okay?"
The house was filled with friends and family. Mercer's team from
Special Victims had all come to celebrate, and we tried not to talk
cases as we ate and danced and drank. By eleven o'clock, I could see
that Vickee was tired and trying to stay off her feet. I pried the
third helping of lasagna out of Mike's hand and suggested we get on the
road.
"The
Final Jeopardy!
category is Astronomy. Any takers?"
Silence. "Blondie, make a stab at it? Could be something in it for
you." I laughed and tugged at his jacket sleeve. "What is December
twenty-first?" Mike asked aloud to no one in particular as I tried to
pull him toward the door. "The winter solstice, ladies and gentleman.
Shortest day of the year, but the longest night. Make good use of it—
I
certainly intend to."
Mercer walked us to the door and held it open as we said good night.
"If your reputation wasn't shot before, Ms. Cooper, it's gone now. What
are you doing for the solstice? You need Jake up here—enough of this
toughin' it out alone. We've all been doing that too long."
"If I stopped to worry about every time Mike opened his mouth,
they'd have to institutionalize me. I'm so happy for both of you. What
a lucky little baby that's going to be."
We walked down the path and up the street to Mike's car. For most of
the ride back to the city, I was quiet. We came through the
Thirty-fourth Street tunnel, then Mike swung onto the FDR Drive going
uptown. The cold spell seemed to be interminable, and I stared over at
the sparkling lights of the bridges crossing the East River.
Off to the right, the forbidding outline of a ruined building loomed
against the dark sky, covered with frozen snow and icicles hanging from
empty window frames.
"What are you thinking about? Where'd you go?"
"Just daydreaming. Thinking that's the most beautiful building in
New York."
"Which one?"
"That abandoned hospital." I pointed to the southern tip of the
island in the river. "It's the only landmarked ruin in the city. Built
by the same guy who designed St. Patrick's Cathedral,
James Renwick."
"Y'know, you can change the subject and create a distraction
better than anyone on earth."
"I didn't know we had a subject. The solstice?"
"I know why you're brooding, Coop." Mike exited the Drive at
Sixty-first Street and stopped at the first light. "You're thinking
about Mercer and Vickee. And the baby."
"I'm not brooding."
"Makes you think about the direction of your own life, doesn't it?
Family, careers, sort of what the purpose of—"
"Don't go getting all Hamlet on me tonight, Mikey. I'm thrilled for
them. He's always been in love with Vickee and I think it's perfect
that they've gotten back together. I really wasn't doing any heavy
thinking."
"Well, you ought to do some." We were getting closer to my apartment
now, and I was shifting my weight in the seat. "How much longer you
gonna stay at this, Coop? Run around playing cops and robbers with us
in the middle of the night? Now you've got a guy who's mad for you,
plus you could name your own price at a law firm, or start one up, for
that matter. Shit, you could hang it all up and have some kids. Little
news jocks."
"This is all about
you,
Mr. Chapman." I tensed and
fidgeted as we neared the driveway. "Sounds like Mercer's lifestyle
changes appeal to you more than they do to me. He was getting anxious
to settle down. I doubt he ever got over Vickee walking out the first
time. Besides, he's forty—I'm only thirty-five—"
"And ticking."
"He loves kids. Always has. I watch him on the child abuse cases and
he's great with kids."
"You are, too."
"Yeah, but he likes all of them. Me, I like the ones I know and
love. I worship my nieces and nephews. I cherish my friends' kids. But
I don't sit in an airport lounge listening to the whining toddlers,
watching them wipe their noses on their sleeves, see the parents
fighting with their petulant adolescents, thinking there's some great
hole in my life. I'd choose a dog every
The house was filled with friends and family. Mercer's team from
Special Victims had all come to celebrate, and we tried not to talk
cases as we ate and danced and drank. By eleven o'clock, I could see
that Vickee was tired and trying to stay off her feet. I pried the
third helping of lasagna out of Mike's hand and suggested we get on the
road.
"The
Final Jeopardy!
category is Astronomy. Any takers?"
Silence. "Blondie, make a stab at it? Could be something in it for
you." I laughed and tugged at his jacket sleeve. "What is December
twenty-first?" Mike asked aloud to no one in particular as I tried to
pull him toward the door. "The winter solstice, ladies and gentleman.
Shortest day of the year, but the longest night. Make good use of it—
I
certainly intend to."
Mercer walked us to the door and held it open as we said good night.
"If your reputation wasn't shot before, Ms. Cooper, it's gone now. What
are you doing for the solstice? You need Jake up here—enough of this
toughin' it out alone. We've all been doing that too long."
"If I stopped to worry about every time Mike opened his mouth,
they'd have to institutionalize me. I'm so happy for both of you. What
a lucky little baby that's going to be."
We walked down the path and up the street to Mike's car. For most of
the ride back to the city, I was quiet. We came through the
Thirty-fourth Street tunnel, then Mike swung onto the FDR Drive going
uptown. The cold spell seemed to be interminable, and I stared over at
the sparkling lights of the bridges crossing the East River.
Off to the right, the forbidding outline of a ruined building loomed
against the dark sky, covered with frozen snow and icicles hanging from
empty window frames.
"What are you thinking about? Where'd you go?"
"Just daydreaming. Thinking that's the most beautiful building in
New York."
"Which one?"
"That abandoned hospital." I pointed to the southern tip of the
island in the river. "It's the only landmarked ruin in the city. Built
by the same guy who designed St. Patrick's Cathedral,
James Renwick."
"Y'know, you can change the subject and create a distraction
better than anyone on earth."
"I didn't know we had a subject. The solstice?"
"I know why you're brooding, Coop." Mike exited the Drive at
Sixty-first Street and stopped at the first light. "You're thinking
about Mercer and Vickee. And the baby."
"I'm not brooding."
"Makes you think about the direction of your own life, doesn't it?
Family, careers, sort of what the purpose of—"
"Don't go getting all Hamlet on me tonight, Mikey. I'm thrilled for
them. He's always been in love with Vickee and I think it's perfect
that they've gotten back together. I really wasn't doing any heavy
thinking."
"Well, you ought to do some." We were getting closer to my apartment
now, and I was shifting my weight in the seat. "How much longer you
gonna stay at this, Coop? Run around playing cops and robbers with us
in the middle of the night? Now you've got a guy who's mad for you,
plus you could name your own price at a law firm, or start one up, for
that matter. Shit, you could hang it all up and have some kids. Little
news jocks."
"This is all about
you,
Mr. Chapman." I tensed and
fidgeted as we neared the driveway. "Sounds like Mercer's lifestyle
changes appeal to you more than they do to me. He was getting anxious
to settle down. I doubt he ever got over Vickee walking out the first
time. Besides, he's forty—I'm only thirty-five—"
"And ticking."
"He loves kids. Always has. I watch him on the child abuse cases and
he's great with kids."
"You are, too."
"Yeah, but he likes all of them. Me, I like the ones I know and
love. I worship my nieces and nephews. I cherish my friends' kids. But
I don't sit in an airport lounge listening to the whining toddlers,
watching them wipe their noses on their sleeves, see the parents
fighting with their petulant adolescents, thinking there's some great
hole in my life. I'd choose a dog every
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