Memories of Midnight

They reached their suite, and Reynolds opened the door and turned on the lights. They walked into the bedroom and Catherine stared at the large bed. It seemed to take up the whole room.

Kirk was watching her. "Catherine…are you worried about anything?"

"What?" A hollow little laugh. "Of course not. I…I just…"

"Just what?"

She gave him a bright smile. "Nothing. I’m fine."

"Good. Let’s get undressed and go to bed."

Exactly what I knew he was going to say. But did he have to say it? We could have just gone ahead and done it. Putting it in words is so…so…crass.

"What did you say?"

Catherine had not realized that she had spoken aloud. "Nothing."

Catherine had reached the bed. It was the largest she had ever seen. It was a bed that had been built for lovers, and lovers only. It was not a bed to sleep in. It was a bed to…

"Aren’t you going to get undressed, darling?"

Am I? How long has it been since I slept with a man? More than a year. And he was my husband.

"Cathy…?"

"Yes." I’m going to get undressed, and I’m going to get into bed, and I’m going to disappoint you. I’m not in love with you, Kirk. I can’t sleep with you.

"Kirk…"

He turned to her, half undressed. "Yes?"

"Kirk, I…Forgive me. You’re going to hate me, but I…I can’t. I’m terribly sorry. You must think I’m…"

She saw the look of disappointment on his face. He forced a smile. "Cathy, I told you I’d be patient. If you’re not ready yet, I…I understand. We can still have a wonderful time here."

She kissed his cheek gratefully. "Oh, Kirk. Thank you. I feel so ridiculous. I don’t know what’s the matter with me."

"There’s nothing the matter with you," he assured her. "I understand."

She hugged him. "Thank you. You’re an angel."

"Meanwhile," he sighed, "I’ll sleep on the couch in the living room."

"No, you won’t," Catherine declared. "Since I’m the one responsible for this dumb problem, the least I can do is see that you’re comfortable. I’ll sleep on the couch. You take the bed."

"Absolutely not."

Catherine lay on the bed, wide awake, thinking about Kirk Reynolds. Will I ever be able to make love with another man? Or has Larry burned that out of me? Maybe, in a way, Larry did manage to kill me, after all. Finally, Catherine slept.

Kirk Reynolds was awakened in the middle of the night by the screams. He sat straight up on the couch, and as the screams continued, he hurried into the bedroom.

Catherine was flailing about on the bed, her eyes tightly closed. "No," she was yelling. "Don’t! Don’t! Leave me alone!"

Reynolds knelt down and put his arms around her and held her close. "Shhh," he said. "It’s all right. It’s all right."

Catherine’s body was wracked with sobs, and he held her close until they subsided.

"They – tried to drown me."

"It was only a dream," he said soothingly. "You had a bad dream."

Catherine opened her eyes and sat up. Her body was trembling. "No, it wasn’t a dream. It was real. They tried to kill me."

Kirk was looking at her, puzzled. "Who tried to kill you?"

"My…my husband and his mistress."

He shook his head. "Catherine, you had a nightmare, and…"

"I’m telling you the truth. They tried to murder me, and they were executed for it."

Kirk’s face was filled with disbelief. "Catherine…"

"I didn’t tell you before, because it’s…it’s painful for me to talk about it."

He suddenly realized that she was serious. "What happened?"

"I wouldn’t give Larry a divorce, and he…he was in love with another woman, and they decided to murder me."

Kirk was listening intently now. "When was this?"

"A year ago."

"What happened to them?"

"They were – they were executed by the state."

He raised a hand. "Wait a minute. They were executed for attempting to kill you?"

"Yes."

Reynolds said, "I’m not an expert on Greek law, but I’m willing to bet that there’s no death sentence for attempted murder. There has to be some mistake. I know a lawyer in Athens. Actually, he works for the state. I’ll give him a call in the morning, and clear this up. His name is Peter Demonides."

Catherine was still asleep when Kirk Reynolds awakened. He dressed quietly and went into the bedroom. He stood there a moment, looking down at Catherine. I love her so much. I have to find out what really happened, and clear the shadows away for her.

Kirk Reynolds went down to the hotel lobby and placed a phone call to Athens. "I’d like to make it person-to-person, operator. I want to speak with Peter Demonides."

The call came through half an hour later.

"Mr. Demonides? This is Kirk Reynolds. I don’t know whether you remember me, but…"

"Of course I do. You work for Constantin Demiris."

"Yes."

"What can I do for you, Mr. Reynolds?"

"Forgive me for bothering you. I’m a bit puzzled about some information I just came across. It involves a point of Greek law."

"I know a little bit about Greek law," Demonides said jovially. "I’ll be happy to help you."

"Is there anything in your law that allows someone to be executed for attempted murder?"

There was a long silence on the other end of the line. "May I ask why you are inquiring?"

"I’m with a woman named Catherine Alexander. She seems to think that her husband and his mistress were executed by the state for trying to kill her. It doesn’t sound logical. Do you see what I mean?"