“Dick?”
With his hands up, Lich replied, “I know, I know.”
“Okay then. You two and Ms. Kennedy here figure out what you’re going to do. And, Mac, you and Lich let me or Peters know if anything develops today.”
With that, the meeting ended. Mac, Lich, and Sally walked to the elevator.
“So, how do you guys want to do this?” Sally asked.
“My place is up on Summit, close to downtown,” Mac said. “Let’s all meet there at 7:00 p.m. I’ll order pizza.” Lich knew where Mac lived, but Kennedy needed directions.
“Sounds good,” replied Kennedy “I’ll see you guys then.”
Mac and Lich got off on the second floor, heading to their desks. Kennedy continued onto the main level. Her office at the Ramsey County Courthouse was a five-block walk away.
After they got off the elevator, Lich let out a disappointing sigh.
“What’s up?” asked Mac.
“Tonight.”
“What about it?”
“Well, I got a date with Dot. You know, that waitress with the majorleague cantaloupes.”
Mac smiled, “Dicky boy, Dicky boy, what time?”
“Seven.”
Mac thought for a moment. He wasn’t even sure they really needed to meet with Sally yet, although she likely would have some insight on dealing with a shark like Lyman. The interview wouldn’t be much different than any other, and Lich was actually pretty good on interviews. Lich didn’t need to be there. “Look, we’re going out to Hisle’s place tomorrow afternoon, so we’ll have time to talk in the morning, so go ahead.”
“You sure?” asked Lich.
“Yeah, but I reserve the right to ask for details, at least about Dot. I can do without details about you.”
Lich chuckled. “Thanks, man.”
Mac took another look at Lich. He was wearing a brown suit, beat-up black lace-ups, and a faded yellow shirt with a brown-and-tan striped tie. It was not an impressive ensemble. “What’re you wearing tonight?”
“Hell if I know.”
“Promise me it’s not what you have on now?”
“What’s wrong with this?” Lich said, looking down at himself nonplused.
Mac rolled his eyes, shook his head and kept walking, leaving Lich behind to examine his reflection in an office window.
Chapter Nine
Lich was getting anxious. He was nervously tapping his pen on the desk, checking his watch every thirty seconds. Mac took a look at his watch, 4:45 p.m. “So, Dick. What do you and Dot have planned?”
“We’re meeting at Grand Filet.”
The Grand Filet was, naturally, on Grand Avenue, not far from Daniels’ place. It was a small restaurant that would seem more in place two hours to the north of St. Paul. The Filet had a real Northwoods feel, with cedar-planked walls and the best walleye in town. It was perfect for them.
“Sounds good.”
“Yeah, the Filet, man. I’ve been looking forward to it all day.” Mac laughed and thought of Dot’s rather impressive rack, “Dick, that is not the feast you’ve been thinking about all day.”
Dick grinned. “Fuck you.”
“Look, go ahead and bail. We’re not accomplishing anything right now.” They had been back for a half hour. In the morning they had interviewed two people that Channel 6 station manager Mary Carpenter had found for them. The two had individually threatened Daniels after investigative reports. Mac and Lich had run both men through the drill, but both had good alibis. Neither felt right. After the interviews, the two detectives spent the rest of the afternoon on follow-up canvassing of the neighborhood around Daniels’ place. It had been fruitless. Neighbors hadn’t seen anything on the night of the murder or anything unusual in the days leading up to it. A few people still weren’t home, and Mac left his card behind with a request that they contact him. The one big piece of news from the day was that the district attorney’s office had gotten a hold of the senator’s prints, which had now been matched to the key.
“Have fun with Dot.”
Lich gave him a knowing smile, stood up, put on his coat and headed out with a distinct spring in his step.
Mac smiled to think that Lich looked forward to a date at his age. Good for him. Well, if Lich wasn’t coming tonight, he’d better let Kennedy know. He picked up the phone, dialed and heard, “Hello you’ve reached the voicemail of Sally Kennedy. I’m either on my phone or away from my desk…” He hit POUND and left her a message. It was 5:00 p.m., enough time to get a workout in before getting home to meet with Sally.
Sally pecked away at a motion on her computer, a light-rock station playing quietly in the background. She wanted to polish the motion a bit more before finishing. It would be ready to file in the morning. She took a sip of her Diet Pepsi, when there was a knock on the door and she turned to find Helen standing in her doorway. Sally hit the DND on her phone, and Helen shut the door.
“So, with Johnson’s prints, he’s the prime suspect in the Daniels case, don’t you think?”
“I do.”
“Are you all set with McRyan and Lich tonight?
“Yes.”
“What do you think of them?” asked Anderson, a touch of skepticism in her voice.
Sally gave it some thought before responding. “I don’t know yet. Lich’s been around, although it sounds as if he’ll occasionally talk out of school to the media.”
“What about McRyan?” Helen pushed.
“I haven’t seen him in action. The chief and Peters obviously think highly of him. I sense you have your doubts?”
“He strikes me as a lightweight,” Anderson replied. “I want you to call me tonight after you’re done to let me know. I can always press Charlie to make a change.”
Sally had to stifle a laugh. Helen Anderson would have absolutely no ability whatsoever to get Chief Charles Flanagan to change a detective on a case. Sally had seen first hand in the past two days-Flanagan ran his department his way, politics be damned. She rather liked it, too-doing the right thing as opposed to the politically expedient one. If the chief thought McRyan was right for the case, so be it. Nonetheless, she needed to keep her boss informed. “I assume I can reach you at home tonight.”
“No,” Helen answered. “Call me on my cell.”
“What, a hot date?”
“No,” Anderson replied coolly. “Fundraiser.”
Mac was late. He’d stopped for a workout at a buddy’s gym. He’d finished by 6:30 p.m., but then his buddy, Joe Ball, went into his stand-up routine. Joe was a classic, ten jokes at the drop of a hat. Mac couldn’t tell a joke to save his life. Joe’s stand-up routine caused Mac to lose track of time and suddenly it was 6:50. Mac rushed out of the club, got in the Explorer and raced for his place. He pulled in right at 7:00 p.m. and ran up to his third-floor apartment. He got in and threw his gym bag in the spare bedroom when the doorbell rang. Sally.
Mac hit the buzzer to let her up. He needed to take a quick shower. But first he ran into the kitchen to grab a couple of beers, Grain Belts. As he was walking back in with the beers, there was a knock on the door. He opened it up. Whoa.
Since Lich was not going to be at the meeting, Sally had decided a quick shower and change of clothes would be in order. She was attracted to McRyan and thought maybe it was time he saw her in something a little different than her business suits.
After her shower, she took a look in her closet and tried on a few different ensembles, settling on a pair of tight tan suede pants and a body-forming white-ribbed turtleneck. The outfit would allow appreciation of her figure. She let her fiery red hair down to its regular shoulder length, and put a little curl in it so it fell just over her right eye. Leaving her glasses behind, she popped in her contacts. The outfit was completed with some silver hoop earrings, soft red lipstick and makeup, a bit more than she normally put on. Her mirror confirmed it-she looked good.