The girl woke up and said, "Love you."
Rune blinked and didn't speak for a moment then managed, "Like, sure. Me too." But Courtney seemed to be asleep again by the time she said it.
"FUNNY THING," SAM HEALY WAS SAYING THE NEXT morning.
"Funny?"
"This practice grenade disappeared from the Bomb Squad and, next thing, there's a report of one found on the street near the Twentieth."
"Funny."
He'd just come in from mowing the lawn. She smelled grass and gasoline. It reminded her of her childhood in the suburbs of Cleveland, Saturday morning, when her father would trim the boxwood and mow and spread mulch around the dogwoods.
"Don't think I heard anything about it on the radio," Rune offered.
"The report said a young woman and a baby found it. I seem to remember you stopping by the Bomb Squad yesterday, didn'
t you? You and Courtney?"
"Sort of, I think. I'm not too clear."
Healy said, "You're sounding like those defendants. 'Yeah, I was standing over the body with the gun but I don't remember how I got there.'"
"You don't think I had anything to do with it?"
"Occurred to me."
"You want my solemn word?"
"Will you swear on the Grimm Brothers?"
"Absolutely." She raised her hand.
"Rune ... Didn't you think it was dangerous for a child to pull a stunt like that?"
"Not that I did walk around with a grenade but if I had I would've made sure it was a dummy."
"You could get me fired. And you could get arrested."
She tried to look miserable and contrite and unjustly accused at the same time. He popped open two Pabsts.
He was stern when he said, "Just don't forget: You've got more to think about than yourself."
Which gave her a little thrill, his saying, Remember me? I'm in your life too. But he tromped on that pretty fast by nodding toward the bedroom and saying, "Think about her. You don't want her to lose two mothers in one month, do you?"
"No."
They sipped the beers in silence for a minute. Then she said, "Sam, I got a question: You ever do any homicide?"
"Investigations? No. When I was in Emergency Services we ran crime scenes a lot but I never did the leg-work. Boring."
"But you know something about them?"
"A little. What's up?"
"Say there's somebody killed, okay?"
"Hypothetically?"