Richard
The waiter serves our meals and I wait until he is out of earshot before I speak. “Has anything turned up on how they got her away?”
Will looks blue, shaking his head. “The ‘ambulance’ made its way out of the hospital grounds in the normal way. We have it on the traffic-cams going through the City. With the siren blaring, the traffic simply parted to let it through. We have them entering a car park and we found the vehicle abandoned there.” He heaves air. “And of course, who would interfere with medics with an ambulance and a woman on a stretcher?”
He fills two tumblers from a bottle of mineral water. “So, what’s this matter so urgent that at a time like this, you leave Beth at home by herself?”
“She’s not by herself. Michael and Mitch are both keeping an eye on her. Or she on them maybe…”
“Nonetheless…”
“Will, I have a hypothetical question for you.”
He arches a brow. His face neutral, “Go on.”
“Hypothetically, if a Chief of Police became aware of the presence of a known criminal in his jurisdiction, would he be required to have him arrested? Taken in? Automatically?”
Will looks long at me then takes off his spectacles, polishing the lenses with a napkin. Apparently addressing his remarks to the napkin. “This is a hypothetical question?”
“As I said…”
“Hypothetically, yes, we can overlook an arrest if we have good cause, at least temporarily. It would depend on the circumstances and the seriousness of the acts committed by the criminal concerned. But hypothetically, why would an arrest not be the obvious route to take?
“Perhaps if there were some very good reason for his presence, something needing doing that only he could achieve…”
He levels his gaze to me. “Such as?”
“Um… Tracking down and dealing with another person or persons unknown. Being able to move in circles and gain cooperation where the police could not.”
“Yes, I see, hypothetically, how that might work.” Will pushes the spectacles back over his nose. “Of course, such a situation would require monitoring. And such a man would…” He hovers over his words… “He would have to… give his parole… that he confined his activities to the matter in question.”
“That’s not unreasonable.”
“Because if your hypothetical Chief of Police had even a whisper that anything else was going on, he would be required to respond.”
“Of course.”
“And he would also want regular reports that this criminal was acting in good faith…”
“Yes, I can see that too.”
He regards the sole meuniere cooling on his plate. “You’re asking a lot of my faith in your good judgement, Richard.” He slices in, taking a bite, but not looking as though he is enjoying his meal.
“As I say, this is hypothetical.”
“Of course.”
“Will, there is something else.”
He cocks an eye at me. “And what would that be?”
“I was wondering if you could use your contacts, your international contacts, to learn what has been happening in Thailand recently?”
“Thailand?” He abandons his fork to the plate. Leaning forward on his elbows, he stares at me over the tops of the spectacles. “What is so interesting about Thailand?”
“Elizabeth was suggesting we might take a holiday there, after all this is over. When we have Charlotte back. When the baby’s been born. But…
Will holds my eyes…
“… you hear so many stories of that country: you know… trafficking, the sex trade…”
Will recovers his fork, takes another mouthful of fish, chewing slowly. He looks down at his plate. “So… you would like me to investigate recent events in Thailand relating to the areas of sex-trafficking, organised crime and so on?”
“That’s right.”
“Very well, Richard. I’ll see what I can do.”
*****
Michael
He’s here to help…
He murdered Ben…
No…
… He executed Ben…
He saved Charlotte… and Mitch…
He pointed a gun and he fired… He brought Ben down…
Then he fired again at point-blank…
…
…
Ben would have murdered them…
Klempner killed him…
Klempner killed my brother…
I’m boiling over inside.
I want to scream.
You killed my brother…
But Ben was going to shoot Charlotte. And Mitch.
Klempner stopped him.
And now, when he knows Mitch needs help, he’s come back.
I need to do something before I lash out. Something physical.
Might as well be something useful…
*****
I line up against my target, pine; a foot long, sliced from the trunk, air-dried over the summer, and now mounted on the flat-topped stump I use as an anvil. Scruffy sits watching, but he knows by now to stay well back. And it’s good having his undemanding company.
Swinging, I bring the axe through a high arc and down. The log splits into two neat halves, dropping to one side and the other.
Setting one half aside, I line up the other, swing again, split the half into quarters…
Rinse and repeat.
The work calms me: repetitive physical effort that burns out the stress consuming me inside and frees my mind to work. The fact is, that I know Klempner did what was necessary. If it weren’t for him, both Charlotte and her mother would be dead.
I just need to get my gut to feel what my head already knows.
The stack of stove-lengths grows, and eventually, calmer, axe in hand, I turn for the basket to take them inside.
And there’s Klempner, leaning back against the wall, waiting quietly.
“Something I can do for you?”
He eyes the axe. “Michael… Are we good?”
“How d’you mean?” With a flick of my wrist, I throw the axe, setting it spinning through the air to catch, blade-first into the stump.
He folds his arms. “Don’t be disingenuous. You know what I’m asking. I’m not sure if you blame me for what happened with your brother, but I did what I had to do. If you have a problem with me, I’d rather you say so now. With what’s coming, I don’t want you behind my back otherwise.”
And he’s right.
Lids squeezing closed, I rub my forehead, then, opening them, I look him in the eye. “Yeah… We’re good, I think.”
Scruffy whines.
Klempner inhales. “I see.”
*****