Huff pushed open the door into his office wearing the look of a doctor about to tell a family their father didn’t survive the heart attack. His eyes were cast downward and his gaze shifted from his desk to my feet. Slowly it inched upward. Our stares met, and he looked away.
“Just give it to me, Huff.”
He was shaking his head as he sat down behind his desk.
“I fought for you, Tanner. I really did.”
Now, if Huff had told me that a day ago, I’d have called bullshit on him. But after seeing the way he took command during our meeting, and the way he put Chief Warren in his place, I believed him.
“Appreciate that, Huff.” I turned my head and glanced into the detectives’ room. Still empty. “So, what’s the damage? Two weeks? A month?”
He placed both fists, balled up so tight his fingertips were white, on his desk calendar. He stared at a spot in between them.
“Huff?”
“It’s indefinite, Tanner.” He let out a grating sigh.
“You’re kidding me, right?”
He leaned back in his chair. It rocked back and then bounced forward. Huff steepled his hands together over his protruding stomach. The space between the buttons above and below his belly button opened. Stray hairs poked out.
“Warren’s serious about this shit,” Huff said. “And there’s nothing else I can do. If you want to fight this, turn to your FOP rep and see what they recommend.”
“Christ, all the trouble I caused them. The union probably wants me off the force as bad as Warren.”
“You don’t know that. Besides, doesn’t matter what they think of you. Their only interest is doing what’s right by cops. They’ll take up for you.”
I leaned back, letting my head rest against the cool glass separating Huff’s office from the detectives’ room. The feeling spread to my forehead and down to the base of my neck.
“Any questions?” Huff asked.
“Not really,” I said. “I know the rules.”
“I know you do. Don’t break them. I’m serious, Tanner. You step out of line while on suspension, it’ll give Warren all the ammo he needs. Only thing that saved your ass with the kids was the fact that you saved them. That’s why he’s digging for something else. No one would take kindly to you being busted down ‘cause of that situation. We all know you did what you had to do.”
I stood and pulled open the door to the room. Huff rose behind me. His chair collided with the wall. He bumped his leg into the corner of his desk and cursed.
“Sure you wanna escort me to my desk?” I said. “Might end up on workman’s comp.”
“Shut up, wise ass. Gotta make sure you don’t take any files home.”
“Think I’m gonna work for free?”
“If your head’s in a case, I know you will.”
I smirked. “You know me better than I thought.”
He shrugged. “Take everything you think you might want.”
I picked up the pictures of my kids. Held them to my chest. I felt like if I brought them home, I was admitting defeat. Perhaps, in more ways than one. I reached to set them back down.
“Tanner.” Huff put his hand on my shoulder. “This might be your only chance. Warren gets his way, I guarantee you, he’s not letting you back in here to get your stuff.”
I knew his words were laden with truth. I reached across the desktop, grabbed my pen, a blank notebook, and the pictures of my kids. The department could keep everything else.
As I walked away, Huff said, “That all?”
I said nothing.
He raced across the floor toward me. The double tap of his hard soles echoed throughout the room.
“I think I know the way out,” I said.
“I gotta walk with you,” he said. “That’s the rules, Tanner. That’s all.”
Sighing, I pulled the door open and stepped into the hallway. Sam was leaning against the opposite wall, chin on his chest, toothpick protruding from his closed mouth. He looked up at me. I gave him a quick shake of my head. He nodded in response. Nothing more had to be said.
“Huff, order Sam to show me out.”
“What?” Huff said.
“You heard me.”
“Fine,” Huff said. “But you two do anything stupid, Sam will be in as much trouble as you.”
We left Huff behind and took the quickest route out of the building. My car remained where I had parked it, perhaps for the last time in the detective lot. Bits of gravel were kicked up and skated across the asphalt as we walked over to the Boss.
I grabbed the hot handle and opened the door, leaving it open to let the air get out. It had warmed up since I went inside the station, and the sun shone directly onto the windshield.
“You getting paid?” Sam asked.
I shrugged. “Didn’t ask.”
“What?”
“You know I don’t do this for the money. Got enough in that fund from the settlement after Dad’s death.”
“Yeah, I know. I also know you don’t like touching that money.”
“Just want to have it around for the kids. They’re the ones really missing out. Think about it, they get to go their whole lives without seeing his rough side.”
“Wish I hadn’t.” Sam smiled. “You gonna be all right?”
“Suppose so.”
“What’ll you do?”
“Hang out with the kid, I guess. Maybe take a trip or two. Pray like hell Warren’s people don’t uncover anything I’ve forgotten about.”
“You think the stuff you remember is any better?”
Shrugging, I said, “At least I can come up with a counter argument relatively quickly. Anything I don’t recall, who knows. I’m too direct to be considered the world’s best bullshitter.”
“Got that right.”
“Title would go to you, anyway.”
Sam laughed. So did I.
“I got a friend in Warren’s office,” Sam said, his face serious. “I’ll ask her to keep her ears open. Maybe she can get involved and help make a few things disappear.”
“Why would she do that?”
“Maybe she owes me.”
“Maybe, huh?”
He shrugged. Sam kept a few things close to the vest, and I didn’t pry when he did. He’d let me know if I needed to.
“I don’t know about that, partner,” I said. “I’m a sinking ship. Best not to add any more passengers.”
I slipped behind the wheel of the Boss and closed the door. Sam knocked on the window. I rolled it down.
“Want me to come over tonight?” he asked.
“Better call first. Make sure I’m in the mood.”
He nodded with a wink and then headed back inside. I twisted the key in the ignition. The Boss’s 429 roared to life. I idled for a few seconds, then pulled out of the parking lot.
Perhaps for the last time.