assistant, Amin. He‟s very close to Amin. That‟s it."
"Do you need Amin‟s contact info?" Bill Snyder asked, and then Clarissa‟s attention wandered as he provided it and Agent Sandy wrote.
"What about you?" Jack asked Ruby after several minutes
"I haven‟t spoken to him in maybe two weeks." Ruby‟s voice sounded shaky. "At least
not directly."
"Directly?" Jack made an openhanded gesture that indicated puzzlement.
"We‟re playing an online chess game," Ruby explained. "He makes a move in the evening his time and I make a move in the evening my time. He made the last move, about four days ago. I …" Ruby began to choke up, restrained herself with effort. "It was my turn next."
"Did he mention anything in particular to you? Anyone he was meeting, or anything going on in his life?"
"We really only talked about chess," Ruby said. "We talk about light things when he is overseas. When he‟s home, that‟s when he tells me more serious stories."
"Did he ever bring up being threatened in any way?" Jack asked, his tone casual.
"Not really."
"He knew—k nows that part of the world is not the safest," Clarissa said. "But he always said he felt well protected. And he was getting ready to quit. Is going to quit. He‟s going to work from New York after this rotation." She glanced toward Bill Snyder, expecting him to nod in acquiescence, but his face remained expressionless, noncommittal, and she fleetingly wondered if he‟d tried to talk Todd out of leaving the fieldwork. "You know, Todd worked on behalf of Afghans," Clarissa said. "Do his kidnappers get that?"
"Simply being a foreigner—"
"I know. I know, of course," Clarissa interrupted Jack.
"This is a business," Jack continued. "He‟s an American and he was accessible. A target of opportunity. It‟s that simple."
"What was he doing?" Clarissa turned to Bill Snyder. "I mean, when they…"
Bill Snyder shrugged. "Getting ice cream, Amin says."
"Christ," Clarissa said.
The kitchen fell silent for a moment. "And you?" Sandy asked Mikey.
Mikey shrugged. "Clari‟s my only sibling. My only family, really. We‟re close," he said. "But I wouldn‟t know about Todd‟s life day to day, beyond what Clari might mention."
Sandy turned to Angie. "Tell me about your connection to the family."
"Well, Ruby and I, we live together."
"How long have you known each other?"
"I lived with Todd and Ruby for a while when I was a teenager," Angie said
"How long?"
"About a year."
"What were the circumstances?"
Angie shrugged. "Things were not going so great at home. Todd agreed to take me in. He fed me, watched over me, became a surrogate dad. Probably more than he bargained for."
"We understand you work as a psychic," Jack said.
Angie looked as surprised as Clarissa felt. How had they found out so much so quickly? Though she didn‟t ask the question, Jack seemed to anticipate it. He shrugged in a silent answer.
"I‟m an RN," Angie said after a minute. "I work with a hospice. But yes, I do psychic fairs on the side, that kind of thing. That‟s all."
"So you get premonitions?"
"Sometimes," Angie said hesitantly.
"Can you describe one for us?"
"I hope this is not the primary basis of your investigation," Clarissa said, her voice cool.
"Yeah," Angie said. "I actually don‟t think this will be helpful."
"They‟re just trying to think of everything," Ruby said in a soothing way that almost made Clarissa smile. She‟d seen this side of Ruby with her father, too: a torrent of emotion almost as if she were a still
"Do you need Amin‟s contact info?" Bill Snyder asked, and then Clarissa‟s attention wandered as he provided it and Agent Sandy wrote.
"What about you?" Jack asked Ruby after several minutes
"I haven‟t spoken to him in maybe two weeks." Ruby‟s voice sounded shaky. "At least
not directly."
"Directly?" Jack made an openhanded gesture that indicated puzzlement.
"We‟re playing an online chess game," Ruby explained. "He makes a move in the evening his time and I make a move in the evening my time. He made the last move, about four days ago. I …" Ruby began to choke up, restrained herself with effort. "It was my turn next."
"Did he mention anything in particular to you? Anyone he was meeting, or anything going on in his life?"
"We really only talked about chess," Ruby said. "We talk about light things when he is overseas. When he‟s home, that‟s when he tells me more serious stories."
"Did he ever bring up being threatened in any way?" Jack asked, his tone casual.
"Not really."
"He knew—k nows that part of the world is not the safest," Clarissa said. "But he always said he felt well protected. And he was getting ready to quit. Is going to quit. He‟s going to work from New York after this rotation." She glanced toward Bill Snyder, expecting him to nod in acquiescence, but his face remained expressionless, noncommittal, and she fleetingly wondered if he‟d tried to talk Todd out of leaving the fieldwork. "You know, Todd worked on behalf of Afghans," Clarissa said. "Do his kidnappers get that?"
"Simply being a foreigner—"
"I know. I know, of course," Clarissa interrupted Jack.
"This is a business," Jack continued. "He‟s an American and he was accessible. A target of opportunity. It‟s that simple."
"What was he doing?" Clarissa turned to Bill Snyder. "I mean, when they…"
Bill Snyder shrugged. "Getting ice cream, Amin says."
"Christ," Clarissa said.
The kitchen fell silent for a moment. "And you?" Sandy asked Mikey.
Mikey shrugged. "Clari‟s my only sibling. My only family, really. We‟re close," he said. "But I wouldn‟t know about Todd‟s life day to day, beyond what Clari might mention."
Sandy turned to Angie. "Tell me about your connection to the family."
"Well, Ruby and I, we live together."
"How long have you known each other?"
"I lived with Todd and Ruby for a while when I was a teenager," Angie said
"How long?"
"About a year."
"What were the circumstances?"
Angie shrugged. "Things were not going so great at home. Todd agreed to take me in. He fed me, watched over me, became a surrogate dad. Probably more than he bargained for."
"We understand you work as a psychic," Jack said.
Angie looked as surprised as Clarissa felt. How had they found out so much so quickly? Though she didn‟t ask the question, Jack seemed to anticipate it. He shrugged in a silent answer.
"I‟m an RN," Angie said after a minute. "I work with a hospice. But yes, I do psychic fairs on the side, that kind of thing. That‟s all."
"So you get premonitions?"
"Sometimes," Angie said hesitantly.
"Can you describe one for us?"
"I hope this is not the primary basis of your investigation," Clarissa said, her voice cool.
"Yeah," Angie said. "I actually don‟t think this will be helpful."
"They‟re just trying to think of everything," Ruby said in a soothing way that almost made Clarissa smile. She‟d seen this side of Ruby with her father, too: a torrent of emotion almost as if she were a still
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