The Multiplex Man
|
|
First printing, July 1999 Library of Congress Catalog Number: 92-215964 Distributed by Simon & Schuster Printed in the United States of America |
ISBN-13: 978-0-671-57819-0
|
To Henry PalkaWith thanks for being a lot of helpwith a lot of thingsI'M NOT WHO I THINK I AMJarrow reached over to the keypad and entered the Chicago number he'd found in the pad in the hotel room. The legend call ringing appeared on the screen, then was replaced by a head-and--shoulders view of a woman. He recognized her as the redhead in the dream he had awoken to that morning. But that was crazy. He didn't know anyone in Chicago, or a woman who looked like that, anywhere. And the even crazier part was that, from the way her expression changed, she evidently knew him. "I wondered when you'd call," she said as Jarrow stared speechlessly. "You just vanished into thin air." Jarrow swallowed and found himself shaking. "You recognize me?" he whispered. "You know who I am?" The narrowing of her brows signaled she was worried, but with a hint that she had been prepared for something like this. She nodded. "You're Tony Demiro," the woman said. Jarrow slumped back in his chair and stared at her numbly. "Who's Tony Demiro?" "Warrant Officer Demiro? Of the Army?" She intoned the phrases like questions, as if trying to coax his memory. She paused, reading his expression of total bemusement. "You don't know who I am, do you?" "I'm sorry. No, I don't. And you're certain that I—this person you're talking to now . . . what did you say that name was?" "Tony Demiro." Her voice caught. She bit her lip and brushed a hand quickly across her mouth. "What is it?" Jarrow asked. "What's the matter?" Rita swallowed audibly, and he could see her brace herself. "Tony Demiro was killed five months ago," she said. By James P. HoganInherit the Stars |