Secrets & Lies by Raymond Benson Page A

harm her. And you.”
    â€œWho? Are they still out there?”
    â€œI don’t know. It’s possible. It’s been a long time, though. If they were going to find her, I think they would’ve by now.”
    â€œUncle Thomas,
who are they
? And another thing. Do you know who Richard Talbot really is? Did you know my father?”
    His expression said it all. He was a man who knew that question would come someday. “No, I didn’t know him.” Thomas closed his eyes as if it hurt him to tell me. “Please, Martin. Don’t make me go against her wishes. I’m not to get involved. She wanted you to read her story in the diaries. All the answers are there, Martin.”
    â€œI was never a big reader.”
    He smiled. “I think that concerned her, because
she
was.”
    â€œJesus.” I slapped the arm of the chair in anger.
    â€œPlease don’t be upset. All will be revealed, Martin. It’s really not for me to tell you. I love you like a son. I’ve known you since you were a baby.”
    I paused before asking this one. “Did you and my mom ever—?”
    Uncle Thomas grinned, and the familiar sparkle in his eyes returned.
    â€œMartin, I asked her to marry me in 1964, but she turned me down. We stayed friends, though. That’s all there is to it. I went on and married Martha, we had a long marriage, God bless her soul, and two beautiful kids.”
    â€œBut?”
    His eyes welled with tears. “But I always carried a torch for Judy. I never stopped loving her. She was quite a woman.”
    â€œStill is.”
    He smiled again and used a finger to wipe an eye underneath his glasses. “Yes. You’re right. I’m sorry.” He looked at me with kindness and asked, “How long did the doctor say she had?”
    I shrugged. “No one knows. It could be another year. It could be just weeks.”
    Then he really started to cry.

7
Judy’s Diary
    1961
    F EBRUARY 8, 1961
    I’m in Beverly Hills!!
    I’m in the fancy Beverly Hills Hotel, and I’m so excited and can’t sleep. So here I am, dear diary. Maybe writing will calm me down. I haven’t written much lately, I was kind of down in the dumps after that business with the policeman.
    Anyway, the big day arrived and we flew from Idlewild Airport to Los Angeles on TWA. This was a very different experience from when I flew back to Odessa in ’58. The airport was much busier. It’s expensive to fly. Peter’s company is sending him to a lawyer convention and went all out on expenses. Peter and Lucy paid for my ticket, but they won’t let me offer any payment. Our plane was full of men wearing suits, except for a handful of ladies here and there, always accompanied by a man. I think I was the only single girl, but I felt like a movie star. TWA is supposedly the “airline of the stars,” but I didn’t see any celebrities on the plane. The stewardesses were cute and treated everyone like royalty. We had drinks and food. The flight lasted six and a half hours, so after a while the ride got a little old. One stewardess announced that beginning later in the year, the airline will show movies during the flight, and everyone applauded.
    A taxi took us to Beverly Hills. Traffic was heavy. Peter told Lucyand me about the freeways, the big roads with no stoplights that were being constructed to help with the traffic congestion. We didn’t see any on the way to the hotel. Peter thinks only two or three freeways are in operation, but we’ll see and maybe drive on one when we go to Hollywood tomorrow.
    The Beverly Hills Hotel is pretty ritzy and famous. And
gorgeous
! I can’t imagine what it costs. It’s like a palace. I have a room to myself, and Peter and Lucy are next door. There’s a lovely swimming pool outside, and that’s good because the climate here in California is wonderful. I can’t believe it’s February. Back in