Let Me Call You Sweetheart by Mary Higgins Clark Read Free Book Online Page A

difficult for him to slip in undetected.
Shaking his head, he decided to drive home instead. The glimpse of her had been enough. Almost too much, actually. For a moment he had really believed that she was Suzanne. Now he just wanted to be alone. A sob rose in his throat. As the traffic inched slowly downtown, he repeated over and over, "I'm sorry, Suzanne. I'm sorry, Suzanne."
...
Thursday, October 26th
If Jonathan Hoover happened to be in Hackensack, he usually tried to persuade Kerry to join him for a quick lunch. "How many bowls of cafeteria soup can any human being eat?" was his kidding question to her.
Today, over a hamburger at Solari's, the restaurant around the corner from the courthouse, Kerry filled him in on the Suzanne Reardon look-alikes and her conversation with Geoff Dorso. She also told him of her boss's less than favorable reaction to her suggestion that she might look into the old murder case.
Jonathan was deeply concerned. "Kerry, I don't remember much about that case except that I thought there wasn't any question of the husband's guilt. Whatever, I think you should stay out of it, especially considering Frank Green's involvement --very public as I remember--in securing the conviction. Look at the realities here. Governor Marshall is still a young man. He's served two terms and can't run for a consecutive third, but he loves his job. He wants Frank Green to take his place. Between us, they've got a deal. Green is to be governor for four years, then he gets to run for the senate with Marshall's support."
"And Marshall moves back into Drumthwacket."
"Exactly. He loves living in the governor's mansion. As of now it's a foregone conclusion that Green will get the nomination. He looks good, he sounds good. He's got a great track record, the Reardon case being an important part of it. And by a remarkable coincidence, he's actually smart. He intends to stick to the way Marshall's been running the state. But if anything upsets the apple cart, he's beatable in the primary. There are a couple of other would-be candidates panting for the nomination."
"Jonathan, I was talking about simply looking into things enough to see if the chief witness in a murder case had a serious problem that might have tainted his testimony. I mean, fathers grieve when their daughters die, but Dr. Smith has gone far beyond grief."
"Kerry, Frank Green made his name by prosecuting that case. It's what got him the media attention he needed. When Dukakis ran for president, a big factor in his defeat was the commercial that suggested he released a killer who then went on a crime spree. Do you know what the media would do if it were suggested that Green sent an innocent man to prison for the rest of his life?"
"Jonathan, you're getting way ahead of me. I'm not going in with that supposition. I just feel that Smith has a big problem, and it may have affected his testimony. He was the prosecution's main witness, and if he lied, it really casts doubt in my mind as to whether Reardon is guilty."
The waiter was standing over them, holding a coffeepot. "More coffee, Senator?" he asked.
Jonathan nodded. Kerry waved her hand over her cup. "I'm fine."
Jonathan suddenly smiled. "Kerry, do you remember when you were house-sitting for us and thought the landscaper hadn't put as many shrubs and bushes in as he had in the design?"
Kerry looked uncomfortable. "I remember."
"That last day you went around, counted all of them, thought you'd proven your point, dressed him down in front of his crew. Right?"
Kerry looked down at her coffee. "Uh-huh."
"You tell me what happened."
"He wasn't satisfied with the way some of the bushes looked, called you and Grace in Florida, then took them out, intending to replace them."
"What else?"
"He was Grace's cousin's husband."
"See what I mean?" His eyes had a twinkle. Then his expression became serious. "Kerry, if you embarrass Frank Green and put his nomination in jeopardy, chances are you can kiss your judgeship good-bye.