The Innocent by Harlan Coben Read Free Book Online Page A

street, mostly gypsy cabs, and noticed a gray Ford Taurus because the license plate was MLH- 472, and Matt's own initials were MKH, pretty close, and things like that were distractions.
    But once in his car- once alone with his thoughts- something new started gnawing at him.
    Okay, he thought, trying his best to stay rational. Let's assume the worst- that what he saw on the camera phone were the opening moments of a tryst of some kind.
    Why would Olivia send it to him?
    What would be the point? Did she want to get caught? Was this a cry for help?
    That didn't really add up.
    But then he realized something else: Olivia hadn't sent it.
    It had come from her phone, yes, but she- assuming that was Olivia with the platinum wig- didn't seem to realize that the camera was on her. He remembered thinking that. She was the subject of the film- the filmee, if you will, not the filmer.
    So who sent it? Was it Mr. Blue-Black Hair? If so, then who snapped the first picture, the one of Blue-Black? Had he taken it himself?
    Answer: No.
    Blue-Black had his palm up as if waving. Matt remembered the backside of a ring on his finger- or what he thought was a ring. He really wasn't up for looking at the picture again. But he thought about it. Could that have been a wedding band? No, the ring was on the right hand.
    Either way, who had taken Blue-Black's picture?
    Olivia?
    Why would she send it to him? Or was the picture sent to him inadvertently? Like maybe someone hit the wrong number on the speed dial?
    It seemed unlikely.
    Was there a third person in the room?
    Matt couldn't see it. He mulled it over some more, but nothing came together. Both calls had originated from his wife's phone. Got that. But if she was having an affair, why would she want him to know?
    Answer- and yes, his reasoning was getting circular- she wouldn't.
    So who would?
    Matt thought again of the cocky smirk on Blue-Black's face. And his stomach roiled. When he was younger, he used to feel too much. Strange to imagine it now, but Matt had been too sensitive. He'd cry when he lost a basketball game, even a pickup game. Any slight would stay with him for weeks. All of that changed the night Stephen McGrath died. If prison teaches you one thing, it's how to deaden yourself. You show nothing. Ever. You never allow yourself anything, even an emotion, because it will either be exploited or taken away. Matt tried that now. He tried to deaden the sinking feeling in the pit of his belly.
    He couldn't do it.
    The images were back now, terrible ones blended in with achingly wonderful memories, the memories hurting most of all. He remembered a weekend he and Olivia had spent at a Victorian B amp;B in Lenox, Massachusetts. He remembered spreading pillows and blankets in front of the fireplace in the room and opening a bottle of wine. He remembered the way Olivia held the stem of the glass, the way she looked at him, the way the world, the past, his tentative, fearful steps all faded away, the way the fire reflected off her green eyes, and then he would think of her like that with another man.
    A new thought hit him then- one so awful, so unbearable he nearly lost control of his car:
    Olivia was pregnant.
    The light turned red. Matt almost drove through it. He slammed on the brakes at the last moment. A pedestrian, already starting across the street, jumped back and waved his fist at him. Matt kept both hands on the wheel.
    Olivia had taken a long time to conceive.
    They were both in their mid-thirties and in Olivia's mind the clock was ticking. She so badly wanted to start a family. For a long time their attempts at conception hadn't gone well. Matt had started to wonder- and not just idly- if the fault lay with him. He had taken some pretty good beatings in prison. During his third week there, four men had pinned him down and spread-eagled his legs while a fifth kicked him hard in the groin. He had nearly passed out from the pain.
    Now suddenly Olivia was pregnant.
    He wanted to shut