“If I’m still on the case, let me do that.”

“Fine, make the call while you’re waiting for Tyler’s parents to arrive. You’re not going anywhere until you talk to them, understood?”

“Done.”

“And while you’re on the phone, I suppose you can call your buddy when it’s a decent hour in L.A. Let me know what he says. If he wants to come out, I’ll talk to him but no promises. I not only have to approve him, I’m going to have to figure out how to pull money out of my butt to get him hired on as a consultant.”

“I understand.”

“Let me know when Tyler wakes up. I want to be there when he tells his story.” Radar licked his lips. “He didn’t tell you anything about what went down?”

“He heard someone. He locked himself in the closet. That’s all I know.”

“I want the full story from him. You call me right away. And also call me when the parents arrive. I don’t care what time it is. I want to talk to them personally.”

“That’s good because I’m sure they’ll want to talk to you,” Decker said. “Judging from the way Tyler talks about them, I don’t think they usually deal with underlings.”

CHAPTER 25

AFTER DECKER SPENT a half hour, meticulously explaining everything, the kid’s sole comment was, “So I’m being replaced.”

“No . . . no, not at all.” Decker rubbed his eyes. “You’re still actively involved. But because of the obvious circumstances, you can’t do the legwork. If you want to heal properly, you can’t be running around.”

“I wouldn’t be running around. I’d be in a car. I can put on a seat belt.”

“As my kids would say, I’m not having this conversation.” Decker had to be blunt. “McAdams, if someone starts shooting at the car, you’re a sitting duck because you’re immobile. We have to keep you protected—”

“I don’t want protection.” A pause. “Well, I do. But I don’t want to be sitting on my ass while you get all the glory.”

“The glory is all yours, McAdams.”

“I figured out the codebook.”

“Absolutely—”

“I still have a working brain—”

“And I intend to use it. Summer Village is giving the codebook to Mordechai Gold. When he has something, I’ll go up there—”

“With your new partner.”

Decker treaded gingerly. “He’s not my new partner, Tyler. You are my partner. But Radar will pull me off the case unless I have someone to ride with me.”

“So use someone else from Greenbury.”

“The dees in the town are already stretched. They’re hunting down the van, they’re canvassing the area, they’re calling hospitals left and right because I nicked the guy at my house. They’re also knee deep in forensics combing through two houses. That’s one of the reasons why I wanted to bring in a third party.”

“Your cop buddy.”

“Tyler, he’s a great cop and we work well together.” Decker knew his words were a mistake. He tried to backtrack. “He’s bored. I’m doing him a favor.”

“Fuck it, Old Man. I don’t give a shit.” The kid sunk back in his hospital bed. “I’m tired. Leave me alone.”

“I called your parents.”

“So you not only dumped me, you’re now a traitor. Get the fuck out of here.”

“Just shut up and listen. I had to call your parents. If I didn’t do it, Radar would have called them. So I did it. You should be giving me sympathy, not sass.”

“You and my father deserve each other.”

“You’re moving into my house by the way. That way the cops here only have to guard one location.”

“I don’t need a guard.”

“Don’t be stupid. Of course you need protection and so does Rina. She was there when Mr. Shadow tried to take us both out. Mike’s putting a twenty-four-hour guard on the house and on the two of you. So whether you like it or not, you’re involved up to your neck.”

McAdams clenched his jaw. “You’re actually moving me into your house?”

“Rina’s idea not mine.”

“Figures.” A pause. “Where’s the new guy staying?”

“Oliver? If Radar approves, he’ll stay with us as well. It’s a three-bedroom house. He’s no threat to you, Tyler. He’s an old guy just like me.”

The kid was still sulking. “When you talk to Gold, I want to be there. It was my idea to call him.”

“You cannot be there in person, McAdams, but we’ll Skype you in. You’ll have the codebook in front of you and you can ask as many questions as you want.”

“How long is this interloper going to be here?”

“Until we get a solve. It won’t be permanent.”

“I can’t believe you called my parents against my wishes.”

“We’re crossing the same road, Harvard.”

He blew out air. “Are they coming in?”

“Of course, they’re coming in. They were very concerned.”

“Right. Let me guess. My father started screaming—his default way of communicating. First, he started swearing at me, calling me an incompetent moron, and then he probably turned his wrath on you, saying that you were also an incompetent moron and everything that happened was your fault.” When Decker didn’t answer, the kid said, “How am I doing?”

“He called me an idiot not a moron.”

The kid managed a smile. “My mother probably listened for a moment, and then she put you through to her secretary for the details.”

“You know the first thing out of their mouths?” Decker said. “They asked me if you were okay.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“They care, Tyler.” Decker stood up. “I have to call Radar. He wants to come down here when you make your statement.”

“I already told you everything.”

“I was supposed to call him when you woke up and started talking. But I didn’t. If you could, pretend that you just woke up and you’re telling your story to both of us for the first time.”

“You wanted to hear everything from me first.”

“Yes.”

“So you’re asking me to lie to protect your ass.”

“It would be nice.”

“What’s Mike doing now?”

“He’s directing forensics. You were shot with a .32-caliber bullet, probably a revolver because so far CID didn’t find any casings. Too bad the asshole didn’t drop the murder weapon when I shot him.”

“Maybe he picked the casings up.”

“I think I surprised him when Rina and I crashed through your door. He wouldn’t have had time to pick it up. But we did find two stray bullets in the closet.”

“Any prints?”

“I don’t know.” Decker waited a few seconds. “How do you feel, Harvard?”

“Like a truck ran over me.”

“Do you want me to call in a nurse for more pain medication?”

“No.” He shook his head. “No.”

“You’re sure?”

“I’m sure. I fucking hurt. But it’s good to feel something real for a change.”

THE SHOOTING HAD brought the mayor down to the hospital. Logan Brettly was in his fifties, average height with a barrel chest and curly white hair. He came into Tyler’s room just in time to intercept Jack McAdams’s wrath, which had been previously bestowed on Decker, Mike Radar, and of course, his son. Tyler had listened wordlessly as his father heaped insults without pause. The senior McAdams was a tall, good-looking man in his fifties: dark curly hair, big chin, flashing blue eyes, and a foul mouth. He ranted endlessly about being surrounded by idiots, morons, and cretins. Then came the inevitable mention of lawsuits.

“Dad, I’m not suing anyone.” Somehow, Tyler had managed to interrupt his diatribe. “And even if I wanted to—and I don’t—I have no case.”

“Oh, shut up. If you would have gone to law school, you wouldn’t be in this mess right now.” The senior McAdams turned his fury on the mayor. “Logan, you assured me that this job was a cakewalk, a mere formality so the kid can pass a couple of years doing something other than jerking off. What the hell was that all about?”

“Jack, nothing like this has happened in this town in years. I know you’re upset—”

“Of course, I’m fucking upset. I’m pissed off!” He pointed to the bed. “Look at him!”

The nurse walked in. “Sir, this is causing quite a ruckus.”