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truth wizard.
    Mike’s brain clicked back into the conversation. “You know I don’t read friends. Or try to, anyway.”
    “Hey, cut me some slack...it’s not easy hanging out with a wizard , for crap’s sake. I live in fear you’ll wave a wand and turn me into a frog.”
    Mike laughed. “Like it’s so easy living in the shadow of an ATF legend? I need to take beach cases to get a tan.” He reached for the bowl. “May I?”
    His friend nodded yes.
    The cellophane crackled as he unwrapped it. “So why’d you want to see me?”
    “Well, your vacation starts tomorrow…”
    “Uh-huh.” He popped the candy in his mouth. Liked its tart lemon taste.
    “Driving up the coast, right?”
    “Yep.”
    “Don’t miss Castroville, the Artichoke Center of the World.”
    “On my bucket list.”
    Harley grew serious. “I asked you to drop by because I didn’t want you to hear this through the grapevine. ATF wants your partner Maggie to take early retirement.”
    He looked out at the window at the hazy blue sky, cracking the candy with his molars. After a few moments, he muttered, “Wish to hell this place would get its head on straight.”
    “I’m sorry, Mike.”
    “Last week we got that memo about expired bulletproof vests no longer being replaced. Now ATF is dumping an excellent agent before her time’s up.”
    “I’ve always respected Maggie’s work,” Harley said. “If I were king, she’d stay.”
    He met his friend’s gaze. “When?”
    “Next week.”
    He snorted in disgust. “Just in time for Christmas. Did some muckety-muck not like her misreading evidence in the Humphreys case? Slowed things down a bit, but didn’t undermine the case. Like reporters would find that to be breaking news.” He sat taller, easing the pressure of the chair against his sunburned back.
    “If it makes you feel any better, they’re letting go of others close to mandatory retirement age.”
    “A year-plus away isn’t close . This is about age discrimination and harassment.”
    He held up his palms. “Take it easy, Mike. I know it’s tough to lose a partner. At least she’s alive...she’ll still be around…”
    They sat without talking, listening to the faint buzz of traffic below on Brand Avenue.
    “Next week, huh?” Mike asked.
    “That’s the word.”
    He nodded, wishing he wasn’t going on vacation. But he didn’t have a choice. Vacations were mandatory, another of the agency’s new policies after an LA Times reporter blamed an ATF gun-tracking snafu on its agents being like cowboys on the range, working on little sleep that resulted in bad judgments .
    “Know who I’ll be paired with next?”
    Harley cracked his knuckles, his features tightening. “This is as hard on me as it is on you, so can we end the Q and A session?”
    Mike idly watched the news scrolling on the computer screen. Tension ran high these days inside the offices, made him glad he mostly worked in the field.
    “Spending all three weeks of your vacation traveling up the coast?” Harley asked, tacking on a good-ole-boy smile.
    But Mike saw the tension in his eyes. He hoped that peppermint tea did the trick, otherwise Harley would be popping tranquilizers next.
    "Yes. Planning to leave Sunday, drive up to Santa Barbara...”
    As he rambled on about his trip, a headline on the computer screen snagged his attention. Judge Finds Sufficient Evidence to Try Accused in Arson Triggered by Watch Device.
    Mike pointed at the computer. “Freeze the screen.”
    Harley paused, a surprised look on his face, then pressed a button on the keyboard and scanned the news item.
    “Buddy, you gotta let go. Let Paula rest in peace.”
    Mike leaned across the desk and read the photo caption aloud. “Alleged Timepiece Arsonist Dita Randisi, left, leaves court with her defense attorney, Joanne Galvin.”
    In the photo the two women walked down the courthouse steps, heads dipped close, a gentle wind rippling their clothes. The lawyer, late twenties he