Page 26 of Robin and Marian
She shook her head. Marian’s plan had backfired on her, and she was sorry she had asked.
“Remember when Carl made us put on that play?” Tuck asked.
Robin turned bright red, and she realized that she had the upper hand. “Really? What was your role, Robin?”
He shook his head, but Tuck was more than happy to supply the answer. “Hamlet. The guy loved show tunes, so he had Robin singing songs from Fiddler on the Roof and theSound of Music.”
“That was in exchange for a steak,” Robin said, as if that was an excuse.
“And he got it too!” Tuck laughed at the memory. “Putthatin yourNew England Chronicle, Marian. Carl could get anything you asked for. Nobody could figure out how. You’d say, ‘I want a hot dog, or a bracelet,’ and the next thing you knew, he had it. It was like he was magic or something. I’d watch him for hours just to figure it out.”
“He kept it in his shoe,” Robin said, breaking the suspense.
“Shoe?” Marian’s nose wrinkled. “Is that where he put your steak?”
He flushed at the realization.
“Yes, yes, yes,” Tuck said, “but where did it come from? He got it past me and I know things… I know who killed Kennedy. I know which celebrities are faking their deaths, who’ve been replaced with lookalikes; I know where the missing airlines are and who the media works for.”
She broke into a giggle. “You mean who I work for?”
“You don’t even know who you work for,” Tuck said with an unblinking stare. “Man, I’m talking crazy stuff—rigged elections and manipulated wars. Don’t get me started on aliens.”
Robin met Marian’s eyes and smiled uneasily. “Yeah, don’t get him started on those.” It was a type of warning, and then he explained, “Tuck hacked government databases. It’s why he landed in prison in the first place. He transferred their information to India. Too bad there’s no internet here, or you’d really see what he could do.”
Tuck nodded solemnly. “It all makes sense now.Theyknew I was coming.”
“Who?” Marian asked. Robin’s eyes widened at her and he shook his head.
“Well…” Tuck made himself comfortable and took a deep breath to unload everything he knew.
Reading Robin’s terrified look, Marian tried to intercept him. “But you have a new calling in life,” she reminded him. Tuck tilted his head at her, as if interested to hear her take. “Youth pastor. You don’t need to hack government secrets anymore. You’ve got church this morning. You’re in charge, right?”
His face scrunched up and he gave her a look like she was the crazy one.
The French doors burst open as Midge ran through, wearing a backwards baseball cap and a plaid shirt tied around his jeans. He looked like he was sliding onto first base, and he stumbled to a stop when he saw his hero. “Robin!” he cried in relief. His sneakers squeaked across the marble floor as he found a seat at the table and collapsed into it, his shoulders sagging like they held the heaviest load in the world.
“Midge?” Dare she ask? But concern moved her lips, “What are you running from?”
Likely it was Mrs. Koch, but when Midge buried his head sadly in his hands, Marian made a sound of sympathy and inched closer. Robin put his hand on the kid’s back; even Tuck gathered around. “It’s Scarlett,” Midge said. “She keeps crying.”
“What?” A dark look spread over Robin’s face. “Why?”
“Alan and Scarlett keep fighting… about you, Robin! And… and Alan—he’s not nice. I just want Scarlett to be happy.” A tear squeezed out of Midge’s already red rimmed eyes.
“Hey, kid, it’s all right.” Robin comforted him, his face etched in concern. “Alan’s just stressed. He’s not mean. He’s—!”
“Yes, he is.”
“No…”
Before Robin could come up with another excuse for his former best friend, the man in question walked into the room. Alan didn’t look like he had slept all night. His usually impeccable rocker look was marred with a wrinkled gray button-up t-shirt and jeans that looked like they’d been pulled from the bottom of a hamper. His auburn hair was flipped over drawn brows. He was, in a word, the tragic figure.
“Midge,” Alan said, then stopped short when he saw Robin. “Figures. Looks like you’re just fine.” With that, Alan abandoned is poor nephew to Robin, the door swinging shut behind him.
“See?” Midge said. “He’s mean.”
Marian felt terrible for the O’Malley household. Despite her initial reluctance, Scarlett would want to see her brother, no matter what he’d done. Alan would never be able to trust him again. She knew what he was going through. Feeling low from the top of her head to her toes, Marian gathered her purse.
