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men may not be crazy about it either, but knowing what I know about each of you, I think you’ll go. You’ve been handpicked for this.”
    Service saw more nodding and sensed an unspoken swell of determination in the room below.
    â€œEdey has decided to retire in January. As acting captain, I will appoint Len Stone to be acting lieutenant in Edey’s stead. Len will spearhead this effort,” Attalienti said.
    Eddie Moody, a new officer from Manistique, leaned forward. “Do we put the hammer on the rats right away?”
    â€œNo,” Attalienti said. “The big push will start in April after the ice goes out and the walleye and perch spawns begin. Between now and then we will conduct routine road and snowmobile patrols.”
    Colt Homes spoke up. “How is dat different?”
    â€œNobody goes solo into the Garden,” Attalienti said. “No exceptions.”
    Stone spoke up. “We never go down dere wit’ fewer den two vehicles and four men. I’ll always be one of da four. We’ll conduct no patrols without having county and Troop resources on standby. Between now and April we’ll go down dere, varying our days an’ times. Dey’ve been outnumbering us down dere, but we’re gonna try to rectify dat, and when April comes we’ll start going in with real force.”
    â€œYou’ll be on every patrol?” Moody asked Stone.
    The blond sergeant said, “Can’t let you boys have all da fun, can I?”
    This lightened the mood in the room, and for more than an hour, Service listened and made notes while the officers and supervisors talked about rendezvous points, communications and backup procedures, and other technical matters.
    After the men were gone, Attalienti walked with Service to his truck.
    â€œYou hear okay?”
    Service nodded.
    â€œThat seem like work enough for you?”
    â€œYessir,” Service said.
    â€œYou’re probably wondering why I had you stashed upstairs, and I’ll answer that. You were a recon marine in Vietnam, and I know you keep your cool and use your brain. Garwood said you didn’t flinch during your patrol with him, and Shuck Gorley made a special point of calling me to talk about you—and I can tell you, Shuck is real picky about endorsing people. When I was an officer working with him, it took five years for him to decide I could be trusted. I have a job I’d like for you to do, but if you accept, what you’re doing will be strictly between us, understood?”
    Service nodded.
    Attalienti continued. “I understand how Len Stone feels, but Metrovich also has a valid point: Not everybody who lives on the Garden is a rat. Our main focus there has been the major commercial operations out of Garden and Fairport, the ones with the tugs, paid crews, and wholesale fish houses, but they already feel our presence. The guys I want to put the heat on now are the rat fishermen, the greedy little bastards with fast boats who flaunt the law and do whatever they please. We’re gonna put a dent in them.”
    â€œBut?” Service said.
    â€œYou can’t dent something you can’t identify. I’ve been contacted by a Garden resident who’s fed up with behavior down there and wants to help us. Frankly, I don’t know if this is legit, a provocation, or hooey. But if it’s real, it means I need to send somebody into the Garden alone to work with the contact.”
    â€œHow do we beat the crow line?” The Garden was famous for its early warning system—a series of homes with lookouts who immediately used their telephones to report the appearance of any marked police vehicle on Garden Road, the main route down the peninsula.
    â€œThat will be your problem to solve,” the acting captain said.
    â€œMe?”
    â€œI want you to go down there. Chances of one of the rats recognizing you is minimal, and you haven’t been involved in this mess long