The Night Crew

we’re working on a relationship?’’
    She was so silky with the question that Harper glanced at her and said: ‘‘Shut up.’’ And a moment later, ‘‘You’re stupid.’’
    Anna laughed, and said, ‘‘I hope Creek’s awake.’’ Creek was awake, eating a bowl of raspberry Jell-O and arguing with Pam Glass, who looked more tired than Creek. When Anna and Harper walked in, Glass said, ‘‘God, am I glad to see you. This nitwit is talking about going home in the morning.’’
    Creek was sitting up in bed, still plugged into the saline drip. He tried to look well. ‘‘I’m feeling a hell of a lot better,’’ he said, in an unnaturally chipper voice.
    ‘‘What do the doctors say?’’ Harper asked.
    ‘‘If he keeps improving, maybe three days,’’ Glass said. ‘‘That’s the minimum. He’s talking about how his insurance runs out. I offered to help him, but he won’t take help.’’
    Creek looked embarrassed and Anna put a hand on her hip and said, ‘‘I bought the insurance, Creek. It ain’t runnin’ out.’’
    ‘‘So, I thought it might run out.’’
    Glass’s eyes narrowed: ‘‘You were lying to me.’’ ‘‘That’s what I thought,’’ Creek mumbled.
    Glass dropped in a chair. ‘‘I don’t even know why I hang around this place,’’ she said, wearily.
    ‘‘Jeez, Pam, take it easy . . .’’ Now Creek was worried.
    Glass looked at Anna and said, ‘‘Anything?’’
    ‘‘Your pal Wyatt wants her to be a target in some stupid decoy operation,’’ Harper said.
    ‘‘Decoy?’’ Now she was interested. ‘‘How would it work?’’
    Anna explained, and Glass nodded: ‘‘Could work.’’
    ‘‘That’s bullshit,’’ said Creek. He looked at Harper. ‘‘You can’t go along with this.’’
    ‘‘Of course not. I already told her how stupid it is . . .’’
    Anna was looking at Glass. ‘‘You think it could work?’’
    The other woman nodded. ‘‘Those guys are good. I’d go for it.’’
    Now it was Creek’s turn to be angry: ‘‘Pam, goddammit, you don’t know what you’re doing. This guy’s a psycho.’’
    ‘‘If we thought he was going to shoot her with a sniper rifle, then I’d be against it,’’ Glass said. ‘‘But he seems to want to get his hands on her. These guys who’ll be with her—they’re tough guys. He won’t take Anna away from them.’’ Anna told Creek and Glass about the abortive trip to the Full Heart Ranch, and her talk with Steve Judge.
    ‘‘I hadn’t thought of that guy, but now that you bring him up—there’s something about him. I think he needs a closer look,’’ Creek said.
    ‘‘He’s in Oregon,’’ Anna said.
    ‘‘That could be some bullshit they pulled,’’ Creek said.
    ‘‘I don’t think so,’’ she said. Anna looked at Harper, remembering their conversation while they were shooting.
    ‘‘You said you had a couple ideas. One of them is the other kid . . . but what’s the one you didn’t want to talk about? The coincidence?’’
    Harper shrugged. ‘‘Not much, really,’’ he said. Then, ‘‘Could I have a little talk with Creek? Alone?’’
    Anna looked from Harper to Creek and said, ‘‘What’s this about?’’
    Creek shrugged, looking curiously at Harper, and Harper said, ‘‘If I wanted you to know, I’d just go ahead and ask— so if you don’t mind, go talk to Pam. In the hall.’’
    Anna and Glass let Harper ease them through the door, and shut the door behind himself. ‘‘They don’t even know each other,’’ Anna said. Two minutes later, the door opened. Harper looked out, and said, ‘‘You better come back in.’’
    Anna and Glass filed back in, and Creek smiled at Anna, tentatively, the smile flickering like a bad fluorescent bulb.
    ‘‘What?’’ Anna demanded.
    ‘‘Jake, uh, brought something up. He didn’t want to talk to you about it unless I thought there was something to talk about.’’
    ‘‘So?’’
    ‘‘So—there might be.’’
    ‘‘So? What is it?’’
    Creek looked at Harper, shrugged, looked back at Anna and said, ‘‘Clark.’’ ‘‘Nope, nope, no way, no way,’’ Anna said. She waved her arms like a home plate umpire calling a runner safe. ‘‘It wouldn’t, it’s not, Clark wouldn’t . . .’’
    ‘‘Probably not,’’ Creek said. ‘‘But Clark is strange. You know that yourself: I’ve never met anyone as driven as he was. Every time you two guys got into trouble, it was because he was