Afraid of the Dark - James Grippando [95]
“Not going?”
“No,” said Vince. “With all this talk about a possible arrest, he doesn’t want it to look like he’s fleeing the country.”
“You just told me that the story was a plant. And even if it wasn’t, Chuck Mays doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy who worries about appearances.”
Vince smiled. “True enough. Which leads me to the real problem: There’s this little thing about an arrest warrant out of the Old Bailey. Ten years ago, Chuck was pretty careless about what he smoked and where he smoked it. If he sets foot in the U.K., he’s going straight to the slammer.”
“So your wife is going with you?”
“Do you see Alicia sitting at this table?”
“No, but—”
“Look,” said Vince, “what I do with my own badge is my business, but my wife is also a cop. She understands that I have a score to settle. She also understands that I can’t let her throw her badge away watching me settle it.”
Jack measured his words, not wanting to insult Vince. “You’re going . . . alone?”
“No. Even with Sam, that would be an ambitious trip.”
It was clear where this was headed, and Jack wasn’t sure how to react. “You want me?”
“It was Alicia’s idea. She thinks that having a criminal defense lawyer around will keep me from stepping too far out of bounds.”
“What do you think?” asked Jack.
“I agree with Chuck: After what happened to Neil Goderich, I think this criminal defense lawyer has almost as much skin in the game as I do.”
Jack paused. Vigilante was the last word Jack would have used to describe Neil. But that didn’t lessen Jack’s need to find his friend’s killer.
“When do you leave?” asked Jack.
“This evening. Chuck is covering all expenses—airfare, hotels, meals. It won’t cost you a dime.”
Jack thought about Andie. Something told him that he should talk it over with her. Something told him that he shouldn’t.
What would Neil do if the tables were turned?
“Guess I’d better make my sandwich to go,” said Jack, flagging their waitress. “I need to pack.”
Chapter Forty-seven
Are you sure you don’t want me to go with you?” asked Andie.
Jack checked on his grandfather before heading to the airport, and it was the third time Andie had asked the same question since entering the nursing home. At least she’d stopped trying to unpack his bags.
“I’m sure,” said Jack.
“Go where?” Grandpa Swyteck asked.
Jack did a double take. Andie was seated in the armchair, and Jack was standing at Grandpa’s bedside, but Jack thought he had fallen asleep after Wheel of Fortune.
“Jack is going to London,” said Andie.
“Of course he is,” said Grandpa. “That’s where they all ran off to.”
Jack had no idea what he was talking about. Too often that was the case anymore. “And then I’m going to Prague,” said Jack. “I want to look up your mother’s family. The Petraks.”
The older man’s brow furrowed into little steps of confusion, as if he were struggling to make a connection between Prague and family. Jack’s gaze shifted back to Andie.
“I’m glad you’re staying,” Jack said quietly. “Even with Theo’s friend as bodyguard, it’s important that one of us be close by.”
“I suppose,” said Andie.
“He’s still there, you know,” said Grandpa, following up on his original thought. “Still in Britain.”
Jack almost asked who, but he caught himself, recalling the neurologist’s advice: Just roll with it. “Still there? Wow.”
“No, I’m wrong about that,” said Grandpa. “He left for the South of France in 1940. A town called Agde, I think.”
“South of France,” said Jack. “Sounds nice.”
“Nice, yeah,” Grandpa said, scoffing. “If you’re a Nazi.” Then he fell silent. He wasn’t making much sense today, but Jack wished he would keep talking, as Andie picked up her thread of the conversation.
“I don’t have a good feeling,” she said, shaking her head. “I respect Vince and all he’s accomplished as a cop. But the fact remains: He is blind. And you’re . . . well, you’re Jack.”
“What does that mean?”
“I’m just saying. This could be dangerous.”
“Way too dangerous!” Grandpa shouted. “That’s what everyone told him. And even if he pulled it off, any fool would know there