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Tony had walked into a strange room, a room of the mind, which was constructed of i from a Sherlock Holmes story Holmes had expressed the view to Watson that, in detection, once you had eliminated all the possibilities except one, that which was left, no matter how unlikely or absurd, must be the truth

Was the iht of the inexplicable tie between the threats the assailant had ht of Sherlock Holht what?" she asked

"All right, maybe it was Frye"

"It was"

"Somehowsome wayGod knobutIt seeot to consider it"

"Hoonderfully open-minded of you," she said Her feathers were still ruffled She was not going to forgive hiain and entered the htly nu about the effects of living with the disturbing thought that nothing was iot a suitcase out of the closet, put it on the bed, and started filling it with clothes

Tony went to the bedside phone and picked up the receiver "Line’s dead He hbor’s phone to report this"

"I’ it"

"Don’t worry," he said "All that’s changed I’ll support your story now"

"It’s too late for that," she said sharply

"What do you er with such a sudden tug that the hanger clattered to the closet floor

He said, "You’re not still planning to hide out in a hotel and hire private investigators"

"Oh, yes That’s exactly what I’ the blouse

"But I’ve said I believe you"

"And I said it’s too late for that Too late toso difficult?"

Hilary didn’t respond She placed the folded blouse in the suitcase and returned to the closet for other pieces of clothing

"Listen," Tony said, "all I did was express a few quite reasonable doubts The same doubts that anyone would have in a situation like this In fact, the same doubts that you would have expressed if I’d been the one who’d said he’d seen a deadIf our roles were reversed, I’d expect you to be skeptical I wouldn’t be furious with you Why are you so damned touchy?"

She came back from the closet with two more blouses and started to fold one of them She wouldn’t look at Tony "I trusted youwith everything," she said

"I haven’t violated any trust"

"You’re like everyone else"

"What happened at my apartment earlier--wasn’t that kind of special?"

She didn’t answer hiht--not just with your body, but with your heart, yourto tell me that was no different from what you feel with every man?"

Hilary tried to freeze him out She kept her eyes on her work, put the second blouse in the suitcase, began to fold the third Her hands were tre

"Well, it was special for me," Tony said, deterht it could he Not just the sex The being together The sharing You got inside me like no woman ever has before You took away a piece of ht, a piece ofvital For the rest ofto feel like a whole oing to just let you walk away, you’re in for a big surprise I’ll put up one hell of a fight to hold on to you, lady"

She had stopped folding the blouse She was just standing with it in her hands, staring down at it

Nothing in his entire life had see at thatat the blouse, she responded to him in a tremulous voice "Are commitments ever kept? Are promises between two people ever kept? Promises like this? When someone says, ’I love you,’ does he ever really ush about love one minute, then beat me black and blue a minute later, who the hell can I trust? You? Why should I? Isn’t it going to end in disappointment and pain? Doesn’t it always end that way? I’ood care of ht I just don’t want to be hurt anyhurt

Sick to death of it! I’ to make commitments and take risks I can’t I just can’t"

Tony went to her, gripped her by the shoulders, forced her to look at hiathered in the corners of her beautiful eyes, but she held the for me that I feel for you," he said "I know it I feel it I’ your back on me because I had some doubts about your story That doesn’t really have anything to do with it You’re turning your back onin love, and you are absolutely terrified of that Terrified because of your parents Because of what they did to you Because of all the beatings you took Because of a lot of other things you haven’t even told s for me because your rotten childhood left you emotionally crippled But you love me You do And you know it"

She couldn’t speak She shook her head: no, no, no

"Don’t tell me it isn’t true," he said "We need each other, Hilary I need you because all s--money, my career,relationships, but never to changing circumstances With you, because of you, for the very first ti to take a few tentative steps away fro on the public payroll And nohen I think seriously about painting for a living, I don’t start feeling guilty and lazy, like I used to I don’t always hear Papa’s lectures about money and responsibility and the cruelty of fate, like I used to When I dreaer auto all the financial crises our fah food, the times ere almost without a roof over our heads I’ enough to quit e God, no Not yet But because of you, I can now envision myself as a full-ti I couldn’t do a week ago"

Tears were streaood," she said "You’re a wonderful, sensitive artist"

"And you need me every bit asto build that shell a little thicker, a little harder You’re going to wind up alone and bitter You have always been able to take risks with things--money, your career But you haven’t been able to take chances with people You see? We’re opposites in that respect We complement each other We can teach each other so row It’s like ere each only half a person--

and noe’ve found ourhalves I’ around all our lives, groping in the dark, trying to find each other"