Chapter 15
After arriving at the airport, Blue rented a car and drove toward his mother’s home past the same brick bungalows he remembered from childhood. The corner store was the same, though the green awning was faded. A basketball hoop hung bolted above Mr. Nowak’s garage, the net long gone.
His brother had taught him to shoot on that hoop left-handed, because Charles was left-handed and Blue copied everything his older brother did. It didn’t work, but they’d laughed about it for years.
His mother’s house was halfway down the block. Red brick, white trim, a small porch with two comfortable chairs and pots of red geraniums.
His mother was at the door before he’d pulled the key from the ignition. He stepped from the car. The air was heavier than on Crown Island.
He grabbed his small carry-on bag. “Hi, Ma.”
“My baby.” Rhonda Blumenthal wrapped her arms around her youngest child.
Blue bent down to hold her, this small, fierce woman who had given birth to four children by twenty-five. Now in her mid-sixties, she still smelled like the lavender lotion she’d used since he was a kid and kept her hair tinted in her natural dark blond shade.
“You’re still too thin,” she said, pulling back to examine him. “Don’t they feed you on that island?”
“I eat fine, Ma.”
“You need more Midwest beef and potatoes, not all those salads and seafood.” She led him inside. “The girls should be here soon.”
The house seldom changed. Family photos covered every surface. Charles’s badge rested in a shadow box on the mantel, and their father’s folded American flag lay in a triangular case beside it.
Blue set his bag down and looked at the mantel. She never moved a thing.
“Come into the kitchen with me,” Rhonda said. “A neighbor gave me baklava, but I can’t eat it. You have some.”
“I don’t think I could—”
“I’d hate to tell her you didn’t like it.” She scooped several large pieces onto a plate for him.
He nibbled one piece. “Very tasty.”
His mother pulled a container from the refrigerator. “At least you’ll eat well while you’re here.”
Blue shook his head. “I still have to pass a physical.”
The front door banged, and a woman’s voice called out, “Ma, is Blue here? A strange car is out front.”
“Guilty,” Blue said, escaping the kitchen and the baklava. Nothing against baklava, of course. Only the force feeding of it after he’d just had lunch on the flight. “Is that you, Sadie?”
“Who else?”
When he saw her, he opened his arms for a hug.
Sadie was the oldest, sharp and direct, a social worker who managed her cases and her brood of four boys with brisk efficiency. Next was Elyse, a sweet kindergarten teacher, but no less determined when she wanted to make a point.
Sadie pulled back and sized him up. “Just look at you. Tall, dark and handsome. At least one of us took after Pops. And now you’re a big star.”
“Aw, go on,” he said, waving off her comment. “I’m not even a little star. It was just an interview to make the department and the island look good.”
“And how’s the girlfriend? Still the diner girl, is it?”
“Her name is Jo, and she’s the owner.”
Sadie snapped her fingers. “Oh, right. Jo. I don’t know why I can’t remember that name. It’s so common.”
The door banged behind him again.
Elyse bustled in with her purse and a bag of groceries, setting them on the table. “Welcome back. Seems like it’s only been a minute since you were here last.”
Even though Sadie made out like she couldn’t remember Jo’s name, she wasn’t letting go of the subject. “So, are you two still together?”
Blue had been waiting for this. “That’s complicated.”
Sadie looked up. “Why is it always complicated with you? Either you’re with her, or you’re not.”
“Sounds like Ella,” Blue muttered to himself.
“Who’s Ella?” Sadie demanded.
“A friend.”
“A friend on the island,” Sadie said, exchanging a look with Elyse. “Our brother has a whole life out there he doesn’t tell us about.”
“You’ve visited,” he said.
“Only twice.” Sadie folded her arms and looked pointedly at Elyse. “I can’t travel with four boys.”
“Why are you looking at me?” Elyse asked. “I have three, and I know it’s not easy.”
Sadie sniffed at her remark. “It would be if you knew how to organize and discipline.”
“I have to be two steps ahead of five-year-olds all day,” Elyse said, standing up to her sister. “I know more than you think. What you’re saying is that Blue should visit more. Well, he was just here for two weeks. What do you want?”
Sadie huffed and turned to Blue. “Why are you still living out there? You have family here. The boys miss you, and Ma needs you. And now Ty has a good job for you. Almost like—”
She stopped, and the house went quiet.
“Like Charles,” Blue finished. “Well, that didn’t take long this time.”
Nobody spoke for a moment.
“Look, I didn’t mean it the way you obviously took it,” Sadie said.
His mother set a plate on the table before him. Homemade pierogis with sour cream and caramelized onions.
“Eat,” she said, pointing at him. “You can argue after.”
Blue sat down to eat a second lunch and grinned. “It’s sure good to be back. I’ve missed these arguments.”
“Now don’t get all sarcastic with me,” Sadie said.
“Girls, stop picking on your little brother,” their mother said, raising her hands. “Especially you, Sadie.”
Elyse smiled as if she’d scored a point against her sister.
Sadie turned back to Blue. “I saw Athena this morning, and she asked when you’d be here. You know, neither of you are getting any younger.”
Blue could feel a headache coming on.
Tyrone Jackson picked him up at noon the next day in a department-issued sedan.
The commander looked the same with his broad shoulders, close-cropped hair, and a handshake that could crack the bones in a man’s hand.
He’d put on a little weight around the middle, but the expression in his eyes was as sharp as ever.
“Look at you, Mr. Hollywood,” Ty said, grinning. “Get in the car before somebody asks for your autograph.”
They drove to Ty’s favorite, old-school steakhouse. Dark wood, leather booths, frequented by lawyers and political types. Blue remembered coming here with his brother to celebrate his promotion to detective.
“You haven’t gone vegetarian on me, have you?” Ty asked.
“No, sir, Commander.” Blue grinned.
Ty slapped his back as they were shown to a booth. “Good. And I’m still Ty to you outside of work.” He ordered steaks and baked potatoes for them.
“I’ll get right to it,” Ty said after the server left.
“As you know, I can’t hire you as a detective, but I can bring you in as a civilian investigative consultant.
Good pay, government benefits, very little overtime—it’s great for people with families.
I know it’s not the level you would have achieved if you had stayed here, but it’s a good position that pays well.
You’d work on our highest-profile cases. ”
“Ty—”
“Let me finish. You’re smart and disciplined, and you have instincts I can’t teach. Unless you’ve gone soft in the sun. I’m sure the island gig cleared your head, but you’ve been out there long enough. It’s time to come home and do the work you were made for.”
Blue drank from his water glass. “I appreciate the offer.”
Ty looked surprised. “But?”
“I have a life in Crown Island. A career and people I care about.” Blue hesitated. On the other hand, he should accept that he had lost Jo. “I need to consider this carefully, but I’m leaning toward it. I would have to find a place here.”
“Good man, that’s what I wanted to hear. Thought you were negotiating at first. Or maybe you have someone back there.”
Blue only shrugged.
Ty leaned back, looking him over. “I’m not asking you to leave anyone behind. Bring the woman here. My wife is selling real estate now, so she can find a house for you. What I’m asking is for you to consider how far you can go here. You’ve outgrown what you do in California, and you know it.”
“That’s why I’m here.” No one needed to know his other reasons.
The steaks arrived. Prime cuts charred black at the edges. Blue took a bite and sighed. “They are as good as they always were.”
Ty grinned. “See, that’s what I’m talking about.”
They talked while they ate. Finally, Ty said, “I’m glad you want to come home. Your brother would be proud of you for returning.”
Blue nodded. He had looked up to his brother, but he would forever be in his brother’s shadow. “Charles was a great guy. Everyone loved him.”
“I’m not trying to give you guilt,” Ty said as he finished his meal. “But I’m convinced you’re the right man for this job. Think about it. I need an answer before you leave.”
“Sure thing.” Blue needed to get this decision over with.
Maybe he had been on Crown Island long enough. He’d certainly made a fool of himself there.
That afternoon, Blue drove to the cemetery alone.
The headstone was of polished silvery-gray granite, chiseled with Charles’s name, dates, and the Chicago Police Department star engraved beneath. Someone had left fresh flowers—his mother, probably, or maybe Athena.
Blue stood there for a long time with his hands in his pockets, rocking on his feet and staring at the headstone. His brother’s death was the end of an era.
And the beginning of another.
He didn’t talk to the headstone because he knew his brother’s soul wasn’t there. However, it was a good place to think.
Charles became a detective the year he died. He’d been good at it and had the mind for it. Patient and methodical with a good eye for pattern recognition.
Blue saw patterns, too. He just saw them differently.
He crouched and touched the grass in front of the stone. It was cool and thick, neatly trimmed. Whoever maintained the cemetery did nice work.
Calm settled over him. He glanced behind him, making sure he wasn’t being observed.
Blue faced his brother’s headstone. “I’m not sure what to do,” he ventured.
The steady hum of the expressway rose in the background, almost like distant waves. A bright yellow goldfinch landed on a nearby headstone and cocked its black-capped head at him as if it knew him.