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Halifax, May 9
9:30 p.m.
Allan steeped a pot of tea and made a tuna sandwich. As he sat at the kitchen table with his meal, he wondered how many times he’d eaten alone since his transfer to Major Crimes.
When he finished, he retired to the living room. He turned on the television, flipped to CNN, and lowered the volume before dropping heavily onto the chesterfield. From the television screen, a dark-haired anchorman talked about how the Gulf of Mexico oil spill was threatening a bird sanctuary.
Allan shut his eyes, half listening to the broadcast. He felt Buddy leap up, heard the deep rumble of his purr. He reached out and petted the cat.
Ending his broadcast, the anchorman wished all the mothers out there a Happy Mother’s Day.
Allan’s eyes snapped open.
Mother’s Day?
He sat up, wincing.
I’m sorry, Mom. I completely forgot.
Then it occurred to him with a deep sadness what a special tragedy this day had been for the mother of Brad Hawkins.
Allan got up and went to the kitchen to retrieve his notebook and pen from his coat pocket. When he returned to sit down again, Buddy had retreated to his favorite chair by the fireplace.
Allan wrote down a to-do list for the next day—visit the addresses that had no answer during the initial canvass. Check out the waterfront bars in case there were rumors going around about the murder. Interview the friends and relatives of Brad Hawkins.
The telephone rang. Allan looked at his watch. 9:45 p.m. He reached across the coffee table and picked up the handset.
“Detective Stanton.”
On the other end, a young boy’s voice beamed. “Dad!”
Hearing his son again seemed to ignite a spark of renewed energy inside Allan. For the first time in weeks he managed a smile. He picked up the TV remote and muted the volume.
He asked, “How are you doing, little man?”
“Great, Dad. I’m having fun. Making lots of friends at my new school.”
“Hey, I’m happy to hear that.”
“Mom told me you called. I was at the movie with Tom.”
Allan swallowed, feeling the sting of this. He wondered how far away Melissa was from the phone. And somehow more importantly, where this other man was.
“I tried to call you back last night,” Brian continued, “but there was no answer.”
“Sorry I missed you. I didn’t get home until late.”
“Were you working? Catching the bad guys?”
Allan wished he could see his son’s face. “Trying to,” he said. “Thanks for your letter. So you want to come down for the Victoria Day weekend?”
“Yup. Can I?”
“You sure can.”
“Will you be working?”
“I’ll take the weekend off. I’d really love to see you.”
“Me too. And Buddy. How is he?”
“Buddy’s doing fine.” Allan looked at the cat, lying down, licking its paw. “He’s washing himself right now on his favorite chair.”
“That’s his bed.”
“He seems to think it is. Did you wish Mommy a happy Mother’s Day?”
“Yup.” Brian’s words came quickly. “I made her a card and gave her some flowers I picked myself. And Tom took me and her out to supper at a fancy restaurant. It had this great big fountain in the middle of it.”
Allan smiled a little. “Sounds nice, son.”
“I wish you was up here with us.”
Pausing a moment, Allan’s gaze touched the silver-framed picture on the mantel of the fireplace, and he felt a dull pang of sadness. Children, in all their innocence, could not fully understand the sometimes-complicated world of adults.
“I wish that too, son,” Allan said. “When is your plane arriving?”
A pause. “My plane is coming in on Saturday at...at eleven thirty in the morning.”
“I’ll be there.”
“Wait a minute, Dad.” Brian sounded distracted.
Allan heard him put the phone down. While waiting for him to return, he wondered if Melissa was going to come on, hoped she wouldn’t. Moments later, Brian picked up again.
“I have to go, Dad. My bath is ready.”
“I won’t keep you, then. Thanks for calling. Hearing your voice has made my day.”
“Okay.”
“I love you, son.”
“Me too. Bye.”
Allan hung up and stared at the phone for a moment. Then he rose from his seat and went to the kitchen, where he slipped on his jacket. After heading outside, he climbed into his car and drove through the quiet streets to Pleasant Hill Cemetery in Lower Sackville to visit his mother.
