made a little shrug.
“And if you find a match, then what?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Don’t lie to me. You’ll follow it up—you know you will. You’ll call the presenter and you’ll ask about the case. And if you don’t like the answers he gives you or the sound of his voice, you’ll go visit the guy—right now, today—and it doesn’t matter if the guy lives in Kathmandu.”
“Nepal is a bit far,” Nick said. “I only have half a tank of gas.”
“Yeah—and you should be using it to drive back to Endor.”
“Pete was a friend of mine, okay? What am I supposed to do, just walk away and leave the investigation to that idiot Misco? You know what will happen, Donovan: Misco will ask who , but he won’t take the time to ask why —and Pete deserves better than that. Misco will do the basics and nothing more; he’ll dust for prints and he’ll run ballistics and he’ll ask the neighbors if they saw anyone suspicious hanging around the house in the last few days.”
“You mean like you?”
“And then he’ll look for suspects—the usual suspects. But if there’s a Vidocq angle to this, the suspect probably isn’t from Philadelphia. But Misco will never consider a Vidocq connection—you know why?”
“Because you stole the phone records?”
“No, wise guy—because Misco thinks Vidocq is a joke. Do you know what he calls it? ‘The Women’s Murder Club.’ ”
“Wow,” Donovan said with a grin. “I wish I’d seen the look on your face.”
“I’m so glad my suffering entertains you.”
“I know you don’t want to hear this, Nick, but I don’t think you’re giving Misco a chance. The Philadelphia Police Department has a great reputation, and Misco earned his shield. He probably knows what he’s doing.”
“Misco is a pigheaded egomaniac.”
“You should know.”
Nick squinted at him. “You’re my friend, right? Just thought I’d clarify.”
“Yeah, I’m your friend—the kind of friend who would drive two hours on I-95 just to get your sorry butt out of jail. And that’s why I can say this to you: You’re the king of pigheaded egomaniacs, Nick. You know it, and I know it—and Misco knows it too.”
“So that’s what you think this is about? Me going toe-to-toe with little Danny Misco? Me trying to prove that I’m a better detective than he is? Please.”
“No, I don’t think that’s what this is about—but I don’t think it’s just about Pete either.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I’ve worked with you, Nick. Every time you get a case in front of you it consumes you—it takes you over like some kind of parasite. You can’t let it go; you can’t think about anything else; you can’t stop until you figure it all out.”
“Well, what’s wrong with that?”
Donovan leaned closer and lowered his voice a little. “You forgot to call her, Nick. You left Alena sitting in some restaurant in Endor wondering what happened to her fiancé. She still doesn’t know.”
“The pastor who’s doing our wedding is an old friend of hers,” Nick said. “I’ll give him a call and ask him to take a message up to her so she doesn’t worry.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about and you know it.”
“Then what?”
“Work consumes you—but you’re about to take on a wife, and she’s supposed to consume you too. You’re getting married in less than a week, and you’re not acting like a man who’s about to get married. Why is that?”
“I’ve still got a few days,” Nick said. “I just need to take care of this first.”
“You need to take care of your fiancée. Go home, Nick—do it now while you can still walk away from this thing. If you open that e-mail from Vidocq and find some connection, you’ll follow it up—you know you will. And you’ll keep on following until it’s all done. When will that be? Where will you be when it happens? And what about Alena?”
“You make it sound like I’m running from my own
“And if you find a match, then what?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Don’t lie to me. You’ll follow it up—you know you will. You’ll call the presenter and you’ll ask about the case. And if you don’t like the answers he gives you or the sound of his voice, you’ll go visit the guy—right now, today—and it doesn’t matter if the guy lives in Kathmandu.”
“Nepal is a bit far,” Nick said. “I only have half a tank of gas.”
“Yeah—and you should be using it to drive back to Endor.”
“Pete was a friend of mine, okay? What am I supposed to do, just walk away and leave the investigation to that idiot Misco? You know what will happen, Donovan: Misco will ask who , but he won’t take the time to ask why —and Pete deserves better than that. Misco will do the basics and nothing more; he’ll dust for prints and he’ll run ballistics and he’ll ask the neighbors if they saw anyone suspicious hanging around the house in the last few days.”
“You mean like you?”
“And then he’ll look for suspects—the usual suspects. But if there’s a Vidocq angle to this, the suspect probably isn’t from Philadelphia. But Misco will never consider a Vidocq connection—you know why?”
“Because you stole the phone records?”
“No, wise guy—because Misco thinks Vidocq is a joke. Do you know what he calls it? ‘The Women’s Murder Club.’ ”
“Wow,” Donovan said with a grin. “I wish I’d seen the look on your face.”
“I’m so glad my suffering entertains you.”
“I know you don’t want to hear this, Nick, but I don’t think you’re giving Misco a chance. The Philadelphia Police Department has a great reputation, and Misco earned his shield. He probably knows what he’s doing.”
“Misco is a pigheaded egomaniac.”
“You should know.”
Nick squinted at him. “You’re my friend, right? Just thought I’d clarify.”
“Yeah, I’m your friend—the kind of friend who would drive two hours on I-95 just to get your sorry butt out of jail. And that’s why I can say this to you: You’re the king of pigheaded egomaniacs, Nick. You know it, and I know it—and Misco knows it too.”
“So that’s what you think this is about? Me going toe-to-toe with little Danny Misco? Me trying to prove that I’m a better detective than he is? Please.”
“No, I don’t think that’s what this is about—but I don’t think it’s just about Pete either.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I’ve worked with you, Nick. Every time you get a case in front of you it consumes you—it takes you over like some kind of parasite. You can’t let it go; you can’t think about anything else; you can’t stop until you figure it all out.”
“Well, what’s wrong with that?”
Donovan leaned closer and lowered his voice a little. “You forgot to call her, Nick. You left Alena sitting in some restaurant in Endor wondering what happened to her fiancé. She still doesn’t know.”
“The pastor who’s doing our wedding is an old friend of hers,” Nick said. “I’ll give him a call and ask him to take a message up to her so she doesn’t worry.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about and you know it.”
“Then what?”
“Work consumes you—but you’re about to take on a wife, and she’s supposed to consume you too. You’re getting married in less than a week, and you’re not acting like a man who’s about to get married. Why is that?”
“I’ve still got a few days,” Nick said. “I just need to take care of this first.”
“You need to take care of your fiancée. Go home, Nick—do it now while you can still walk away from this thing. If you open that e-mail from Vidocq and find some connection, you’ll follow it up—you know you will. And you’ll keep on following until it’s all done. When will that be? Where will you be when it happens? And what about Alena?”
“You make it sound like I’m running from my own
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