Doublecrossed (11 page)

“God.” Regan took in an audible breath. “I really feel bad for you. That must hurt so bad.”

Her voice was so full of compassion that Callie almost started crying. It was so soothing to have another woman get it—in every way. “Yeah, it really does. It makes me feel foolish, which isn’t any party either.”

“You’re not foolish. You trusted someone who didn’t deserve your trust. She’s the bad guy in this. Being trusting is a good thing.”

“Maybe. I’ll have to think about that. Getting burned two times in a row might make me demand a weekly lie detector test.”

“Don’t let it affect how you feel about yourself. This was Marina’s fault. She’s the one who should be ashamed of herself.”

“Don’t bother telling her that. You’d be wasting your breath.”

*

Over the next couple of weeks, Callie and Regan chatted nearly every day. Regan was solicitous and very gentle, always willing to listen. They’d gotten to the point where they were talking about other facets of their lives, but the betrayal kept coming up.

“Did you know that Marina is coming to Boston this week?” Regan asked one afternoon.

“No. I had no idea. How’d you find out?”

“I looked at Angela’s calendar. She keeps it on the computer in her office and I’ve started to check it. It said there’s a general sales manager’s meeting starting tomorrow. I don’t like spying, but she’s made me doubt everything she tells me.”

“You’ll get over that. I’m sure of it.”

“I’m not.”

“That’s a pretty dramatic statement. I haven’t heard you that adamant since the first time we talked. Are you gonna give me a little more?”

“It’s finally gotten clear in my head. I don’t trust her anymore. I’ve started to assume that everything she tells me is a lie, and that’s killing me. “

“I understand. I really do. I’m right there with you.”

“I wish I could believe that it was just one slip-up. If I was sure they’d only been together that one time…”

“You think that—” Callie caught the incredulity in her voice and tried to back pedal. “You think that would help?” she finished weakly.

“How many times was it?”

Regan’s voice was so firm and demanding that Callie didn’t even consider lying. “It was more than once. I thought…I thought you knew that.”

“Tell me everything you know.”

“Look, I could tell you what Marina said, but she lies about everything. I don’t want to screw things up for you. Ask Angela. She’s the one who matters.”

“Tell me!”

“They were together more than once. I know that’s true. Other than that…I’m not sure what to believe.”

“That’s it,” she said briskly. “It’s over. I can’t deal with this another minute.”

“Wait. Wait. Don’t jump off a cliff because of that. Angela was probably afraid to tell you. She should have been afraid, right?”

“Yes!”

“She was probably trying to hold onto you, Regan. Making it sound like a one-time thing helped.”

“Then how in the hell am I ever supposed to believe her again?” She let out a long breath and said, “I’m going to follow her tomorrow.”

“Follow her? You can’t do that!”

“Yes, I can. I’m going to figure out a way to tell if they’re still doing it.”

“But how will you know? They have to see each other for business.”

“True. But if they see each other for anything other than business, I’ll have my answer, and I can walk away from this without second-guessing myself.”

“I don’t know how you’re going to do this, but I’ll help in any way I can.”

“I know you will. I’ll figure out how to give her enough rope to hang herself with. If she’s still standing tomorrow night, I’ll give her more time. If not—she’s dead to me.”

Relief flooded over Callie. Regan was clearly no sucker. She couldn’t afford to be when she was mixed up with liars like Marina, and it had become more and more obvious that Angela was just as bad.

*

The next day Callie couldn’t get a moment’s work done. She was tempted to fly to Boston just to be there for Regan, but she couldn’t afford the expense of a last-minute airfare. She called in the morning

“Regan, do you have a friend who could be with you tonight?”

“Yeah. Sure. But I’d rather be alone.”

The thought of Regan sitting there alone, waiting to know if she was being betrayed was almost too much to stand. She wanted to support her in any way she needed. They were sisters in some strange way, and she hated the thought of her sister struggling through this alone.

“Are you sure I can’t talk you out of your plans? You could come down here the next time Angela has to be in Dallas. That would be the same, right?”

“No. I’ve made up my mind, and everyone knows I’m the hardheaded one of the family.”

“Everyone knows I’m the one who hates turmoil.”

“You don’t have to be in on this. Really, you don’t.”

“Yes, I do. I have to be there for you. That’s more important than my need to keep everything calm.”

*

When Callie’s phone rang later that night, she jumped as though she’d been stung. She was wearing her earphones, so all she had to do was press a switch to hear Regan’s voice.

“I don’t think I’d be very good at police work.”

Even though she was tense, Callie found herself smiling. “Where are you?”

“I’m at a coffee shop across the street from the restaurant. I actually went inside and asked for the group from Cambridge Software, and some guy tried to lead me there. I’m sure they thought I was crazy when I said I was just checking.”

“What are you going to do? Just sit there?”

“Well, I could go wait in the lobby of the hotel. It’s just down the street from the restaurant.”

“Which hotel?”

“The York. That’s where Cambridge puts everyone up.”

“Not Marina. She only stays at the Sheffield. She says it’s for the points, but it’s probably so she can have a parade of women striding through the lobby and not have any co-workers know.”

“Not what I wanted to hear tonight,” Regan said softly.

“Damn! I’m sorry. I’m making things worse, aren’t I.”

“You’re not. It’s really helping to have you to talk to. Can you look up the Sheffield? I don’t know the address.”

“Yeah, of course.” As she searched she asked, “Aren’t you afraid of being spotted in the hotel?”

Quietly, Regan said, “Marina doesn’t know what I look like.”

Letting out a breath, Callie said, “Right. Right. But you don’t know what she looks like either.”

“Yes, I do. I googled her. Plus, there’s a picture of her on the company website. She’s pretty.”

“Okay—so you know what she looks like and when she goes into the hotel alone, I hope you can go home and try to make up with Angela.”

“I hope so too. I really do. If Marina goes into that hotel alone I’m going to wipe this from my mind and throw myself into making a fresh start with Angela.” She paused for a moment. “After I tell her I know she was lying about how many times they were together. A relationship has to be based on trust. I’ll find out the truth or it’s a waste of my time.”

*

Callie had to wait almost two hours to hear from Regan again. She spent the time trying to do some work but hadn’t been able to concentrate for ten minutes straight. Even though it was dark out, she was considering going for a run when the phone rang. She pressed the switch and knew, without a word being spoken, that something very bad had happened. “Regan? Are you there?”

“Yes.” Harsh, ragged breaths filled the line. It sounded like she was on the verge of sobbing. “They went into the hotel together, and I decided to give them a few minutes just in case they were exchanging files or documents or whatever the fuck they do.”

With her heart thudding in her chest, Callie asked, “How long ago was that?”

“Thirty or forty minutes. I don’t know what to do. Do I go up there? Do I accost her and make a scene in the lobby when she comes back down? Do I go home?”

She sounded so remarkably sad, so disconsolate, that Callie desperately wanted to be there for her. She wished she could magically appear in Boston and hug Regan so she knew she had a friend—someone she could trust who knew how it felt. “What do you think would make you feel better?”

“I’d like to go home…to my parents’ home. I want to tell my mom what happened and have her make it all go away.”

“How far is that?”

“I don’t know,” she said, sounding confused. “Maybe a half hour? But…” She took in a shaky breath. “My mom’s in Florida now. I forgot.”

“Do you know anyone who lives closer? Anyone you trust?”

“My sister is about ten minutes away.”

“Do you think she’s home?”

“Probably. Or she’s just getting home. She usually leaves work by eleven.”

“Think about it for a minute. Will she listen to you? Will she be on your side?”

Regan barked out a short laugh. ”She acts like she likes Angela, but she doesn’t. She’d like nothing more than for me to break up with her.”

“She sounds like the right person to be with. Call her before you go, so you don’t waste a trip, and don’t leave before you’re sure you can drive safely.” A thought occurred to her and she added, “Take a cab. I’m worried enough about you as it is.”

“Thanks,” Regan said, sounding a little more in control. “I just don’t want to see her.”

“Then get out of there. Go to the hotel bar or to another place nearby. Don’t put yourself in a position you don’t want to be in.” She could hear Regan moving around, then she heard some street noise.

“I’m going to go to my car, if I don’t freeze to death first. Then I can call my sister and make some plans.”

“Okay. It sounds like you have things under control. But promise to call me when you get where you’re going. I’m worried about you.”

Regan’s footsteps echoed noisily and Callie could tell she was in a parking garage. She heard a car door open and when it closed the background noise was greatly reduced.

“Thanks. I’m not thinking clearly.”

“That makes perfect sense. Don’t forget to call me back.”

“I won’t. Thanks for being there for me. I could tell how tense this whole thing made you.”

“You’d do the same for me.” That was undeniable. You could rely on people with morals.

During Regan’s move back to her parents’ house and the difficult weeks that followed, she called Callie almost daily for support.

“My mom and dad are in town for my nephew’s birthday, and they’re making noises about having me committed,” Regan said one afternoon.

“Committed? Are you joking?”

“Yeah. Kinda. But they’re both hovering over me so bad that I’m about to lose my mind. Then they’ll really have reason to have me locked up.”

“Doesn’t sound like fun in the Manning house. It must be hard on your parents too.”

“Yeah, it probably is. But my mom knows I can’t take much supervision. We have a long history,” she added, chuckling.

“So you’re still really sad?”

“Yeah. Moody, too. And the smallest thing makes me cry…at work! I’ve never done that. That’s what makes them think I’m bonkers.”

“Are they pissed at Angela? My mom wants to have Marina neutered.”

“Nah. I didn’t tell them why we broke up. I don’t want them to dislike her.” She sighed. “It took me so-o-o long to get everyone to even act like they liked her. All for nothin’.”

“You’ve mentioned something like that before. Why’s she so hard to like?”

“She’s not. She’s actually really charming. But she’s a lot older than I am.”

“Really? Hey! I have no idea how old you are. Or how old Angela is, for that matter.”

“I was twenty-seven when we got together and she’d just turned forty.”

“Ooo, my mom would have been suspicious of that too. Was your age difference a problem?”

“Not for us.”

“Really? I’d think it would be hard to combine friends.”

“We didn’t do much of that. We made new friends from our neighborhood. We live…lived on a really nice block in Cambridge. We had barbecues and Christmas parties and all sorts of things. I’m gonna miss those guys,” she said, sniffling.

“You can still see them.”

“Nah. Wouldn’t work. It was a neighborhood thing. Usually pretty extemporaneous, you know? You’d see someone out and you’d ask them over for a beer. That kinda stuff. We babysat a lot and walked dogs when our neighbors were on vacation.”

“Sounds nice,” Callie said wistfully.

“It was. We had a great house.”

“We had a great apartment. High floor, great views, nice pool. We were right in the middle of all of the action in Dallas. I could go running in a park that was really close.”

“I could run along the Charles.”

“You run?”

“Yeah. I have since high school.”

“Me, too. I ran cross-country.”