The Tenth Justice - Brad Meltzer [140]
“Fine,” Nathan said. He grabbed his coat from the closet and headed for the door.
“Where are you going?” Ben asked.
“Out,” Nathan said. “I’m hungry and I need to get some dinner.”
When the door closed, Ober turned to Ben. “Ben, you’re forgetting what’s right. You better talk to him when he gets back.”
“But if you talk to him, be careful what you say,” Eric pointed out.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Ober asked.
“It means that if I were Ben, I wouldn’t trust anybody.”
“So you still suspect Nathan?”
“Not at all,” Eric said. “I just think a better friend would’ve offered a bit more support.”
“You can be a real jerk,” Ober said as he got up from the couch. “You of all people should never talk about what a better friend would do.” Before Eric could respond, Ober was halfway up the stairs.
“Let him go,” Ben said, grabbing his coat from the closet.
“Where are you going?” Eric asked.
“I need to get some air,” Ben said, closing the door behind him.
As he inched up the block, Ben kept looking over his shoulder. Scrutinizing every person he saw, he wondered where DeRosa’s agents were, and if they were even in place. When he reached the commercial section of his neighborhood, Ben ducked into Jumbo’s, the area’s best late-night eating spot. He sat down at the counter and ordered one of the daily specials. He then got up and walked to the pay phone at the back of the restaurant. Ben inserted the required change and dialed Lisa’s number. “C’mon, be home. Be home, be home, be home.”
As the phone rang, Ben thought about everything he wanted to tell Lisa: how scared he was about Rick’s new letters; how apprehensive he was about lying to his friends; how nervous he was for their safety; how anxious he was to talk to someone he could trust. But when the answering machine picked up, Ben knew Lisa wasn’t home. He was alone.
His eyes rapidly scanning the customers in the restaurant, Ben hung up the phone. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out the phone number from DeRosa’s note. Maybe I should call, he thought, and picked up the receiver. No, nothing terrible has happened yet. The plan should still work. He hung up the phone. For all I know, Rick will do everything else as expected. Agitated, but ever-cautious, Ben stepped away from the phone and walked back to the counter. But if anything else goes wrong, I’m pounding that panic button.
Chapter 17
“I CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE,” BEN SAID. staring into the mirror in the office closet, he picked at a deep shaving cut on his chin. “Why hasn’t he called?”
“It’s only been a week,” Lisa said.
“The longest week of my life,” Ben said as the cut started bleeding. “You’d think by now he’d tell us what he wants.”
“Maybe he’s trying to wear you down.”
“He’s obviously trying to wear me down. The longer he waits, the crazier I get. Typical Rick mindgame.”
“I’m not surprised Rick hasn’t called—I’m more surprised you haven’t heard from DeRosa.”
“Don’t even start me on that. The guy promises to keep me informed, and then he doesn’t send a single message. For all I know, the marshals aren’t even out there.”
“Do you feel like you’re being watched?”
“Not at all. Which means they’re either extremely good, or they lied to me.”
“You better get moving,” Lisa said, looking at her watch. “You’re going to miss your first free lunch.”
“They’re lucky it’s free.”
“Don’t give me that,” Lisa said. “You’re about to go to lunch with the Chief Justice of the United States. Don’t pretend you’re not excited.”
“No, you’re right,” Ben said. “I’m very excited. I mean, who wouldn’t want to spend an hour having their intellect crushed?”
“Don’t pay attention to what his clerks say. Their backbones are so weak, they barely stand erect.”
“Well, I’ll have you know, I stand very erect,” Ben said proudly, sticking out his chest. “Super-erect.”
“You’re a one-man erection,” Lisa said as Ben walked to the door. He paused when his phone rang and looked at Lisa. “Let it