The Merchant of Secrets Read Online Free PDF

street-okay that’s a little bit of an exaggeration- but still, the streets
are blocked with snow and I can’t’ make it across town. Shit, I’m really sorry.
How’s Sara?”
     
    “Well I’m not sure, someone named Roger showed up and
said that he was a friend of yours?”
     
     Justin seemed perplexed, “Roger? Uh….could be ,” he answered. “I meet a lot of people in my job. I meet
hundreds of people each week.”
    “He’s about six feet tall with medium brown skin, speaks
with an English accent, dressed in Armani, wears a red
scarf, about 40 …”
    “Oh that guy,” he said recalling the face, “Yeah we had
drinks a couple of weeks ago. What the heck is Sara doing with him?”
     “She’s lonely, and he’s available,” I replied,
sarcastically and perhaps a bit harshly, but nonetheless it was accurate. “He
showed up at the restaurant tonight, claiming that you invited him.”
    “Me?” he asked. “No way!  
Sara just called me a few days ago to suggest dinner, and I haven’t seen that
guy for about a month, I couldn’t have told him. Anyway, I wouldn’t have
invited him   to Sara’s dinner, I mean, what’s the
connection? I don’t even know the guy.”
     
    Justin had just exposed Roger’s false identity but
couldn’t give me any more details because  he’d been given the same
limited version of Roger’s life story that we had just been given.  There
was no point in trying to drag anything more out of Justin.
     
    “Thanks.”
     “No problem,” he said, “let’s all get together when
the snow melts.”
     
    During my absence to talk with Justin, Roger jumped at
the advantage of catching Sara alone to offer her a ride home. Sara accepted
the ride and promised to call me in the morning. Her lack of judgment was
astonishing. “You just met him! You don’t know who he is! It’s late, you should let me drive you home. You’ve been drinking
and would be defenseless if he makes a move on you…” I protested using every
argument I could think of to stop her from leaving with him.
     
    She grasped my forearm, smiling, and said “I’ll be fine,
don’t worry. He’s a friend of Justin so he must be okay. I’ll call you in the
morning. Good-night!”
     
    “He’s not really a friend of Justin…”   I  yelled , but she was already whisked out the door by
Roger who was in complete control.  I stood panicked and motionless for a
minute then rushed back to the table, snatched-up my car keys, and raced toward
the door. I flung it open and ran out into the snow, looking up and down the
street, but Sara and Roger had already disappeared. Using my cellphone I tried
to track her using the GPS embedded in her cell phone, but someone had turned
it off.  
     
     
     
     CHAPTER 6
     
       
     
    When Sara didn’t return home for the rest of the next
day, my mind convulsed with a half dozen theories of who Roger was, and why he
had taken Sara. I was so worried about her that I couldn’t focus on my work,
and I decided to pass the time by baking chocolate chip cookies. After I had
baked four dozen, I started cleaning the closets. Anything to
keep me from going crazy. After twenty-four hours of nail biting
anxiety, my phone rang and it was the Sara, completely oblivious to the
tortuous worry she had caused. Bursting with cheer  over the phone, she said  “You’ll never guess what happened, Roger and I
returned to my house after dinner last night and the electricity was off. So we
went to the best hotel in Washington- the one that overlooks the White House-
and we watched the snow fall on the White House.” She inhaled, exhaled, and
continued “In the morning we decided we both needed a break from the snow and
caught a flight to Palm Beach.” Her voice was exceptionally chipper.
     
    “Palm Beach? Why there? Where are you staying?” I asked.
     
    ‘We’re at his friend’s house, overlooking the ocean near
Manalapan. It’s so beautiful here,” she said,