After Anna(106)

‘What’d you do with it?’

‘Dropped it in the hallway outside. They’ll find it sooner or later, but they can’t link it to C.’ Noah glanced over his shoulder. ‘Where’s John Drover’s cell?’

Peach hesitated. ‘205. Top tier, catty-corner to us on the other side. Don’t look now.’

‘Is he there now?’

‘No. He didn’t come back yet.’

Noah wondered if they had already changed Drover’s cell assignment. ‘Tell me about him.’

‘He runs a gang from Coatesville. It doesn’t matter where he is, anyway. He’s got people.’

‘Why does he think I let Jeremy die?’

‘Because he ended up dead. They get each other’s back.’ Peach pursed his thin lips. ‘Jeremy was in the RHU more than he was out of it. Kid was so damn young. Mouthy, disrespectful, always in fights, and the last one, he pissed off the wrong guy. Drover got the first-aid kit to you for backup.’

‘Who killed Jeremy?’

Peach frowned. ‘I can’t tell you that.’

‘Yes you can.’ Noah needed to know as much as possible to protect himself. He didn’t have a weapon, and information was the next-best thing. ‘Tell me. Or I’ll tell them about the needle.’

‘You’re learning the ropes.’ Peach smiled, admiring. ‘Jimmy Williams.’

‘Is Williams on C too?’

‘Yeah, 207.’ Peach glanced behind him. ‘Dr Kildare, you got trouble. Drover’s going to blame you no matter what.’

‘So what do I do?’

‘Watch your back. You’re on your own. They’ll split us up.’

‘Right.’ Noah could see that Peach wasn’t unhappy about that, which made sense. If Noah was a target, his cellmate would be collateral damage.

‘Think I can get them to move me to a different cellblock?’ Noah had been running possibilities in the back of his mind.

‘It won’t make a difference. Drover’s guys can get you anywhere.’

‘Not anywhere,’ Noah said, looking around for a CO.





Chapter Seventy-four


Maggie, After

Maggie, Kathy, and Caleb stepped inside Eddie’s Diner, looking around. The room was an empty square with a drop ceiling and harsh fluorescent lighting, and in the front half was a cluttered store selling trucking supplies, lights and lenses, reflectors, headphones, air fresheners, tools, and hardware next to a cash register packed with cigarettes, chewing tobacco, gum, candy, and Tristate Megabucks Maine Powerball tickets. The air smelled like dry heat and stale cigarettes, and black-and-white photos of tractor-trailers lined the walls, interspersed with handmade signs: Whoopie Pie Our Specialty and Brake for Moose, It Could Save Your Life.

Kathy looked askance at the moose sign. ‘Does that really need to be said? What’s the alternative? See a moose and hit the gas?’

Caleb laughed, and Maggie hugged him to her side. ‘You hungry, honey?’

‘Yes.’

‘Good, the restaurant’s in the back.’ Maggie led them past a fuel desk toward the back half of the store, which contained long wooden tables with wooden chairs and benches, in picnic-style seating. Color enlargements of a rocky seacoast, a lighthouse, and a wide river hung on the walls, and there were a few booths along the back wall next to the kitchen. The restaurant was empty except for a family with three young children, digging into pancakes and eggs.

Kathy said, ‘I love breakfast for dinner. How about you, Caleb?’

‘I do too. I like pancakes.’

‘I don’t see a waitress.’ Maggie looked around, hopeful. She knew the odds weren’t good that PG would be working tonight, but they could get lucky.

Kathy gestured at the room. ‘Guys, where do you want to sit? You want a view of the snow or the chewing tobacco?’

Caleb pulled out a chair. ‘Here.’

‘You got it.’ Maggie pulled out a chair for her and Caleb, and Kathy sat across from them, unzipping her coat.

‘It wasn’t a bad drive. Except that we didn’t kill any moose.’ Kathy took laminated menus from a condiment carousel on the table and slid them to Maggie and Caleb. ‘Here’s your menus. I say we have the Chateaubriand with potatoes Dauphinoise and the molten lava cake for dessert. Then, of course, we shower.’

Caleb giggled. ‘I want pancakes.’

‘You would think a waitress would come out.’ Maggie twisted around to the kitchen entrance, and Kathy waved at her.

‘Yoo-hoo, are you even listening? I’m giving you my best stuff here. You were in outer space the entire drive.’

‘Sorry.’ Maggie rubbed her face, trying to keep her emotions at bay. All she could think about was whether Anna was dead or alive, her real daughter. It was as if she were getting a second chance, all over again. A waiter appeared from the kitchen, and walked toward them with the weary smile, deflating her hopes. She doubted there was another waitperson here tonight, given the conditions.

‘Hello, ladies,’ the waiter said, crossing to their table with a smile. He looked about eighteen years old, with clear blue eyes and a short haircut. He was wearing a white polo shirt with jeans, with a name tag that read BOB. ‘Can I get you some water? Or a nice hot coffee?’