Page 45 of Exit Strategy
‘I think Kasselwood did want the doctor’s information,’ Reacher said. ‘Trying to build an alibi is possible. Sure. But this is what I think happened: Dr Martin admitted that whatever links her to the blackmail guy is hidden at her house. Not at her office. Kasselwood demanded her address. Dr Martin balked. She tried to run. Kasselwood shot her. Probably not intentionally. More of an instinctive thing. Then, when Kasselwood turned Dr Martin’s body over, it wasn’t to try and save her. It was to see if she could still talk. When Kasselwood saw the doctor was dead, she probably thought she was screwed. Then she remembered the computer. She’d already used it to delete her own record, so she realized she could get Dr Martin’s address from it, too. That’s why Dr Martin’s record was still showing. Finding it was the last thing Kasselwood used the computer for.’
Gilmour said, ‘That’s possible. The pieces fit.’
Patten said, ‘If you’re right, Kasselwood won’t go home. She’ll go to Dr Martin’s house. And if she finds the link to the blackmail guy there, she’ll go after him. And we’ll have no way to find either of them.’ She picked up her phone. ‘What’s the doctor’s address? We need to hurry.’
Gilmour said, ‘We’re too late. Kasselwood killed Dr Martin an hour ago.’
‘We still have to try. Maybe Kasselwood won’t go straight to the doctor’s house. She just killed the woman. Maybe she’s in shock. Maybe she needs a drink. I would.’
Reacher said, ‘There’s only one way to find out.’
‘I guess.’ Gilmour took hold of the door handle. ‘I’ll run back inside and get the address.’
Reacher said, ‘There’s no need,’ and gave Patten an address in Fells Point.
Patten keyed the details into her phone. Gilmour swiveled around, clearly surprised. He said, ‘How did you remember that? It was on the screen for like one second. Do you have a photographic memory or whatever?’
‘No. Nothing like that,’ Reacher said. ‘But the street number – 10301 – is a palindromic prime.’
‘A what?’
‘A prime number that reads the same forward or backward. It’s the kind of thing I notice.’
Reacher was expecting Dr Martin’s home to be in a neighborhood like Patten’s. He imagined something picturesque and elegant with a manicured yard and enough space for a couple of fancy cars. What they found was very different. Martin’s address was at the center of a group of old industrial buildings, now converted into houses. Hers was the only one that was still fronted in brick. The others had been painted white, like they were pretending to be in London or Paris. The buildings extended right to the sidewalk, front and back – there was no yard space at all – and the lot they were on wastriangle-shaped due to the layout of the adjoining streets. That made one side of the building straight but the other cut at an angle. An optimist would think the building had gained space, Reacher thought. A pessimist would think it had lost some.
They risked one drive-by along the straight side of the buildings. That seemed to be where the main entrances were. The door to Dr Martin’s house was wide and high, like it had been designed to accommodate sizeable pieces of machinery or other kinds of equipment. There were two large windows on either side, classically proportioned with eight leaded panes each, and there were six more windows on both of the floors above.
Patten looped around and found a place at the curb to pull over where she’d have a view along both sides of the triangle. Reacher and Gilmour had fleshed out a rough plan as she drove. Patten would be on lookout duty. Gilmour would take the front of the house. Reacher would take the back. Gilmour would knock on the door. If anyone was home, he would try to talk his way inside. If the house was empty, he’d join Reacher and they would break in at the more sheltered side. It was a simple course of action, but it should be effective. They hoped.
Reacher paused with one foot out of the car. He said, ‘Sabrina, you don’t have to stay here. If we have to force our way in and the police arrive …’
Patten said, ‘I’m staying.’
‘If Kasselwood shows up, it could get nasty. She doesn’t take prisoners. We’ve seen that.’
Patten turned and stared at Reacher. She said, ‘I’m staying. So don’t waste time. She could be in there already.’
TWENTY-SIX
Reacher took the angled side of the building, as there wasn’t a traditional backyard. The street was narrower there. It was more like an alley. There were clusters of garbage cans dotted around, and all the first-floor windows had their blinds drawn for privacy. The door to Dr Martin’s house was smaller on this side. More suited to people than machines. There was an alcove next to it. Reacher couldn’t tell what its original purpose had been but he wasn’t too concerned about that because it gave him an ideal place to wait.
Gilmour appeared after less than two minutes. He came along the alley, not through the house. He was breathing hard and the corners of his mouth were curled into a hard frown.
Reacher stepped into the open and said, ‘The door looks solid. One of the windows will be our best bet.’
Gilmour shook his head. ‘Forget it. We’re not going in. It’s too late. She’s already been here. Kasselwood. We need to leave right now.’
‘She’s been here? How do you know?’
‘Someone was home.’
‘You spoke to them?’
‘I couldn’t. Because whoever he was, he’s dead. If there was anything linking the doctor to the blackmail guy, Kasselwood must have found it.’
‘You saw this dead guy?’
‘I did. His feet, anyway. I looked in the window on my way to the front door and saw them sticking out through a doorway. Now come on.’ Gilmour turned and took a step toward the main street. ‘Time to go.’
