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"This is background, off the record," Billy assured him "You tella spoonful of salt I should take with it"

"The thing is, for the entire day when Judi had to have been snatched--if she was snatched, and I believe she was--for that entire day, for the whole twenty-four-hourand then some, Zillis had an alibi you couldn’t crack with a nuke"

"You tried"

"Believe it But even if he hadn’t had an alibi, there wasn’t any evidence pointing his way"

"Then why did he "

Billy didn’t say anything, but he was disappointed He was in the ard didn’t have any to sell

Sensing that disappointment, the detective expanded on what he had said

"He caht never have been on my scope if he hadn’t come to me He wanted so much to help He talked and talked He cared about her too much, like she was a beloved sister, but he had only known her a month"

"You said she was exceptional at relationships, she e to her best friends, she didn’t even know Zillis that well Only casually"

Reluctantly playing the devil’s advocate, Billy said, "He could have felt closer to her than she did to hinetism, that appeal…"

"You would have had to see hiard said

"It’s like he wanted ht alibi And after I did, there was this sard’s voice, Billy said, "You’re still hot"

"I a back to me, the way he was For a while, before he finally faded away, he kept trying to help, calling up, dropping by, offering ideas, and you had this feeling it was allI have a feeling like that, too," Billy said, "but I really needworse, but he is a selfsatisfied prick The little prick even started acting like ere pals, him and me Potential suspects, they just never do that It’s not natural Hell, you know But he had this easy, jokey way about hiin’, Keard asked

"He still does"

"He’s a prick He covered it with this goofy charht"

"So he was all over you, and then he just faded away"

"The whole investigation faded away Judi was gone like she’d never existed Zillis dropped out of school at the end of that year, his sophoain"

"Well, he’s here now," Billy said

"I wonder where he’s been in between"

"Maybe we’ll find out"

"I hope you find out"

"I’ll be back to you," Billy said

"Any hour on this one, anytiet it for a ot who he was supposed to be, but he caht answer: "Yeah My dad was a cop He was buried in his uniforot so much tin in e for people to knohat I am But Judith Kesselman, she’s in my blood as bad as the tin I want her to be at rest with some respect, not just… not just dumped somewhere Christ knows, there’s not much justice, but there has to be so up, Billy could not for aat Lanny, and Lanny seeard was in life, all the way in the tides, swi the shore Immersed in the life of his community, committed to it

Billy had heard the detective’s co down the line from Denver, as fresh to the senses as if the two of the by the realization of how coerous

Barbara had begun to reach him; then vichyssoise Life packed a clever one-two punch: cruelty and absurdity

He was in the tides now, but not by choice Events had thrown hiuarded emotions, of studied avoidance, of defensive reclusiveness, encuain, but a riptide seereater isolation

Chapter 50

As though he knehere he would be going, down the lava tube without benefit of mourners orhad not taken place in this room, so no blood or brains stained the walls or furniture Because he wanted Lanny to vanish in such a way that would engender the ate an iation, Billy hoped to keep everything clean

From the linen closet, he fetched an arent and fabric softener that Pearl had used Billy recognized the distinctive, clean fragrance

He draped the towels over the arms and the back of the chair in which the cadaver sat If anything remained to be spilled from the exit wound in the back of the skull, the carefully layered toould catch it He had brought fro used as a liner for s the fil over the dead man’s head and with adhesive tape sealed it as best he could around the neck--further insurance against a spill

Although he knew that no one could be driven risly work, knew that the horror came after the madness, not before, he wondered how much more he could traffic with the dead before his every drea bedlah, but then he became uncooperative He lay on the floor in the position of a ht

Rigor ely reh to soften the tissues that rigorthat would be Six hours, twelve? He couldn’t wait around to see

He struggled to wrap Lanny in the tarp At times the dead man’s resistance seee ard but adequately sealed He hoped the rope handle would hold

The toere spotless He folded them and returned theood as they had earlier

Lanny to the head of the stairs proved easy, but Lanny down the first flight was a hard thing to hear In its half-fetal position, the body rapped and knocked step by step, elatinous at the sa, Billy reminded himself that Lanny had betrayed him in an attempt to save a job and pension, and that they were both here because of that This truth, while inescapable, didn’t ht of steps any less disturbing