Will despised the sound of bagpipes. He had barely slept the night before. It was even worse than usual. He sat in the chair at the foot of the bed, shaking his tense right leg until what he called “shift change” caused his left leg to start its own little hell. Then he would have to walk on it. His back hurt from the fall in front of Cindy’s house. His hands were raw. He didn’t want to know about Drainmaker shoes. Tens of thousands must have been sold. But then there was that knife in John’s pocket, that damned knife. And his odd visit to Will’s townhouse. His instincts told him something was wrong.
Calling Cheryl Beth to thank her for a nice evening-that was the good thing on his mind. But he might seem to be coming on too strong. In any event, he had to watch carefully. He didn’t know exactly what he was looking for, but this was S.O.P. It didn’t surprise him that Kenneth Buchanan wasn’t there. Her lover the sergeant walked by in dress uniform. From another direction, several minutes later, the diving instructor mounted the steps and disappeared inside.
“You’re mighty inconspicuous.”
Dodds climbed in and sat, momentarily tilting the car. He slid Will’s cane out of the passenger seat.
Will said, “And now I’ve got a fat black man in his band uniform to complete the picture.”
“Anything happening?”
Will shook his head.
“I’m sorry, partner. I tried to fight for you.”
Will’s stomach turned sour. “What?”
“They didn’t tell you? Fuckers. Fassbinder’s made me the lead on Gruber. You know how he can get. You never feel the knife until it’s in your back.”
“The chief put me on this case.”
“I know. But it’s a done deal. The case is moving too slowly for command. They want somebody in custody. Hell, Kristen’s face is on the cover of People magazine, all over the blogs, and the Cincinnati Police can’t solve the murder.” He sighed. “I was able to keep you as the liaison detective with Covington.”
Will fought to control his emotions, without much success. “It’s not one of her boyfriends, unless it’s the lawyer, Buchanan. And he’ll sue us if we push too hard. You know how these things go.”
“That’s why I fought for you,” Dodds said. “I told them you were the best homicide investigator in the department…”
“But all they see is this goddamned cane.”
Dodds was silent as Will thought about his father’s full-dress funeral. That day it had rained.
His call sign came over the radio.
“Meet the officers, Spring Grove Cemetery.”
He told the dispatcher he was on special assignment. To Dodds, “Is this some PIO shit work for me?”