“Because my thinking hasn’t changed on this. I don’t want to start rumors that someone is going around attacking gays, or gay-owned businesses.”
“That is completely irresponsible! You can’t possibly believe that this is a coincidence!” Her voice rose on the last word. He took her upper arm and dragged her a few steps down the hallway, away from the waiting room.
“I don’t believe in coincidence. But starting a panic about who might or might not be next in line for a visit from the heterosexual hit men isn’t going to serve any purpose other than to scare a lot of people and give the town a bad name.”
“It could alert potential victims to take precautions. It could bring in more information to help you find the perps.” He gave her a one-sided smile. She ignored it. “It could tell people to keep their eyes on gay-owned businesses for suspicious activities. If Todd MacPherson had known there was a chance he was going to be attacked because of his sexual orientation, there’s a good chance we’d all be getting ready for a wedding right now, instead of waiting for him to get out of surgery.” She tucked her hair behind her ears.
“One,” he said, counting off on his fingers, “there wasn’t any pattern of attacks until after MacPherson was beaten up. So there wasn’t anything for him to know. Two, we’ve already briefed the Post-Star on Emil’s attack. Our take was that an area doctor was rammed and mugged while he was out driving in his convertible. We asked for anyone with information on a red vehicle with new damage to the body to call us.”
“That makes it sound like he was robbed. If people read the words doctor and convertible, ninety-nine percent of them are going to assume he was rich.”
“Fine. I don’t mind scaring rich people. They already take precautions against attack.” He ticked off a third finger. “Three, like I said when we were at the inn, if word gets out that someone might be targeting gay-owned operations, it’s likely to cost the owners business. Even if there are good-hearted neighbors around to keep watch, customers are going to stay away. It’s my job to protect Millers Kill and Fort Henry and Cossayuharie. Some businesses make half their yearly income between Memorial and Labor Day. I’m not going to hurt them if I can help it.”
She leaned against the smooth, cool wall. “Now you sound like the mayor in Jaws. Don’t yell ‘shark,’ ’cause it’ll hurt business.”
“If I thought I could catch who’s responsible for these attacks by closing down the town, I would. But singling out certain businesses or individuals and telling them they may be next won’t do that.”
“But you might prevent another person from being hurt!”
“Look, the take on MacPherson’s attack is going to be that a small-business owner, closing up all alone, was assaulted. There’s going to be a statement from me in the Post-Star urging all businesses to take extra precautions at closing time. The population around here doubles in the summer, and God knows what sort of lowlifes come floating in for the carny rides in Lake George and the fake rodeos in Lake Luzerne.”
“Is that who you think is behind this? Some rednecks from out of town, up here for a little fresh mountain air and blood sports?”
He sighed. “It could be. The timing certainly suggests so.” He pushed his hand through his hair, causing it to fall unevenly across his forehead. “If it is, it should be easier to spot the red vehicle. You can’t just garage your car and drive another one when you’re on vacation.”
“Russ, I can understand your concern about singling out businesses as potential trouble spots. And I can understand you not wanting Millers Kill to be associated with this sort of vicious behavior. But if you don’t let it be known that you believe gays are being targeted, you’re keeping individuals from being able to protect themselves.”
“I’m keeping them from being singled out. This is a small town, Clare. How many homosexuals do you think are out of the closet here? Every guy with a high voice and every woman with cropped hair and no makeup will suddenly be a source of speculation. Or worse, a potential target for any homophobe reading the paper who thinks, ‘That’s a good idea! I’m gonna get me a faggot!’ ” He leaned against the wall. “Let them stay safely hidden.”
“That’s bull.”
He straightened up and looked at her, raising his eyebrows. “What?”
“You heard me. Bull. It’s that sort of attitude that allows homophobia to flourish. ‘They’re different. They’re not like us. We don’t know any. Don’t ask, don’t tell.’ ” She pushed away from the wall and pulled her hair back in both hands, twisting it. “I saw the same sort of crap in the army. Force people to hide who and what they are and then act surprised that you’ve created a culture where it’s okay to make fag jokes and harass people who act ‘funny.’ How do you convince Joe Six-Pack that being gay’s not a fate worse than death when it is a fate worse than death if you’re found out?”
“Clare, I’m trying to solve a pair of assault cases here. I’m sorry, but eradicating prejudice and stupidity are beyond the scope of my job. As is reforming the U.S. Army.”
She exhaled. “I’m not asking you to do that. Sometimes I get a little…global when a problem gets under my skin.” She glanced up at him. “I still think you’re making a mistake.”
“I respect your opinion. But this is a real short chain of command here. I’m the cop and you’re the priest, and what I say goes. Period. I want you to promise me that you aren’t going to run to the Post-Star or preach your next sermon on the possible connection between Emil and MacPherson.”
She frowned and crossed her arms.
“Promise me—”
“All right. I promise. But I swear, if there’s one more incident, I’m going to organize a Take Back the Night march and start it right at the front steps of the police station.”
“Don’t worry. If there’s one more incident, the press is going to be all over this like a hog on slop, and then everybody will be weighing in with their opinion.” He pushed away from the wall and began strolling toward the elevator doors at the end of the surgery unit. Clare fell into step beside him. “However,” he added, “there’s not going to be another incident if I can help it. Every man on the force, full-or part-time, is on duty this weekend.”
“Is that because of these assaults, or because it’s the Fourth?”
“Everyone’s usually on duty for at least part of the Fourth. The road race tomorrow will suck up a lot of manpower. Then there are parties and barbecues…. Ican guarantee you that before the fireworks go off, we’ll have handled a dozen domestic fights, three car accidents, at least one kid doing something incredibly stupid with a bottle rocket, and somebody who’s gotten drunk and fallen into the Kill.” He stopped at the elevators. “You coming or staying?”
“I’m staying with the family until Todd’s out of surgery.”
He punched the down button. “Every one of my men is gonna be briefed on this and on the alert for anything suspicious. Not to mention looking for a red vehicle with impact damage.”
The elevator chimed. The door opened and Russ entered, waving a half salute at Clare.
“Speaking of prejudice,” she said.
“Huh?” He caught the edge of the door before it closed.
“How come there aren’t any women on the police force?”
The last thing she saw of him were his eyes, rolling back in his head.
Chapter Eight