Chapter 43
CHAPTER
AFTER THE DETECTIVES LEFT, NASH went to his study and texted Agent Morris. He couldn’t tell the police this, but it had instantly occurred to Nash that his daughter’s disappearance might be tied to what he was doing with the FBI.
Remarkably, at this hour of the night, Morris texted right back: I will call in two minutes.
“Tell me everything,” said Morris.
Nash did and then waited.
“You’re sure she wouldn’t have gone on her own?”
“And breaking in the back door on her way out?” said an incredulous Nash. “And leaving her car, phone, wallet, and laptop behind?”
“Okay, let me look into this and I’ll get back to you. Keep your eyes and ears open. Anyone contacts you, let me know.” He clicked off before Nash could say anything else.
Upstairs Nash found his wife lying on the sofa in their bedroom sitting room.
He sat across from her.
“The detectives have left,” he said.
She nodded absently, her gaze on the wall, her eyes vacant.
“Can you tell me the truth now, Judith?”
“What are you talking about?” she said dully, glancing at him.
“You told me that Maggie was upset last night. But you told the detectives that she was normal, no problems.”
“I… I was confused. And when I said she was upset, it was just the normal stuff. Nothing that would explain… this,” she added with a sharp wave of her hand.
“Okay, I have another question.”
“Walter, do we really have to do this right now?”
“Where were you last night?”
Her features became so still it was like she was in rigor. “I… was… here. Like I told you.”
“I found the vomit in the shower. I saw the clothes on your closet floor.”
She leapt up and hurried into the bedroom.
He called after her, “Running away is not doing Maggie any good, Judith. Right now, I really need the truth.”
She slowly walked back into the sitting area. “Look, Walter, I just think that—”
He stood. His furious features and his towering presence made her shrink back.
“You were with another man last night. Your clothes said as much. Maybe you and Maggie got into an argument about that. Maybe it made you throw up in the shower and you were too out of it to clean it up. Or hide your clothes from me.”
She wavered and then plopped down on the couch.
He sat across from her in the chair, the distance between them far greater than that right now. “So… how long has Rhett been screwing you?”
Judith shuddered, but then looked defiant. “Rhett? Temple? Are you insane?”
“He knew about my dad’s Agent Orange settlement.
I never mentioned that to him, or anyone else, except you and Maggie.
Now, I highly doubt Maggie would have anything to do with a guy like Rhett.
So the only way he could have found out was through you.
” He stood and started to pace. “And the other night when you came home late and found me still awake? You looked… guilty. You had clothes on that were, well, not the sort that one would wear to a dinner with a girlfriend. I always knew you were attracted to Rhett. Over the years I’ve seen how flirty and handsy you are around him, and he around you.
And I think we can both agree that Rhett will screw anything in a skirt.
And I’m sure the thrill of doing it with other men’s wives was just the cherry on top.
And, as a final clue, his cologne, which is very expensive and distinctive, is all over the clothes on your closet floor. ”
“Walter, please stop.” She was shaking now, her head dangling, her arms limp.
“I guess the Asian trip was another way to be with Rhett. I mentioned it to him. He tried to hide it, but I could tell he already knew all about it. And then you did your best to dissuade me from going.”
“Walter, I—”
He sat back down. “But that is not something I want to think about right now. The only thing I care about is finding Maggie.”
“I… I don’t know where she is.”
“Did she confront you last night when you got home? About being with another man?”
Judith slowly nodded. “Y-yes.”
“And what happened?”
“She was angry. I was angry. I stormed off. I… I didn’t see her after that. And I didn’t check on her because I thought she would be… I just didn’t.”
“Did she threaten to tell me the truth?”
“No, no, she never said that.” She shot him a glance. “Wait, what are you implying?”
Nash said, “I’m implying nothing. But I need you to answer the next question truthfully. Did you call Rhett and tell him that Maggie knew about you two?”
“No, never. I… hold on. You think Rhett might have done this?”
“I have no idea. That’s why I asked.”
“What would be his motive to… to take Maggie?”
“Rhett wants to keep me happy and at the firm. If I found out he was bedding my wife? That might disrupt our business relationship just a tad, don’t you think?”
“Rhett is not like that. You don’t know him like I do,” replied Judith.
He said stonily, “Well, granted I’ve never slept with the man, but there are things about him that you don’t know.”
“Like what?”
Nash came close to answering her but, in the end, couldn’t bring himself to do it. His trust in his wife was shattered, perhaps irreversibly. And he couldn’t be certain that whatever he told her would not end up known to Rhett. And then to Victoria Steers.
He rose. “Do you need anything?”
“Just my daughter back.”
“Right. Me too.” Nash walked out of the room and slammed the door behind him.