A Stolen Season

by Steve Hamilton

  Vinnie picked up his cup again. He stared into it while I kept telling the story.

  “There was a rumor that Romano’s brother had gotten into some trouble with Masalsky,” I said. “You know, he ran up a big debt, and Romano was gonna see if he could get Masalsky to back off. Either that, or he really just wanted to run the guy out of business. Either way, he got it in his head that he was going to spend his last year on the force making Masalsky’s life miserable. He’d go in the bar all the time, and of course whoever was behind the bar, they’d have to hit that button and the guys upstairs would scramble around, burning up the slips or flushing them. Romano would come to the bar and have one drink, ask where Paulie was, tell the guy to give him his best regards, something like that. Three, four times a week. If he thought the bartender was getting lax on the buzzer, he’d actually tell him he was going to go up the stairs to see if Paulie was up there. Whatever it took to make sure those guys were dumping the slips. This goes on about three months. Everybody on the force knows about it. It’s almost a running joke. Then one morning Jimmy Romano’s found dead in the trunk of his car.”

  “Let me guess.”

  “You don’t have to. Everybody knew who did it. Like I said, I was just a rookie, but I’d hear guys talking about it in the precinct. They had a police funeral for the guy and Masalsky actually sent over some flowers. It was this big arrangement, one of those horseshoe things. It said something like ‘Sincere Condolences’ on it, but it might as well have said ‘Sincerely Fuck Every Last One of You.’ I was out drinking with some of the cops after the funeral, and they were all talking about what they were going to do with the flowers. You know, like take them over to Masalsky’s bar and shove them down his throat one by one.”

  “I probably know the answer to this,” Vinnie said, “but did they ever arrest him?”

  “Of course not. He was in his bar all night, had about sixteen alibis lined up. The man who actually pulled the trigger, hell, he was found in the Detroit River a couple of months later. They recovered the gun and everything. But there was no way to pin it on Masalsky. Absolutely no way. For years after that, whenever I was out with some other cops after work, inevitably the story about Romano and Masalsky would come up. It would always be like, ‘Who’s going to take a run at this guy? Who’s going to take him out? The rest of us, we’ve got you covered. It’ll never come back to you.’ Stuff like that. But it was just talk. It never really happened. You know why?”

  “Why?”

  “Because all those guys had something to lose. They had families. They had careers. When it comes right down to it, it’s one thing to talk about going over the line. It’s another thing to put your whole life at risk and to really do it.”

  He shook his head slowly. “That was a long time ago. A totally different situation.”

  “It’s the same idea. Some people are untouchable. It’s just the way it is. Only now, I’ve got nothing to lose by going after him. Nothing at all.”

  “Alex, I understand why you’re saying that. Believe me. But you had a life before Natalie came along. You had other people who needed you. They still do.”

  “I’m sorry,” I said. “I don’t mean that to sound like a reflection on you. Or anybody else.”

  “You can’t go around thinking your time on earth is over because you lost somebody. You think Natalie would want that?”

  I finished my coffee. Then I stood up and headed to the shower. “If I need your help…,” I said. “I won’t ask you for anything else. Ever. Now I’m going to go get dressed. I’ve got some things to do today.”

  It was a sunny day. Actual, bright sunlight, with a temperature that bordered on warm. It was the first almost-summer day of that July. It would also be the last.

  Not that it mattered to me.

  I got in the truck and drove out to Leon’s house. I figured he wasn’t back to work at the motor shop yet. I knew I was right when I saw his car in the driveway. I parked, went up to his door, and rang the bell. Eleanor answered. Of all the times I had come to this door, she had never looked so horrified to see me.

  “I just want to talk to Leon,” I said. “I’m not dragging him into anything, I promise.”

  “Alex,” she said, opening the door. “Oh my God, you look so…”

  I braced for the impact. She wrapped both arms around me and squeezed.

  “I am so sorry about what happened, Alex. I am so, so sorry.”

  “Thank you,” I said, trying to breathe. “I’ll be all right. Really. Is Leon here?”

  She didn’t let go. As much as it hurt, I had to admit, there were worse things for me on that particular day than a huge bear hug. I relaxed for a moment, put my right arm around her. I closed my eyes and felt her start to cry on my shoulder. When Leon showed up, she finally broke away from me.

  “I’m sorry,” she said, brushing my shoulder. “I’m getting you all wet here.”

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  “Let us know if we can do anything. Okay? Will you do that?”

  “Yes, of course. Thank you.”

  She put her hand on my cheek. Then she went back inside.

  “Alex,” Leon said. “What can I do for you?”

  “I just wanted to talk to you.”

  “Sure, come on. Let’s walk a little bit. Can you believe the sun’s out today?”

  That’s how we ended up walking through his neighborhood. There were more houses, about the same size as his. Not much else. You had to drive up to the Soo to buy food, or gas, or just about anything.

  “The man’s name is Antoine Laraque,” I told him. “I was hoping you could check him out on your computer.”

  “What do you know about him?”

  “Not much. He lives in Toronto. He apparently buys guns from America and sells them to gang members. Or probably anyone else who has enough money. He spends time with a career criminal named Rhapsody something. I’ll have to try to remember her last name. Anyway, Natalie finally got to meet Laraque in person a few days ago. She said she’s never been around a more frightening person in her life.”

  “Frightening in what way?”

  “Not in the sense of being big and imposing. She said he just had this…power. It was hard for her to describe.”

  “Aside from dealing in guns, no other idea about what he does? Some business front he might have?”

  “No idea.”

  “You don’t know where he lives in Toronto?”

  “No. Probably in a big house somewhere. I’m just guessing.”

  We kept walking. I could tell Leon was thinking about it. He was thinking hard.

  “There’s not much to go on,” he finally said.

  “I realize that.”

  “There’s a good chance we won’t be able to dig up much information at all. A guy like that, he probably makes a point of staying mostly invisible. For all you know, Laraque isn’t even his real name.”

  “I suppose that’s possible,” I said. “But that name comes right from the police. They’ve been watching him for quite a while.”

  “Are they still watching him now?”

  “I’m sure they are, yes.”

  “You don’t want to leave this to them?”

  “They have it right now. If they can put together a case, then great.”

  “I take it you don’t think they can.”

  I didn’t feel like going through the whole thing again. “Let’s just say that as a former cop,” I said, “I know how hard it can be.”

  “As a general rule, yes, but—”

  “I just want to know more about him. That’s all I want right now.”

  We kept walking. The sun had gone behind a cloud for a minute. Now it came back out and made everything bright. It felt warm on my face.

  “I’m worried about you,” Leon finally said. “I think you’re still in shock over what happened. Rightly so.”

  “You sound like Vinnie now.”

  “Are you going to listen to either o
f us?”

  “Whenever I have a problem,” I said, “I come to you and you think of at least five different ideas. One of them is going to be completely insane, but that’s the one that usually works. I can’t tell you how much I’ve appreciated all the help over the years, Leon. I mean that.”

  “I’d do it all again, Alex. We’re a good team.”

  “I just need your help one more time. That’s all I’m asking. Just one more time.”

  “I understand. But so far, all I can see is you walking up and down the street in Toronto, calling out his name.”

  “You’ll look him up on your computer, right? You’ll see what you can find.”

  “Yes, I’ll do that much. In the meantime, any chance of you giving me my gun back?”

  “Why, do you need it?”

  “I think I’d just feel better if I held on to it for a few days.”

  “You’re the one who’s always telling me a gun should be my best friend.”

  “Maybe right now you need a different kind of friend. I’m just saying—”

  “I’d like to keep it for a while,” I said. “If that’s all right.”

  He didn’t answer me. We kept walking. We went back to his house. He promised me he’d find out everything he could about Laraque. I promised him I’d tell him before I did anything stupid.

  I’m not sure either of us was telling the truth.

  Chapter Eighteen

  I didn’t know where to go next, so I drove up through the Soo. Without really thinking about it, I found myself on Portage Avenue, seeing all the people out enjoying the sunshine. I parked the truck, got out and walked through the Locks Park. I’m not sure why I was doing this, why I would go look at the fountain, the last place I had kissed her. Maybe I needed to refuel myself, remind myself of what was gone from my life. Because whatever I was going to do next, it was starting to look more and more like I’d be doing it alone.

  Story of my life. And even more, of Natalie’s. The fact that she died alone, too. That was the worst part. Her whole life, first as a young girl in Blind River, with everything that happened with her stepfather. Then later, as a cop, posted way the hell up in Hearst, on the last road in Canada. Me finding her, living by herself in that big house, so alone there she made me look like a socialite.

  She lived her whole life alone and now she died alone. Before I could stop myself I imagined her body in a metal drawer somewhere, waiting to be put in the ground.

  No, Alex. Keep moving.

  I went down to the water and looked out at the St. Marys River. Ontario was right there on the other side. Maybe, what, a half a mile away? A long time ago, I could have swum that with no problem. I had a sudden urge to climb the fence and dive right in. I could practically feel the cold water on my skin. I’d swim for Canada, and either I’d make it all the way, or else I’d drown somewhere in the middle. Either way, I couldn’t see a downside.

  All right, I thought, time to get your head on straight. Go do the next thing you can do. Then the next. You’re living for one thing now. After that, well…You can deal with everything else when you’re done.

  I walked back past the fountain. A brilliant move on my part, I said to myself, to come here today, to remember how she looked that night. I can barely stand up straight it hurts so much. Yeah, Alex, this was genius.

  I got back in the truck, closed my eyes until I could breathe again. I headed toward home, flipping the visor down against the sun. On a whim, I detoured north through Brimley. I passed the old abandoned railroad car, all boarded up and sitting there on a forgotten corner of the road, looking like it should be full of ghosts. A couple miles later, I turned off on the road that looped along Waishkey Bay.

  I was thinking maybe Tyler could help me out. He was a Coast Guard auxiliarist, after all, although he obviously did things his own way. He knew all about boats, and about the local waterways. Beyond that, he seemed like the kind of guy you could trust, the kind of guy who’d understand a big problem.

  I parked the truck in front of his house and rang the doorbell. Nobody answered. I rang again and waited. Then I walked around to the back of the house.

  I saw the boat out on the water, about a hundred yards from shore. Tyler and Liz were both on board, sitting in deck chairs with their backs to me. They seemed to be looking out at the bay. I stood on the shoreline, watching them. It felt strange to be here again, remembering that night, how cold it had been, how impenetrable the fog. Now, on a bright and sunny day, the whole scene looked so much different.

  Tyler and Liz probably did this every day, I thought. Every nice day, at least. Drift out in their boat, sit on the water with nowhere to go. Just be together.

  I didn’t want to disturb them, didn’t want to make them bring the boat in. There was a rowboat there by the dock. I thought, what the hell, I’ll go out and talk to them.

  I stepped down into the boat, feeling it rock under my weight. I sat down slowly and then grabbed the oars. I started rowing, skimming the water on the first stroke and banging the oars into the metal sides of the boat. I got the hang of it on the second stroke. Another thing I hadn’t done in a million years.

  I made my way out to them, moving backward, looking over my shoulder every few strokes to make sure I was heading in the right direction. As I got closer, Liz turned around and spotted me. She was confused for a moment, then she broke out in that big smile of hers. For one second I thought maybe she hadn’t even heard, as impossible as that would be in a place like this where everybody knows everything about everybody. The smile melted in an instant.

  She nudged Tyler, who turned around and went through his own version of the same reaction. Confusion to recognition to that mixture of feelings you experience around someone who’s suffered a tragedy. Empathy and sorrow, yes. Also discomfort, a nervous unease. I wondered how long I’d be evoking this in every single person I ran into.

  “Alex!” Liz said. “You don’t have to row out here! We would have come in.”

  “You guys looked so peaceful out here,” I said. “I’m sorry to interrupt.”

  I should have just turned around and left, I thought to myself. Did I really need to talk to Tyler this much?

  He came over and threw me a line. I tied off the rowboat and climbed aboard. As soon as I had my feet on deck, Tyler took my right hand. He held it with a firm grip and looked me in the eye, his free hand on my shoulder. He started to say something, stopped himself, gave me a tight smile.

  “I can’t imagine what brings you here,” he finally said. “But if there’s anything we can do for you…” I could tell he meant it. I could have asked him for anything. That’s the kind of people they were, both of them.

  These are real Yoopers, I thought to myself. These are the people who make this place what it is.

  “I don’t mean to intrude,” I said. “I was just driving by, thought I’d stop in.”

  “I’m glad you did,” Tyler said. “Would you like some coffee?”

  “Yes. I could use some right now.”

  Liz poured me a cup while Tyler unfolded another deck chair. He set it up so I was sitting in the middle.

  “We do this a lot,” Liz said. “It’s the best part of living here.”

  “I don’t blame you,” I said. “I can’t imagine a better spot to have a cup of coffee.” I looked out at the bay, at the shifting colors in the water as the clouds moved through the sunlight. Today, you could see all the way across the bay. The line of trees on the far side was the Canadian shore.

  “Actually, I wanted to ask you something,” I said. “About getting over there.”

  “To Canada?” Tyler said. “What’s the problem?”

  “Well, it’s like this…”

  I let out a breath and looked out over the water. Natalie would have loved this day, I thought, the first day that even remotely resembled summer around here. The fresh air out here on the water, the sunlight, the way the boat was rocking gently on the waves.

  What are y
ou going to tell these good people, Alex? That you want them to smuggle you over the border? So you can do what? Hitchhike to Toronto? Then what? What’s your plan? Leon was right. You might as well walk up and down the streets, calling out his name.

  “Alex,” Liz said, “are you okay?”

  “What do you want to ask us?” Tyler said.

  “I don’t know what I’m doing anymore,” I said. “I’m sorry.”

  “That’s okay,” Tyler said. “You know, Liz and I lost somebody once. You never get over it. Some days you live with it better than others. But it never goes away.”

  “That’s right,” Liz said. “It never does.”

  “Just sit here with us,” Tyler said. “See if you can enjoy the day, at least for a little while. Maybe that’s all you can do right now.”

  I sat back in my chair, feeling like everything had been drained right out of me. I didn’t want to agree with him, didn’t want to accept what he was saying, but in the bright light of day with the wind coming in across the water, I couldn’t argue with him. I couldn’t think of one thing to say.

  We sat there for a long time. Eventually, I closed my eyes. The rocking of the boat would have lulled me to sleep, but then I heard Liz get up and go to the edge of the deck. When I opened my eyes, she was leaning over the gunwale, staring down into the water.

  “Hey, Tyler,” she said.

  “Hmm?” He was half asleep, too.

  “Remember how we were out here the other day, looking for that thing?”

  “Yeah?”

  “This is the first sunny day we’ve had in so long…You can see a lot better now.”

  He got up and looked over the gunwale. I followed them, looked over the edge, saw the sunlight penetrating the water. I saw the silvery flash of a fish below the surface, a good four feet deep.

  “Hot damn,” Tyler said. “You’re right.”

  “What are you waiting for? Let’s go look again.”

  “What are we talking about here?” I said.

  “You remember the boat wreck, of course…”

  “How could I forget?”

  “Remember how those guys came back the next day, looking for that box?”