AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Until he dared defy Mary Catherine when he showed up at our door with coffee and donuts.
My wife welcomed Harry into the apartment, but as soon as he asked me a few questions about what happened and where the case was going, Mary Catherine sprang into action like a club bouncer.
Harry not only listened to Mary Catherine’s command to stop talking about work but also jumped to his feet like he needed to stand at attention as she said, “We have to let Michael get his rest. He’ll call you tomorrow if he’s feeling up to it.” There were no questions in her voice. These were commands. They couldn’t be any more solid if they were chiseled into granite tablets. Her sweet Irish accent did nothing to soften them.
Mary Catherine led Harry out of the apartment in a friendly manner, but he had no chance to resist. There was something comical about the whole situation. That’s why I was laughing to myself when Mary Catherine came back and made me lie down on the couch.
“I feel fine. In fact, I slept really well last night.”
“And you’re going to sleep really well today. You’re going to let your mind clear and your body rest.” She looked at me like she expected me to argue. When I remained silent, she gave me a stern look and just added, “Or else.”
It was just about the first time I could remember not working on an open case in some capacity for more than a day. Incredibly, I had allowed Mary Catherine to shut off my phone. That meant calls had to come through the apartment. Mary Catherine could monitor those. She would’ve made a good prison guard.
The first conversation I heard was at about ten in the morning. Terri Hernandez was worried about me and couldn’t reach me on my cell phone. Mary Catherine and Terri chatted like old friends. Terri completely understood when Mary Catherine said she wasn’t letting anyone talk to me today. Instead, they talked about my quirks and snickered like two ex-wives comparing notes.
I could hear only Mary Catherine’s side of the conversation. But she giggled and said, “I know. It’s like sports had an actual impact on his everyday life. If he followed the stock market as closely, we’d be rich.”
I tried to tune out the rest of the conversation to avoid being insulted.
She let me change into regular clothes at about noon and move from the bedroom into the living room, so I didn’t look like I was recovering from some sort of plague. Once the kids got home, I started to feel like being ordered out of work wasn’t such a bad thing. I’d expected the younger kids like Shawna or Chrissy to make a fuss over me, but I was touched that my whole brood made an effort to entertain me.
Chrissy told me a story she’d written for class. It involved chickens who lived at a farm and started to realize they needed to escape. I didn’t point out that it was essentially the plot to the animated movieChicken Run.Chrissy seemed too pleased with herself for me to spoil it.
Jane tried to improve my chess-playing skills. I’d always thought I was pretty good until my third-eldest child proved to be something of a prodigy. She’d backed away from chess as she got into high school, but she was still damn talented. So much so, it wasn’t particularly fun to play her. Even after her hour-long lesson.
I noticed the boys, Ricky, Eddie, and Trent, had come straight home from school. Usually, they stayed and played basketball or some other activity. I worried that the bully situation was really having an impact on their lives. No parent ever wants to see their kids affected like that. It hurt. I made a mental note to call Sergeant Figler and see if she’d made any progress finding the bullies.
The boys got me to play a video game that involved building a fortress to protect against attacking rival tribes.
Most of my questions were left only partially answered as the boys concentrated on the screen.
All in all, it was quite the satisfying day. Apparently, Mary Catherine agreed with me. Just before dinner she eased onto the couch next to me.
She said, “Having you home all day has been a lot of fun. Did you see the look on the kids’ faces when they ran to you right after school?”
“Not so bad, huh?”
“Maybe it doesn’t have to be a one-day deal.”
I turned so I could look into Mary Catherine’s eyes. “Are you suggesting I retire on the basis of a pleasant day at home on the couch? We’ve got ten kids. If half of them decide to go to college, it could bankrupt us.”
“You know we could sell this place and move somewhere cheaper than New York. We could live very comfortable lives.”
“Mary Catherine, is that what you really want?”
She thought about it for a full thirty seconds. Then she looked at me and said, “I’ll let you know when I find out where we’re going with my fertility treatments.”
Like a lot of New Yorkers, I could hardly imagine living anywhere else.
Chapter82
IT DIDN’T TAKElong for my life to get back on track. After almost three days spent on my couch, I found myself with Terri Hernandez. Sitting in an interview room. At Rikers Island. Staring across at the veterinarian Thomas Sloan and his attorney, Linda Beam.
A few days in New York City’s holding cells had already affected Sloan’s appearance. His hair was lank and hung, uncombed, across his ears and forehead. His tan jail scrubs had some kind of food crusted on the chest. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t gratifying to see him in this state.
While I was recovering, Terri Hernandez had been busy. She’d kept the pressure on Sloan and wasn’t taking any shit at all from his attorney. We both knew Linda Beamfrom her days as an assistant district attorney here in the city. A graduate of Howard University, she was one of the sharpest lawyers I’d ever met. And even though I was a few years younger than her, Linda looked a decade younger. Now she was able to use her insight as well as her relationships as one of the city’s most effective criminal defense attorneys.
Linda had an edge to her voice when she said, “C’mon, guys, you don’t think an attempted murder charge is a little over the top?”
