Act of God

date or a name, though.”
    “Barbra Proft.”
    Mo was back in five minutes. “Had to nearly twist the punk’s arm to get him to stop what he was doing, ‘save’ his precious paragraphs, whatever ‘save’ means to the computer. Here it is.”
    The sheet was a little waxy, like fax paper. The article itself was from almost six years before, just a couple of paragraphs, summarizing what I’d already been told by Darlene Nugent and William Proft. With one exception.
    The name of the investigating officer from the Quincy Police Department.
    * * *

    Sergeant Bonnie Cross said, “ Quincy wouldn’t give it to you?”
    “No. They said they don’t give out the addresses or telephone numbers of retired officers, and ‘Angelo Folino’ isn’t listed in the book.”
    “You tried the South Suburban?”
    “And the Boston , even the West Suburban and North Suburban.”
    She had a fresh box of Munchkins in front of her and reached into it, a cinnamon appearing between thumb and index finger. “He used to be a cop and he’s retired, it’s probably either the Cape or Florida .”
    “For directory assistance, you still need a town.”
    Cross popped the Munchkin. “So, what, you want me to get it for you?”
    “It would save some time.”
    “I thought that’s how you guys got paid, running up the meter.”
    “Not when we don’t have to.”
    She swallowed. “And if I don’t help you?”
    “Then I’ll have to bribe somebody with a computer at the Retirement Board, maybe New England Telephone.”
    “So I don’t just save you time, I save you from committing a crime, too.”
    “Maybe a felony, all I know.”
    “I have a feeling you know, Cuddy. I have a feeling you’ve looked up all these things in the General Laws, with classifications and maximum sentences and the whole nine yards.”
    “A crime prevented is a crime nobody has to solve.”
    “I like you, Cuddy. You’re a pain in the ass, but you’re kind of fun to shoot the shit with. Once in a great while.”
    “Thanks, Cross.”
    “Spell the last name for me?”
    “F-O-L-I-N-O was the way the paper had it.”
    “Let me make a call.”
    She dialed, picking up another Munchkin, a chocolate-honey-dipped, and turning it under the light above her desk. Into the mouth before into the mouthpiece with, “Give me Detectives.... Whoever’s up there.... Right.... Holman, was it? Holman, this is Cross, Boston Homicide… No, I don’t think we do. You want to give me a callback? … Good, I don’t have time for that kind of bullshit, either... Look, you got anybody there goes back seven, eight years? ... Yeah, I figured that… What I’ve got is an open case here, might have some connection to one you guys had a while ago...No, no I don’t think it went down as homicide. Accidental or suicide, but I understand the detective was on it’s retired now… Folino, Angelo… No, really? Thanks, that’d save some time…” She reached for a pencil, scribbled on a pad, then scribbled some more. “Got it.... Me or a PI named Cuddy… Yeah, insurance is mixed up in it, too… Thanks, Holman… Right.”
    Cross hung up, tore the sheet off the pad, and flicked the paper to me. “Read my writing?”
    “He’s just down in Squantum.”
    A powdered-sugar took its last journey. “Saved you some gas, too.”

18

    “ ADA Meagher.”
    “That has such a personal ring to it.”
    “John. What’s up?”
    “You pressed?”
    “A little.”
    “How about dinner tonight?”
    “Tonight? Sure.”
    “You don’t sound sure.”
    “It’s just... no, dinner’s fine. Where?”
    “How about Commonwealth Brewery?”
    “As long as there’s nothing going on at the Garden.”
    “Nance, it’s July. The Celtics and the Bruins have a ways to go before they play again.”
    “Then great. What time?”
    “I’m going to be driving in on the Expressway, so how does seven-thirty sound?”
    “Perfect. I’ve got some computer research to do, anyway.”
    “You’ve got a computer case?”
    “Oh, no. This is a legal research thing. You tell the computer to search the decided cases in the data bank for two Phrases within a certain number of words of each other.”
    “Why?”
    “So you can get all the cases that, say, talk about both ‘cocaine’ and the ‘plain view exception’ to search warrants. That’s not a great example, but do you see the time it can save?”
    “I guess so.”
    A change in her voice. “John, did you see the doctor today?”
    “And the