Promise Me Eternity (34 page)

Sandra Grant had turned around in fright when
someone put a hand on her shoulder. She was sure it was one of
Vucci’s snoops, who seemed to be everywhere.

“What are you doing with that device,
miss?”

It was a zoo security guard.

“Oh, you really scared me.”

He repeated, “What are you doing with that
device?”

She moved away from the glass so as not to
seem suspicious. “What device? Oh, this?” She didn’t know what to
say. Then it occurred to her. She offered her hand. “My name is Dr.
Ramsay. I don’t know if you’ve heard about me. I’m a biologist,
researching communication among species. This is a listening
device.”

The security guard said, “What do you mean?
Listening to the animals?”

She smiled. “Yes, that’s it.” She pointed at
the elephants. “Did you know that elephants are among the most
communicative of animals?”

“No,” the guard admitted.

“No? Don’t you read
National
Geographic
? I’ve had a few articles in there about elephants.
And you say you work here?”

He blushed, saying, “I don’t read much.”

“Yeah, well, then you wouldn’t know, would
you?”

He was even more confused. “Listen, miss, you
carry on doing whatever it is you’re doing. I won’t disturb you
anymore. I’ve got plenty of other work.” He left the terrarium.

Sandra checked the situation through the
window again. Unfortunately, Carlo Vucci was gone. Disappointed,
she decided to go home.
Tomorrow morning, I’ll tell Richard
about this and demand that he give the case back to me. I’ll
quickly handle Dr. Patterson and then dedicate all my attention to
Carlo Vucci.

Chapter 69

_______________________

Carlo Vucci was furious. Business wasn’t
going well at the moment. There was even a danger that he’d have to
ask the bank for a loan, which was against his principles.

It was a hot evening, the sun was setting,
the sky light gray. He was sitting in his limo, driving no faster
than thirty-five miles an hour and thinking about Christine.

He pressed a button and a few moments later a
hoarse voice croaked, “Hello?”

“It’s Carlo. Have you got any information
yet?”

“Oh, it’s you, Carlo,” the detective
said.

“So, do you know who my wife is seeing?”

Some uncertainty could be heard in the man’s
voice. “I’ve got some info, but it’s not confirmed. You’ll have to
wait another day or two. I told you the guy got away.”

“I don’t have that much time. Tell me what
you know.”

“I don’t like saying something I’m not sure
about. I’d prefer telling you later.”

Carlo shouted, “I want it now!”

“OK, if you want it now, have it now. As you
know, I followed the guy and he escaped. I thought I’d lost
him.”

“Yes, yes, just tell me who it is.”

“I’m not sure if it’s possible. Today I
bought a few newspapers and saw his picture in there. I’m not sure
it’s the same man, but if nothing else, he looks very much like
him.”

“Who is it, damn it?” Carlo said sharply.

“As I’ve already said, it’s probably nothing.
It’s a Dr. Patterson, who was charged with the murder of his
wife.”

“Dr. Patterson?” Vucci said in shock.

The detective was sorry he had told him.
“I’ll try my best, just wait a day or two and then I’ll find him
…”

Suddenly he realized that he was talking to
himself. The line had gone dead.

Chapter 70

_______________________

Dr. Patterson, his legs shaking, was standing
on the gravel beside the road. As he waited for the right vehicle,
his teeth chattered with fear. He had turned around a few times and
set off for his car, which he had left deep in the woods, but then
changed his mind again. The thought of Christine made him stay.
Someone has to do this
, he kept telling himself.

He had no idea what limousine Carlo would
arrive in. Christine hadn’t told him that.
Just stand there and
Carlo is sure to stop. You know how he feels about you.

Simon wondered if that was really what was
going to happen.
Maybe he won’t be in the car alone. Well, in
that case I won’t do anything.

He caught sight of a pair of headlights
shining in his direction. He again wondered if it could be Carlo
Vucci and grimaced in horror. Simon painfully stared at the light
and prayed to God that everything would be OK.

The light became stronger. It burned his
eyes, but he didn’t want to drop his gaze, knowing there was no
other way.

The sound of the engine indicated that the
vehicle was slowing.
Oh my God. This is probably him. What
should I do?

The black car came to a halt. Simon wanted to
unglue his feet from the ground, but he couldn’t move. He quickly
checked that the hypodermic was still in his right pocket.
Everything was OK.

The car window went down. A deep voice said,
“I saw you walking along the road. Do you need help?”

From a safe distance, but barely able to
stand up, Simon looked at the man, who was around thirty. “No, no,
thank you. I’ve arranged to meet someone. Thanks.”

The window went up and the man drove
away.

“Damn it, that idiot saw me. He could be a
witness later, testifying I was here.”

He stood there for another minute or so and
then decided to go home. The whole thing was too dangerous.

Again he heard the sound of an approaching
vehicle. Gazing into the distance, he wondered whether he should
stay or leave. To calm himself, he started singing a tune. A large
beam of white light enveloped Simon. “La, la, la …” he mumbled.

The slow roaring of the engine suggested that
the vehicle was going to stop. He started singing even louder: “Ti,
ra, ra …”

The driver slowed down even more.

Please God, don’t let it be him.

The car stopped a few yards ahead and then
reversed. Simon waited, pale faced, to see who was behind the
wheel.

“Dr. Patterson?” said a male voice. “What are
you doing here?”

Simon wanted to say something, but his
muscles froze. He stared at Carlo as if petrified.

“Get in. How convenient. I was just thinking
of you.”

Simon had no choice but to comply.

Carlo put his foot on the accelerator the
moment Simon shut the door. “You won’t believe how happy I am to
see you,” he said, smiling secretly to himself.

“Me too, Mr. Vucci,” he finally said. “I
didn’t think anyone was going to stop.”

“What happened to you?”

“I went for a walk in the woods to clear my
head a bit, but my vehicle stuck in the mud. The ground is really
wet and I couldn’t get out.”

“Is that so? Tell me where the car is. We’ll
manage to get it out together.”

Simon cursed himself and wished he’d come up
with something better. “No, no, you don’t have to. I’ll get it
tomorrow. But I’d be very grateful if you took me into town, where
I could find a taxi.”

“No way,” Carlo said decisively. “We’ll drive
to your vehicle and pull it out.” With his left hand he checked
that the revolver was in place. “Why leave such an unpleasant job
till tomorrow?”

“Oh, no!” Simon objected. “You’ll get filthy.
Please, just take me into town!”

“It’s out of the question. I really want to
help. Where is your vehicle?”

He was left with no choice but to show Carlo
the area where he’d parked his car. They arrived at the spot half a
minute later.

“Get out!” Vucci ordered.

Simon wondered if maybe he suspected
something. Vucci sounded far from friendly.
You know how he
feels about you
, kept echoing in his head.

“So tell me, what’s wrong with your car?”

“Th-there’s n-nothing … wrong with it. It …
just needs a push.” He was dizzy with fear.

“Let’s have a look.” Getting out of the
limousine, Carlo leaned on the back of Simon’s car with his
hands.

Simon also got out, feeling the hypodermic
with his right hand. He removed the safety cap.
I must do
this
.

Just as Simon was about to take the
hypodermic out, Carlo swiftly turned around and took hold of his
throat.

“What! Mr. Vucci, what are you doing?”

“I’ll show you, Doctor! Saving my life
doesn’t mean you can start doing my wife.”

Blood rushed to Simon’s head. “Your wife?
Wait, for God’s sake …”

Carlo was gripping his throat with his right
hand and pressing a revolver against his stomach. “I’m
waiting!”

In a surge of panic, Simon clumsily reached
into his pocket for the hypodermic and stabbed himself in the
finger. Pulling his hand out of his pocket, he heard the hypodermic
fall to the ground.

“I haven’t touched your wife,” he struggled
to say.

“You’re lying!” Carlo hit him on the
cheek.

Beads of sweat covered Simon’s forehead.
“Please, calm down, Mr. Vucci! I can explain.”

“Well, tell me then!” Again he slapped his
face.

Simon reached for Carlo’s hand, which was
squeezing his throat tightly. “You’re hurting me. Please,
stop!”

“First I’ll deal with you, Doctor, then with
Christine. This time she really let me down.”

“But nothing happened between us.”

“Why did you meet in that hotel then?”

Simon whimpered, “We didn’t meet anywhere, I
swear!”

His answer was unconvincing and Carlo knew he
was lying. Carlo punched him in the stomach with all his might,
knocking him against the car. The sound that came out of Simon’s
mouth was like an air bag deflating.

Simon should have fallen to the ground, but
he managed to stay upright.

Again, Carlo punched him in the gut. “Nothing
to say?”

Something in Simon shifted. He realized he
could be saying good-bye to his life if he didn’t resist. Clenching
his fist, he punched Carlo in the stomach, clumsily but
efficiently.

Carlo was obviously surprised. He took a deep
breath, but somewhere it got stuck. The blow had knocked the wind
out of him.

Simon bolted. He ran, crushing the ferns
beneath his feet. Behind him he could hear Carlo choking and
wheezing. Simon knew he only had a minute or two to find a hiding
place before Carlo recovered and started looking for him. Simon ran
as fast as he could, not caring about the thin branches lashing
against his face. The deeper he got into the woods, the weaker the
light.

He slipped on a damp surface, landing hard on
his backside, and then started to roll downward. He was turning so
quickly he thought he would break his arms. It ended with a strong
blow to his head.

He came to a few minutes later, with a
terrible pain in his neck. He wanted to lift himself up, but his
head was throbbing so violently that he could only moan and lie
there a few more minutes. He put his right hand to the back of his
head. Through the thick branches he could see the pale glow of the
crescent moon.

Then, hearing the cracking of branches at a
higher ground level, he remembered what had happened. It was Carlo,
coming for him.

“Where are you, Doc? I’ll find you, don’t
worry,” he said, the threat plain in his voice.

Simon thought it best to stay where he lay,
on his back. He waited for the sound of the cracking branches to
fade.

Then, very slowly and with careful steps he
walked through the undergrowth until he reached a spot where the
slope wasn’t so steep and he could climb up.

At the top he stopped, listening to the
sounds of the woods. He could hear an owl hooting and crickets
producing their typical buzz. But he couldn’t hear any branches
cracking or leaves rustling. That meant Carlo wasn’t near.

He brushed off the leaves that were sticking
to his clothes. With every move he felt a throbbing pain in his
head. He wondered whether he had fractured his skull. Then he tried
to figure out the direction he’d come from.

In the distance he could hear a car engine
start. He listened hard, almost sure that it was Carlo’s car.
So
he’s given up and gone. Besides, why would he bother with me. He’ll
just send a hired killer after me sometime. I’m as good as dead
already.

As he made his plodding way back up the
slope, he wondered how Carlo had found out about the relationship
between him and Christine. The more he thought about it, the more
he realized that Carlo probably didn’t even have any evidence. If
anyone had seen them going into the hotel together, that wasn’t
evidence. It’s true that it would be hard to convince Carlo that
they had met there because of her headaches, but it was worth a
try. The best thing would be to call Carlo the following day and
explain everything.

He stopped about ten yards from the car.
Carlo’s car was gone. Simon listened again, putting his hand to the
back of his neck. Moaning, he approached the car, his body still
shaking. He had never been in such a terrifying situation.

Before opening the car door he remembered the
hypodermic. In the dim light, he had to bend down to see in the
thick undergrowth. He ran his hand through the grass, wondering
where it could have fallen. A stinging pain in his hand told him
some thorns must have grabbed him. Quickly pulling his hand away,
he swore. All he wanted was to go home. While he was glad that the
hypodermic had fallen and he hadn’t used it on Carlo, he was scared
of what was to come.

Wiping his clothes with a cloth from the
trunk, he remembered Christine.
All this time I’ve only thought
of myself. How selfish of me! My God, what will he do to her? He’s
certain to go home and make her confess to being with me. What if
he kills her? I must help her.