“You’ll be checking to see if any of Lord’s men took a quick trip down to Las Vegas?”
“Yeah, but it won’t matter if they did. Lots of folks go to Las Vegas. Besides, the chances of Mr. Lord bringing the murders this close to home are slim to none. These guys don’t operate like that. It’s like dogs and their own backyards. But I got to talk to everyone, go through all the motions, just the way homicide did with me down in Las Vegas. Maybe some of the Las Vegas detectives will come up here, who knows?”
“I still have trouble with what Miles told me about the even-up rules. If it were me, I’d want to up the ante myself, not walk away, not just wipe my hands and say, well, that’s how it is. My daughter’s dead, but hey.”
“Probably Shaker knew when he had that bomb planted that he was putting his daughter’s life on the line. It does make him sound like he’s not the greatest dad, doesn’t it? These guys aren’t like you or me, Ramsey. There’s something missing somewhere in how they’re put together. But they don’t get where they are by being stupid. He probably thought Mr. Lord would try for him, only he didn’t.”
“Let’s say he didn’t expect Mason to go that far. Let’s say he doesn’t consider things even. What happens then?”
“Listen, go home, Ramsey. I’d say for you it’s over. Rule Shaker isn’t about to make another mistake. He can’t afford to; he’s got too much to protect.
“Send the little girl and her mother home. The Denver cops will take care of them.
“It’s over now. You can leave the rest of it to us. We’ll let you know if we find out anything that would fill a cereal box.”
24
AT SIX-THIRTY IN the evening a taxi pulled up to Molly’s house on Shrayder Drive. It was a small, lovely house with white window frames and window boxes painted a soft blue. Flowers bloomed wildly over the fence, in bordered flower beds, and in half a dozen flower boxes attached to the porch railing.
The house faced the park where Emma had been kidnapped while Molly was taking pictures. All the front yards were filled with trees and bushes, but no other house had such beautiful flowers.
Emma was a silent ghost. She was holding her piano against her chest, looking straight ahead. She was so very still, as if the quieter she became, the less likely the chance that anything bad would happen to her. He could tell her again that she need not be frightened, but that wasn’t true, not really, and both of them knew it. The man was still out there. Probably he was far away, in hiding, but to Emma, he was lurking close, just as he had been, waiting to take her again. It broke his heart.
He looked out over the park, with its small dips and rises, its clusters of flowers and bushes, and banks of elm and pine trees. He wondered where the man had waited for Emma to get close enough to take her.
He saw that Molly was gazing toward a knot of trees at the west corner of the park. So that was where it happened. Her face was tense, drawn, and thin. Even her glorious red hair seemed flat and lank, pulled back and fastened with a pale green clip that matched the color of her silk blouse. He’d bet that if she’d had a piano like Emma’s, she’d be carrying it too.
“Emma, we’re home.” Molly spoke very softly, not wanting to frighten her, just gain her attention slowly and gently. “Remember, we’re just going to pack our things and then we’re going with Ramsey to San Francisco.”
“And then Ramsey is coming with us to Ireland?” Emma said, pressed against her mother’s side, not an inch between them. Molly wondered what had gone on between Dr. Loo and Emma. It had been just that morning that Emma had seen her for the final time. She must remember to call her.
“Yes, he is,” Molly said. “He wants to go back and he really, really wants us to go with him. He begged, Emma. I’m a nice person, I had to say yes.”