by Dean, Jason
‘Afternoon,’ he said, pumping my hand. He was stocky and well built, and his grip was strong. ‘Lewis Hawkins, at your service. And what can we do for you today?’
‘Maybe we could talk in your office,’ I said.
‘I was just about to suggest that very thing. Right this way.’
He released my hand and led me back to his semi-private partitioned area where he sat behind his large desk and motioned me to one of the two chairs facing him. As I sat, I glanced at the row of framed photos on the wall. Some showed a pretty lady with some very cute kids, others showed Hawkins with some other businessmen, but two photos near the door showed a bunch of men in camo gear. Army ACU gear, in point of fact.
‘I don’t believe I’ve seen you here before,’ Hawkins said. ‘You new in town?’
‘Let’s say I’m just passing through,’ I said, turning back to him.
Hawkins frowned at that. ‘I see. So what kind of insurance can I help you with?’
‘I’m not interested in insurance. I understand you’re also a landlord, and I came to talk to you about one of your old tenants.’
‘I handle more than one property in town. Which one are we talking about?’
‘The house on Kelsey Avenue. I’d like to talk about Leonard Williamson.’
‘Lenny,’ Hawkins said, nodding slowly. ‘I should have known. And what business is this of yours, exactly? Because you sure don’t look like a policeman to me.’
I smiled. ‘That’s because I’m not.’
‘So you’re either a private dick or a reporter, then.’
‘I’m neither. I’m just somebody who wants to know what happened to the guy, that’s all. And since this was the last place he was seen, here I am.’
‘You’ve still got to have a reason, though. What’s Lenny to you?’
‘He’s just somebody I knew a long time ago.’
Hawkins raised an eyebrow. ‘And it took you this long to start looking for him? No offence, mister, but I’m not in the habit of giving out information on my old tenants to anybody who just strolls into my office. Unless they got a badge, that is. Which you don’t. So I’m sorry, but unless there’s something else you need …?’
It looked as though this needed an altogether different approach, so I stood up and walked over to the two shots of men in ACU gear. They were all smiling at the camera. I was able to pick out a much younger Hawkins in both shots easily enough. The years hadn’t changed him a great deal. But I was more interested in the mountains in the distant background.
‘Those look like the Alborz Mountains,’ I said.
Hawkins came over. ‘You got a good eye. That’s them, all right. And that’s me and the guys in the Balkh Province in Afghanistan, 2004 and 2005. What a mess that was, let me tell you. You serve over there?’
‘Not there, no. And not with the Army.’
‘But you served?’
‘I put in my time.’
‘Who with? Air Force? Navy?’
‘Marine Corps.’
‘Jarhead, huh?’ He studied my face. ‘And something tells me you saw your fair share of action too. Don’t tell me. Special forces?’
‘Nothing so glamorous. Although I was part of the Fleet Antiterrorist Security Team for the last couple of years of my tour, and I have to admit there were a few missions in there that got my blood pumping.’
‘Yeah? And who led those operations? You?’
‘Sometimes. I was one of two sergeants in the unit. We alternated.’
‘Uh huh. So just the one tour of duty for you, was it?’
‘That’s right.’
‘So why’d you leave in the end?’
I smiled with one side of my mouth. ‘Lot of reasons. One of them was that I thought everything would be different on the outside.’
Hawkins sighed and nodded. ‘Yeah, me too. You’d a thought we’d know better.’
We were both quiet for a moment as we looked at the photos. I was busy thinking through my options if this didn’t pan out. Because one thing I knew for a fact: there were always other options. It was just a matter of finding them.
But it seemed I’d passed some sort of test, because Hawkins finally shrugged and said, ‘Okay, so what do you want to know?’