If Dying Was All Read Free

climbed up the front of the old man, stepped on his head and from there jumped up to a dusty bookshelf.
    Easy said, “How’d you get out to Manzana?”
    “I drove,” answered the old man. I’ve kept my Mercedes in good order. Actually I believe my driver’s license has lapsed. I didn’t expect anyone would notice.”
    “Where’d you go once you got to Manzana?”
    “I went directly to the Golden Apple Inn.”
    “That’s the place the letter mentioned?”
    “Yes. We all used to vacation there years ago. Manzana is one of the quieter desert towns, a more relaxed place than Apple Valley.”
    “There was no sign of your daughter in Manzana?”
    The shaggy, gray cat slithered along the bookshelf, knocking down small crystal figures with its tail. The figures fell on the old man and he absently swatted at them. “No, but she had been there,” said McCleary. “She never showed up during the two days I waited there, though.”
    “How do you know she was there at all?”
    “Jackie made a room reservation in person,” replied the old man. “She was there at the Golden Apple on the 21st.”
    “Who saw her?”
    “The people who manage the inn. They told me Jackie was there Monday morning and made a reservation, under the name of Hollis, for the 24th and 25th.”
    “Paid in advance?”
    “No. She put down a twenty dollar deposit.”
    “In cash?”
    “Well, yes.”
    “These people who run the Golden Apple,” said Easy. “Are they the same people who operated the inn when you and your wife and daughter used to stay there?”
    McCleary shook his head. “No, this couple has only owned the inn for the past three years as I understand it. You want to know how they can be sure it was really Jackie?”
    “Yes.”
    “I have their description of the girl who made the reservation,” said the old man. “A tall, slender brunette in her late twenties. Jackie would be … Jackie is twenty-seven. Her twenty-seventh birthday was last July 8th.”
    “This girl was alone?”
    “She was alone.”
    “After the 21st she never came back to the Golden Apple Inn or called?”
    “No,” said McCleary. “When I arrived on the 24th, I took a room near hers and waited. I was surprised she wasn’t yet there, but I assumed she soon would be. She never appeared. I waited nearly two days, then drove back here. I felt something must have gone wrong and Jackie didn’t feel it was safe yet to contact me there in Manzana.” The old man reached again into his coat and produced a new envelope. “This was waiting in the mailbox.”
    “Also signed by your daughter?”
    “Yes.” McCleary took the letter out with stiff fingers. He flashed the envelope briefly toward Easy. “Postmarked Los Angeles. The 24th. Mailed while I was waiting out there.”
    “What does this one say?”
    McCleary’s lips compressed and he slapped the letter on his leg a few times, then unfolded it. “‘Dearest Daddy Fred—Please, please forgive me. It’s simply not safe for me to see you right now. Forgive me for thinking it was. And, dear Dad, be patient. I hope we’ll be able to meet soon, so soon. Please, if you love me, don’t try to look for me. Don’t tell anyone I’ve written you. Love, your little girl.’” The old man began to crumple the letter, caught himself. “I do love Jackie and that’s why I intend to ignore her request. She was never very good at making her own decisions. No, I humored her and went out and cooled my heels in the desert. Now, though, well, I think it best to ignore Jackie’s wishes. I don’t want to wait any more, any longer. I want you to find her. She’s in trouble and the best thing is to have me get her out of it.”
    Easy watched the autumn-colored rug at his feet for a few seconds. “The trouble mentioned in the letters. What do you know about that? Did something happen before your daughter disappeared in 1965?”
    “I have no idea what she means. If I did, I could have done something about it,”