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84
Pensacola Beach, Florida
Eric took Howard by surprise. At least that s what it looked
like. Howard mumbled something into the phone and
quickly got off.
Eric wondered if it may have been Howard s old friends
who were supposed to be sailing up from Miami. For friends
Howard sure seemed to be a bit on edge about their visit,
and there didn t seem to be much that put Howard on edge.
Howard didn t talk about his former friends or his
previous life. Neither did Eric. None of the group that
hung out at Bobbye s did. Eric knew through his own
sources that once upon a time Howard Johnson had made
millions of dollars trafficking drugs from South America
up through Miami. The story was that the feds had made
Howard an offer to rat out his suppliers. Instead, Howard
decided to thumb his nose at all of them and simply retire
before the feds had anything on him and before his suppli-
ers got paranoid. No matter how much of the story was
true, Eric was convinced that sort of a life wasn t one
WHITEWASH 323
somebody just walked away from. He was looking for
Howard s friends to be old friends and he wouldn t be sur-
prised if they had a little something for Howard.
 The Minnesotans canceling out? Eric asked, giving
Howard a chance to share his covert phone call.
 No, I haven t heard anything from them. He glanced
at his watch.  I expect they ll be here in the next hour.
Then he pointed to the TV and the ever-present Fox News
channel.  Florida authorities are searching for your friend
in Chicago. Media s on it up there, too. They had an inter-
view with some professor at the university where she
taught. One of her students, too. Nothing new, just your
basic  I never knew she was capable of such a thing
interview.
 Jesus! Eric knew it was only a matter of time before
the media discovered their dad, maybe even Eric.  Do me
a favor. Don t mention it to Bree, okay?
 Sure, no problem. Howard continued his morning
routine, opening the cash register and checking the
Visa/MC machine, but then he stopped and turned back to
Eric, as if there was something he d been meaning to tell
him. His eyes were serious under bushy white eyebrows.
Here it was, Eric thought. Time for true confessions.
Howard was finally ready to give him the dirt on what he
was really up to.
 You re a good friend, Howard said, emphasizing friend.
It wasn t at all what Eric expected him to say. And now
Eric realized he d mistaken the look in Howard s eyes.
Howard wasn t getting ready to confess and come clean.
He was encouraging Eric to.
 Look, it s none of my business and you don t have
to tell me a damn thing. It s just& Gallo, Galloway& 
324 ALEX KAVA
He shrugged and picked up the inventory clipboard,
leaving the conversation there and letting Eric decide to
tell him or not.
 It s complicated, Eric said and scratched at his
bristled jaw like his answer required some thought. He
knew it wouldn t matter all that much if he admitted he d
changed his name.
 Sure, I understand. Again Howard shrugged his huge
shoulders, this time the gesture so animated he set in
motion the pattern of sailfish on his boat shirt. A gesture
that betrayed his words.
It surprised Eric, though not enough not for him to risk
an explanation. He d already gotten too close to Howard,
too friendly. It was better that Howard think he was a liar
than for him to know the truth, that Eric was only inter-
ested in Howard s drug connections.
 I definitely know about stuff being complicated,
Howard said just when Eric thought the subject was
closed. Maybe he d luck out, after all, and get Howard to
share, not only information, but a piece of the action.
 If something ever happens to me I d like you to have
all my models. He waved his hand up at the shelf that sur-
rounded the shop, a foot from the ceiling and crowded
with perfectly crafted and finely detailed boats and ships
from various eras.
Again, he surprised Eric. He knew the collection, one
that Howard continuously added to, was his prized posses-
sion. Never mind that he owned a successful deep-sea
fishing service as well as the prime real estate the shop and
the parking lot sat on. The model collection was something
Howard built with his hands, something uniquely his.
 What are you talking about? Eric tried to dismiss the
WHITEWASH 325
tremendous gesture, almost hoping it was some kind of
trick.  Nothing s gonna happen to you.
 I m just saying in case something does.
 What s gonna happen? Nothing s gonna happen.
 What you re doing for Sabrina& not many friends
would risk their necks like that, Howard told him, his eyes
still running over his collection, avoiding Eric s.  Not any
of mine would. You re a good man.
Eric wasn t prepared for any of this.
85
Sabrina stared at the small, purple notebook. It fell out of
the file folder she had taken from Dr. Lansik s desk last
Friday. She d stuffed the folder into her briefcase and for-
gotten about it. Now there was the notebook on Eric s
floor, its worn corners and scratched vinyl cover remind-
ing her of her deceased boss. She recognized it. Lansik
usually carried it around with him everywhere. O Hearn
had once jokingly called it Lansik s purple bible. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]