Ник Сайнт - Purrfectly Deadly

“Your dad?” she guessed.

He looked up. “Yeah, this was taken when he got a commendation.” He dumped the picture frame on top of his luggage.

“I’ve got some great news for you,” she said, grabbing a chair.

“Oh? What’s that?”

She quickly told him the story of what had transpired just now, and his eyebrows raised a fraction of an inch.

“So Veronica George finally decided to come clean, huh? Well done.”

“I just thought you’d like to know she’s going to retract her statement, so you should be good to stay on here in Hampton Cove. I’m sure my uncle will take you back in a heartbeat.”

“Too late,” he said, surprising her.

“Too late? What do you mean? This is your chance, Chase.”

He gave her a weary look. “My reputation is shot to hell, Odelia. Even if Veronica retracts her statement, those rumors will never go away. Not until the whole story comes out, and even then they’ll persist. It’s like with those apologies the tabloids publish in small print on the bottom of page fifty after they’ve destroyed your reputation on the front page just days before.”

“This won’t be buried on page fifty, Chase. I’ll get you the front page.”

He shook his head. “Muds sticks, Odelia. No matter what you write.”

“Not when I reveal the truth and do the whole story, like you said.”

He raked his fingers through his hair. “What are you going to write?”

“I’ll print the retraction on the front page. Clear your name entirely.”

“Like I said, mud sticks. I can’t be a cop in this town, not with half the population believing I’m dirty. I’ll never have the authority I need again.”

“But—”

He held up his hand to silence her. “Look, I appreciate what you’ve done for me, I really do, but my mind is made up. This part of my life is over.”

She stared at him, defeated. “What are you going to do?”

“A buddy of mine set up his own business in Cleveland. Private security. He’s always asked me to join him so I finally told him I would. It’s not as much fun as being a cop, but it’s a paycheck.”

She stared at the picture frame of Chase’s dad. “Is that what your dad would have wanted? You running away like this?”

For a moment, the fire returned to his eyes. “I’m not running away. I just know when it’s time to call it quits. And right now it’s time to move on.”

She remembered something Brutus said. “Wasn’t being a cop your dream?”

He stared at her. “Yes, it was. My dad was a cop, so naturally I thought being a cop was the greatest thing ever. And it was. It still is.”

She realized she didn’t know Chase all that well. In the short time he’d been here, he’d made quite an impression on her, but he’d never discussed his personal life.

“Your dad… is he retired now?”

“Retired to that big old retirement home in the sky,” said Chase.

“Oh… I’m so sorry, Chase.”

“One week before his retirement he broke up a fight on the Lower East Side. Some dumb dispute about a hot dog stand. One guy suddenly took out a gun and fired off a warning shot. The shot went wide and hit my dad in the carotid artery and he bled to death. Dumbest death ever.”

“Oh, God, Chase. That’s horrible.”

“Mom didn’t take it too well, as you can imagine. She hasn’t been the same since. The fact that her son was kicked off the force didn’t help either.”

“Where is she now?”

“Living with her sister in the Bronx. I’d take her, but I’m not exactly in a position to do so right now.”

“But don’t you want to stay close? Ohio is a long way from your family.”

He shrugged. “It’s a job. A man’s got to eat.”

“Look, what if I expose the Commissioner? Would that help?”

He stared at her. “And how exactly are you going to do that?”

“I have my sources. I’ll figure something out.”

“You can’t go throwing out wild accusations, Odelia. They’ll come after you next. This guy… he’s ruthless. And it’s not just the Commissioner, you’re going up against the mayor as well. Both powerful men, both trying to protect their careers now that there are important elections coming up.”

“I’m a big girl, Chase. I can handle myself,” she promised him.

He gave her a grimace. “You better have ironclad proof, or else they’re going to sink your career like they sank mine. In fact I’d advise you to stay away from this whole business.” He rose from the bed, grasped her hand and shook it. “See you around, Odelia Poole. It was nice sparring with you.”

“I’m not giving up on this yet,” she said adamantly. “This town needs a good cop like you, Chase, and I’m going to make sure you stick around.”

He shook his head. “Keep dreaming, Poole.”

“That’s exactly what I’m going to do.” She wasn’t doing this for herself. She was doing this for Chase, for his mother, and for Hampton Cove. Because this town deserved a great cop like him, and his mother deserved a break, and so did he. The fact that her heart suddenly hurt when she thought about him leaving town never to return had nothing to do with it, of course.

Chapter 26

When Odelia walked back to the car, she was looking disappointed. It was obvious her one-on-one with Chase hadn’t gone as well as she’d hoped.

“What?” asked Brutus eagerly. “Is he staying?”

She shook her head as she slipped behind the wheel. “No. He says he’s moving to Cleveland, to start working private security with a buddy of his.”

“Cleveland? Where is Cleveland?” asked Harriet.

“Ohio,” I told her.

“Where’s Ohio?” asked Dooley.

“Far away from here,” said Odelia, clearly not too happy.

“But didn’t you tell him about Veronica?” cried Brutus, dismayed.

“I did,” she said, slumping behind the wheel. “He said it’s too little too late. His reputation is shot to hell, and people won’t trust him as a cop.”

“Like trying to put toothpaste back into the tube,” I said.

“Exactly,” said Odelia with a wan smile. “Thanks for that imagery, Max.”

“It’s not so hard to put toothpaste back into the tube,” said Dooley.

“No? Let’s see you try it,” said Odelia.

“You just… do it,” said Dooley, sounding like a commercial for Nike.

“Why don’t you just write a big, beautiful story on the front page and convince everybody what a magnificent person Chase really is?” asked Harriet, gazing at Brutus as if he was the most magnificent cat she knew.

“Unless I print the whole story, with irrefutable proof, that won’t make much of a difference,” said Odelia. “No, Chase is right.”

“But… that means you’re leaving?” Harriet asked Brutus, eyes wide.

Brutus, for the first time since I’d met him, looked crestfallen. “Oh, tootsie roll,” he croaked.

“Oh, honey pie,” she whispered, and they both broke into tears. It was a little pathetic, but also heartbreaking.

“Look, I promised Chase I’d break the story of the Commissioner’s dirty little secret,” said Odelia, turning to me, “but I need your help. I need to have positive proof of this affair. Without that, we’re sunk. It’s Chase’s word against the Commissioner’s, and we all know who the public will believe.”

I thought about this for a moment, then I nodded. “I think I know just the cat to talk to.”

“Well, you go do that, and I’ll…” She waved her hands helplessly. “I need to rethink this entire murder thing. If Veronica didn’t do it, and neither did Jasper… Well, then I really don’t know who did,” she finished.

“Can you drop us off at the mall?” I asked, and even though she eyed me curiously, she didn’t ask why. She drove us over and let us out of the car.