I've Got You Under My Skin Read Free Page B

her friends. Will you help me persuade them to participate?”
    “I’m happy to do that, although obviously I can’t speak for any of them.”
    “Have you stayed close to your stepdaughter since your wife died?”
    “No. Not that I haven’t wanted to stay close. I was and am very fond of Claire. She lived here from the time she was thirteen until she was twenty-one. Her mother’s death was a terrible shock for her. I don’t know how much you studied her background, but her mother and father were never married. He took off when Betsy became pregnant with Claire. Betsy was doing bit parts on Broadway and when she wasn’t acting she worked as an usher there. It was hardscrabble for her and Claire until I came along.”
    Then he added, “Betsy was beautiful. I’m sure she could have easily married someone along the way, but after her experience with Claire’s father, I know she was gun-shy.”
    “I can understand that,” Laurie said, nodding.
    “I can, too. Never having had children, I thought of Claire as my own daughter. It hurt when she moved out so quickly after Betsy’s death. But I think that between us there was too much grief to hold under one roof, and she sensed it immediately. As I’m sure you know, she lives in Chicago and is a social worker there. She never married.”
    “She never came back here?”
    “No, and never accepted my offer of generous financial help. She returned my letters torn up.”
    “Why do you think she did that?” Laurie asked.
    “She was fiercely jealous of my relationship with her mother. Don’t forget, it was just the two of them for thirteen years.”
    “Then do you think she’ll refuse to take part in the program?”
    “No, I don’t. Every so often an enterprising reporter has written about the case, and some of them have quoted Claire or one of the other girls. What they have said has been uniform. They all feel as though people look at them with questions in their eyes, and they’d all like an end to it.”
    “We’re planning to offer each of them $50,000 for being on the program,” Laurie told him.
    “I’ve kept track of all of them. There isn’t one who couldn’t use financial help. In order to ensure that they accept, I authorize you to say that I am prepared to pay each one of them a quarter of a million dollars for their cooperation.”
    “You would do that?” Laurie exclaimed.
    “Yes, and tell me anyone else you will want to interview on your program.”
    Laurie said, “Of course, I will want to interview your housekeeper.”
    “Give her the $50,000 you’re giving the others and I’ll give her another $50,000. I’ll make sure she does it. It is not necessary that she be paid the same as the others. I am seventy-eight years old and have three stents in the arteries leading to my heart. I know that, like the girls, I am under suspicion—or do you call it a ‘person of interest’ these days? Before I die, I want to sit in a courtroom and see Betsy’s murderer sentenced to prison.”
    “You never heard any sound from her room?”
    “No. As I’m sure you’re aware, we shared a suite. The sitting room was in the middle, our bedrooms on either side. I confess I am a heavy sleeper and snore very loudly. When we said good night, I went to my bedroom.”
    •   •   •
    That evening Laurie waited until Timmy was deep in his Harry Potter book before she told her father about her meeting with Powell.
    “I know I shouldn’t make any judgment yet, but I heard the ringof truth in Powell’s voice when he was talking,” Laurie said. “And his offer to pay the girls a quarter of a million dollars is wonderful.”
    “A quarter of a million dollars plus what you pay them,” Leo repeated. “You say that Powell knows all four women could use the money?”
    “Yes, that’s what he said.” Laurie realized that she sounded defensive.
    “Has Powell helped any of them out along the way, including his stepdaughter?”
    “He indicated that he