needed some help.
“She said she had no one. Which I
expected was true,
since if I had a girlfriend and she
went off to a place like that
at al , let alone on her own, she
wouldn’t sit comfortably for
a week.” He let the statement hang
out there, intending the
mild note of accusation, but Jon’s
instant response
reassured him on that score.
“We’re not involved like that. But I
was headed that way. I
didn’t know she was there. It’s not
going to happen again.”
The man typical y emanated tranquil
vibes like a damn
lava lamp. The whip-taut tension
Leland heard was a
radical change. “Hmm. When I saw
your card, I thought she
might be one of your occasional sub-
with-benefits friends.
But you usual y pick them smarter
than that.”
“She’s smart. Just hasn’t figured out
that part of things
yet. You know how that can be, at the
beginning.”
“Yeah.” Leland sobered. “Classy
lady. She belonged in
that crowd the way a swan belongs
among a bunch of
carrion eaters.”
“That’s been Club More’s MO since
they opened. Don’t
worry about them, Leland. I’l be
passing on this tidbit to
Matt tomorrow. By the end of the
week, Ben’l have dug up
so many legal problems with the
place they’l have to
convert to a Dunkin’ Donuts.”
“Good. I like their coffee.”
“Damn it. This is my fault.” The sigh
on Jon’s side was
fol owed by an ominous tone. “It’s a
mistake I’m going to
fix.”
“Sounds good. But give her the night,
Jon.” Leland
paused, hesitating over the other part.
Weighed the pros
and cons, what he knew of Jon, what
his gut told him, and
said it out loud. “I ran a check on her.
Pretty standard thing
in this situation, but came up with
something that happened
four years ago. She was cleaning a
gun and it went off.
Grazed her neck, the bul et went
through her window and
lodged in the outer wal of the
adjacent building. It was
cal ed in by a startled landlord when
he heard the shot, saw
her come out onto her balcony with
blood on her neck and
the gun in her hand. She looked a
little out of it. It al got
worked out, of course, and was
logged as a simple
accident, no harm done.”
Jon’s voice was tight. “She’s
thorough and careful.
Detail-oriented.”
“Yeah, wel , everyone can make a
mistake. But you’re
already fol owing the right track. The
officer who was cal ed
out, a rookie, had a different take. No
proof, so no action
taken on it, just a sticky in the file.
Anyhow, the kid thought it
was an attempted suicide. Powel has
good instincts. He’s
in narcotics now. He took it upon
himself to check on her a
couple times after that, noted she
seemed on a more even
keel, had opened a yoga studio, so
over time he assumed
he was either mistaken or she’d
gotten herself straightened
out.”
The silence was long and weighted,
and Leland’s brow
creased. “You okay?”
“She’s a friend, Leland. And more
than that.”
“Yeah, I get that impression.”
Knowing the man’s nature
as he knew his own, Leland had a
pretty good idea what
might be roiling in Jon right now. It
was probably best for
Rachel not to be exposed to it tonight.
“I know you want to
go be with her and take care of this,
but trust me. If you
don’t have a relationship in play
between you yet, you’l
want to give her about a day. She’s
pretty damn raw and
vulnerable right now. She didn’t
strike me as someone on
the suicidal edge again, but she needs
time to pul herself
together, feel like no one knows
except a nosy cop in the
wrong place at the right time.”
“Thanks, Oprah.” But Jon blew out a
breath after another
long moment. “I know you’re right. I
need to get my mind
wrapped around how to handle it.
She’s complicated. A lot
of layers I don’t yet understand, and
you gave me a missing
piece I should have taken the time to
see before I…
Goddamn it, I don’t want
“She said she had no one. Which I
expected was true,
since if I had a girlfriend and she
went off to a place like that
at al , let alone on her own, she
wouldn’t sit comfortably for
a week.” He let the statement hang
out there, intending the
mild note of accusation, but Jon’s
instant response
reassured him on that score.
“We’re not involved like that. But I
was headed that way. I
didn’t know she was there. It’s not
going to happen again.”
The man typical y emanated tranquil
vibes like a damn
lava lamp. The whip-taut tension
Leland heard was a
radical change. “Hmm. When I saw
your card, I thought she
might be one of your occasional sub-
with-benefits friends.
But you usual y pick them smarter
than that.”
“She’s smart. Just hasn’t figured out
that part of things
yet. You know how that can be, at the
beginning.”
“Yeah.” Leland sobered. “Classy
lady. She belonged in
that crowd the way a swan belongs
among a bunch of
carrion eaters.”
“That’s been Club More’s MO since
they opened. Don’t
worry about them, Leland. I’l be
passing on this tidbit to
Matt tomorrow. By the end of the
week, Ben’l have dug up
so many legal problems with the
place they’l have to
convert to a Dunkin’ Donuts.”
“Good. I like their coffee.”
“Damn it. This is my fault.” The sigh
on Jon’s side was
fol owed by an ominous tone. “It’s a
mistake I’m going to
fix.”
“Sounds good. But give her the night,
Jon.” Leland
paused, hesitating over the other part.
Weighed the pros
and cons, what he knew of Jon, what
his gut told him, and
said it out loud. “I ran a check on her.
Pretty standard thing
in this situation, but came up with
something that happened
four years ago. She was cleaning a
gun and it went off.
Grazed her neck, the bul et went
through her window and
lodged in the outer wal of the
adjacent building. It was
cal ed in by a startled landlord when
he heard the shot, saw
her come out onto her balcony with
blood on her neck and
the gun in her hand. She looked a
little out of it. It al got
worked out, of course, and was
logged as a simple
accident, no harm done.”
Jon’s voice was tight. “She’s
thorough and careful.
Detail-oriented.”
“Yeah, wel , everyone can make a
mistake. But you’re
already fol owing the right track. The
officer who was cal ed
out, a rookie, had a different take. No
proof, so no action
taken on it, just a sticky in the file.
Anyhow, the kid thought it
was an attempted suicide. Powel has
good instincts. He’s
in narcotics now. He took it upon
himself to check on her a
couple times after that, noted she
seemed on a more even
keel, had opened a yoga studio, so
over time he assumed
he was either mistaken or she’d
gotten herself straightened
out.”
The silence was long and weighted,
and Leland’s brow
creased. “You okay?”
“She’s a friend, Leland. And more
than that.”
“Yeah, I get that impression.”
Knowing the man’s nature
as he knew his own, Leland had a
pretty good idea what
might be roiling in Jon right now. It
was probably best for
Rachel not to be exposed to it tonight.
“I know you want to
go be with her and take care of this,
but trust me. If you
don’t have a relationship in play
between you yet, you’l
want to give her about a day. She’s
pretty damn raw and
vulnerable right now. She didn’t
strike me as someone on
the suicidal edge again, but she needs
time to pul herself
together, feel like no one knows
except a nosy cop in the
wrong place at the right time.”
“Thanks, Oprah.” But Jon blew out a
breath after another
long moment. “I know you’re right. I
need to get my mind
wrapped around how to handle it.
She’s complicated. A lot
of layers I don’t yet understand, and
you gave me a missing
piece I should have taken the time to
see before I…
Goddamn it, I don’t want
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