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I said, "So that was the last time you saw him At the Chinese restaurant"

"Well, he walked me back to my apartment Then he drove home"

"What time was that? That he left your place"

"I don't know Probably around ten or ten thirty, ed "No reason Call it habit I was a cop for a lot of years When a cop runs out of things to say, he finds hi questions It hardlyA kind of a learned reflex"

"I suppose that's the term for it"

She drew a breath "Well," she said "I want to thank you forwith me I wasted your ti some of it now and then"

"I just wanted to learn whatever I could about… about hi, that he would have had soht havehe's dead, that I can't believe I'll never hear froht-well, thank you, anyway"

I didn't want her to thank me She had no reason on earth to thank e I told her I had to see her

"I thought I had until Tuesday Reht's iiveelse"

"What?"

"Not over the phone"

"Jesus," she said "Tonight is absolutely iht Kerolf"

"That doesn't mean I sit home alone"

"I can believe that"

"You really are a bastard, aren't you? I was invited to a party A perfectly respectable party, the kind where you keep your clothes on I could meet you tomorrow if it's absolutely necessary"

"It is"

"Where and when?"

"How about Polly's? Say around eight o'clock"

"Polly's Cage It's a little tacky, isn't it?"

"A little," I agreed

"And so am I, huh?"

"I didn't say that"

"No, you're always the perfect gentleht o'clock at Polly's I'll be there"

I could have told her to relax, that the ball ga her spend another day under pressure But I figured she could handle the pressure And I wanted to see her face when I let her off the hook I don't knohy Maybe it was the particular kind of spark we struck off each other, but I wanted to be there when she found out that she was home free

Huysendahl and I didn't strike those sparks I tried him at his office and couldn't reach him, and on a hunch I tried hied to talk to his wife I left a e that I would be at his office at two the next afternoon and that I would call again in the ," I said "Please tell hi to worry about Tell hi ork out fine"

"And he'll knohat that means?"

"He'll know," I said

I napped for a while, had a late bite at the French place down the block, then went back toan early night of it, but around eleven my room started to feel a little bit enerally does I'd been reading The Lives of the Saints, whichto make up its mind to rain The jury was still out I went around the corner to Arht me a drink

I was only there for an hour or so I did quite a bit of thinking about Stacy Prager, and even more about her father I liked irl On the other hand, I had to agree hat Trina had suggested the night before He had indeed had the right to pick that way out of his trouble, and now at least his daughter was spared the knowledge that her father had killed a man The fact of his death was horrible, but I could not easily construct a scenario which would have worked out better

When I asked for the check Trina brought it over and perched on the edge ofa little cheerier," she said

"Aht's sleep I've had in a while"

"Is that so? So did I, strangely enough"