by Mike Sherer
!
! Chapter(15(
!! A! full6size! dark! gray! government6issue! sedan! pulled!
alongside! as! I! walked! back! to! the! lot! where! I! left! my! car.! Mr.!
Clean— Taylor,* rhymes* with* sailor—jumped! out! while! the!
sedan! rolled! slowly,! keeping! pace.! He! wore! a! friendly! smile.!
Behind! the! wheel,! Drucker’s! face! carried! no! such! affability.!
Taylor! stepped! in! front! of! me,! impeding! my! progress.! The!
sedan!stopped!with!a!little!jerk.!!
!
Taylor!motioned!to!the!car.!“Get!in.”!
!
I! glanced! at! my! watch! and! sighed,! prospects! of! the! short!
nap!I’d!envisioned!before!work!quickly!dimming.!
!
“Why?”!
!
Drucker! leaned! across! the! seat! and! growled! through! the!
open!door.!“Just!get!in!the!car.”!
!
I!hesitated.!Taylor!took!a!step!and!clapped!a!friendly!hand!
on!my!shoulder,!steely!fingers!giving!it!a!quick!squeeze.!I!shook!
him! off.! He! tipped! his! head! and! gave! me! a! wink! his! partner!
couldn’t!see.!!
!
“Please,”!he!said.!!
!
Ignoring! the! flare! of! heat! coursing! through! my! limbs,! I!
stepped! off! the! curb,! opened! the! back! door,! folded! myself! in!
half! and! squeezed! in.! Taylor! shut! the! door! behind! me! and!
climbed! in! front.! Drucker! checked! his! mirror! and! stepped! on!
the! gas.! The! car! spurted! ahead! with! a! chirp! of! tires! on!
pavement,!rocking!me!back!against!the!seat.!
!
“What!do!you!guys!want?”!I!said.!!
!
Drucker’s! eyes! met! mine! in! the! rearview! mirror,! but!
neither!one!answered.!
!
I!looked!out!the!window.!“This!is!a!waste!of!time.!I!already!
told!you!what!I!know.”!!
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!
A! waste! of! breath,! too,! apparently.! Five! minutes! later,!
Drucker! pulled! into! the! parking! garage! beneath! the! federal!
building!downtown,!wound!down!several!subterranean!levels!
and!parked.!They!escorted!me!to!the!elevators!and!whisked!me!
to! a! small! conference! room! on! an! upper! floor.! Taylor! offered!
me! coffee.! Drucker! offered! nothing! but! sour! expressions! that!
gave!the!impression!he!suffered!from!constipation.!
!
I! sprawled! in! a! chair.! Drucker! paced! on! the! other! side! of!
the! small! table.! Taylor! leaned! against! a! far! wall,! arms! folded,!
ankles!crossed.!
!
“You’re! in! some! serious! trouble,! Mr.! Sanders,”! Drucker!
said.!
!
“Why?!What!have!I!done?”!
!
“Interfered!with!a!federal!investigation,!for!starters.”!
!
“That!is!such!bullshit.!How?!You!guys!came!and!pounded!
on! my! door,! woke! me! up,! asked! some! questions.! I! gave! you!
answers,!and!you!left.”!!
!
Careful. ! I! took! a! deep! cleansing! breath— dirgha*
pranayama.!!
!
“You! need! to! tell! us! a! little! more! about! your! relationship!
with! Perry! Langford,”! he! said,! jaw! jutting! beneath! a!
downturned!mouth.!
!
“We!went!through!this.!What’s!to!tell?”!
!
“Oh,! maybe! the! fact! that! on! at! least! one! occasion! back! in!
high! school,! you! helped! Langford! rig! locker! doors! with!
nitrogen!tri6iodine,!blowing!several!half!off!their!hinges.!Or!the!
fact! that! you! helped! him! build! or! set! off! explosive! devices! on!
dozens! of! other! occasions.! Homemade! cannons,! fireworks,!
guns,!contact!explosives—a!regular!arms!depot!for!a!couple!of!
juvenile!terrorists.”!
!
“We!were!kids.!Sure,!we!set!off!some!firecrackers,!shot!up!
some!tin!cans!with!BB!guns.!Terrorists?!Give!me!a!break.!The!
Bush!years!made!all!you!guys!paranoid.”!
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!
!Drucker!put!his!hands!on!the!table!and!leaned!toward!me.!
“When! I! was! a! kid,! Mr.! Sanders,! ‘kids’! blew! up! buildings! on!
college! campuses! across! the! country.! ‘Kids’! killed! people!
blowing! up! shit.! Now,! half! a! dozen! or! more! kids! around! the!
world!blow!themselves!up!every!day,!taking!dozens!of!people!
with!them.!It’s!our! job!to!take!terrorism!seriously.”!
!
I! shook! my! head.! “Practical! jokes,! sure.! We! pulled! our!
share.!We!never!hurt!anyone.”!
!
Drucker! straightened.! “Where! were! you! the! night!
Langford!blew!up!the!SIUC!lab?”!
!
I! blinked,! and! clamped! my! jaw! shut! to! keep! from!
answering,! fishing! through! a! school! of! thoughts! like! a! greedy!
shark,! watching! them! all! dart! just! out! of! reach! before! I! could!
sink!my!teeth!into!one.!
!
“It’s!an!easy!question,!Mr.!Sanders.!We!know!you!weren’t!
here!at!U.W.!at!the!time.”!
!
I!snapped!at!a!passing!tuna.!“I!never!said!I!was.”!!
!
He!looked!as!if!he!was!about!to!contradict!me,!and!thought!
better!of!it.!
!
I! rubbed! my! jaw.! “Been! a! long! time.! If! I! remember!
correctly,!I!was!at!home.!Asleep.”!
!
“In!Centralia.!Witnesses!who!can!vouch!for!you,!of!course.”!
!
I! shrugged.! “My! mom,! I! suppose.”! Back! then! she’d! had!
ways!of!knowing!if!I’d!sneaked!out!of!the!house.!She!wouldn’t!
be!of!any!help!to!Drucker!now,!though.!Alzheimer’s!had!robbed!
her!of!most!of!her!memories.!
!
“What! is! that,”! he! said,! “an! hour! or! so! from! Southern!
Illinois?”!
!
“I!suppose.!About!eighty!miles,!I!think.”!
!
“You!think?”!
!
“I!didn’t!have!much!reason!to!go!to!Carbondale.”!
!
“You! never! visited! Langford! down! there?! Your! childhood!
buddy?”!!
!
“I!may!have.”!
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!
He! clenched! his! jaw! and! tugged! at! the! corner! of! his!
mustache.! Taylor! stood! attentively! now,! less! relaxed,! muscles!
bunched!under!the!fabric!of!his!suit,!smile!gone.!
!
“What!do!you!really!want?”!I!said.!
!
“We!want!to!know!where!Langford!is,”!Drucker!said.!
!
“This!is!getting!really!boring.”!!
!
His!eyes!sparked.!A!muscle!along!his!jaw!twitched.!A!watch!
ticked!loudly,!and!a!pirr!softly!hissed!from!an!overhead!vent.!
!
“We! don’t! think! your! buddy! pulled! off! that! bombing!
alone,”!he!said!finally.!“He!had!a!partner,!or!partners.”!
!
My!thoughts!flashed!back!to!nighttime!images!of!four!men!
in!black.!
!
Taylor! threw! in! his! two! cents! from! the! side.! “Now! he!
wants!revenge.”!!
!
“Or!the!truth,!maybe,”!I!said,!heat!rising!into!my!face.!“He!
always!said!he!was!innocent.”!
!
“Based! on! what! we! know,! he’s! out! for! blood,”! Drucker!
went!on.!“If!it!wasn’t!you,!then!we!want!to!know!who,!before!
Langford!starts!killing!people.!For!all!we!know!that!still!may!be!
you.!Now!are!you!going!to!tell!us!where!he!is?!Or!do!you!want!
to!be!an!accomplice!to!murder?”!
!
I! gritted! my! teeth.! “How! do! I! make! it! any! plainer! than! ‘I!
don’t!know’?”!
!
He! considered! me.! “You! were! involved! in! a! shooting! two!
days!ago,”!he!said.!
!
The! sudden! change! of! subject! threw! me.! Sweat! dripped!
down!my!sides,!and!blood!thrummed!in!my!veins.!
!
“If!you!don’t!cooperate!with!us,!Mr.!Sanders,!we’ll!charge!
you! with! gun! violations,! take! you! down! to! FDC! and! lock! you!
up.”!
!
I! looked! from! one! to! the! other.! Taylor! glanced! at! his!
partner! and! nodded.! The! Federal! Detention! Center! in! SeaTac!
just! south! of! the! airport! might! be! moderately! more!
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comfortable!than!King!County!lockup,!but!jail!was!jail.!I!didn’t!
relish!another!stay.!
!
“Are! you! nuts?”! I! said.! “I! am! cooperating.! I! already! got! a!
pass!on!the!shooting.!It!was!self6defense.”!
!
Drucker! hardened! his! stare.! “Unlawful! discharge! of! a!
weapon.! Using! a! concealed! pistol! without! a! license.! Hell,! we!
might! even! throw! in! assault.”! He! turned! to! Taylor.! “He!
assaulted!you!back!there!on!the!street,!right?!I!saw!it.”!!
!
I!folded!my!arms!tight,!holding!everything!in,!and!searched!
for!a! drishti.!“Are!you!charging!me,!or!am!I!free!to!go?”!
!
Drucker’s!dark!skin!turned!a!mottled!purple.!“I!can!get!the!
paperwork!started!if!you!want.”!
!
Taylor! patted! the! air.! “Let’s! not! rush! it.”! To! me! he! said,!
“You’re!not!under!arrest.”!
!
I!stood.!
!
“Sit!”!Drucker!said,!the!command!a!pistol!shot!in!the!small!
room.!
!
“I’d! like! to! call! an! attorney! now,”! I! said,! lowering! myself!
back!into!the!seat.!
!
Taylor! pushed! away! from! the! wall! and! put! his! hand! on!
Drucker’s! shoulder.! “That’s! it,! Fred.! We’re! done! for! the! time!
being.”!!
!
He!rounded!the!table,!lifted!a!black!extension!phone!from!
a!side!table!and!set!it!down!in!front!of!me.!Drucker!didn’t!take!
his!eyes!off!my!face!the!whole!time.!When!I!lifted!the!handset!
he!rose!and!turned!for!the!door.!!
!
Molly! wasn’t! happy! to! hear! about! my! circumstances,! but!
since!she!was!a!partner!at!one!of!the!city’s!biggest!law!firms,!I!
knew!she!could!hook!me!up!with!someone!who’d!get!me!out!of!
this! jam.! And! since! we! were! still! on! pretty! good! speaking!
terms,! even! after! our! divorce,! I! figured! she’d! at! least! be!
sympathetic.!
!
She!showed!up!in!person!fifteen!minutes!later,!two!spots!
high!on!her!freckled!cheeks!glowing!red!against!her!pale!skin,!
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whether!from!a!brisk!five6block!walk!or!anger!hard!to!tell.!She!
frowned! at! me! when! Taylor! showed! her! into! the! conference!
room,!but!saved!her!most!annihilative!gaze!for!the!two!agents.!
They!shuffled!out!reluctantly.!!
!
“I!thought!you’d!send!Cabot,”!I!said.!“I!didn’t!mean!to!pull!
you!away.”!
!
Annoyance!flashed!across!her!features.!“Really,!Blake,!it’s!
bad! enough! you! get! yourself! into! these! situations.! The! senior!
partners!would!have!fits!if!I!asked!Jeffrey!to!bail!you!out!every!
time!you!got!into!trouble.!This!is!easier.”!
!
I!bit!back!the!impulse!to!respond!with!some!clever!dig!of!
my! own,! and! quickly! brought! Molly! up! to! date! without!
prompting.!
!
“You!can’t!tell!them!anything?”!she!asked!when!I!finished.!
“Or!won’t?”!
!
“I!can’t.!I!have!no!clue!where!Wink!is.!Hadn’t!even!thought!
of! the! guy! in! years! until! the! other! day.! How! can! I! give! these!
guys!what!they!want!if!I!don’t!know!anything?”!
!
She!nibbled!the!end!of!the!pen!she!used!to!take!notes.!
!
“I! told! you! about! Wink,”! I! said,! as! if! that! would! explain!
everything.!
!
She! looked! up.! “Not! much.! I! remember! a! few! stories! you!
shared! when! we! first! met,! about! when! you! were! kids.! You!
never!talked!about!him!after!he!went!to!jail.!I!always!wondered!
why!you!never!tried!to!get!in!touch.”!
!
I!raised!my!hands.!“What!was!the!point?”!
!
“I! don’t! know.! Show! some! sympathy,! a! little! support! for!
someone! you! said! used! to! be! a! pretty! important! part! of! your!
life.”!
!
I!didn’t!have!a!response.!
!
She! reached! across! the! table! and! put! a! hand! on! my! arm.!
“I’m!sorry,!by!the!way,!about!what!happened!to!Charlie.!And!to!
you.!Are!you!okay?”!
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!
I!looked!across!Puget!Sound!at!the!snow6capped!Olympic!
Mountains!in!the!distance.!!
!
“Yeah,!I!guess.”!I!left!it!there.!!
!
She! nodded.! “Let! me! go! see! what! it! is! they! want! to! hold!
you!on.”!
!
While! she! was! gone,! I! studied! the! spare! room—round!
table! with! faux! wood! finish,! swivel! chairs! upholstered! with! a!
nubby!fabric!a!color!that!could!only!be!called!puce,!small!glass6
topped! table! against! a! wall! topped! with! the! phone! I’d! used,!
beige! vertical! blinds! on! the! window,! white! walls,! gray!
industrial! carpet.! My! mind! focused! on! none! of! these! things,!
flitting! instead! to! a! hundred! other! unrelated! thoughts,! a!
hummingbird! moving! from! flower! to! flower,! hovering! only!
long! enough! to! fuel! up! for! the! flight! to! the! next! beckoning!
blossom.!I!needed!sleep,!or!another!dose!of!meds.!
!
Molly! reappeared! alone,! and! gathered! up! her! purse! and!
briefcase.!!
!
“You!can!go,”!she!said.!
!
I!looked!at!her!blankly.!“The!charges…?”!
!
“All!a!bunch!of!crap.!The!gun!violations!they!cited!are!state!
law,!not!federal.!And!they’re!so!flimsy,!given!the!circumstances!
they’d!never!stand!up.!I’m!assumi
ng!you!didn’t!assault!or!resist!
Special!Agent!Taylor—you!didn’t,!did!you?!Anyway,!they!didn’t!
bring!it!up,!so!you’re!clear!there.!And,!as!you!pointed!out,!you!
came!here!on!your!own!volition,!so!you’re!not!obstructing!their!
investigation.”!
!
She!turned!for!the!door.!!
!
“Thanks,!Molly.”!
!
She!looked!back!over!her!shoulder,!a!storm!raging!across!
her!face.!“I!don’t!know!what!this!is!about,!but!the!FBI!isn’t!after!
your! friend! just! because! he! violated! parole.! They’d! let! the!
locals!worry!about!him.!If!I!were!you,!I’d!stay!away!from!this.!
Don’t!go!looking!for!him,!Blake.!Stay!as!far!away!from!him!as!
you!can.”!
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!
I!didn’t!make!any!promises.!She!finally!broke!eye!contact.!
When!she!met!my!gaze!again,!her!eyes!filled!with!sadness.!
!
“I!can’t!do!this!anymore,!Blake,”!she!said,!her!voice!barely!
above!a!whisper.!“I’m!trying!to!move!on.!I!don’t!want!to!rescue!
you!anymore.!Stop!calling!me.”!
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!
! Chapter(16(
!! Worrisome!as!her!last!words!were,!I!took!Molly’s!advice,!
and!went!to!visit!Charlie.!His!pallor!hadn’t!improved!much,!and!
he! didn’t! seem! as! happy! to! see! me.! Eyes! dull! like! before,! the!
grimace!on!his!face!now!said!pain,!not!drugs,!leached!them!of!
their! luster.! He! shifted! position,! wincing! with! the! effort,! and!
fell! back! against! the! pillows.! His! groping! fingers! found! the!
control!unit,!tethered!by!its!cord!to!the!bed!rail.!He!pushed!a!
button! and! the! head! of! the! bed! raised! him! into! a! sitting!
position!with!a!loud!hum.!
!
“This!sucks,”!he!said,!his!voice!scratchy.!
!
“No!visitors?”!
!
“Bunch! of! guys! were! here! earlier,! after! the! end! of! first!
shift.”!
!
I!looked!around!the!empty!room.!“Where’s!Sarah?”!
!
“Taking!a!break.!My!orders.!Told!her!to!go!get!some!sleep.”!
!
“Good!advice.”!
!
“She!probably!went!for!a!walk!to!get!more!coffee.”!
!
“Stubborn.!Like!her!brother.”!
!
He!glared!at!me.!“You!better!watch!yourself!around!her.”!
!
“What!do!you!mean?”!
!
“I! know! you’re! newly! single! again! and! all,! but! she’s! not.!
She’s! got! a! life.! Tim’s! a! good! man.! Bit! of! a! nerd,! but! steady.!
Good!father.!Don’t!screw!that!up.”!
!
My! shoulders! rose! up! around! my! ears,! my! hands! turned!