Page 111 of Mirror Image

Then he says quietly, “Ready?”

I nod.

“Yeah. Time to end this.”

Moments later, we’re standing on Julian’s front porch.

“David,” Julian says, surprised. His eyes move to me, and for a beat, delighted confusion overtakes everything else—the suspicion he should feel drowned out by the novelty of seeing two supposed adversaries standing side by side. Of course he notices the puzzle before the danger; Julian has always been far more fascinated by people as patterns than threats.

“And Jennifer. Together. Well, this is certainly a surprise.”

“Julian,” David says. “We need to speak with you. It’s urgent.”

His arms lift in a theatrical gesture.

“Well, then—by all means, please, come in.”

We follow him into the kitchen. He lights a burner beneath a kettle, reaches for a cup.

“Tea?” he asks over his shoulder.

“No, thank you,” David answers for both of us.

“Well, I hope you don’t mind if I make one for myself. It is rather early,” he says pointedly. “So—what brings you here this morning?”

His back is to us as he fusses with the tea bag.

“I had a long conversation with Sam Kinski last night,” I say, watching his posture stiffen.

He doesn’t turn.

“So she turned up again? After escaping the hospital?”

“Escaping?” I echo. “Interesting choice of words. She was always free to leave anytime she liked. Or was she, Julian?”

He spins around, mug clutched tight in his hand.

“Meaning what, exactly, Jennifer?”

“Just that she revealed some very disturbing things about you.”

A beat. Then:

“I’m not sure what she could have possibly said. I don’t know the woman.”

“Don’t you, though?” David asks.

Julian lifts his brows, all polite disbelief.

“You know I don’t, David. I believed her to be Mary—just as you did. Before that, I’d only ever laid eyes on her once, at a Thanksgiving dinner at Terry and Doug’s home. Five years ago.”

“Tell me, Julian,” David says. “Have you looked through your patient journals lately?”

That gets him.

A flicker—calculation mixed with unease.

“The ones here at home? Not in a few days. Why do you ask?”