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reads ‘Doctor P. ’ ”
    I said, “You haven’t mentioned foul play.”
    â€œNo reason to. Or if there is, I don’t see it. It’s not like we found blood stains in the parking lot outside the nursing home. No signs of a struggle, no evidence of assault, and no reason to believe he was forcibly removed. We canvassed the neighborhood, hitting every house within range. Nobody saw or heard a thing that night.”
    â€œFiona thinks he might have left on his own. What’s your take on it?”
    â€œPersonally, I don’t like the feel of it. Nine weeks with zip. You almost have to assume there’s something else going on. We’re beginning to backtrack, looking for anything we might have missed the first go-round.”
    â€œDid Fiona’s story affect the investigation?”
    â€œIn what regard?”
    â€œAll this talk of his past disappearances,” I said.
    Odessa waved that aside. “Air and sunshine. She says he’s gone off before. Maybe so, maybe not. I’m not entirely clear about her motive.”
    â€œAccording to her, she wants results.”
    â€œSure, but who doesn’t? We’re cops, not magicians. We don’t perform miracles.”
    â€œDid you believe the story she told?”
    â€œI believe he left her. Whether he was having problems with the current Mrs. P. is anybody’s guess.” He paused. “Have you met Crystal yet?”
    I shook my head.
    Odessa lifted his brows and shook his hand as though he’d burned it. “She’s a beautiful woman. Hard to picture anyone walking out on her.”
    â€œYou have a theory?”
    â€œNot me. From our perspective—so far—this is not a criminal matter. You got no crime, then there’s no Miranda and no need for search warrants, which makes our job a hell of a lot easier. We’re just a bunch of good guys trying to do the family a favor. Personally, I think things look bad, but I ain’t gonna say that to anyone else, including you,” he said.
    I indicated the file. “Mind if I take a look?”
    â€œWish I could, but this is Paglia’s case and he’s hell on confidentiality. He doesn’t mind us passing on the gist of it when it seems appropriate. The point is to find the guy, which means we cooperate when we can.”
    â€œHe won’t care if I go back and talk to some of these people?”
    â€œYou’re free to do anything you want.”
    When he walked me out to the front, he said, “If you find him, let us know. He can stay gone if he wants, but I’d hate to keep putting in the hours if he’s off in Las Vegas with a snootful of coke.”
    â€œYou don’t believe that.”
    â€œNo, I don’t. Nor do you.”
    On the way back to the office, I did a two-block detour and made a stop at the bank. I filled out a deposit slip, endorsed Fiona’s check, and waited my turn in line. When I reached the window, I pointed to the account number printed on the face. “Could you verify the balance in this account? I want to be sure the check’s good before I make the deposit.” Another lesson learned the hard way: I don’t start work until a check has cleared.
    The teller, Barbara, was one I’d been dealing with for years. I watched while she typed in the account number on her computer keyboard and then studied the screen. She hit the Enter key once. Tap. Again. Tap. I watched as her eyes traced the lines of print.
    She looked back at my deposit slip and made a face. “This is covered, but it’s close. Want the cash instead?”
    â€œThe deposit’s fine, but let’s do it before another check comes in and leaves her short.”

3
    I returned to the office to find that Jill and Ida Ruth had left a note on my door: “Kinsey—Below is an itemized record of Jeniffer’s tardy days, screwups, and unexplained absences. Please add any other incidents