From where she was standing, Marsha’s eyes adapted so she could see up the staircase, as well as through the dining room and all the way to the kitchen. She called Kim’s name again but again there was no response.
Unsure what to do next, Marsha thought about leaving. But then Tracy’s comment about Kim possibly hurting himself came into her mind. She wondered if she should call the police, but that seemed a fairly extreme action to take based on so little evidence. She decided to probe further before deciding what to do.
Marshaling her courage. Marsha stepped into the foyer, intending to go to the base of the stairs. But she didn’t get far. Halfway across the hall she stopped dead in her tracks. Kim was sitting in a club chair in an otherwise empty room less than ten feet away. He looked like a specter in the half darkness. His white doctor’s coat appeared to glow like the radium dial of an old wristwatch.
“My God!” Marsha exclaimed. “You scared me!”
Kim didn’t respond. He didn’t even move.
“Dr. Reggis?” Marsha questioned. For a fleeting moment she wondered if he was dead.
“What do you want?” Kim asked in a tired monotone.
“Maybe I shouldn’t have come. I just wanted to offer my help.”
“And just how do you plan to help?”
“By doing what you’d asked me earlier,” Marsha said. “I know it won’t bring your daughter back, but I’d like to help you track the meat in those lots you think might be contaminated. Of course, it might be futile. You have to understand that, in this day and age, the meat in a single hamburger patty can come from a hundred different cows from ten different countries. But, be that as it may. I’m willing to give it a try if you still want me to.”
“Why the change of heart?” Kim asked.
“Mainly because you were right about the effect of seeing a sick child. But also because you were right to an extent about the USDA. I wasn’t willing to admit it either, but I know there’s foot-dragging by my superiors and too much collusion between the agency and the beef industry. Every one of the deficiency reports I’ve filed for violations I’ve uncovered have been suppressed by my district manager. He’s all but told me to my face to look the other way when there’s a problem.”
“Why didn’t you say this to me before?” Kim asked.
“I don’t know,” Marsha said. “Loyalty to my employer, I suppose. You see. I think the system could work. It just needs more people like me who want it to work.”
“And meanwhile meat gets contaminated and people get sick,” Kim said. “And kids like Becky die.”
“Unfortunately that’s true,” Marsha said. “But we in the business all know where the problem is: it’s in the slaughterhouses. It’s simply profit over safe meat.”
“When are you willing to help?” Kim asked.
“Whenever,” Marsha said. “Right now if you’re up for it. Actually, tonight would be a good time for me to try because there’ll be less risk. The only people at Mercer Meats now would be the overtime cleaning crew. I can’t imagine they’d think much if I browse through the patty room logs.”
“All right,” Kim said. “You’re on. Let’s go.”
THIRTEEN
Saturday evening, January 24th
Tracy felt shell-shocked. Her divorce had been tough, especially the custody battle with Kim, but it was nothing compared to what she was feeling now. Thanks to her experience as a therapist, she recognized clearly the symptoms; she was on the verge of slipping into a serious depression. From having counseled other people in similar circumstances, she knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but she wanted to fight it. At the same time, she knew she had to let herself grieve.
As she rounded the final bend in the road and approached her house, she could see Carl’s yellow Lamborghini parked at the curb. She didn’t know whether she’d be glad to see him or not.
Tracy pulled into her driveway and turned off the engine. Carl came down the steps to meet her, carrying a bouquet of flowers.