Long Shadows, page 38
The two men stared at each other for what seemed an eternity.
Finally, in a muted voice, his gaze averted, Talbott said, “You will carry on your normal duties until further notice.”
“Yes sir,” said White immediately. She pulled on Decker’s arm and forcibly dragged him out of the room.
As they walked down the hall she said, “Do you realize you pretty much just blackmailed the man?”
“Must be all that crap in Florida rubbing off on me.”
As they got outside, White said, “Look, we have a ton of stuff to talk about, but I really need to head home and see my kids.”
“Absolutely.”
“I do have to say one thing.”
“What?” said Decker warily.
“After hearing what you said to Sandy Lancaster, and then seeing you with Tyler…you must have really been a wonderful father, Decker.”
Decker appeared stunned, and White had the look of a person who suddenly realized she had just gotten way out over her skis.
“My friends call me Amos,” said Decker finally.
White smiled. “Well, would you like to come up to Baltimore to meet my kids, Amos? And my mom is a great cook, and I’ve been known to open a decent bottle of red for the right guest, although I have plenty of beer, too. And Calvin’s been talking about wanting to play football. You could teach him some stuff, maybe.”
“Yes, I would like that. But not today. You need some time with them alone.”
White’s expression turned somber. “Thanks for standing up for me back there.”
“If there’s one thing I’ve learned about you, Frederica White, you don’t need anybody to fight your battles. You do that just fine all by yourself.”
She reached up on tiptoes and gave him a hug, surprising Decker. He surprised himself again when he squeezed her back.
“I’ll see you at the office, partner,” she said.
“Yep.”
He watched her walk off and then he trudged the other way.
Chapter 98
DECKER HAD ONLY BEEN IN his apartment for about an hour, and he’d had only two beers with more to come, when the knock came.
He opened the door to find Kasimira Roe standing there.
“I missed you by a few minutes in Florida and jumped on the corporate jet.”
“Why?”
“Can I come in?”
He stepped back and let her pass. She had on jeans and a dark green sweater and low-heeled leather boots. Her hair was down around her shoulders, making her look younger, but she appeared anxious, at least to Decker.
“How did you know where I lived?”
“I called in a favor at the Bureau, I hope you don’t mind.”
“No. You want a beer?”
She hesitated and then said, “Sure.”
They sat in the small living room. As she looked around at the modest space he said, “Not exactly what you’re used to, I know, but if you stand at the corner of that window and lean to the left you get a pretty good view of the Anacostia River.”
She sipped her beer. “This is fine. I didn’t always live where I do now.”
“So, what can I do for you?”
“First, I wanted to thank you personally for finding out what happened to my father.”
“I’m sorry it couldn’t have been better news.”
“It’s closure. That’s far more than what I had.”
“You could have just called or emailed, you know. You’re a busy CEO.”
“In many ways my father was the most important person in my life. So I wanted to do this face-to-face.”
“I can understand that.”
“I also realized that the man I had placed on a very high pedestal all my life was a human being, with the flaws and faults we all have.”
“Some more than others.”
“And in addition to finding out what happened to my father, you taught me a lot about him, far more than I knew before.”
Decker glanced over at the trash can, which held the torn-up letter from the Cognitive Institute. “We all keep things hidden, Kasimira, all of us.”
“That certainly applies to me,” she said, her gaze downcast. “As you know.”
“That doesn’t make you any less of a person, it just makes you more of a human being. I’ve never met a perfect person in my life, nor would I ever want to.”
“I know that. Now. Also thanks to you.”
“I think you would have figured it out, with or without me.”
“And then there’s the other reason I flew up here.”
“Oh yeah, what was that?”
She glanced up and smiled. “Would you like a job with Gamma? I know you are not an office person, but how about running our field investigation division? I think you would be a wonderful addition to the Gamma family, and I would consider it an honor to work alongside you.”
“That’s a great offer and I really appreciate it.”
Her smile weakened a bit. “But?”
“But I’ve got a brand-new partner who’s probably going to be moving down here from Baltimore, and she’s got little kids, and I can’t leave her high and dry.”
“That’s very good of you, Agent Decker. Very loyal.”
“I’m not a real agent, Kasimira, and I sure as hell don’t play one on TV. Just make it Decker.”
“Okay, Decker. I think Agent White is lucky to have you as a partner.”
“Funny, I was feeling pretty lucky to have her.”
She took out a card and slid it across. “If you ever change your mind, or just want to talk. And if you’re ever back down in Florida, please look me up.”
“I have to admit, I was almost getting used to that sand thing.”
They shook hands and he saw her out. He went back to the table and finished his beer while he looked down at her card. He glanced over at the trash can, rose, and lifted out the torn-up letter from the Cognitive Institute.
He slowly and methodically pieced it back together, just like he would any case he was working on. He still remembered what it said, and yet he reread every word twice over.
He popped another beer, placed it in a paper bag, put on his jacket, and walked out of the apartment. There was a bench down by the river where he liked to sit and just watch the water flow and the occasional boat pass by.
The letter from the Institute had predicted a great deal of change coming his way, at least in the way his brain functioned. That might be good, or that might be bad, he had no way of knowing. And neither, really, did they.
My superpower served me well on this case, even if it all dropped into place near the end. Better late than never.
And then his thoughts turned to his old partner.
Mary Lancaster didn’t have the best memory, but she had all the other attributes of a good detective. She actually read people better than Decker ever could. And her instincts had become so refined over time that her deductions sometimes had been truly eye-popping. A great many people thought she was just the tugboat sidekick to Decker’s ocean liner. But the fact was, Mary Lancaster had more than held her own with him and everyone else. And she had taught Decker a lot.
And I will miss the woman every minute of every day. Because she understood me better than anyone other than my wife. And she was my friend.
As Decker stared out at the water, he began to wonder what his new partner’s kids looked like. Whether they took after their mom. And he thought of Donte, the child she had lost. And whether White’s mother would actually like him when they met. And whether she really was a good cook. And what the next case they would work on might be about. And about how Freddie White might become just as good a friend to him as Mary Lancaster had been.
And me to her.
Just regular stuff that people thought about every day.
That was the thing about life. You actually had to spend time living it.
Or else what the hell did any of it really matter?
So he sat there with his beer and his thoughts and watched the river cruise on by.
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Acknowledgments
To Michelle, the ride continues and I’m so happy you allowed me to come along for it!
To Michael Pietsch, Ben Sevier, Elizabeth Kulhanek, Jonathan Valuckas, Matthew Ballast, Beth de Guzman, Ana Maria Allessi, Rena Kornbluh, Karen Kosztolnyik, Brian McLendon, Albert Tang, Andy Dodds, Ivy Cheng, Joseph Benincase, Alexis Gilbert, Andrew Duncan, Janine Perez, Lauren Sum, Morgan Martinez, Bob Castillo, Kristen Lemire, Briana Kuchta, Mark Steven Long, Marie Mundaca, Rachael Kelly, Kirsiah McNamara, Lisa Cahn, John Colucci, Megan Fitzpatrick, Nita Basu, Alison Lazarus, Barry Broadhead, Martha Bucci, Ali Cutrone, Raylan Davis, Tracy Dowd, Melanie Freedman, Elizabeth Blue Guess, Linda Jamison, John Leary, John Lefler, Rachel Hairston, Tishana Knight, Jennifer Kosek, Suzanne Marx, Derek Meehan, Christopher Murphy, Donna Nopper, Rob Philpott, Barbara Slavin, Karen Torres, Rich Tullis, Mary Urban, Tracy Williams, Julie Hernandez, Laura Shepherd, Maritza Lumpris, Jeff Shay, Carla Stockalper, Ky’ron Fitzgerald, and everyone at Grand Central Publishing. Every day you toil away not just to publish and promote my books, but those of so many others. You make the world a better place, because books make people more informed and engaged.
To Aaron and Arleen Priest, Lucy Childs, Lisa Erbach Vance, Frances Jalet-Miller, and Kristen Pini, for always going the extra mile for me.
To Mitch Hoffman, for understanding Amos Decker almost as well as I do.
To Jeremy Trevathan, Lucy Hale, Trisha Jackson, Stuart Dwyer, Leanne Williams, Alex Saunders, Sara Lloyd, Claire Evans, Eleanor Bailey, Laura Sherlock, Jonathan Atkins, Christine Jones, Andy Joannou, Charlotte Williams, Rebecca Kellaway, Charlotte Cross, Lucy Grainger, Lucy Jones, and Neil Lang at Pan Macmillan, for continuing to push the boundaries on how books are published and promoted.
To Praveen Naidoo and the wonderful team at Pan Macmillan in Australia, who have made me a number one bestseller.
To Caspian Dennis and Sandy Violette, can’t wait to see you in person again. It’s been too long.
To the charity auction winners, Julia Cummins (National Multiple Sclerosis Society) and Kasimira Roe (The Mark Twain House & Museum), I hope you enjoyed your characters.
To Arthur Dykes, I hope you enjoyed your character—and his full head of hair. Thanks for all your great work over the years.
And to Kristen White and Michelle Butler, who keep me sane!
About the Author
David Baldacci is a global #1 bestselling author, and one of the world’s favorite storytellers. His books are published in over forty-five languages and in more than eighty countries, with 150 million copies sold worldwide. His works have been adapted for both feature film and television. David Baldacci is also the cofounder, along with his wife, of the Wish You Well Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting literacy efforts across America. Still a resident of his native Virginia, he invites you to visit him at DavidBaldacci.com and his foundation at WishYouWellFoundation.org.
Facebook.com/writer.david.baldacci
Twitter @davidbaldacci
Instagram @davidbaldacciauthor
ACCLAIM FOR
DAVID BALDACCI’S THRILLERS
WALK THE WIRE
“Walk the Wire solidifies Baldacci’s status as this generation’s premier storyteller…The perfect thriller.”
—Providence Journal
“Walk the Wire may be the finest entry in David Baldacci’s Memory Man series. The quality of his writing is at an all-time peak and, fortunately for his countless fans, he is showing no signs of slowing down any time soon.”
—BookReporter.com
REDEMPTION
“Baldacci turns up the suspense and surprises at a rapid pace without sacrificing character or story. With the personal stakes and the steep learning curve that Decker must overcome to find justice, the narrative carries a heavier emotional impact…Another great novel from a master storyteller.”
—Associated Press
“Staying true to its title, Redemption is a riveting thriller, as relentlessly suspenseful as it is blisteringly original. Baldacci may be an old hand at this, but his grasp has never been stronger.”
—Providence Journal
THE FALLEN
“Amos Decker shines again…David Baldacci at his very best.”
—Real Book Spy
“Amos Decker novels just keep getting better and better, and it’s partly due to the careful in-depth characterization Baldacci gives his main character.”
—New York Journal of Books
THE FIX
“A compelling puzzler…Baldacci is a truly gifted storyteller, and this novel is a perfect ‘fix’ for the thriller aficionado.”
—Associated Press
“Cleverly perverse, full of surprises, and touched throughout by the curious sense of congeniality.”
—Toronto Star
THE LAST MILE
“Entertaining and enlightening…a rich novel that has much to offer…In the best Baldacci tradition, the action is fast and furious. But The Last Mile is more than a good action thriller. It sheds light on racism, a father-son relationship, and capital punishment. Both Mars and Decker are substantive, solid characters…Utterly absorbing.”
—Associated Press
“A compelling mystery with emotional resonance. Just when the story line heads to what seems an obvious conclusion, Baldacci veers off course with a surprising twist. The end result is another exciting read from a thriller master.”
—Library Journal (Starred Review)
MEMORY MAN
“It’s big, bold, and almost impossible to put down…Decker is one of the most unusual detectives any novelist has dreamed up…I called this novel a master class on the bestseller because of its fast-moving narrative, the originality of its hero, and its irresistible plot…Highly entertaining.”
—Washington Post
“Perennial bestseller Baldacci unveils an offbeat hero with an unusual skill set and tragic past who takes on the evil mastermind behind a devastating school shooting…[Decker] proves a quirky, original antihero with a definite method to his madness…Readers will want to see Decker back on the printed page again and again.”
—Kirkus
ALSO BY DAVID BALDACCI
MEMORY MAN SERIES
Memory Man
The Last Mile
The Fix
The Fallen
Redemption
Walk the Wire
Long Shadows
ALOYSIUS ARCHER SERIES
One Good Deed
A Gambling Man
Dream Town
ATLEE PINE SERIES
Long Road to Mercy
A Minute to Midnight
Daylight
Mercy
THE CAMEL CLUB SERIES
The Camel Club
The Collectors
Stone Cold
Divine Justice
Hell’s Corner
JOHN PULLER SERIES
Zero Day
The Forgotten
The Escape
No Man’s Land
KING & MAXWELL SERIES
Split Second
Hour Game
Simple Genius
First Family
The Sixth Man
King and Maxwell
THE SHAW SERIES
The Whole Truth
Deliver Us from Evil
WILL ROBIE SERIES
The Innocent
The Hit
The Target
The Guilty
End Game
STANDALONES
Absolute Power
Total Control
The Winner
The Simple Truth
Saving Faith
Wish You Well
Last Man Standing
The Christmas Train
True Blue
One Summer
The 6:20 Man
SHORT STORIES
Waiting for Santa
No Time Left
Bullseye
The Mighty Johns (A Digital Novella)
David Baldacci, Long Shadows
