Cold Truth

“Give me some quick directions…” Rick kept his eyes on the scene unfolding in the room. Lucy was wiping her eyes, while Cass appeared to be speaking softly, something comforting, he was sure. How could the woman do that, he wondered, after the afternoon she’d had? Surely, looking back on that horrific day, even from a deep hypnotic state, must have taken a toll on her emotions. He’d figured she was tough, but he hadn’t known she was that tough.

“Give me that again,” he was saying, when Cass turned and looked at him. She stood and rested a hand on Lucy’s cheek, then walked toward Rick.

“Anytime.” She mouthed the word, so as to not disturb his conversation.

“Was that a right or a left off Route One?” He indicated to Cass that he could talk and walk to the elevator at the same time. Once inside the car, however, his phone went dead.

“Damn,” he muttered, “I was almost there.”

“Almost where?” Cass asked.

“Almost to Plainsville.”

“What’s there?”

“A meeting I-we-have tomorrow morning. I’ll tell you about it outside,” he told her, as the elevator car filled when they reached the third floor. “In the meantime, would you like to go straight to the I

“As much as I’d love a walk on the beach, I think I’d like to go back to the I

He took her arm and steered her in the direction of the parking garage. Neither of them noticed that of the seven people who stepped out of the elevator after they did, one trailed behind them, all the way to level B.

23

He drove leisurely, just another car that had been parked along Maple Avenue near the municipal building. He could have been coming from the public library, which was located in three rooms on the second floor. Or he could have been leaving the police station, having paid a ticket-or the borough clerk’s office, having purchased new tags for his dog.

Of course, he had been doing none of those things. But, to the casual observer, the man driving the Chrysler sedan was just another citizen, going about his afternoon business.

He stayed several car lengths behind the black Camaro that carried his prey, just far enough to stay under the radar of the driver, who had to be a Fed. God knew he’d known enough of them in his day. He knew how to tail the best of them without being noticed.

The Camaro turned right on Brighton, and he followed casually. But when the driver turned into the parking lot of the Brighton I

“Hey, hi, it’s me. Listen, I just had an idea. I know we all agreed to meet at Bowers Diner for di

He disco

Glory days, indeed.

If they only knew.

Not that any of his old buddies would ever suspect. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, imagining their reactions should the truth ever come out. He could almost hear their shocked words.

No, no, I don’t believe it. Not a word of it… I won’t believe it until I hear it from his own lips. I’ve known him all my life-went to school with him since fucking kindergarten… No, no, there has to be some mistake. He’s like a brother to me…

A firm shake of the head would follow as denial dug in its heels. No, I’ll never believe it…

Believe it, buds. Believe it…

He took off his shoes and socks and slipped the phone into his pocket before locking the door and heading off over the dune. This late in the afternoon, this early in the season, there were mostly older kids on the beach, the littlest ones having gone home with their mommies to start di

Like today. All had fallen into place with his first step upon the dune. Now, turning back, he knew exactly what he needed to do, and how he would accomplish his goal. Wasn’t that lesson learned long ago, drummed into his head over and over by his father?

“You can’t accomplish a damned thing without goals,” the old man had lectured time and time again. “You want to succeed at something, you set the goal, you pursue it with everything you have.”

Well, that was probably the only thing the old man had ever said that had made much sense to him, and had thus been worth remembering.

The ringing of the phone shook him back to the present and the situation at hand. He answered on the second ring. Of course they could meet at the Brighton I

Now he had his goal, he had his plan. Buoyed by optimism, he turned back and walked across the beach until he reached the dune. Without so much as a backward glance at the ocean he’d missed so much for so many years, he returned to his car and dusted the sand from his feet. He had less than thirty minutes to run home and change before meeting the guys for di

He was looking forward to more than just a good meal.

“I’m glad you decided to join me,” Rick said after the waitress had served their entrées. “You look a little worn-out. My gram always used to say that the best cure for that kind of weariness was a good meal and a good night’s sleep.”

“Well, with luck, tonight I’ll have both.” Cass rearranged her napkin on her lap for what Rick thought might be the fifth or sixth time.

“Luck shouldn’t have to factor into it. You ordered a great di

She frowned. “Are you sure you need me along?”

“Would I rather leave you here alone?”

“I’ve been looking out for myself for a long time, Rick.”

“And God willing, the day is near at hand when you’ll be looking out for yourself again.” He lowered his voice. “But until we have this guy in lockup or on a table in the ME’s office, my time is your time.”