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just south of Addison. Her name’s Elaine Kluszewski.”
    “You mean as in Ted Kluszewski,” I interrupted her, “first baseman for the Reds and the White Sox?”
    Pam gave me a quizzical look, as if I had just lapsed into tongues. “Never mind,” I said, recalling that Pam’s idea of sports was walking the dog along the jogging path.
    “Elaine works for one of these big computer companies. Does the training, I think. She’s in Europe right now working with some of their overseas clients.” She paused to digest what she had just said. “God, wouldn’t it be great to get to travel like that with your company picking up the tab?”
    “Join the army.”
    “That wasn’t quite what I had in mind. Anyway, she left this week. Before she left she tried to rent the condo, but was having trouble because she couldn’t be sure how long she would be gone. Three to six months, she thinks. So she told me if I found anyone who was interested in renting it, and I considered the person to be responsible enough”—her eyes laughed when she said that—“to go ahead and rent it. There would, of course, be a few dollars in it for me. Not to mention the fact that if you moved in, I wouldn’t have to run over there once a week to water the plants. Do you think you’d be interested?”
    “What’s reasonable?”
    “Six-fifty.” When I didn’t respond immediately she added, “It’s pretty big. One bedroom and a small den.”
    “Then you consider me a responsible person, I take it.” I couldn’t resist.
    “In terms of paying rent and not trashing a home, yes I do.”
    I probably deserved that. “So, I can stay there anywhere from three to six months. All I have to do is pay rent and water plants?”
    I couldn’t think of a reason not to take it. I probably could have found a place in a less desirable area that was cheaper, but I would spend some time looking and I’d have to pay a security deposit. If I wasn’t convinced, Pam’s next words put a cap on it.
    “It comes with its very own underground parking space.”
    “Sold.” I tossed the camisole in the air.
    I was able to coerce Pam into lunch under the condition that we go dutch, keep lunch to an hour and the conversation light. I was developing the distinct impression that Pam had a new personal life that she intended to keep that way.
    Later that afternoon Pam dropped the keys and the electronic garage door opener off in my office along with written instructions on the care and feeding of Ms. Kluszewski’s plants.
    Before driving to my temporary residence, I brought the letters Hauser had given me to a guy I used to work with when I was on the force. Harry didn’t owe me any favors or anything. In fact, I am probably indebted to him for the rest of my natural life for a lot of reasons. The main one, I guess, is the way he and his wife, Carol, took care of me after Joan and I split up. I was pretty lost for a while there and they kept inviting me over for dinner. After a while,
    they started playing the matchmaker games. I think it was Carol’s idea mostly. I never knew what to expect when I’d knock on the door of their apartment with a box of chocolates, or, if Carol was dieting, flowers. Then one week I brought chocolate-covered cherries, and Maggie was there. She loved chocolate-covered cherries—and me for a while.
    Let’s not get maudlin, Quintus, I mentally kicked myself.
    Anyway, Harry was good when it came to pulling something out of nothing. He used to be a pathologist with the department and now he had his own research lab and contracted his work out. He also taught part-time at Loyola. The department was sorry to lose him. He was good. If there was anything to be told from these pictures, he would find it. Harry wasn’t in the lab, and I debated whether to leave the pictures for him. I decided against it, leaving him a note instead. I’d call him later.
    Driving over to the condo, I kept thinking how good it would feel to put my feet up,