"Lisa Goldstein - Rites of Spring" - читать интересную книгу автора (Goldstein Lisa)

than that, I can't tell you anything yet."
She nods. Her calm expression does not change. I wonder if she's had the same thought
had, that her daughter is dead, killed by her husband. Satanic rituals, I think.
"I'm meeting someone for lunch," she says. "You must be hungry too. Can I get you
something to eat?"
You're supposed to eat enough for two when you're preg-nant, but at the same time you'
usually sick to your stomach. Just another example, I think, of how impossible the whole thi
is. "I've already eaten," I say.
For a moment I think she knows I'm lying; worse, that she knows everything about me,
including where I went this morning. I have never felt this way about any of my clients; usu
it's the clients who feel the need to justify their be-havior.
"Come with me anyway," she says, smiling a little.
The animals on her print dress are moving. I shake my head, trying to focus, but the
hallucination doesn't go away. A badger or something shoulders aside a flowering vine and
pads forward, its nose twitching.
I look away. I'd better eat something. "All right," I say, and we head out into the street.
She stops at a restaurant a few blocks from my office, and we go inside. I have never se
this place before; probably it's new. There are posters of flowers on the walls, and vases f
with bright flowers at the table.
Her friend is already there. "This is Mickey," Ms. Green says as we sit down. "Mickey
this is Liz Keller."
 Mickey nods at me, amused at something. He is slender, with curly blond hair and light
gray eyes. There is a slight family resemblance, and for a moment I think he is Carolyn's
brother. But surely Ms. Green would have told me if there were others in the family. I won
who he is, how they know each other.
The waitress comes soon afterward. I study the menu, try-ing to remember the list of fo
the doctor gave me. I could use a cup of coffee, but I'm almost certain the doctor would
disapprove. "I'll have some tea," I say.
The waitress takes the rest of the orders and leaves. "How do you know Ms. Green?" I
Mickey.
"We're related," he says. "Cousins. What about you? How do you know her?"
"She's hired me in a professional capacity," I say. It's all I can tell him without breaking
client's confidentiality.
"Ah," Mickey says. "You're the new detective."
"New detective?" I say, looking at Ms. Green. The animals on her dress are motionless
now, thank God. "You didn't tell me about this. What happened to the old one?''
"She wasn't very good," Ms. Green says.
"And time is running out, isn't it?" Mickey says.
"What do you mean?" I ask.
We're interrupted by the waitress, bringing food for Mickey and Ms. Green and a teapo
and cup for me. "So," Mickey says. He reaches over and pours me some tea. "What have yo
found so far?"
"I can't discuss it without my client's permission," I say.
"Oh, Mickey's family," Ms. Green says. "You can tell him anything you tell me."
I sip my tea, enjoying the warmth. My stomach feels fine now. I remember the first time
met Ms. Green, when she came to my office to hire me, and how the nausea had dis-appear
then too.
I tell Mickey about my trip to Carolyn's old apartment, my visit to the university. He's s
smiling. I'm almost certain he's hiding something, that Ms. Green is wrong to trust him. He
seems to feel very little concern for his missing cousin.