“Neither would I,” Forrester said. “God knows what the penalty for perjury is on this island.”
“Can you think of anything else during your evening with the Mannings that might help us at the trial?”
Forrester looked uncomfortable. “Can we talk off the record for a minute?”
“Sure.”
“I certainly don’t want to bring this up at the trial, but it’s the kind of thing that I can’t ignore when I come to write my piece.”
“Shoot.”
“You remember we talked about this dinghy that Paul had flown in from Barcelona?”
“Yes, the Parker Sportster.”
“I didn’t mention this before, but that dinghy can be sailed. I read something in a magazine about somebody sailing one from Norway to Iceland.”
“I’m aware of the dinghy’s sailing capability.”
“Does that suggest anything to you?”
“What does it suggest to you?”
“That Paul Manning could have conceivably sailed the thing back to the Canaries and faked his own death, for whatever reason.”
“That occurred to me, but it’s not possible.”
“Why not?”
“Because the Parker Sportster is still in a cockpit locker of Expansive. I found it there, unused.”
Forrester took a deep breath and let it out. “Boy, am I glad to hear that. I didn’t want to think that Allison could be mixed up in something like that, but…”
“I understand. While we certainly won’t bring this up at the trial, I think it might be very helpful to Allison if you mentioned it in your piece. There will always be people who would think the worst, and it might help her.”
“I’ll certainly do that. It’s the kind of detail that will make the piece more interesting. By the way, I talked with my editor, Charles McGrath, and in light of all the publicity Allison’s story has gotten, they’re more interested than ever in the piece.”
“I’m glad for you.”
“You should be glad for Allison, too; this kind of long, detailed piece will satisfy the curiosity of a lot of people. I know it’s going to be tough for her when all this is over.”
“I know it is, though I haven’t talked about it with her yet. I think she’s got enough on her mind at the moment.”
“I’m sure she has.”
“Have you talked with her at length yet?”
“Twice. She’s remarkably open and forthcoming; sometimes I think she doesn’t really have a grasp of what she’s facing.”
“I know what you mean,” Stone said, “and I don’t see how it would help to make her more aware. She’s been told all the facts and the risks, and if she chooses to be in denial, then who’s to say she shouldn’t be? Certainly not I. If her attitude helps her get through this, that’s fine with me.”
“Let me ask you something for the record, Stone, and I’d appreciate the frankest answer you can give me. Your answer won’t appear until well after the trial, and I’ll hold it in confidence until then.”
“What would you like to know?”
“Right now, at this moment, what do you estimate her chances are of getting out of this?”
Stone sighed. “I don’t really know how to answer that. There are so many variables here, most of which I have no control over, that the situation is entirely unpredictable.”