“That’s too vague. I need to know now. It’s important.”
He spoke with such desperate urgency that Kendra felt compelled to explain herself quickly. “Fine. Take it easy. Your car has a nice dusting of rock salt all the way around. That may be common in other parts of the country at this time of year, but it’s extremely rare in Southern California. The San Bernardino Mountains have had record snowfall this week, and it’s probably the only place within hundreds of miles that has been salting the roads. You also have some on your shoes and the cuffs of your slacks. If you hadn’t come straight here, I know you well enough to know that you would have changed clothes or at least tried to wipe it off.”
Waldridge looked down at his shoes. “I didn’t think that it was that noticeable.”
“It isn’t. And I know you were just in London from your haircut. You’re very particular about the cut, and your stylist also has a specific way of sculpting the eyebrows. I can tell it’s just been cut. Within days of each of your haircuts, a stray lash or two appears between your eyebrows. There are none there. You’ve been in London in the past three or four days.”
“What about my phone calls?”
She could tell that was really bothering him. She hadn’t realized that it would upset him. She had known him so long, she had felt as if she could trust him to understand. “The opening of your right ear is red and slightly chafed. It’s a small area, just about the size of an earbud. If you had been listening to music, you probably would have been using both earphones, not just one. You pretty much confirmed it when I looked in my rearview mirror on the way here and saw you talking on it at a stoplight.”
“How did you know what I was talking about?”
She said simply, “I read your lips.”
He gazed at her in disbelief. “You can do that?”
“I guess I never told you. When I got my sight, I was amazed to discover the visual aspect of human speech, the whole interplay of tongue, lips, and teeth. It was fascinating to see what caused the sounds I’d been hearing my entire life. I just paid attention to what movements caused what sounds. After a couple years of studying that, I was pretty good at lipreading. It’s nothing I planned to do. It just happened.”
“Pretty good is right, but you’re not infallible,” Waldridge said sourly.
“I never said I was. Did I get a word wrong?”
Waldridge stared at her for a long moment. “Clever as always, Kendra. You’re always a surprise and experience for me. But you could get yourself into trouble.”
She grinned at him. “Well, I’m always doing that.”
“I’m serious. I shouldn’t have come. This was a bad idea.”
Her smile faded. “Talk to me. What’s going on?”
He shook his head. “Drop it please. It was a mistake.”
“I know you have a right to say that this is none of my business.” She was silent a moment, then she said with sudden passion, “But you’re wrong. You became my business when you gave me my sight. Nothing can ever change that. But if you don’t feel comfortable talking to me about this, so be it. I’ll try to back away.”
He pulled the napkin from his lap and tossed it onto the table. “Things aren’t as simple as they once were, Kendra. I wish they were, believe me. I think that’s why I wanted to see you. Seeing you takes me back to a happier time, when things were more clear-cut, black-and-white.”
“They were never that black-and-white for me.”
“Of course not. But from a purely scientific point of view, we saw a problem that needed to be solved, and we fixed it. You’re my greatest success, Kendra, and I will always feel good about that.”
“Even if you don’t feel good about what you’re working on now.”
“You’re guessing, and I’m not confirming.” He made a face. “I’ve said too much. Perhaps we should call it a night.”
She didn’t want to let him go. She felt frustrated, and the uneasiness was growing by the minute. But she could see by his guarded expression that he wasn’t going to tell her anything more. “Perhaps we should.”
Kendra paid the check, and they walked out to the valet stand in silence. After they handed their tickets to the attendant, Waldridge turned toward her. “Things aren’t always what they seem, Kendra. The Night Watch Project was formed to do great things, but there was more going on than any of us were aware. Even I didn’t know until much later that I couldn’t take pride in all of it. I hope you can forgive me.”
“Enough, Charles. Forgive you? You gave me the greatest gift anyone could ever give me.” She took a step closer, her eyes holding his own. “You have to talk to me about this.”
“I’m afraid I can’t.”
“Bullshit.”