Chief went straight to the phone. He dialed Elly’s number and waited for her to pick up the receiver. 

“Elly?”

“Bob? What are you doing calling at this hour?”

Chief sidestepped the question. “Is Burt still there?”

“Yes, but he was just getting ready to leave–”

“Mort and I will be right over, tell him to wait on us.”

“Its not good luck for the groo–”

“Elly, you’re in danger. I’ll explain it all when I get there. I just don’t want you left alone. Is that clear?”

“What’s this all about?” 

Chief detected the fear that had seeped into her voice. “I’ll fill you in when I get there, all right?"

“I’ll be waiting.”

“Good, girl,” Chief told her. “Bye now.”

Chief turned to Martha who had just finished scouring the last pot. Maggy stood at her side with a dish towel in her hands.

“I’m going over to talk to Elly,” he told the woman. “I want to talk to you when I get back. I won’t be longer than twenty minutes.”

“It’s getting late, Robert. Won’t it wait until morning?”

“No,” Chief answered with gruff finality.

Chief took Moss with him out the door and across the street and waited as Burt unlocked the front door to let them in.

“Chief.” Burt nodded. “If there’s a problem, I can stay with her.”

“I don’t think your wife would understand, Burt, but thanks anyway.”

Burt smiled. “You’re right,” he said. “Good night, Chief.”

Chief watched as the man departed, then he turned the bolt in the lock and he and Moss made their way through the restaurant. They found Elly by the bar. Chief noticed her shiver when her eyes met his.

Chief, at first, stood looking at her. He felt suddenly exhausted. He held out a hand to her and she took it. He squeezed her hand and pulled her into his arms. He felt her shivering and tightened his hold.

“It’s not over, baby,” Chief whispered in her ear. He felt his heart ache for her.

“What isn’t?”

“Lewis.”

She pulled away to face him. “What? But he’s dead.”

“He had a partner.”

“I don’t understand. What does a partner have to do with me?”

“It’s the log, El. Lewis had it all along. But it’s not just a log, it’s a ledger. It has the goods on several high level officials, as well as connected syndicate members.” Chief paused for effect. He looked directly into her eyes. “Including Perretti.”

“Perretti? You mean Tony Perretti, don’t you?”

Chief nodded. “Lewis was blackmailing him. He set it up to look like you were doing the extortion.”

Elly pulled away and backed into the bar, raw terror on her face. Her hands went protectively behind her to clasp onto the bar’s edge. 

“What?” Her breathing was irregular from her fear. Her eyes were opened way too wide. “You don’t blackmail Tony Perretti and live, Bob!” She glanced away nervously. Her hands went through her hair. “My god,” she said facing floor. “How could he!” Elly started shaking her head from side to side. “How could he,” she whispered. She made her way behind the bar, her attention focused on the information she had just received. She pulled a bottle free and set it on the counter where she proceeded to stare at it. When she went to open the bottle her hands were shaking uncontrollably.

Chief went to her side and took the bottle from her. He opened it and poured a measure of scotch into a tumbler. He set the glass in front of her. But she made no move to it.

“How did you find this out?”

“Mike stumbled on it when he was questioning Kelly about her dreams. She admitted to spying on you and Lewis. She even went so far as to hide in the man’s trunk.”

Elly turned her head quickly up to face his. The fear had progressed to panic. “She did that?”

Chief nodded. “We just spent over an hour questioning her.” Chief gave Elly a smile. “It’s not as bad as it looks, El. We know where Perretti is.”

“Where?”

“Four Oaks Hospital, under the guise of a terminally ill patient. We’ve called the Feds and informed them. They’re sending someone to stand watch on him first thing tomorrow. We’ve also uncovered Lewis’s operation. We’ll close them down once we get all the evidence.”

Elly nodded. She reached for the scotch and took a short swallow.

“Don’t worry,” Chief went on. “Mort will stay here to look after you, in case Perretti sends someone, tonight.”

Elly looked up at her fiancé. There were tears in her eyes. She swallowed audibly.

Chief pulled her close once more. He held her gently and told her quietly, “Don’t worry. After tonight you’ll be my responsibility to look after.” He pulled away to look into her eyes. He smiled again, “I’m looking forward to that, little lady.”

“I’m so sorry,” Elly said between the tears that finally let loose. “You don’t need this, Bob. Not with everything else that’s been happening. Why did this have to happen now?”

Chief smiled at her to reassure her. “It’s okay,” he said. “Everything is going to work out. Weren’t you the wise sage that kept telling me that?”

It was Elly’s turn to smile. She nodded in his arms and pressed her head against his chest. He held her a little longer until she finally released him. 

“I’ll be all right,” Elly said looking into his eyes. “You better get back.”

Chief’s eyes were intent on hers. He leaned in and kissed her tenderly on her lips. Both held their passion in check, aware of Moss in the room.

They pulled free. Chief gave Elly another smile. “After tomorrow we’ll never have to say good-bye like this again. I promise.”

Elly smiled back at him. There was no trace of her fear left now; it had been completely replaced with love for him and trust in him.

“Mort will fill you in on what happened and all the details.”

“Only after she tells me how she gave me the slip, in Miami,” Moss quipped.

Elly turned and looked at him. “You?”

Moss nodded.

A trace of a smile stretched across Elly’s lips. “I’d be happy to, Agent Moss. You were by far the hardest one to shake. Perretti’s men were a breeze.”

The corner of Moss's mouth raised in a lopsided grin.

Chief addressed Moss. “Keep her safe.”

“Don’t worry, Bob, if there is any problem tonight, I’ll handle it.”

After a long look at Elly, Chief left the restaurant.

*  *  *  *  *

Mike left the house the same time as Chief and Moss. He turned at the bottom of the porch steps and made his way south to his dwelling several blocks away. The streets were dark; the weary illumination of the street lamps barely put a dent in the dark shadows that crept across his path. It was long after ten, approaching eleven. The usual sounds of the night accompanied him on his way: crickets chirped in the spring grasses that lined the street, in a nearby alley he could hear a tomcat whine its songs in hopes of finding a willing mate. Above, the moon was cast in shadow and half covered by wisps of cloud. The breeze was feeble, hardly enough to ruffle the hair up from his collar. Mike was acutely aware of every step he took in the wake of such solitude.

At the front door to his boarding house, Mike placed the key into the lock and gave it a quarter turn, then carefully pushed the door open and entered the empty foyer. After closing the door and sliding the dead bolt into place, he made his way down the darkened hall to the stairs. He took the stairs as silently as possible, but the click of his boots echoed despite his care. After two days of constant attention he had adjusted to being around others. Now in the darkness and desolation, he felt unusually lonely.

A small lamp barely kept the darkness from the upstairs hallway. Large shadows splayed across the landing and buried the corners. Mike came to his apartment and unlocked the door. He bent down and retrieved the paper that leaned against the wall just to the right, then entered and flipped the light switch in one unbroken motion. After tossing the paper on the sofa, Mike went to the icebox for a beer. He opened it at the sink and brought it with him to the sofa, where he sat down and stared at the fireplace. The log rest was covered in ashes and one partially scorched log leaned against the brick in the back.

Mike took a swallow of beer and set the bottle next to him. It had been a hell of a day. In his efforts to come to terms with the Blackney case and Kelly’s involvement in that case, he had opened a can of worms. But suppose that can was never opened? The thought of how close Chief had come to losing Elly was overwhelming. 

Perretti was beginning to move in. His assurance to Kelly on the phone was proof, as well as the surfacing of Snake. Mike wondered what had tipped the man off. Then his thoughts turned to the deceased Snake...eight days dead in a hotel room. Suppose all Snake knew was the name Christine Lewis was using now. That would explain an eight-day gap. It would take Perretti some time to run the name down. If Snake had told Perretti where Elly was, Perretti would have checked out of the hospital on the spot.

How would they trace it? Have they completed the trace? Mike shook off the sudden feeling of dread and glanced through the paper. The Post was still carrying speculations on the Blackney case. Chief hadn’t been keeping them up to date and apparently the editor was growing bitter. Mike hadn’t planned to read the whole paper. He was only going to drink his beer and skim the highlights. However, while skimming he noticed the announcement section and the information about impending wedding of Chief of Police Broden and Elly Saunders. There was a picture of the lovely bride next to the announcement. Mike stared at the page and felt the blood leave his face. The announcement. How many papers did Maggy send it to? Was it sent to Four Oaks?

Mike set his beer down and left his apartment. This time he paid no attention to whether he made noise or not. He went straight to the phone and dialed the Broden residence.

“Hello?” Maggy said at the other end of the line.

“Maggy, it’s Mike.”

“So I’ve been told. What is it Mike?”

“Did you send a wedding announcement to any of the Four Oaks papers?”

“Yes. Well, because Aunt Martha lives there. Why?”

Lost in thought, Mike didn’t reply.

“Mike? Are you still there?”

Maggy’s voice brought him around. “Yes, I’m still here, Mag. Is Chief back from Elly’s yet?”

“No–wait. He just walked in. You want to talk to him?”

“Yeah, better put him on.”

There was a pause and a click as the phone exchanged hands.

“What is it Mike?” Chief’s deep voice echoed next to Mike’s ear.

“Chief, I think Perretti is going to move on Elly tomorrow,” Mike blurted out.

There was a long pause, before Chief asked, “Why’s that?”

“Theory,” Mike answered. “Listen to this and see what you think.”

“I’m listening.”

“Snake was just a grunt for Lewis. Lewis didn’t tell him a thing, but maybe through their transactions he finds out Christine’s new I.D. When the guy Perretti sent caught hold of him, he gave him that name. It would explain why Perretti is still at the hospital, expecting to be released real soon. It takes a while to trace a name without a location. But with a name now, he’s sure to be out within a few days.”

“What makes you think he’ll move tomorrow?”

“Maggy placed an announcement with one of the local papers there, Chief. It includes a picture of Elly. All it would take is for him to see the paper, see the name. He’d not only know where to find her, he’d know exactly when to find her at a given location. The church.”

Again there was a long pause. When next Chief spoke his voice was detached...professional– a little too professional. “Good work, Mike.”

“What do you want to do?”

“I’ll call Mort. See if he can get somebody on Perretti, tonight. Other than that, I don’t know yet. We’ll think of something tomorrow. Maybe have additional agents cover the church– hell, eloping is starting to sound awfully good right now, you know what I mean?”

“Yeah. I think I do.”

“We’ll figure out something. Thanks again, Mike.”

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