you?” Jake asked.
Casey shrugged and blushed lightly, then said, “I think he felt like I’d bring some visibility to the cases and the cause.”
“And didn’t he also offer to help your own charitable foundation?” Jake asked.
Casey shifted in her seat. “He did. And I was grateful to accept.”
“Do you think he likes the attention?” Jake asked.
“What? What do you mean?”
“You said visibility,” Jake said, “like this, the media, doing stories. Do you think that has something to do with it?”
“I think it helps raise more money for good causes,” Casey said.
“Would you like to hear some other reasons?” Jake asked.
Casey wrinkled her brow. “Is that a question you want me to answer?”
“Not for the camera,” Jake said, putting his hand up in front of the camera directed at her. “I’m just asking between us.
Would you? I’ll buy you a drink.”
Casey looked at Dora Pine, who wore a pair of headphones and looked up from her monitor.
“Is this how he operates?” Casey asked her.
“Pretty much,” Dora said. “Ain’t he clever?”
Jake retreated and lobbed some softballs at her, more questions about Robert Graham, his connection with the Freedom Project,
and how swell it was that a man with his kind of money gave a shit about the little people. Casey answered everything by the
book, saying neither too much nor too little, and always wearing a fixed smile. They both knew the game and the dance and
he needed only a couple quotes in the can.
“That’ll work,” Jake said, extending a hand to Casey as he removed his microphone.
She shook it, removed the mic, and said, “So you want to hear more?”
“Hotel bar?” Jake asked.
“Too depressing,” Casey said.
“There’s a place just down the road,” Jake said. “The
New York Times
calls it one of the top three spas in the world.”
Casey gave him a look. “What if it doesn’t match up to the other two?”
“I’m serious.” he said. “You’ll like it.”
“In Texas all you need for a bar is some whiskey and Shiner on tap,” Casey said. “I don’t know about a spa.”
“Come on,” he said.
Just outside the hotel lobby, a man with a crew cut emerged from a Lexus and limped toward them, his eyes on Casey.
“Are we ready?” he asked her, ignoring Jake.
“Thanks, Ralph,” she said. “How’s your homework assignment coming?”
“Working on the car,” Ralph said, shooting Jake a dark look as Casey began to follow him toward the rented Cadillac.
“And the girlfriend?” Casey asked.
“Caught a blip in 1994. Tried to kill herself in Tallahassee,” Ralph said, limping over to the Cadillac. “Sleeping pills.
They put her in a nuthouse and when she got out she disappeared. Nothing after that, so I wouldn’t hold my breath.”
“I’ll try another route,” Casey said, closing the car door.
“You didn’t tell me your dad was here,” Jake said, starting the engine.
“Yeah, he can be a real asshole sometimes when I skip school,” Casey said. “Nope. He’s from Graham’s Rochester office.”
“Who, I think, is now tailing us,” Jake said, checking the rearview mirror as he turned the corner onto Route 20. “Do you
want me to shake the tail? Man, I always wanted to say that. That and ‘follow that car!’ ”
Casey spun around. “You’re paranoid. He’s not going to actually follow me.”
They rode in silence for a couple more miles on 20 until they got out of town.
“He is,” Jake said.
10
N O. THIS IS TOO MUCH. I’ll put an end to this,” Casey said, pulling a cell phone out of her purse.
“Wait,” Jake said, checking his mirror as they continued on into the town of Skaneateles. “Let’s see something.”
When they turned into the spa entrance, the headlights from the car that he was certain had been Ralph’s kept going. Jake
watched the pewter-colored Lexus proceed down the hill before he eased through the gates.
“You were wrong,” Jake said.
Casey shrugged and blushed lightly, then said, “I think he felt like I’d bring some visibility to the cases and the cause.”
“And didn’t he also offer to help your own charitable foundation?” Jake asked.
Casey shifted in her seat. “He did. And I was grateful to accept.”
“Do you think he likes the attention?” Jake asked.
“What? What do you mean?”
“You said visibility,” Jake said, “like this, the media, doing stories. Do you think that has something to do with it?”
“I think it helps raise more money for good causes,” Casey said.
“Would you like to hear some other reasons?” Jake asked.
Casey wrinkled her brow. “Is that a question you want me to answer?”
“Not for the camera,” Jake said, putting his hand up in front of the camera directed at her. “I’m just asking between us.
Would you? I’ll buy you a drink.”
Casey looked at Dora Pine, who wore a pair of headphones and looked up from her monitor.
“Is this how he operates?” Casey asked her.
“Pretty much,” Dora said. “Ain’t he clever?”
Jake retreated and lobbed some softballs at her, more questions about Robert Graham, his connection with the Freedom Project,
and how swell it was that a man with his kind of money gave a shit about the little people. Casey answered everything by the
book, saying neither too much nor too little, and always wearing a fixed smile. They both knew the game and the dance and
he needed only a couple quotes in the can.
“That’ll work,” Jake said, extending a hand to Casey as he removed his microphone.
She shook it, removed the mic, and said, “So you want to hear more?”
“Hotel bar?” Jake asked.
“Too depressing,” Casey said.
“There’s a place just down the road,” Jake said. “The
New York Times
calls it one of the top three spas in the world.”
Casey gave him a look. “What if it doesn’t match up to the other two?”
“I’m serious.” he said. “You’ll like it.”
“In Texas all you need for a bar is some whiskey and Shiner on tap,” Casey said. “I don’t know about a spa.”
“Come on,” he said.
Just outside the hotel lobby, a man with a crew cut emerged from a Lexus and limped toward them, his eyes on Casey.
“Are we ready?” he asked her, ignoring Jake.
“Thanks, Ralph,” she said. “How’s your homework assignment coming?”
“Working on the car,” Ralph said, shooting Jake a dark look as Casey began to follow him toward the rented Cadillac.
“And the girlfriend?” Casey asked.
“Caught a blip in 1994. Tried to kill herself in Tallahassee,” Ralph said, limping over to the Cadillac. “Sleeping pills.
They put her in a nuthouse and when she got out she disappeared. Nothing after that, so I wouldn’t hold my breath.”
“I’ll try another route,” Casey said, closing the car door.
“You didn’t tell me your dad was here,” Jake said, starting the engine.
“Yeah, he can be a real asshole sometimes when I skip school,” Casey said. “Nope. He’s from Graham’s Rochester office.”
“Who, I think, is now tailing us,” Jake said, checking the rearview mirror as he turned the corner onto Route 20. “Do you
want me to shake the tail? Man, I always wanted to say that. That and ‘follow that car!’ ”
Casey spun around. “You’re paranoid. He’s not going to actually follow me.”
They rode in silence for a couple more miles on 20 until they got out of town.
“He is,” Jake said.
10
N O. THIS IS TOO MUCH. I’ll put an end to this,” Casey said, pulling a cell phone out of her purse.
“Wait,” Jake said, checking his mirror as they continued on into the town of Skaneateles. “Let’s see something.”
When they turned into the spa entrance, the headlights from the car that he was certain had been Ralph’s kept going. Jake
watched the pewter-colored Lexus proceed down the hill before he eased through the gates.
“You were wrong,” Jake said.
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