"But you never said anything."

"Because I thought it was such a long shot, I didn't dare. Otherwise you'd have been looking at me like you were a moment ago—ready to call the booby squad."

"But how did you get a sample of—?"

"You left some hair behind at Julio's."

"And Bethlehem?"

"I snagged a spoon from Work."

She couldn't be certain but he seemed a little less sure of himself than before. Was that true? Could you get a DNA sample from a used spoon?

"I still can't believe this. Where's the lab report?"

He looked out the window. "I don't have it."

"What? Then how do you know?"

"Verbal confirmation. Hard copy will follow, but that won't help you. The samples are numbered on the report for confidentiality. Some sort of law."

"Then it could be a mistake."

It had to be a mistake.

He looked at her now. "The guy who did the test told me flat-out that the two specimens I gave him came from people with the same father but different mothers."

Christy closed her eyes and held her breath to keep from sobbing. This was getting worse and worse.

"How can something like this happen? I mean, what are the odds of my half brother coming to town and just happening to pick up on—?" She jolted upright and stared at him. "Unless he knows! Oh, Jesus, do you think he knows?"

"I'm almost sure he does. The odds of this happening by accident are astronomical."

"But why? I knew he was bent, but what possible reason could he have for dating his niece?"

"It has to be something in your past. And since you don't know Bethlehem, the only thing I can think of is some beef with Dawn's father."

No-no-no! she thought. Don't go there! Oh, please don't go there!

"Impossible."

"He could be getting even for something."

"By…" The word fucking sprang to mind but she couldn't bring herself to say it, not when it concerned Dawn. "By going with his own niece?"

"He's a twisted SOB. Who knows what's going on in his head. But the only way I can help you find out is by learning about her father."

"No!"

He looked annoyed and she could understand that. But she couldn't tell him.

"Come on, Christy. Who was he? Was he involved when you disappeared for those weeks?"

She looked at him. "How did you—?" Then she stopped and nodded. "Oh, right. You're a detective. But you're supposed to be investigating Jerry Bethlehem, not me."

"Just putting together all the pieces of this jigsaw you handed me. Now… what about those weeks? Was he involved?"

"Forget it. I don't even want to think about him. It was a terrible—it was the worst time in my life."

"It was bad for everyone in Atlanta around then. The abortionist assassinations, the—"

The abortionist assassinations? Why was he bringing them up?

The missing weeks, the killings, a brother she'd never known existed… too much. Panic blossomed, shutting off her air. Her heart rattled about in her chest, she couldn't breathe, the car was shrinking, closing in on her, pressing Jack closer until—

She yanked on the door handle, pushed it open, and scrambled out.

"Christy!"

"Leave me alone!"

She stumbled, found her feet, and began to run toward the lake.

7

Jack sat frozen, staring as Christy ran thirty or forty yards straight away across the grass to stop by a huge willow. She leaned against the trunk for a few heartbeats, then sank to her knees, sobbing.

He hopped out and hurried toward her. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a couple of old biddies out walking their dogs stop and stare.

Had to play it careful here. Didn't want any 911 calls about a domestic dispute going down in public.

When he reached Christy he squatted close but didn't touch her. He hesitated, unsure of what to say. What was up here? He decided the last thing he should do right now was push.

"If you don't want to talk about him, you don't have to." He glanced at the two biddies who were still watching. "But whatever you decide, let's get back to the car."

She wiped her eyes and looked at him, then nodded. Jack rose and held his hand out to her. She took it and he pulled her to her feet. As she and Jack walked side by side to the car, the biddies turned away and continued their stroll.

Back inside the Mercedes, Jack kept mum as he watched Christy and waited, mentally spurring her to spill. Finally…

"Why did you mention the Atlanta abortionist assassinations?"

Jack thought about that and didn't have a ready answer. All her problems revolved around Jeremy Bolton, the assassin, so he supposed it must have been running through his mind.

"I… when I was backgrounding you, it was the big story of the times in Atlanta."

"Well, I had nothing to do with killing anybody."

Why would she think he'd even consider that?

"I never thought you did."

"Yeah, well, for a while there the cops weren't so sure."

Jack stared at her. "You were a suspect?"

"I… I was connected to those doctors."

"Golden and Dalton?"

"You know their names?"

"Told you, I've been looking for someone from your past. What about the guy who killed them?"

She blinked. "Jeremy Bolton?"

"Now who's got the good memory."

She loosed a harsh laugh. "Oh, I'll never forget that name. When the cops finally caught him and found no connection between us, they lost all interest in me."

Jack hesitated. His next question might touch a nerve.

"You don't have to answer this but I've got to ask: Did you have abortions from the dead docs?"

She stared straight ahead. "No."

Something about the change in her tone… was she telling the truth?

"Being a murder suspect…" He shook his head. "That must be rough. That why you said it was the worst time in your life?"

"That… and other things."

"Dawn's father?"

"He's off-limits."

Remembering the last time he'd pushed her, Jack backed off.

"Well, if you change your mind, let me know so I can see where he fits in this puzzle."

"Believe me, he doesn't fit anywhere."

"What about the name change? Why did Moonglow Garber become Christy Pickering?"

"You're really on top of things, aren't you. Pretty damn thorough for so short a time."

"Just trying to give you your money's worth," Jack said without mentioning that someone else had done all the investigating.

"Well, the name change is my business."

"Another secret?"

She looked at him. "No. Just something I choose not to share."

Jack nodded. She was wound tight—maybe too tight. He decided to leave out the pregnancy part for now—it wasn't going to affect his course of action and it might drive Christy over the edge.

But since she wouldn't talk about Dawn's father, that put a sample of the mystery man's DNA out of reach. Levy's second choice was a sample of Dawn's. Jack had to figure a way to get it without triggering a barrage of questions. After a moment he came up with what he hoped was a plausible story.

He touched Christy's arm. "Did Dawn leave anything behind that might be carrying some of her DNA?"

She looked at him with an alarmed expression. "Why?"

"Let's see how close she and Bethlehem are—genetically, that is. Maybe the chance of birth defects—"

"Birth defects? Oh God, don't even think about her being pregnant!"

Jack took her reaction as proof his instincts had been right.

"You're the one who told me they were having sex."

"Yes, but pregnant?"

"One tends to follow the other."

"I can't even think about it."

"Well, then, think about this: You need to show her something. I have Bethlehem's DNA on file at the lab. If I can get some of Dawn's for a comparison, who knows…? Maybe it'll change her mind, or at least give her second thoughts about getting too cozy with that close a relative."