The Inner Circle - Brad Meltzer [47]
“But to have this chance right now…” She stares down at the old photo—the one of us—still refusing to face the video behind her. “My mom used to tell me that the best part of music—even as a DJ—was that when you go to a new city, you get to be a brand-new person,” she adds. “And I chose Virginia because—all the pictures seemed to have horses in them. Horses are calming, y’know? But then to find out—of all the places I could’ve picked—I’m ten minutes from… from him,” she says, thumbing back at the screen as Nico’s video wraps up. “I’m not saying it’s a sign—but I am saying… maybe some things are meant to be. Like reconnecting with you.” Before I can say a word, she adds, “Besides, I want what’s best for you, Beecher. And right now, bringing you to meet a delusional sociopath—even one who’s been calmed down by medication—is not what your life needs at this moment. This is something I think I’m supposed to do myself.”
“I understand.”
“You do?” she asks.
“Don’t you get it? I want what’s best for you too.”
She looks up at me and grins. “That homemade photograph really made you mushy, didn’t it?” she asks.
“Hey, Beecher! Phone!” one of the staffers calls out from the desk behind us.
“Whoever it is, tell them—”
“It’s Tot. Says not to let you give any lame excuses. Says it’s important. He’s on hold.”
I shake my head, ready to ignore the call.
“He says don’t ignore it!” the aide calls back. “On hold!”
“Just gimme one sec,” I tell Clementine as I grab the phone at the circulation desk, which is just a few feet away.
“What’re you doing with her?” Tot asks before I can even say hello.
“Pardon?”
“Clementine. You went down to buzz her in. That was twenty minutes ago.”
I look over at Clementine, who’s finally turned back to the computer screen, where YouTube has offered a variety of recommendations for the next video to click on. Even from here, I can see what she’s looking at as bits of bright yellow jumpsuit peek out from each video option.
“Is this really that important, Tot?”
“You tell me. I found the cart for your guy Dustin Gyrich,” he says, referring to the last person who requested a copy of Entick’s Dictionary. “Now, do you want to hear his connection to the President or not?”
24
I’ll call you when I’m done,” Clementine says, stepping away from the computer and heading for the lobby. “I gotta go.”
“Good. Let her,” Tot says through the phone.
“Clemmi, just wait!” I call out as she pulls her coat on.
“Let her be,” Tot says. “Whatever she’s got going on, you’ve got enough disasters to deal with.”
“What’re you talking about?” I ask.
“I told you. Dustin Gyrich.”
“So he’s the last person to request the…” I look around, and I swear, in this wide mint green room, every person, from the old ladies to the young grad student, is looking directly at me.
“Yeah… to request the dictionary,” Tot says in my ear. “That’s the thing, though. At first I thought it was odd that he just happened to request the dictionary on the exact same day that President Wallace was here for his reading tour. But when I pulled the full record, well… Dustin Gyrich—whoever he is—has requested Entick’s Dictionary fourteen different times, which isn’t that unusual—”
“Get to the point, Tot.”
“The point is, when I matched Gyrich’s dates up with a calendar, guess who else happened to be visiting this very building on every one of those days? I’ll give you a hint. It rhymes with President.”
Across from me, Clementine buttons the top button on her coat and turns toward the main lobby to leave.
“Just wait,” I whisper to her. “I’ll only be a minute.”
“You’ll be way more than a minute,” Tot says through the phone. “Unless you’re no longer understanding the bad news I’m delivering.”
“Thirty seconds,” I promise Clementine.
She pauses a moment, like she really does want to wait. But as she did when the red curtain went up during the Battle of the Bands, Clementine stands there a moment, lifts her chin, and buries all her fears in whatever place she’s come to keep them. The difference is, she’s no longer facing testy tenth