Obstruction of Justice Read Online Free PDF

white blouse and black stockings, much like the business suit Nina herself was wearing. The plain style and low-heeled shoes showed off the frail lines of her body.
    "Thank you for coming," she said. "It’s just a formality. You were a witness of sorts."
    "No problem."
    The young girl, Molly, said, "Did you see the lightning actually hit him?"
    "Not exactly," Nina said.
    "Not exactly? What’s that mean?"
    "Shush, honey, we’ll talk about all that in a minute," her mother said. "Please." Mrs. de Beers patted the chair beside her, and her daughter plopped down, picking up a magazine with a picture of Smoky the Bear on the front, and began flipping through it.
    Nina smiled tentatively at Molly’s brother, who had taken a seat across the room. "You and Molly are twins, aren’t you?" she said.
    "Born thirteen minutes apart," Jason said. He was remarkably tall, about six feet five, but still had filling out to do, so he didn’t seem as overwhelming as he surely would be later in life. He held his finger in the college catalog he had been reading.
    "Columbia? Fine school," Nina said, indicating the catalog. "Not that I went there."
    "My history teacher in high school was friends with a professor there," Jason said.
    "Jason wanted to go to Columbia, and he had the grades and everything, but our father wanted him to go into the family business," Molly said to Nina. "At least he didn’t try to push that on me."
    "No," Jason said. "He decided you would marry a rich guy to get some money coming into the company. He had it all figured out."
    "Jason, Molly," their mother said sharply. "These are family matters."
    The door opened and the man in the blue and green bandanna who had followed the emergency techs down the hill entered. Nina now knew his full name was Leo Tarrant. He looked much the same as he had on the mountain, ruddy and fit in jeans and a pin-striped cotton dress shirt. He had the callused hands and hard body she associated with the construction trades.
    "Sarah," he said. "Hey, Molly."
    "Hey yourself," Molly said brightly.
    "You guys hanging in there?"
    "Choking back the sobs."
    "Molly!"
    "I’m glad he’s dead," Molly said defiantly. "I’m not going to pretend." Her mouth quivered.
    "Come on over here and sit with me, Moll," her brother said gently, and she did, avoiding looking at anyone. Jason reached out a hand and smoothed her pale hair back, saying, "It’s all right, Moll."
    Her mother whispered, but they all heard, "Don’t be disrespectful." Molly ignored her.
    Leo continued his way around the room. "How’s it going, Jason?"
    "All right. Mom’s sleeping better," Jason said. "Dr. Lee says she hurt her leg again on the mountain."
    "I’ll be fine in a few days, Leo."
    Tarrant said, "What fools we were." Then, turning away and holding out his hand to Nina, he went on, "We met on the mountain." He gave a quiet laugh and said, "Sounds like a sad folk song, doesn’t it?"
    "Sorry to meet you all again under these circumstances," Nina said, shaking his hand.
    "We should have gone down when the clouds came up, when we talked to you. Ray never could do anything halfway, though." The inner door had opened and a young woman in white was gesturing at them.
    "He’s ready," she said, and they all got up dutifully to troop into Dr. Clauson’s office.
    The coroner sat at a metal conference table, barricaded behind files and papers in a windowless room. They sat on folding metal chairs around the table, the family and Leo huddling close together as if that might create a little haven of warmth in a place with as much atmosphere as a bathroom in a filling station.
    Nina was wondering if Collier would make it at all. She couldn’t blame him for skipping this dreary meeting.
    "Sorry for your loss," Clauson said to no one in particular in his terse accent. "Call me Doc. Meeting’s called to order. Get their names and addresses."
    While the secretary did this, Clauson’s quick eyes darted around at the assembled parties.