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grad! student! who! was! killed! in! the! explosion.”! He! stopped!
abruptly!and!faced!me.!“Anything!else?”!
!
“Yeah,!you!said!something!about!a!shaped!charge.!Do!you!
remember!what!kind!of!explosive!was!used?”!
!
“C6Four.”!
!
“Military!stuff.”!
!
“Looked!like.”!
!
I! started! to! think! about! that,! but! filed! it! away! for! later.!
“Thanks.!Appreciate!your!help.”!
!
“Good!luck.”!He!turned!and!strode!away.!
!
The! sun! hammered! down! relentlessly! on! my! head! and!
shoulders,! slowly! beating! me! into! submission,! tenderizing!
exposed!flesh,!turning!it!pink.!The!cloying!humidity!plastered!
clothing! to! my! body! and! left! a! damp! sheen! on! my! skin.! I’d!
forgotten! how! oppressive! summers! could! be! in! southern!
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Illinois,! had! grown! accustomed! to! the! drier,! cooler! air! of!
Seattle!summers,!a!secret!we!kept!from!the!outside!world.!
!
I! thought! of! the! potential! risks! that! awaited! me! back!
home—trigger6happy! commandos;! a! pissed6off! former! friend;!
a! woman,! not! scorned! exactly,! but! temporarily! abandoned;! a!
pair! of! unhappy! federal! agents;! a! disgruntled! ex6wife;! a!
wounded! friend! and! his! anxious! sister.! I! considered! staying,!
returning! to! the! land! of! my! youth,! starting! over.! Plenty! of!
people!lived!in!one!town!all!their!lives.!Many!who!traveled!the!
world!returned!to!their!roots,!settled!down,!contributed!to!the!
community,!made!their!hometowns!better!places!to!live.!
!
I!climbed!into!the!cramped!oven!of!a!rental!car!and!turned!
over!the!ignition.!A!couple!of!passing!students!glanced!through!
the!glass,!checking!my!degree!of!doneness.!As!soon!as!the!air!
conditioning! kicked! in,! rational! thought! returned.! Whoever!
had! tried! to! kill! me! wouldn’t! give! up! simply! because! I!
inconveniently! changed! locales.! The! clincher! was! the! damn!
heat.! It! was! bad! enough! to! drive! anyone! loony.! Carbondale,!
Centralia—there!was!nothing!for!me!in!those!places!anymore.!I!
backed!out!of!my!parking!slot,!put!the!car!in!gear!and!headed!
for!the!interstate.!
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!
!
Chapter&26&
!
!
He! swung! the! eight6pound! maul! high! over! his! head! and!
brought!it!down!hard,!hitting!the!log!exactly!where!he’d!aimed.!
With!a!satisfying! thunk!and!a!loud!crack,!he!drove!the!head!of!
the!maul!all!the!way!through!to!the!stump!below,!splitting!the!
log!cleanly.!Turning!the!length!that!was!left,!he!swung!the!maul!
again! and! split! that,! too.! Though! the! sun! hadn’t! yet! burned!
through! the! overcast,! he! was! shirtless,! sweat! running! in!
rivulets! down! the! center! of! his! sternum! and! the! hollow!
between!his!abs,!tickling!as!it!descended!into!the!thin!stripe!of!
hair!below!his!navel.!Lean!and!wiry,!Langford!had!never!been!
in! better! physical! condition.! He! smiled! wryly.! He’d! had! too!
much!time!on!his!hands!in!prison.!
!
The! work! was! mindless,! physically! satisfying,! but! he!
couldn’t! stop! thinking! about! his! quandary! for! long.! He’d!
reached!an!impasse.!He!wasn’t!sure!he!could!get!anything!else!
from!the!two!people!restrained!in!the!cabin.!They!were!wily,!a!
little! desperate,! and! both! had! lied! through! their! teeth! at!
various!points!in!their!confinement.!He’d!done!his!best!to!keep!
them!separated!ever!since!he’d!abducted!them,!and!the!strain!
of!being!taken!captive!had!taken!a!psychological!toll.!He!hadn’t!
given! them! a! clue! to! his! identity! or! a! reason! for! kidnapping!
them.!Short!of!physical!torture,!he!didn’t!think!he!could!chivvy!
anything!more!that!might!be!useful.!The!question!was!whether!
he!was!willing!to!take!that!step,!or,!if!not,!what!the!hell!to!do!
with!them.!
!
He! set! another! log! on! the! stump! and! split! it! into! thirds!
with! three! well6placed! blows,! feeling! his! muscles! ripple! from!
his! calves! up! through! his! back,! shoulders! and! out! to! his!
fingertips!as!he!swung!the!maul.!He!carried!the!split!logs!to!a!
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neat! pile! between! two! trees! and! stacked! them.! As! he! walked!
back!for!more!he!felt!his!cell!phone!vibrate!in!the!pocket!of!his!
jeans.!Frowning,!he!pulled!it!out!and!looked!at!the!display.!The!
number! was! blocked.! He’d! shared! the! number! with! only! one!
person.! He! opened! the! connection! and! held! the! phone! to! his!
ear!without!speaking.!
!
“Perry,!Jeff!Holden!here.”!
!
Langford!silently!breathed!a!sigh!of!relief.!“Yes?”!
!
“I’ll!keep!it!short!in!case!anyone’s!listening.!Legs!was!here.!
Looking!for!you.”!
!
“Sanders?!What’d!he!want?”!!
!
“Said!the!Fibbies!came!and!talked!to!him!about!you.!I!don’t!
know! where! you! are,! and! I! don’t! want! to,! but! thought! you!
should!know!I!told!him!about!the!old!family!vacation!place.”!
!
Langford!thought!it!through.!He!didn’t!have!much!time.!If!
Legs! came! looking! for! him,! God! knows! who! might! come!
waltzing!in!on!his!tail.!It!might!be!time!to!do!something!about!
that.!
!
“You!good?”!Holden!asked.!
!
“Yeah,!I’m!okay.”!
!
“Don’t!hesitate!to!call!if!there’s!trouble.”!
!
“Thanks,! Jeff,! for! the! heads6up.”! Langford! shoved! the!
phone!in!his!pocket,!grabbed!his!shirt!and!strode!purposefully!
back!to!the!cabin.!!
*!*!*!*!*!
!
A!nonstop!flight!out!of!St.!Louis!put!me!in!Seattle!at!around!
ten! that! night.! I! hadn’t! left! the! heat! behind.! A! low6pressure!
trough! had! moved! through! the! state! and! now! hovered! over!
Kalispell,! Montana.! High! pressure! had! taken! its! place! over!
western! Washington,! the! combination! sucking! warm! air! up!
over! the! Pacific! from! the! southwest.! In! the! winter,! it’s! called!
the! Pineapple! Express,! bringing! exceptionally! wet,! windy!
weather.!In!the!summer,!it!brings!humid!heat.!Uncharacteristic!
for!June!in!Seattle,!the!temperature!had!topped!out!in!the!high!
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80s,! according! to! the! pilot’s! announcement! when! we! landed.!
Records! close! to! triple! digits! were! predicted! for! Monday! and!
Tuesday.!!
!
I!took!a!cab!into!the!city!and!directed!the!driver!up!Capitol!
Hill! and! down! the! street! where! I’d! parked! my! car! two! nights!
before.!It!seemed!like!a!week.!I!told!the!cabbie!to!drive!slowly!
&n
bsp; up! the! block,! and! checked! the! car! for! signs! of! a! ticket! or!
tampering! as! we! passed.! A! few! blocks! up,! I! had! him! circle!
around!and!come!down!the!street!the!opposite!direction,!this!
time!looking!for!any!signs!someone!was!watching!the!car.!
!
The! cabbie! dropped! me! off! two! blocks! away,! and! I! went!
back! on! foot.! I! passed! the! car! without! stopping,! walking!
casually,! but! alert! to! the! surroundings.! Behind! me,! Broadway!
hummed! with! traffic,! the! sidewalks! crowded! with! the! usual!
mix! of! gays,! Goths,! gawkers! and! gourmands! patronizing! the!
restaurants! and! shops! or! just! checking! out! the! scene.! The!
excess! spilled! over! onto! side! streets,! giving! me! plenty! of!
company.!
!
The! warm! weather! had! brought! out! more! people! than!
usual.!Even!in!the!dog!days!of!summer,!temperatures!in!Seattle!
rarely!exceeded!eighty6five!degrees,!and!nights!cooled!down!to!
comfortable!levels!quickly.!Few!people!had!air6conditioning,!at!
least! those! in! older! houses! and! apartment! buildings.! Now!
many! ventured! out! to! avoid! oven6like! apartments.! My! gaze!
swung!from!parked!cars!to!upper!windows!of!buildings!lining!
the! street,! open! to! catch! any! faint! breeze.! Seeing! nothing!
unusual,!I!backtracked,!unlocked!the!car,!swung!my!overnight!
bag!in!the!back!seat!and!got!in.!
!
Saturday!night.!All!dressed!up!with!no!place!to!go.!And!no!
date.! My! jaw! shuddered! in! an! attempt! to! stifle! a! yawn! as! a!
rising!tide!of!exhaustion!filled!me.!I!leaned!over!and!retrieved!a!
spare! bottle! of! meds! from! the! glove! compartment,! popped! a!
pill!in!my!mouth!and!swallowed!it!dry.!I!turned!over!the!engine!
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and!drove!down!to!the!warehouse!in!Ballard,!stopping!once!to!
pick!up!a!sandwich!and!coffee.!
!
The!trucks!hadn’t!arrived!from!the!printing!plant!yet,!so!I!
sat!in!the!car!and!ate!slowly.!The!lot!gradually!filled!with!cars.!
A! couple! of! them! were! SUVs,! but! carrying! only! a! driver,! and!
none!painted!shiny!black.!Not!long!after,!trucks!pulled!into!the!
lot!and!jockeyed!into!position.!Forklifts!converged!on!the!dock!
and!off6loaded!the!papers,!and!men!drifted!from!their!vehicles!
toward!the!brightly!lit!building.!I!joined!them!and!checked!in!
with!the!shift!supervisor!for!my!route!list,!got!a!cart!and!went!
to!work.!!
!
My!papers!were!almost!assembled!and!ready!to!load!when!
Chance! showed! up.! Eyeliner! still! darkened! his! eyes,! but! he’d!
scrubbed!the!pancake!off!his!face,!revealing!dark!stubble!along!
his!jaw.!Vinous!polish!covered!his!nails.!A!slender!Vietnamese!
boy!at!another!table!eyed!him!from!behind!with!a!fey!smile!as!
Chance!approached!me.!
!
“What! are! you! doing! here?”! Chance! said.! “I! thought! you!
were!out!of!town.”!
!
“Got! in! after! ten.! Thought! I! might! as! well! work.! Sorry! I!
didn’t!call.”!
!
“Why!didn’t!you?”!
!
“I! didn’t! want! to! bug! you! at! the! club,! and! wanted! to! see!
you!anyway.!Hope!you!don’t!mind.”!
!
He!tilted!his!head.!“You!all!right,!doll?”!
!
I!sighed.!“Been!a!long!couple!of!days.!I!don’t!like!spending!
that!much!time!with!an!airplane!strapped!to!my!ass.”!
!
“Where’d!you!go?”!
!
“Home.”!
!
He! shook! his! head.! “Oh,! Blake,! honey,! don’t! you! know!
Dorothy!had!it!all!wrong?!There’s!no!going!back.”!
!
“I!wasn’t!trying!to!relive!my!glory!days.!I!was!just!trying!to!
get!a!line!on!a!guy.”!
!
“Switching!teams?”!The!corners!of!his!mouth!turned!up.!
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!
“You’ll!be!the!first!person!I!call!if!I!do.!No,!an!old!friend.”!
!
He! glanced! at! the! stacks! of! assembled! papers.! “So,! you!
don’t!need!me,!then?”!
!
“I!do,!actually.!I’m!running!on!fumes.!I!could!use!the!help,!if!
only!to!keep!me!awake.”!
!
Chance! stepped! up! to! the! table,! grabbed! an! armful! of!
papers!and!laid!them!on!the!cart.!I!followed!suit,!and!moments!
later! we! wheeled! the! cart! out! of! the! warehouse! into! the!
parking!lot.!
!
“My!car!or!yours?”!Chance!said.!!
!
“Yours,!if!you!don’t!mind.”!I!didn’t!tell!him!why.!
!
Still! buzzed! from! working! the! club,! he! kept! up! a! lively!
patter! about! the! show.! He’d! changed! it! some,! adding! more!
stand6up,!a!couple!of!new!songs,!and!it!seemed!to!be!working.!
Weekend! crowds! were! bigger,! Toji! was! selling! more! drinks,!
and!everyone!was!happy.!!
!
“I’m! surprised! anyone! in! the! club! knows! who! Carol!
Channing!is,”!I!said.!“Aren’t!they!all!a!little!young?”!
!
“You’ve! got! to! be! kidding,! doll.! A:! she! was! born! here! in!
Seattle.!And!two:!she’s!one!of!the!biggest!gay!rights!supporters!
out!there.!You!really!did!come!from!a!turnip!patch,!didn’t!you?”!
!
“Sorry.!I!didn’t!know.!Cole!was!never!into!show!tunes.!Just!
sports.”!
!
It!didn’t!make!any!difference!whether!Cole!had!been!a!fan!
of!Barbra!or!Beckham.!He!was!gone.!The!memory!clawed!at!the!
inside! of! my! chest.! Chance! threw! a! quick! glance! my! way! and!
motored! on,! chatting! about! nothing,! yet! everything! that! was!
important—friends,! small! triumphs,! compassionate! gestures,!
the! business! of! everyday! living.! I! was! glad! of! the! company.!
Chance! drove,! animatedly! gesturing! with! alternate! hands! as!
the! words! tumbled! out! of! his! mouth.! In! the! passenger! seat,! I!
folded! and! stuffed! newspapers! into! plastic! sleeves,! read!
recipients’! street! addresses! off! to! Chance,! and! tossed! papers!
out!the!window.!!
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!
The! work! went! quickly! with! two! people.! I! ticked! off! the!
addresses! on! the! list! until! soon! the! end! of! the! route! was! in!
sight.!I!couldn’t!avoid!it!any!longer.!
!
“You! and! Peter! okay?”! I! said! during! a! lull! in! Chance’s!
monologue.!
!
“Good.!Why?”!
!
I!saw!him!shrug.!“No!excitement!while!I!was!gone?”!
!
“The!usual.”!He!glanced!at!me.!“What!do!you!mean?”!
!
“No!one!came!looking!for!me?”!
!
His!head!tipped!and!his!eyes!rolled.!“Oh,!that.”!
!
My!shoulders!tensed.!
!
He! put! a! fist! in! his! mouth! to! stifle! a! yawn.! “I’m! sure! you!
find!it!exciting—about!time!you!got!laid—but!it’s!T.M.I.!as!far!
as! we’re! concerned,! Blake.! I’m! happy! for! you,! but! don’t! need!
the!details!of!your!love!life,!thanks.”!
!
“A!woman!named!Keely?”!
!
“That’s! the! one.! Wanted! us! to! be! sure! to! tell! you! she!
stopped!by.!Said!she!was!worried!about!you.!Something!about!
not!telling!her!where!you!were?!I!didn’t!tell!her!you!were!out!of!
town.”!
!
“She!gave!you!details?”!
!
He!shook!his!head.!“Didn’t!have!to.!If!she!hadn’t!seemed!so!
put! out,! she! would! have! positively! glowed.! Morning6after!
regret,!honey?”!
!
I! shook! my! head! then! stopped.! “I’m! not! sure.! She! seems!
nice!enough.”!
!
“But?”!!
!
I! could! have! offered! up! one! of! half! a! dozen! answers,! but!
didn’t! know! if! any! were! right.! Molly’s! face! popped! into! my!
head,!and!again!Reyna!Chase’s!crowded!it!out,!large!dark!eyes!
challenging!me,!full!lips!mouthing!a!soundless!question.!I!said!
nothing.!
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!
“Maybe!you’re!not!ready!yet,”!Chance!said.!“Or!maybe!you!
call! this! woman,! apologize! like! a! gentleman! and! see! where! it!
goes.”!
!
“Maybe.”!
!
We!finished!the!route!in!silence.!Chance!idled!at!the!curb!
after! I! tossed! the! last! paper! into! a! subscriber’s! yard.! He! sat!
hunched!over!the!wheel.!
!
“Where!to?”!he!said.!“Want!me!to!take!you!back!to!get!your!
car?”!
!
I!gazed!out!the!window!for!a!moment.!“Nah,!I’ll!cab!over!in!
the!morning.!Let’s!go!home.”!
!
“Sounds!good.”!He!leaned!back!and!gave!the!car!some!gas.!
!
After!a!moment!I!said,!“You!haven’t!noticed!anything!else!
going!on!around!the!house?”!!
!
“Like!what?”!
!
“Strange! cars! hanging! around! out! front.! People! lurking.!
Folks!asking!about!me.!Besides!the!woman.!Anything!out!of!the!
ordinary.”!
!
“Oh,!my!god,!Blake,!you’re!creeping!me!out.!You’re!not!in!
trouble!again!are!you?”!
!
“Just! answer! the! question.! Have! you! or! Peter! noticed!
anything!weird?!Anyone!watching!the!house?”!
!
“No.!Not!a!thing.!Other!than!your!new!girlfriend,!it’s!been!
quiet.!No!weirdos!pounding!on!your!door!or!anything!like!that.!