Drummer In the Dark Read Online Free

rest. At least, that’s the reason I’m telling the rest of the world.”
    Esther Hutchings paused as another couple entered the atrium. The woman was a pastel silk mirage, the man a product of surgical design. A waiter appeared as if by magic, informed the couple that the entire veranda had been reserved for a private party, then just as silently disappeared.
    When they were alone once more, Esther Hutchings continued, “Before his stroke, my husband led a battle to set restraints upon Wall Street and the international banks. Now there is a smear campaign to destroy his name and all he stood for. I want you to track down whoever is behind this.”
    “This is a joke, right?”
    “Do I appear comical to you, Ms. Havilland? Last week, my husband’s replacement won a special election. Wynn Bryant is his name. A truly despicable man. I wouldn’t be the least surprised if he was behind this smear campaign.”
    “Mrs. Hutchings, I’m sorry about your husband.” Jackie chose her words carefully. “But all this belongs to a totally different world from the one where I operate.”
    Esther Hutchings revealed an ability to sneer with polite loftiness. “Perhaps there is something about your present employment that you find utterly captivating?”
    “At least it’s real.”
    “So is this.” Esther Hutchings belonged to a bygone era of grand dames and rigid authority and people who jumped at her behest. Jackie’s disregard for how things should be left her flashing fire. “I insisted on our meeting here because this club is
private.
There are few places where a public person can be both open to visitors and closed to prying eyes. I am being closely watched, Ms. Havilland. My husband’s foes are determined to ensure that every shred of his life’s work be turned to ashes.”
    A thousand bucks, Jackie reminded herself. She reached for her cup, took a tepid sip. At least the view was nice.
    “I have made very careful inquiries and am convinced you are ideal for this job. At age twenty-seven, when your brother could afford to support you both, you began graduate studies in international finance at the University of Florida. Then your brother, a hedge fund trader and high flier in the currency markets, became seriously ill. You dropped your studies, returned home, and nursed him through a year-long illness that stripped away all your combined savings before finally—”
    “That’s enough.” Having this stranger spout her secrets in these absurd surroundings seriously rattled Jackie’s cage. “I’m out of here.”
    Esther Hutchings restrained her with one tense hand. “No one would ever suspect us of having any connection. Which is vital if we are to succeed.”
    “Let go of my arm.”
    “One thing more. My husband was convinced that Pavel Hayek and his group are the driving force behind the opposition to financial reform.”
    She froze in midflight. “What?”
    Esther Hutchings pulled a manila envelope from her tennis bag. “Just do me the kindness of looking over these documents. I’ve enclosed a contract as well. If you agree to help me, sign one copy and forward it to my lawyers. The first payment will be sent to you immediately.” When Jackie made no move to take the package, Esther slipped it into her hand. “I urge you to view this as a matter of vital importance.”
    “This meeting is over.” Jackie left the veranda, crossed the lobby, and reentered the reality of a tropical afternoon.
    She handed the claim check to the valet, took a couple of hard breaths, and stared out over the palms at a torrid sky. Unlike this fairy-tale castle with its emerald lawns and mountains of fragrant blossoms, the real world held broken dreams, men who lied, and families that fractured and never healed. What right did Esther Hutchings have to taunt her with such a bruising reminder of everything that was not hers?
    Jackie paced to the shaded line where the portico’s shadow was sliced by the sun. Her idle hands opened