Free Suffer the Children by John Saul

paper,” Forager snapped. “That’s what you can do. You can use it to light a fire under Ray Norton. Let him know that if he doesn’t do something, and do it fast, the people of this town are going to get rid of him.”
    “I hardly think—” Jack started to say.
    “I hardly think,” Forager mimicked. “It didn’t happen to your daughter, so why would you hardly think anything?”
    Jack fought hard to control his temper. He began again.
    “Just exactly what do you think happened to Anne?” he asked.
    “Someone—” Martin Forager hesitated. “Did something to her,” he finished lamely.
    “Did what?” Jack asked.
    Forager began to look uncomfortable. “Well—I don’t know, really. But the doctor said …”
    “The doctor said nothing much happened to her,” Jack said firmly. “He told me so himself, at your request. He examined her thoroughly, and apart from a few bruises, which she could have gotten in any one of a number of ways, she isn’t hurt. She certainly wasn’t molested.” He continued quickly, seeing the blood drain from Martin Forager’s face. “I know, you never said she was, but that’s what you’ve been thinking.” He dropped his hands into his lap and slumped back in his chair. “Hell, Marty, that’s what we’ve all been thinking. But apparently nothing happened. And you know how kids are. She came home late. Maybe nothing at all happened, and she made the whole thing up.” He held up a hand as he saw Forager’s temper begin to build again. “Don’t start up again, Martin. If the doctor’s report showed anything, anything at all I could get a handle on, I’d be raising as big a stink as you. But it doesn’t. Unless Anne starts talking aboutwhat happened to her, there’s nothing any of us can do.”
    Forager glared at him for a moment. “You mean like Sarah talks about what happened to her?” he snarled. He turned away, and was out of Jack’s office before he could see the effect of his words. Jack remained in his chair, waiting for his heart to stop pounding. He was shaking.
    When Sylvia Bannister came into the inner office a few minutes later, Jack hadn’t moved. Sylvia started to put a file on the desk in front of him, but stopped when she saw his face.
    “Jack?” she said. “Jack, are you all right?”
    “I don’t know, Syl,” Jack said quietly. “Why don’t you close the door and sit down.” He looked up at her. “If you have time?”
    “I always have time,” Sylvia replied, closing the door. She sat down in the chair in front of the desk and lit a cigarette. The beginnings of a smile came over Jack’s face.
    “That’s almost automatic, isn’t it?” he said.
    “What is?” she said, glancing around.
    “The cigarette. Haven’t you ever noticed that you never light a cigarette in here when you know it’s business, but you always light one when you know it’s just going to be us talking? It’s as though you use the cigarette to change roles from secretary to friend.”
    “Does it bother you?” Sylvia asked anxiously, looking at the cigarette with an embarrassment that was not like her. Jack shook his head.
    “Not at all. I kind of enjoy it. It reassures me that you can read me like a book.”
    Sylvia relaxed again. “Then I’ll try not to remember it every time I do it You shouldn’t have mentioned it; now I’ll be self-conscious about it.”
    “Not you.” Jack grinned. “You’re the least self-conscious person I’ve ever met.”
    “Well,” Sylvia said shortly, beginning to feel thatJack was avoiding whatever it was he wanted to talk about. “Instead of talking about my many, varied, and questionable virtues, why don’t we talk about you? What happened?”
    Jack shrugged. “I’m not sure anything did, really. Martin Forager just said something to me that shook me. Something about Sarah.”
    Sylvia drew on her cigarette and let the smoke out slowly, choosing her words. “Exactly what did he say?” she said softly. Jack