Page 97 of Grave Danger
He was about to answer, it seemed, but he stopped himself.
“There is a simple answer,” Farid said. “But so far, the information has flowed only one way in this conversation. I’ve opened myself up, and you won’t even tell me if you think Ava is alive or dead.”
“Like I told you: what I think doesn’t matter.”
“It matters tome,” said Farid.
“Why?”
“Until I heard the evidence in court, I was certain that Ava was still alive.”
He was plainly tired of her taking without giving, but Andie had to ask the obvious follow-up question—gently. “You’re not so certain anymore?”
“Your husband’s cross-examination of Imam Reza made me wonder. It may seem like a technicality to a non-Muslim, but Mr. Swyteck wasright. The imam would never have married me to Zahra so soon unless he believed Ava was dead.”
“Still, that’s not direct and incontrovertible proof of her death.”
“That’s why I’ve come to you. Your husband seems so certain that Ava is dead. Is he getting that information from you?”
“From me?”
“Does the US government know something I should know? Do they know Ava is dead?”
Andie couldn’t answer that question. The State Department dossier with Ava’s fingerprints on a visa application was classified.
“I can’t speak to you on behalf of the entire United States government.”
“I’m not asking you to be a spokesperson. I want to know how your husband has gotten the idea so firmly in his head that my wife is dead.”
Andie noted that he still referred to Ava as “my wife,” but she still hadn’t decided if it was about love or ownership.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I can’t help you. Your lawyer will have to speak to Jack about that.”
“I was hoping to get around the lawyers,” he said, rising. “But so be it.”
Andie rose too. “Thank you for coming, Mr. Bazzi.”
“You don’t believe a word I said, do you?”
Andie chose not to say. “Again, thank you for coming.”
Farid headed for the exit, opened the door, and then stopped.
“Persian women have the most beautiful hair,” he said. “In our culture, hair is one of the most recurring metaphors in poetry. It’s almost spiritual, the essence of a person’s soul. Ava had such beautiful hair. She sacrificed that beauty to keep her dignity. I don’t judge her for making that choice.”
Andie didn’t respond, but their gaze held for a moment. It wasn’t that Andie didn’t believe he was speaking the truth. She just wasn’t proud—let alone prepared toadmit—that in her world, there could be more than one “truth.”
Farid stepped out, and the door closed with a click of the electronic lock.
Chapter 33
Jack and Zahra were back in court on Wednesday, but not before Judge Carlton. This time, it was Florida state court, family law division.
The Lawson E. Thomas Courthouse was just a few blocks from the federal courthouse, but in every other respect, it was worlds away. Federal judges had the lifetime presidential appointment and all the prestige that came with it, but family division judges were in the trenches every day dealing with family matters—dissolutions of marriage, child custody and support, adoptions, paternity, and domestic violence. Jack had never appeared before a judge in the family division. It gave him a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach to think that, had things gone differently in counseling, Jack’s first appearance before Judge Lauren Carpenter could have been as a party, not a lawyer.
Jack shook off that thought. Zahra was his only concern. He’d heard good things about Judge Carpenter. She had more than a decade of experience, though Jack doubted that she’d ever presided over a case quite like this one.
“Counsel, I’ve handled a number of cases involving the enforcement of custody orders issued by courts in another country,” she said from the bench. “Canada. Mexico. Brazil. I think I even had one from Australia. But I must admit, this is the first one from Iran.”