Gin Palace 02 - The Bone Orchard

top drawer of a bureau. Then I sat in my chair at my living room window and drank cold tea and searched those want ads for jobs. There was nothing for me; I knew there wouldn’t be, not at this time of the year. I’ve lived out here all my life, and spent the last ten years hiding as best I could from the heart of things, hiding in these crowded rooms of mine two floors above an out-of-the-way bar. I lived here in my precious self-exile, trying to matter as little as possible whenever possible. It was the life I’ve chosen, miserable and empty and, I had determined a long time ago, all I deserved.
    But I wanted it back.
    As I closed the paper I glanced at the headline about the Curry girl being killed in an auto accident. There were quotes from the Chief expressing his sympathy to the family and his frustration at the senselessness of it all. I read all that I could stomach and then put the paper down and placed my feet up on the sill and drank my tea till it was gone. I tried not to think about anything, especially Amy Curry dead in my arms.
    At one I showered and dressed and left for Augie’s house. I was expected to bring nothing and had exactly that.
    Inside Augie took my coat and offered me a drink. It was, despite my concerns, good to see him. He walked with his cane less than before. He was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. Part of his physical training had included weights, and he looked larger than I remembered. I sat on a couch and nursed an apple juice. I couldn’t really look Augie in the eye.
    Tina was in the kitchen, putting together the dinner. Every so often she’d come out and place something on the table. I had never seen her in a dress before. She looked very different. Her boyfriend had yet to arrive but was due any minute.
    “You okay?” Augie asked. He was holding a tumbler of straight Jack.
    “Yeah,” I said. “Sorry I didn’t call last night. I got in late.”
    “My lawyer says the D.A. won’t deal. He’s going for manslaughter two. It’s going before a Grand Jury the beginning of next week. He’s pretty certain it’s going to go to trial, unless something new pops up.”
    I said nothing to that. I looked down at my glass.
    Augie said, “He had a gun, I saw it. It was aimed right at me. I’m no greenhorn. I took him down and went down for cover. The other guy, his partner, took off. I could have shot him in the back but didn’t. There was a gun, I know it. It had to have disappeared some time between the shooting and the cops arriving.”
    “You called for the cops from inside?”
    “Yeah.”
    “So the partner was out of your sight for a while.”
    “You think he came back for the gun?”
    “It’s possible. So when we find this fucker, let’s hope we find the gun.”
    Tina came out of the kitchen and placed a small plate of cranberry sauce on the table.
    I glanced toward her as she moved back into the kitchen. Augie followed my line of vision. He watched me for a moment; I could feel it. Then he said, “This could go bad for me, Mac. We both know that. All I seem to do is impose on you. But I was wondering if things don’t work out for me that you’d take care of her. I have no one else, and it would mean a lot to me, knowing she was safe. No one can keep her from harm better than you.”
    I said nothing.
    “Will you do that for me, Mac? Will you take care of Tina again, if this goes bad?”
    I lifted my head and looked at him. I didn’t know what to say. Augie read my face and his expression shifted quickly to one of concern.
    “What’s wrong, Mac?”
    My mouth opened but nothing came out, not even air. Finally, I muttered, “Frank thinks the Chief is behind all this, that he’s covering something up. I think he thinks these men were working for the Chief.”
    A moment went by, and then Augie said, “You’re hiding something, Mac. What is it? What’s wrong?”
    I closed my eyes tight, then reopened them again.
    “Mac?”
    I shifted in my seat. There was no way out of this. I managed to look at Augie, but only briefly. It took a while before I said, “I went to look for the man who sacked me. I was hoping he would lead me to the man who sacked you. I found him and brought him to Frank.” Augie watched me, looking puzzled. “But before Frank could get anything out of him I let him go.”
    “What?”
    “I let him go.”
    “Jesus Christ, why would you do that?”
    I said nothing. I had nothing to say for myself.
    “You let him go? You let the only man