Chapter 2 - Martin Bell
Maya did not call immediately.
Good.
She asked:
“Is this your lawyer?”
“Yes.”
“Do you want me to call him, or do you want the police?”
“Both, eventually.”
Her face changed.
“Eventually?”
“First, I want you to tell the manager what happened.”
“I am the shift manager.”
That surprised me.
“You’re twenty-five.”
“So I’ve been told.”
I almost smiled.
Then pain from the coffee reminded me where I was.
Maya said:
“Can I see your legs?”
“No.”
“Okay. Then I think you should let EMTs check you.”
“I don’t need an ambulance.”
“Maybe not.”
She looked at the wet trousers.
“But you’re shaking.”
“I’m angry.”
“You can be angry and burned.”
Fair.
She called emergency services first.
Then Martin.
She used the diner phone rather than her personal cell after I told her the number was private.
That also impressed me.
“Bell & Harrow.”
Maya looked at me.
I nodded.
“My name is Maya Collins. I’m with Eleanor Price.”
Pause.
Her expression changed.
“Yes.”
Pause.
“At the Interstate Diner near Fogelsville.”
Another pause.
Then she repeated exactly what I told her.
“Eleanor Price is ready.”
Martin apparently stopped asking questions.
Maya listened.
Then handed me the receiver.
“Mrs. Price?”
“Yes.”
Martin’s voice was calm.
Too calm.
“Are you physically safe?”
“Yes.”
“Are Denise and Lauren present?”
“No.”
“Where are they?”
“On the way to Newark.”
“Do they have your Social Security card?”
“Yes.”
“Any bank cards?”
“One household debit card Lauren has had for months. Denise has an authorized expense card.”
“Do either have power of attorney?”
“Not anymore.”
Silence.
Then:
“You signed the revocations?”
“Yesterday.”
“I filed notices this morning.”
“Good.”
“Eleanor, I need you to say the rest.”
I closed my eyes.
“Activate the protection plan.”
“Confirmed.”
“Martin.”
“Yes?”
“Do not stop their flight.”
He paused.
“I had no intention of attempting that.”
“Good.”
“They have not been charged with anything.”
“I know.”
“You’re sure you don’t want me contacting them?”
“Not until they land.”
“Why?”
“Because I want them to have the vacation they believed was worth leaving me for.”
Martin sighed.
“You are enjoying this too much.”
“I have coffee burns on my legs.”
“Then please direct your enjoyment toward medical care.”
The paramedics arrived.
The burns were superficial.
Painful.
Red.
No deep tissue injury.
No hospitalization required.
They recommended urgent-care evaluation because of my age and the area involved.
Maya said:
“I’ll drive you.”
“You’re working.”
“My replacement comes in twenty minutes.”
“No.”
Martin’s voice still came through the phone.
“I’m sending a car.”
Maya stared.
I looked at her.
She looked at me.
Then at the receipt.
Then back at me.
“You’re not broke.”
“No.”
“How not broke?”
I smiled faintly.
“That is not a question you ask a woman five minutes after paying for her soup.”
May you like
She laughed despite herself.
Good.
