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glass was gone, Nut took a long pull from the fresh brew and sat back in his chair.
    “Where was I?”
    “They lost their first child.”
    “Oh yeah. Rumor was that their first boy died of complications at birth. There’s a little tombstone in their backyard where they buried him. That sobered them up a little, and it must have been too traumatic for them to go through it again, since they adopted Eric years later.”
    Liam’s mind hummed with flickering thoughts. Connections like strings began to attach themselves to a bleary map in his head. “Did Jerry or Karen have any enemies in town? Did he have any business deals that went wrong?”
    Nut drained more of his beer and appeared to search his mind, his dark eyes rolling almost straight up at the ceiling. “Not that I know of. The deal with Colton must have gone through fine, since the project across the river is still scheduled to start soon.”
    “Colton Incorporated? Is that what the signs are for all over town?”
    “Yep. Colton is out of Sweden somewhere, I believe. Huge paper company with depots all over the US. They purchased the land across the river from the Shevlins over a year ago. Talk around town is they’re gonna tear down the old foundry and build a processing plant for pulp and whatnot. I suppose they’ll use the river for transport—that’s why they chose the spot.”
    “How does everyone feel about the plant going up in a small town like this?” Liam asked, something catching on a burr in his mind.
    Nut shrugged and nearly finished the second beer. “Mostly good. Be more jobs created. There’s a small activist group that’s trying to stop it from going through. They say that by cutting down the trees on the other side of the river it’ll damage the ecosystem or some bullshit. Buncha hippies, if you ask me. I’m sure that big shot from Colton is fit to be tied about these murders, though. Something like this might put a hold on the city’s vote that’s coming up.”
    “Who’s the big shot?”
    Nut finished his beer, and without prompting, Liam had another brought to their table. “Name’s Donald something or other. He’s rentin’ a big place on the south side of town, right smack on the river. He and his team of suits have been here for a few weeks, buttering up the local government, I assume. The mayor’s got his head up his ass, so he’ll believe anyone with a little money to wave around under his nose.” Nut sipped his beer, and Liam saw the other man’s pupils tightened to pinpoints under the influence of the alcohol. “You know that shithead wanted to cut the local soup kitchen out completely? I mean, there’s not a lot of us around town without places to go, but you can’t take that away from us. Some of my friends aren’t as industrious as I am, and they count on at least one meal from that place every day.”
    “You mean they’re not as good at selling information?” Liam asked.
    Nut licked his lips and blinked. “I’m taking that as an insult.”
    “Good.” Liam opened his wallet and pulled out a fifty-dollar bill. He watched Nut’s eyes follow it as he placed it on the table between them. “You’re with me now, okay? If you hear or see anything else that you think might be important, I want you to call this number.” He pulled a piece of scratch paper out, grabbed an errant pen from a nearby table, and jotted his cell number down. “Anything, do you understand?”
    Nut nodded, still staring at the fifty within his reach. “You some kind of cop?”
    “Not anymore.” Liam stood and turned to the bar to settle up the bill.
    “I’m sorry I told those vultures your name.”
    Liam stopped and studied the homeless man’s drunken eyes, and nodded. “You do what I asked and we’ll call it even.” Nut smiled and raised the dregs of beer to him in a toast.
    Liam paid the tab and made his way outside into the deepening dark of the night, wondering what the hell he was getting himself into.

    Sleep