Fall Guy

Hudson Street, Dashiell on one side, Parker on the other. We walked over to the White Horse, where we could sit outside. There'd be lots of people there and no one minded a dog being there as long as he was on the outside of the fence. I thought the rule ridiculous. I thought the way the French did it made more sense. But we were in New York, not Paris, and the rules about dogs in places that served food were getting tighter all the time. Some places cared. Others didn't. But the White Horse was close and cheap and there was an empty table near the rail. It would do.
    We ordered burgers and Cokes. I had the feeling that Parker would have liked something a bit stronger than a Coke. I thought he was trying to impress me with his sterling behavior and that was okay with me.
    „So how did you meet Timothy O'Fallon?“ I asked, not one for beating around the bush.
    „He arrested me. Petty larceny. I was flat broke and I ate in a restaurant and tried to leave without paying. The waiter tripped me, then the owner punched me and called the cops.“
    I began to laugh. „No shit? Sounds like the beginning of a beautiful friendship.“
    „I thought so, too,“ he said, flashing me a grin that seemed to light up the whole block. „Especially after I told him that I was temporarily unemployed and had recently lost my residence and he said I could bunk with him until I got back on my feet. He said he'd help me out. I couldn't believe I was hearing that from a cop. It was too good to be true. And you know what they say, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.“
    „You mean living with O'Fallon wasn't all you expected it to be?“
    Parker reached out, as if to cover my hand with his, but stopped and put his hand down in the middle of the table instead. „It's not that he didn't help me. He did. And I'm grateful to him for it.“
    So grateful that while he was lying dead in the bathroom, you were stealing his stuff, I thought.
    „But it was hard to live with him.“
    „How so?“
    „His depression. It was relentless.“
    The waitress came with our burgers and fries. She had a ring in one eyebrow, another in one nostril, a chain tattooed around her upper arm. Her hair was half yellow and half green. By the time she set down the plates, the fries were half on the plate and half on the table. I thought it might be a good idea to slide to the far side of the bench when she brought the drinks.
    Parker took a bite of the burger as if he hadn't eaten in weeks.
    „He was depressed all the time?“ I asked.
    „Anyone drinks the way he did would be. Practically nonstop when he got home from work until he went to bed.“
    „Did you drink with him? Was that something you did together?“
    „I'd have one drink, you know, to be sociable, but not like Tim.“
    „Funny, I thought his letting you live there had to do with your addictions.“
    He took another bite of his burger.
    I waited.
    „I've had my problems. I'm not denying that. And I did slip a couple of times. But that was on the table, if you know what I mean. My using was up for discussion. His wasn't.“
    „Was it the job? Was that what was getting him down?“
    Parker shrugged and picked up a handful of
    fries, dipping them in the pool of ketchup he'd made on his plate. „He wasn't going to talk to me about police work.“
    „Right.“
    „I just know it was bad. He was one unhappy dude. It didn't surprise me, what he did. Well, it did. But not really.“
    „Tell me why you went through the window.“
    For the first time, Parker was caught off-guard, but he recovered almost immediately. Practice makes perfect.
    „Lost my keys.“
    „How, Parker?“
    „You're starting to sound like him now and I j gotta tell you, it's not attractive.“
    „Right. Didn't you lose your keys because O'Fallon finally got fed up with your behavior?“ I asked. „Didn't he take them back and ask you to leave?“
    „Look, I didn't do anything wrong. If I did, I'd be in jail now, not sitting here and eating this burger.“ His steady gaze bit into me, making , sure I got the point. „He was hot under the collar, you know. I had a couple of close friends over and he didn't like that. I thought, big deal, he wasn't home, what he didn't know wouldn't hurt him.“
    I didn't interrupt to tell him what a lying sack of shit he was. I was sure he'd been told before.
    „I figured, have a few friends in, then get the hell out before he came home. I guess we lost track of time, you know