by Ben Follows
“Exactly,” said Franklin.
Keith tapped his fingers along the table. “They told us all that the plan if anything happened was to resume work at a warehouse owned by Ruutu International. That’s all I know. They said they would send out the information once the danger had subsided.”
Franklin made a note. “Nothing else?”
“That’s all I know.”
“We’ll find it. Anything else you need, Norman?”
Norman frowned for a long moment. Something was bothering him, but he couldn’t place his finger on it.
“I have a few questions I’d like to ask Keith in private,” he said. “Can you take Amelia to the car?”
“Are you sure?” said Franklin. His tone implied that he could sense that Norman was trying something.
“Give me five minutes,” said Norman. “Then come back down.”
Franklin nodded. He and Amelia walked out of the basement. Amelia walked like a zombie alongside Franklin, as though she was overwhelmed by the world. Norman and Keith remained in silence until they heard the door at the top of the stairs close.
Norman turned to Keith.
Keith swallowed awkwardly. “Thank you for this,” he said. “I appreciate your support.”
Norman nodded. “Is there anything else you know about Robin’s death?”
Keith frowned. “What do you mean? I told you everything I know.”
“No,” said Norman, “you didn’t.”
Keith shrugged. “I don’t understand.”
“I haven’t been a detective very long,” said Norman. “I will openly admit that I’m far from the best. However, I’ve gotten pretty good at telling when someone is lying or leaving out information. You know more than you told us.”
“No, I don’t,” said Keith. A line of sweat appeared on his forehead.
Norman thought for a moment then took a shot in the dark.
“Keith,” he said slowly, “they didn’t trust you, did they? Thomas and Gary needed a way to make sure you wouldn’t go to the police. Harold had his family, but you had nothing to lose.”
The moment Norman finished speaking, Keith jumped from his seat, sending the chair careening backward into the wall. Breathing heavily, he ran for the stairs. Norman stepped out of his chair. In just a few steps, he closed the distance and slammed Keith into the wall. He held Keith there while he tried to escape. Keith was significantly weaker than Norman and wasn’t able to put up a fight, despite Norman’s condition.
“Tell me what happened,” said Norman as Keith continued to struggle.
“I didn’t do anything. I’m innocent!”
“You sure look innocent. Just calm down.”
Keith looked back at him for a long moment and then stopped struggling. It took Norman a moment to realize Keith was crying.
“I’m sorry,” he said through his tears. “I never wanted this to happen. I just wanted to save Marie.”
“I’m going to let you go, and then you’re going to tell me everything,” said Norman. “If you are honest, I might help you. Understand?”
Keith nodded. Norman let go of him and stepped back, ready to grab him if he tried anything.
Keith turned and looked at the staircase for a moment before falling against the wall and sliding down.
“They forced me to do it,” he said, staring at the floor. “They said they would kill me if I didn’t. They gave me a gun and told me to set up a meeting with Robin. I called and told her I had information about her brother’s death. We arranged to meet that night in the backyard of her parents’ house. It was her idea, because it was a big empty space no one would be in. I snuck into her yard and shot her in the back of the head. She never saw me. I dropped the gun in a dumpster and hid in my room at Gary’s house until they told me no one suspected me. I’m so sorry. I don’t even want to think what Marie would think if she could see me. I was a good person once, I swear.”
Norman looked down at the crying, sniveling man who had killed Robin. “You know,” he said. “I got a call from Thomas Ruutu this morning. He has the woman I love captive, and he told me that all I needed to do to save her was kill you. I could do that, right now, and save her.”
Keith looked up at him. “Thomas told you to kill me?”
Norman nodded. “Shows how much he cares about you and how much he trusts you.” He crouched down so his face was on the same level as Keith’s. “Do you know why I’m not going to kill you, Keith?”
Keith nervously shook his head.
Norman locked him in his gaze. “Because, unlike you, I’m not a fucking murderer.”
Chapter 42
Amelia stepped out of the car and absentmindedly thanked Norman and Franklin. Norman was looking weaker than he should. He had been in the hospital for a reason, and he was clearly still weak from his near-death beating.
Keith had been taken to the station to be processed. When Norman had told Amelia that she was sitting beside her sister’s killer, she felt sick to her stomach. She was thankful Norman had caught him, but she would rather have found out a different way.
She turned toward the house where she had lived for the past decade and sighed. Joel, Robin, and now Harold would be gone. Franklin had put out an APB for the arrest of Harold, Gary, and Thomas. Harold had been found at his clinic almost immediately and brought in to the station for questioning.
Amelia walked up the walkway to the front door. She looked back just as Norman and Franklin drove away.
As she stepped inside, she was confronted by the sound of her mother screaming at someone. Amelia followed the sound into the kitchen.
Mary Sweetwater was on the phone. “There’s been some sort of mistake! Do you have any idea who my husband is? He has done more good for the world than any of you fucking pigs. You will release him right now before I get the full might of my legal team to come down on you!”
“Mom,” Amelia said softly, standing in the doorway.
Mary didn’t look at her. “I don’t give a shit!” she screamed into the phone. “Get him out of there now!”
“Mom.”
Mary paced back and forth. “I will destroy you and everyone you love unless you release Harold right now. After all I’ve been through with two of my children dying, you dare to accuse my husband of having a part in it? Fuck you, you useless pieces of shit. Do you have children? Well, of course not. Hello?”
Mary looked at her daughter. Amelia’s finger was on the receiver, cutting off the call.
“Amelia?” said Mary, looking more stunned than angry. “What are you doing?”
“Mom,” said Amelia, softly. “I need to talk to you. About Harold.”
Mary looked from her only remaining child back to the phone and then slowly returned the phone to its cradle. There were tears in her eyes, which she tried to wipe away.
“Amelia, what’s the matter?”
Amelia pulled her mother into a tight hug. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered to her mother as her tears broke through the floodgates. “It’s true. All of it.”
Chapter 43
“We’ve got it,” said Franklin. He hung up and put his coffee into his cup holder as he pulled out of the parking lot. “Ruutu International owns a warehouse in the north of the city. We’re sending patrol cars there now to surround the place.”
“Do I get a gun?” said Norman.
“You do not,” said Franklin. “You are not certified, nor do I trust you with one. I’m taking you along with me to catch this motherfucker for two reasons. One, you did a good job getting a confession out of Keith. You did good, Norman.”
“Thank you,” said Norman, feeling a swell of pride. “That means a lot.”
“Don’t thank me yet,” said Franklin, turning onto the highway and heading north. “You won’t like the second reason.”
“What’s that?” said Norman, turning to him.
“I want to prove you aren’t fit for this line of work,” said Franklin. “You take things personally and get to
o invested in cases. That will kill you in the long term.”
“I can handle it,” said Norman.
Franklin glanced at him. “We’ll see.”
They drove in silence until they came to a warehouse on the outskirts of town. Police cars had already blocked off the area.
“Come on,” said Franklin, parking behind the blockade and climbing out of the car. “They must be in there somewhere.”
“They’ll have seen the police presence,” said Norman as he climbed out of the car. “They’ll know we’re coming.”
“Perhaps,” said Franklin, “but we have them surrounded. There’s nothing they can do about it.”
“Thomas is smart. He isn’t here.”
“He’s here.”
Norman shook his head but said nothing. It seemed too easy.
“Let’s head inside,” said Franklin to the cop in charge of the siege. “Stay back, Norman. This might get ugly.”
Cops began streaming between the cars and heading toward the building at the leader’s command. Norman fell in step with the third wave of cops. Something about the building was bothering him. It was too quiet, too boring.
But the cops thought Julia was being held somewhere inside, and Norman wasn’t about to get in their way.
They walked up to the building and pushed the door open. Once it was open, cops poured into the building.
Norman listened as Franklin yelled and shouted at his officers to search the building and find everything they could.
By the time Norman was inside, the panic was already over.
The warehouse was empty. There was nothing there but the rafters and support beams.
Franklin was leaning against a post in the center of the room, staring forward. Officers were scattered around the warehouse, looking for anything.
Norman walked up to Franklin. “What happened?”
Franklin looked down at the ground. “I was so sure there was going to be a lab here just like the other one that I didn’t even think through how stupid it would be. You were right. There was nothing but this.”
He held out a note. It said, Nice try, Detective Franklin.
“That’s it?” said Norman.
“That’s it,” said Franklin. “It was taped to this pillar. We’ll give it to forensics, but I doubt they find anything.”
“So what now?” said Norman, handing him back the note.
Franklin looked around the empty warehouse.. “I don’t know,” he said. “I was so sure this was it.”
“He outsmarted all of us,” said Norman.
“Whatever,” said Franklin. “I’ll leave the others to do the rest of the cleanup.”
Norman looked around. “Where’s Julia?”
“I don’t know.” Franklin looked down. “I’m sorry.”
Franklin patted Norman on the shoulder. “Back to the drawing board. We’ll find her.” He walked past Norman and toward the exit.
In that moment, Norman felt hopeless, as though he would never find Julia. He would never again feel her warmth, her kiss, her body.
He would never get to watch her play with the dogs.
In that moment, Norman realized he loved Julia, and he needed her in his life.
If only he knew where she was.
Chapter 44
Around nine the next morning, Norman received a call from the real estate agent telling him there was an offer for his condo, just a few grand below the asking price. Norman informed her he would take the deal. The buyers would take over ownership of his condo in a month.
Norman walked through the condo in a daze. He looked over the balcony. The brisk spring air was cold against his bare chest, but he didn’t care. He gazed over the city of Toronto. It was bustling, and the snow had mostly melted.
He walked back inside and fell onto the couch.
He tried calling Detective Franklin and got nothing.
He wanted to call Rob, but he didn’t want to talk about Julia. He was sure the dogs were fine.
By three in the afternoon, when the doorbell rang, Norman hadn’t moved from his spot on the couch and was still wearing his bathrobe.
He glanced at the front door then looked back at the television. A moment later, the doorbell rang again.
“Norman!” shouted Amelia from the hallway. “I know you’re in there.”
“Go away!” he shouted back.
“I’m coming in.”
“The door’s locked!”
The door opened. “No, it’s not!” shouted Amelia.
“Damn it,” muttered Norman. “Make yourself at home, since you seem to be doing that anyway.”
Amelia walked in front of Norman, blocking his view of the television, and crossed her arms.
“You know that it’s four o’clock, right?”
“So?”
“Julia is still out there.”
“We aren’t going to get Thomas. He’s smarter than us.”
“Are you kidding me?” said Amelia. “The woman you love is still out there, and you’re sitting here doing nothing. Go knock on some doors. Do something.”
“Why are you here?” said Norman. “I thought you were done.”
Amelia crossed her arms. “We’re not even close to done. Get your ass off the couch and let’s go talk to Gary Thorne.”
“No one knows where he is,” said Norman.
“I know where his house is,” said Amelia. “We can’t give up. It’s pathetic.”
“I love Julia,” said Norman. “What if he kills her?”
“What makes you think he won’t just because you aren’t a threat?”
Norman swallowed then nodded. “Alright, let’s go.”
“Good,” said Amelia. “I’m making coffee. You want some?”
“Sure, it’s above the sink.”
“I know where the coffee is.”
Norman slowly stood and looked into the kitchen at Amelia. “What happened? Amelia?”
“I told my mom everything,” said Amelia as she readied the coffee machine. “She knows everything. She knows her husband caused the death of two of her three children. Harold is going to go to prison for a long time. My mom is staying at her sister’s for the foreseeable future. I don’t want her to spend a single second alone right now.”
“You never liked Harold,” said Norman. “I suppose you were right not to like him.”
Amelia looked up at him and sighed. “I really, really, wish I had been wrong.”
Chapter 45
Norman knocked on the door of the small house. Amelia snuck around the side and into the backyard. They had come up with a plan of attack on the way over that gave them the best chance of success.
A plump woman answered who was dressed immaculately, despite being at her own home and not looking like she had plans to go anywhere.
“Mrs. Thorne?”
“Yes,” she said. “I’m Patricia. Who are you?”
“My name is Norman Green. I’m a private investigator. I’m looking for Gary Thorne. Is he here?”
“He’s away for the weekend,” said Patricia quickly.
“Are you sure? Do you know when he’ll be back?”
“I don’t know,” she said sheepishly. “I can take a message.”
Norman shook his head. “Unfortunately, Mrs. Thorne, this is sensitive information. I can only talk to him about it.”
“Sorry,” said Mrs. Thorne, pushing the door shut. “I can’t help you.”
Norman grabbed the door and looked over Mrs. Thorne’s shoulder. Amelia slid through the patio door and into the kitchen then began quietly rummaging through the cupboards. She looked back at Norman for a moment before continuing her search.
“I need to talk to you,” said Norman, focusing on Patricia. “Anything you can tell me about where he is would be very helpful.”
“I told you,” said Patricia, “I don’t know where he is.”
Patricia went to turn just as Amelia slipped into an adjacent room.
Norman grabbed
her shoulder. “Mrs. Thorne,” he said. “He’s in danger.”
Patricia turned back. “Is this related to Keith’s arrest?”
“His brother-in-law?”
“Former brother-in-law,” said Patricia, “since Marie died.”
“I need to find him as soon as possible.”
Patricia glanced back into the house, as though contemplating something.
“No,” she said, turning back toward Norman. “I can’t help you. If you don’t get off my front porch, I’m calling the police.”
“I wouldn’t advise that,” said Norman.
“Why’s that?” said Patricia.
“The police sent me,” he said. “I’m working on this investigation with Detective Franklin.”
Norman didn’t know where his confidence came from as he pulled his phone from his pocket. He dialed Franklin’s number from his contacts but didn’t hit “call.” He held the phone out to Patricia. She looked from the phone to Norman and then sighed.
“Look,” she said. “I don’t know where Gary is. He hasn’t been home in a week. The police have already been asking. I can’t help.”
“Sorry to bother you,” said Norman.
Just as Patricia was closing the door, an unintelligible shout came from the second floor.
“Who’s that?” said Norman.
“My brother,” said Patricia quickly. “He’s staying over.”
“Sounds like Gary.”
“It’s not.”
“Norman!” Amelia shouted from the second floor, making Patricia’s head snap toward the sound of the unfamiliar voice. “Get up here! I’ve got him.”
Norman smirked as Patricia’s face went completely pale.
“Looks like you’re a better liar than I gave you credit for,” said Norman. “Excuse me.”
He shoved past Patricia and into the house.
“You can’t do this!” Mrs. Thorne shouted. “You need a warrant. You can’t come in here.”
“Listen, Mrs. Thorne,” said Norman, stopping halfway up the stairs. “I’m done pretending to be nice or giving a shit about any of this. Gary is directly tied to the kidnapping of the woman I love and at least two other deaths.”
