Impact by Stephen Greenleaf Page A

tapped, and tapped again. When a voice asked him who it was, he told her.
    After several seconds a desolate stranger appeared in the doorway, searched for succor in his face, then rushed into his arms. “His plane crashed, Keith.”
    â€œIs he dead?”
    As the echo of the question threatened to betray him, Laura Donahue shook her head. “They won’t tell me anything. They just stuck me here to wait.”
    â€œI’ll go find out what—”
    She held him fast. “Hold me, Keith. Please hold me. Hold me and tell me what to do if Jack’s been killed.”
    He held her as tightly as he thought she could bear, until he heard the telephone ring inside the room. When Laura made no move to answer it, he guided her to the bed, eased her onto it, and went to pick up the receiver.
    â€œListen good, ’cause I can only tell you once,” an oily voice demanded. “This could be the most important minute of your life. I’m the senior associate of Victor A. Scallini, the foremost aviation attorney in the world. Mr. Scallini would like to represent you in filing an action against SurfAir for the wrongful death of your loved one in the crash. His clients have received major damage awards in crash litigation—I’m talking millions here, believe me. There’s no time for details now, but whatever you do, don’t sign anything and don’t talk to another lawyer. If you call Mr. Scallini’s Los Angeles office tomorrow, you will be told what to do. The number is 213-555-1232. Write it down. This could be the most important thing you’ve ever done. I guarantee you won’t be—”
    Tollison dropped the phone into its cradle and returned to the bed. Eyes closed, shoes off, her green gown bunched and twisted at her waist, Laura blindly pulled him toward her. He crawled onto the bed and took her in his arms. As he pressed his lips against her hair, he could not help hoping that the catastrophe meant that he could lie with her forever—a dream as corrupt as the lawyer on the phone.
    REPORT ON WOODSIDE AIR
    DISASTER
    Postmortem, Examination No. 87-A-379
    Name of Deceased: Jane Doe No. 16-W
    Pathologist: Jacob Greenman
    Date: April 2, 1987
    Location: South Bay Mortuary, San Jose, California
    External Description: The severely traumatized dismembered body of a Caucasian female, age approximately forty years, dressed in the charred and shredded remains of white silk undergarments, a cotton print blouse, and a blue wool blend skirt, the rest of the clothing being missing or decomposed or present in microscopic quantities.
    There is a flattening of the torso as a result of multiple fractures of all of the long bones of the body, with displacement of the sternum downward. There is a decapitation injury close to the neck with avulsion of the neck and viscera. The heart and lungs and uterus protrude through a large defect in the chest. The lower left leg is missing below the knee.
    Possible identifying features include abdominal scarring indicating appendectomy.
    Cause of death: Traumatic evisceration of heart and brain due to airline accident. Remains will be held at the above location, pending identification and disposition.
    WARNING: Unless essential for legal or religious reasons, remains should not be viewed by next of kin.

FOUR
    â€œBut why?”
    Alec Hawthorne crumples the top sheet of the legal pad on the desk in front of him, a sheet of scribbles that begins in lazy curves and ends in angry angles and irritated whorls. “I made the guy a senior partner last year, for God’s sake. I doubled his draw . I thought that was what he wanted.”
    â€œHe did,” Martha agrees mildly. “Last year.”
    â€œHe just packed and left? No explanation, no nothing?”
    â€œThat’s the way I hear it.”
    â€œDid he steal anything?”
    â€œOnly Gwen.”
    â€œWho the hell is Gwen?”
    â€œHis secretary. The blonde with the