Lev Rosen - Depth

“And that’s when my mom left, too.” Danny didn’t say anything. Simone felt a chuckle leave her mouth, but the rest of her was cool. “Never make assumptions,” she said quietly to herself.

“What?”

“Nothing.” Simone looked up at Danny and smiled.

“You okay?”

“Yeah, thanks. I’m just going to get that coffee,” Simone said, heading for the door.

“Okay. And sorry about your dad.”

She didn’t turn around as he said it but paused before opening the door. Then she kept walking.

Outside it was bright and clear, the sort of day that makes happy people smile and inhale deeply and unhappy people go back to bed. The light glared off the water, hurting her eyes. She put her hat on and kept her face down, pacing to the end of the bridge, where a small coffee boat run by a man with a large mustache was docked. She got a hot black coffee and sat down on the edge of the bridge, her legs over the edge. There was only a cheap rope railing, barely noticeable, and she stared through it at the ocean, drinking. When the coffee was nearly done, she lit a cigarette and called Caroline at work. She picked up after three rings.

“I don’t know if I want to talk to you,” Caroline said.

“Fair enough. I shouldn’t have, but… Did you know my dad had an affair with Kluren?” There was silence.

“That explains a lot,” Caroline said, her voice sounding cautious.

“Yeah.” More silence.

“Look, I have work to do.”

“I’m sorry. I just… I saw you in a photo with The Blonde, Marina, and my brain went into work mode. Imagine if I tried to park a boat in the city without a permit.”

“That’s a crap example, Simone. I thought we were friends and then one photo and you think I’m trying to kill you. That’s not friendship. That’s… I don’t know.”

“I didn’t want to ask you about it. I didn’t want to put you in a position where you might have to lie to me.” Simone stared at her cigarette, then tapped the ashy end of it into the water.

“This isn’t helping your cause.”

“I just was afraid that if I told you about it, you’d get angry and… well, we’d end up where we are.”

More silence. A seagull soared over her, then dove into the ocean like a brick.

“So your plan was a failure,” Caroline said.

“Big time.”

“So you had Danny ask me—”

“No—that was all him,” Simone interrupted. “He found the picture, and I told him to keep his mouth shut. But he’s Danny.”

“Did you think I had anything to do with the case, though? Did you think I’d hired Marina to threaten you?”

“No… Can we talk about this in person?”

“Afraid the line is tapped?”

“I’m being closed in on right now. Lot of pressure.”

“I’ll call you back, then. I’ll use the mayor’s fancy encrypted scrambler line. That good enough? Or do you think he’s involved, too?”

“That’s good,” Simone said, and they hung up. The sun beat down on her, making her clothes cling. Her earpiece rang, the little light from under her ear projecting the incoming call from “unknown.”

“Yeah?” she clicked the phone.

“Secure line. I think you were apologizing? Poorly?”

“Okay, I thought maybe you were involved. But I didn’t think you’d sent Marina after me. Marina pointed the gun at me ’cause I was following her. She wasn’t hired to do that. I just didn’t know how you fit in. And I didn’t want to ask you. So I kept investigating. Once I knew how you were involved, I would have told you.” Simone tossed what was left of her cigarette into the ocean. It cartwheeled into the water, one end leaving a trail of sparks like blood splatter.

“Instead of asking.”

“Yeah. That was the dumb part.”

“In case I was involved in something bad.”

“Yeah.”

“You didn’t want me to lie to you about it.”

“Yeah.”

Simone could hear Caroline typing something. She took a long sip of the coffee. It tasted bitter and chalky.

“I got your straws,” Caroline said after a moment.

“Did you like them?”

“It’s a lot of straws.”

“Yeah.”

“I’m still pissed.”

“Yeah,” Simone said, closing her eyes. She waited for Caroline to hang up. She didn’t.

“So do you know where my painting is? My parents are asking.”

“ Your painting?” Simone asked. The sun felt a little brighter on her neck.

“Yeah. We won the auction. Marina said she’d get me the painting as soon as it was recovered, but I guess one of the losers didn’t like being a loser and went after it themselves.”

“You won the auction?” Simone said.

“That’s what Marina said.”

“Sorenson told me he won the painting. In front of Marina. She said he won it.”

“That bitch,” Caroline said.

Simone let the silence hang intentionally this time, and smiled. “I know you’re not my biggest fan right now,” she said.

“Yeah?”

“But maybe you want to tag along when I go visit her?”

“Are you asking me along to watch you interrogate someone I’m angry at in an attempt to repair our friendship?”

“That is exactly what I’m doing.”

“Will you let me hit her?”

“If the opportunity presents itself.”

“Okay. But it’s going to take more than this and some straws.”

“Can I swing by your office? We’ll head over together?”

“Sure. I want to hear all about this case, though. Every tiny detail.”

“I will. I trust you.”

“No you don’t.”

“I’m trying.”

“Try harder.”

DANNY WAS IN COSTUME by the time she got back to his place.

“Thanks for letting me crash here,” Simone said.

“Going somewhere?” Danny asked, adjusting his turban.

“I got a lead. Caroline and I are going to check it out.”

“Caroline?”

“Yeah, and if you say the word trust I’m going to hit you.” Simone checked her pockets and under the sofa, making sure she had everything. “Caroline is still pissed, but I got my foot in the door, and I’m going to fix this. And solve my case.”

“Busy morning,” Danny said, sounding impressed. “Weren’t you going to tell me what this case is about?”

“Rain check—later, with beer or whatever.” She stood and turned back to look at Danny in his ridiculous pajamas. The feather in his turban bobbed like a buoy. “I promise. Thanks again. I’ll let you know how it turns out.”

“Call me if you need me.” Simone dashed out the door, her coat tight around her, and headed for City Hall.

THE FLOATING PLAZA AROUND City Hall was busier during the day: tourists from the mainland shooting photos, people on smoke breaks by the fountain, and a row of black yachts docked across from the plaza, their bows dipping like praying monks, with a line of drivers standing in front of them like guards. She walked past them into the building, flashed her IRID at the guards, and headed up. She wasn’t a familiar enough face that guards and secretaries stopped to chat with her, but she visited often enough that they knew who she was and that she was allowed in the building.

Caroline’s senior secretary glanced up at Simone when she stepped out of the elevator, then back down at her touchdesk, her mouth a thin line of worry at the prospect of an unscheduled appointment. “I don’t have you on the calendar, but I’ll let Ms. Khan know you’re here. She’ll be out soon, I’m sure.” She picked up the phone and told Caroline that Simone was waiting, then nodded and hung up. “She’s just finishing up a conference call with the mainland.” The secretary leaned forward conspiratorially, clearly excited to have someone new to gossip with. “Some big project they want to do, all very secret. Do you have any guesses?” Simone raised her eyebrows, which the secretary took as a cue to continue. “I think maybe they want to start a whale farm out here. Just think how great that would be.” This was more insight into the mind of Caroline’s secretary than Simone wanted. Thankfully, at that moment, the office door sprang open, and Caroline beckoned wordlessly from inside. Simone shrugged at the secretary and followed Caroline into her office, closing the door behind her.