“Ms. Lombard was Lieutenant Dallas’s foster mother for a five-and-a-half-month period in 2036.”
“That was my understanding.”
“Were you aware that Ms. Lombard had made contact with the lieutenant at her office in this facility this past Thursday?”
“I was.”
“And how would you describe the lieutenant’s reaction to that contact?”
“As her business.”
When Peabody opened her mouth, shut it again, he shrugged. “My wife had no desire to renew the relationship. Her memory of that time was unhappy, and I believe she preferred to keep it in the past.”
“But you agreed to meet with Ms. Lombard, at your office in Mid-town.”
“Yes, as I said, I was curious.” His gaze tracked to the mirror again, and, he was sure, met Eve’s. “I wondered what she wanted.”
“What was it she wanted?”
“Money, naturally. Her initial pitch was to play on my sympathy, to enlist me to help her soften the lieutenant. Her claim was that my wife was mistaken in her feelings toward her, and her memory of that portion of her life.”
He paused, looked at Peabody, and nearly smiled. “As the lieutenant is, as you know, rarely mistaken on such matters, I didn’t find the woman’s claims credible, and wasn’t sympathetic. I suggested that she leave things as they were.”
“But she wanted you to pay her?”
“Yes. Two million dollars was the suggestion. She would go back to Texas for that amount. She was unhappy when I informed her that I had no intention of paying her any amount, at any time.”
“Did she threaten you in some way?”
“She was no threat, to me or mine. She was an irritant at worst. A kind of leech, you could say, who’d hoped to suck a bit of blood out of what was a difficult time in my wife’s childhood.”
“Did you consider her request for money blackmail?”
Tricky area, Roarke thought. “She may have hoped I’d see it that way—I can’t say. For myself, I considered it ridiculous, and nothing that I, or the lieutenant, should concern ourselves with.”
“It didn’t make you angry? Somebody comes into your office, tries to hose you down? It’d tick me off.”
He smiled at her, wished he could tell her she was doing a good job of it. “To be frank, Detective, I’d expected her to try me. It seemed the most logical reason for her contacting the lieutenant after all these years.”
He leaned back in his chair. “Angry? No. On the contrary, I got some satisfaction out of the meeting, by letting her know, unmistakably, that there would be no payment. Now or ever.”
“How did you make that clear?”
“By telling her just that. We spoke in my office for perhaps ten minutes, and I sent her on her way. I requested that my admin inform Security, to make certain she’d left the building. Oh, there’s a record of her entering and exiting the building, and my office. Standard security measures. I took it upon myself to contact Captain Feeney of EDD, and ask that he personally retrieve those discs so that you have them for your files. I thought that would be best.”
“Good.” Peabody’s eyes went wide. “That’s good. Um, did you have contact with Ms. Lombard after she left your office on Friday?”
“None. The lieutenant and I spent the evening at home on Friday, and she and I hosted a large holiday party on Saturday at our home. We
were quite busy throughout the day with preparations. There are also security discs for that period, as we had numerous outside contractors in our home. Captain Feeney will also retrieve those. And, of course, Saturday evening we were among more than two hundred and fifty friends, acquaintances, and business colleagues from approximately eight p.m. until after three in the morning. I’m happy to provide you with the guest list.”
“We appreciate it. Did you have any physical contact with Trudy Lombard, at any time?”
His voice remained neutral, but he allowed just a hint of disgust to show on his face. “I shook her hand when we met. That was quite enough.”
“Could you tell me why you and the lieutenant were at the West Side Hotel this morning?”
“We’d decided it would be best if the lieutenant spoke to Lombard face-to-face, to inform her that she—my wife—had no desire for further contact, and that neither of us intended to pay for the privilege of choice.”