found her. I remembered what a hard-on you had for this guy at the end, so naturally I wondered if you’d aced him.”
“Naturally. What happened to him?”
McCue drank some coffee and grimaced. “Somebody beat the crap out of him, and capped it off by snapping his neck. Let me see your hands.” I held them out and McCue inspected them. “Soft as a baby’s ass,” he said.
“And no cuts or bruises. Sorry to disappoint.”
McCue shrugged. “A shot in the dark,” he said. “And I’m guessing you can account for your time.”
I sighed. “Only if you tell me what time I’m supposed to account for.” He told me, and took it well when he heard I’d been in a roomful of bankers on the evening in question.
“Like I said, a shot in the dark. You come across anybody in your travels who’d want to punch his ticket?”
I shook my head. “Nope.”
“But if you think of somebody, I’m your first call, right?”
“Sure,” I said, and I headed for the door. I was halfway out when McCue spoke again.
“How’s that brother of yours doing, by the way?” he asked. “His wife give him back his balls yet?”
“Fuck you,” I said, and left. His laughter followed me down the hall.
The next day I drove up to Tarrytown. The Van Winkle Court condominiums were still there, and so was Uncle Kenny, but Jamie Coyle was long gone.
