was a cop thing. There’s a definite correlation between experience and the amount of time it takes to bounce back from something horrific. The more you’ve seen, the faster you bounce back. It had taken Templeton the best part of the drive to Angelica’s to regain her equilibrium. I was good to go by the time we reached the door of the dissection lab.
The table by the window was empty. Window seats are great because you can watch the world go by. I unzipped my jacket, hung it on the back of my chair, then sat down and got comfortable. Outside, a steady stream of people walked past. Some were on cellphones, some walked purposefully, on a mission, all of them were wrapped up in their own private dramas. A cute girl wearing a dress much too short for the weather caught my eye because she had great legs. It was impossible not to look.
I stared out the window and went over what I’d learned this morning, adding new details to the profile, reassessing and changing others. Federico brought our drinks over and put them on the table. I stirred two sugars into my coffee. Templeton was staring across the table at me.
‘What?’ I said.
‘You’re miles away there. What are you thinking?’
‘I’m wondering why you told me your dad was a cop.’
‘That wasn’t what you were thinking.’
‘Maybe not, but that’s what I’m thinking about now. So why did you feel the need to be disingenuous?’
‘Are you calling me a liar?’
I laughed. ‘Tom a to, tomato. Anyway, you’re dodging the question. Your dad wasn’t a cop, was he? Or his dad.’
‘No they weren’t,’ Templeton admitted. ‘My father’s an accountant.’
‘So, what’s the story?’
‘It’s stupid.’ Her voice was small and lacking in confidence.
‘I like stupid.’
‘Okay, I’ll tell you. But promise you won’t laugh, and promise you’ll never breathe a word of this to another living soul. Not a word, Winter.’
‘Cross my heart.’
‘I’ve never told this to anyone.’
‘Tell me or don’t tell me, but don’t keep me hanging.’
Templeton took a deep breath then went for it. The words came out quickly, like if she didn’t get them out fast enough, she’d never get them out.
‘When I was a kid I didn’t want to be an actress or a ballet dancer or any of those things that little girls are supposed to want to grow up to be, I wanted to be a cop. Or, to be more accurate, I wanted to be a detective. Nancy Drew was my first hero. I read all the books. And I used to watch every cop show, even the really crap ones. Reruns from the seventies and early eighties, everything. Cagney and Lacey was my favourite.’
Templeton cringed at this last admission, embarrassment written all over her face. I liked this version of Templeton as much as the tough, cocky cop version, perhaps more. It was somehow more real, a glimpse behind the mask. I understood why she presented herself the way she did. Law enforcement is still very much a male-dominated profession, and she had ambitions and big dreams. To get as far as she wanted to get, she needed to both understand and play the game. There was no way her career was going to stall at detective sergeant. She had the makings of a great detective inspector, a detective chief inspector. She could go all the way if she wanted, smash right through that glass ceiling.
‘There’s nothing wrong with Cagney and Lacey ,’ I said.
‘There was everything wrong with Cagney and Lacey . I bet you hated the programme.’
‘Okay, you’ve got me there. I was more of an Equalizer type of guy.’
‘A moody loner, out to save the world one person at a time. Yeah, I can see that. Although technically speaking it wasn’t a cop show.’
‘Tom a to, tomato.’
Templeton laughed, and I laughed along with her.
‘As for why I was so obsessed, I’ve no idea. It wasn’t like I had brothers I needed to compete with, and my parents certainly weren’t pushing me in that direction. I guess I believed it was a
The table by the window was empty. Window seats are great because you can watch the world go by. I unzipped my jacket, hung it on the back of my chair, then sat down and got comfortable. Outside, a steady stream of people walked past. Some were on cellphones, some walked purposefully, on a mission, all of them were wrapped up in their own private dramas. A cute girl wearing a dress much too short for the weather caught my eye because she had great legs. It was impossible not to look.
I stared out the window and went over what I’d learned this morning, adding new details to the profile, reassessing and changing others. Federico brought our drinks over and put them on the table. I stirred two sugars into my coffee. Templeton was staring across the table at me.
‘What?’ I said.
‘You’re miles away there. What are you thinking?’
‘I’m wondering why you told me your dad was a cop.’
‘That wasn’t what you were thinking.’
‘Maybe not, but that’s what I’m thinking about now. So why did you feel the need to be disingenuous?’
‘Are you calling me a liar?’
I laughed. ‘Tom a to, tomato. Anyway, you’re dodging the question. Your dad wasn’t a cop, was he? Or his dad.’
‘No they weren’t,’ Templeton admitted. ‘My father’s an accountant.’
‘So, what’s the story?’
‘It’s stupid.’ Her voice was small and lacking in confidence.
‘I like stupid.’
‘Okay, I’ll tell you. But promise you won’t laugh, and promise you’ll never breathe a word of this to another living soul. Not a word, Winter.’
‘Cross my heart.’
‘I’ve never told this to anyone.’
‘Tell me or don’t tell me, but don’t keep me hanging.’
Templeton took a deep breath then went for it. The words came out quickly, like if she didn’t get them out fast enough, she’d never get them out.
‘When I was a kid I didn’t want to be an actress or a ballet dancer or any of those things that little girls are supposed to want to grow up to be, I wanted to be a cop. Or, to be more accurate, I wanted to be a detective. Nancy Drew was my first hero. I read all the books. And I used to watch every cop show, even the really crap ones. Reruns from the seventies and early eighties, everything. Cagney and Lacey was my favourite.’
Templeton cringed at this last admission, embarrassment written all over her face. I liked this version of Templeton as much as the tough, cocky cop version, perhaps more. It was somehow more real, a glimpse behind the mask. I understood why she presented herself the way she did. Law enforcement is still very much a male-dominated profession, and she had ambitions and big dreams. To get as far as she wanted to get, she needed to both understand and play the game. There was no way her career was going to stall at detective sergeant. She had the makings of a great detective inspector, a detective chief inspector. She could go all the way if she wanted, smash right through that glass ceiling.
‘There’s nothing wrong with Cagney and Lacey ,’ I said.
‘There was everything wrong with Cagney and Lacey . I bet you hated the programme.’
‘Okay, you’ve got me there. I was more of an Equalizer type of guy.’
‘A moody loner, out to save the world one person at a time. Yeah, I can see that. Although technically speaking it wasn’t a cop show.’
‘Tom a to, tomato.’
Templeton laughed, and I laughed along with her.
‘As for why I was so obsessed, I’ve no idea. It wasn’t like I had brothers I needed to compete with, and my parents certainly weren’t pushing me in that direction. I guess I believed it was a
Similar Books
