crushing
his head. How did he get it so wrong?
    “I wanted it to work, until—”
    He sat with a lump of lead in his stomach, his
head throbbing and his eyes moist. What could have happened?
    She mouthed the rehearsed words knowing they were poison
darts into his heart. Her ex had come back to town. In her mind, the divorce
had been processed long ago, and she retained no romantic feelings for him, or
so she thought. Nevertheless, when she observed her daughter’s explosive
delight in seeing her father and experienced the three of them once again in
the setting of their home, she was overcome with doubt.
    How could Martin argue against that? He had no
place in that cozy tableau. He understood but of course was disappointed. He
wasn’t red-hot over her, but she was a charming woman, and he loved her. He wasn’t
devastated but was immensely disappointed. As his wife, she’d have the best that
life could offer. Now in his late thirties he felt ready for such a major
change in his life. He had that incredible family home surrounded by two acres
of unending green on the barrier island just waiting to be filled with a loving
wife and children. They would all grow old together. He was certain he could have
made her very happy. Perhaps, it hadn’t sounded all that exciting when Judy
thought of it.

Chapter Twelve 
     
    T he
police had identified the body that Sandy discovered in the park as Calvin
Boyd. They now knew that he had been driving around on a suspended license, was
twenty-five and wouldn’t get any older. Nothing more was known about him in the
two years since his bar-fight charge was dismissed. Sandy was convinced he was
Dick. She was eager to learn what his former attorney, Vicki Susane, had to say
about him.
    Martin phoned her hoping she’d agree to meet with
him. He didn’t need to worry—she was delighted to receive his call.
    “We could have a drink,” Vicki suggested. “I’ve
always wanted to see your club.”
    “My club?’ The Club was an exclusive social club
for the ‘well-connected’ crowd, magnificently situated between the ocean and
the Waterway with panoramic views of both. Membership wasn’t actually exclusive,
merely excessively expensive. He thought suggesting drinks at his private club
was unquestionably forward. “I was thinking more like lunch.”
    “I want to relax. Lunch is for business,” she
said.
    “Aren’t we meeting for