"What do you expect?" Louise snorted. "That she would welcome him home with open arms? The guy spent two nights out; I'd have booted him out as soon as he cleared the threshold."
"I live here," Frank responded in a wheedling tone.
"You can just turn around and go back where you're coming from. I have no time to deal with the likes of you."
"Oh, come on, Max. Give your husband a break, would you?" He proceeded to tell her where he was and the fact that he was trying to get clean. "Something smells mighty delicious."
"It's oatmeal."
"Can't be that good," Angelo muttered, shrugging when Louise cast him an exasperated glance.
"With your special sweetened milk, honey and nutmeg?" he asked eagerly.
"And a touch of vanilla," she told him proudly. "You look hungry."
"Starving."
They listened as the couple moved toward the kitchen.
"Hey, Max, I need to talk to you."
"About what?"
"What you said the other day." From the way the words sounded, the detectives surmised that Frank was busy chowing down on the oatmeal.
"I'm hungry," Angelo muttered. "Should have stopped for breakfast."
"I did," Louise told him smugly, earning herself a dirty look.
"I cannot discuss my plans with you."
"You were right," Frank continued. "It's not fair that that bitch of an actress should have such a lucky break and you don't. You're a good Christian woman and deserve the best of everything. So, I'm in."
"You are?" she cried gratefully. "Really?"
"Yes. What's the plan?"
"He's good," Angelo muttered.
"I have a disguise that I'm going to be using. Bought it off the internet. I'll wait a few weeks and let them think that I'm no longer interested in doing that bitch any harm, and then I'll waylay those no-good nannies in the park. The so-called mother accompanies them sometimes, that worthless bitch, pretending that she's such a good mother, when we all know that those nannies do all the work. Anyway, I'm going to wait on them,use some sort of distraction in case they have those guards with them, shoot the mother, and make off with those lovely babies.
"I bought a motor home. No one will suspect a couple driving a motor home. We could end up in Canada. I have some money stored away. With no children to spend it on, I've been saving. I even bought some outfits for the babies. Oh, Frank!" she gushed. "We're going to be a family. They won't be looking for us in Canada, and no one would suspect that a woman like me had anything to do with the incident. Besides, that Eliza Bell-Copeland-Bell deserves every rotten thing coming her way."
There was a pause, and both detectives waited tensely, wondering why Frank was silent.
Then he spoke quietly and with sincere regret. "I really love you, Max. And I apologize for all the grief I've put you through."
"That's quite all right, Frank," she assured him. "We can start over. You've proven yourself to me by coming back and getting on board. I forgive you."
"I'm really sorry."
"Stop apologizing. The Good Book says we're to forgive and forget."
"That's our cue. She really has a way of picking and choosing what to take from the Good Book," Angelo said dryly as he made sure his ankle piece was secure before making the call.
"Let's go and get her, boys."
*****
