Private Affair(81)

“Yeah, I saw him come sailing in like he owned the place,” he said. “Did he have any information on the murders?”

“No, he wanted to harass Max,” Shane answered.

“How did Hamilton know we were here?” Olivia asked.

“I guess he’s keeping tabs on you.”

“I wish he’d keep tabs on Troy Masters and Tommy Larson.”

“Maybe he will, but he’s not going to share that information with you,” Jack said.

“We can hope.”

Jack went back to visit with Max, and Shane and Olivia took chairs in the waiting room.

“So you were down here looking for a witness to an old murder?” Shane asked.

Olivia told him about the visit to Julie and her encounter with the two high school or college boys.

“And what hard evidence do you have that it was them?” Shane asked.

“Are you trying to outdo Hamilton?” she asked.

“I’m trying to find out why you’re so sure it was one of those guys,” Shane answered.

“Because the party was on Cinco de Mayo. And the murder was on Cinco de Mayo.”

“That wouldn’t stand up in court.”

“Max also showed Julie pictures of some boys from the Donley class. She picked out Troy and Tommy,” Olivia said.

“That’s more like it.”

“We promised not to involve her, but now that we’ve got something solid, we think we can figure out which one it is. And why. We still don’t know what triggered this killing spree.”

Shane nodded. “He’s a good investigator.”

She was grateful for the chance to talk about Max.

“I didn’t know what to expect from him at first. Now I know he’s good—in so many ways. Ways he doesn’t even realize.”

“You’re good for him,” Shane said, switching subjects abruptly.

“Am I?”

“Yes. He’s been pretty closed up as far as women were concerned, but it’s obvious he cares a lot about you.”

She flushed. “You can tell?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, I care a lot about him, too. The question is, can we work things out?”

“You mean, can he deal with your celebrity status?”

“I may be giving that up,” she answered.

Shane looked shocked. “Why?”

“Because I’ve figured out that life is short, and if I don’t grab some of the good stuff, I’ll wake up one day and find out I’ve missed my chance.”

“I came to a similar conclusion,” he said.

“Really?”

“Yeah. I found the right woman, and I’ve never been happier.”

They were interrupted when Jack returned with the news that Max was being moved to room 321.

While they were sitting in the third-floor waiting area, they saw Max wheeled out of the elevator, then down the hall to his room. All of them watched the attendants come out, then gave Max a few more minutes before going down the hall. He was lying with his eyes closed, but they blinked open as soon as he realized he wasn’t alone.

“We didn’t mean to wake you,” Olivia said.

“I wasn’t sleeping.”

“We’ll check in on you after a while,” Olivia said.

Max looked at his friends. “Want to help me to the bathroom?”

“Are you sure it’s okay?” Jack asked.

“Better than peeing in bed.”

“Hospitals have ways to take care of that.”

“I’d rather get up,” Max answered.

Olivia withdrew from the room and went back to the waiting area. It was several minutes before the two Rockfort men came back.

“You were discussing the case?” she asked.

“Briefly,” Max replied.

The two men sat down without elaborating. Olivia wanted to press them for information, but she was pretty sure they would have given it to her if they thought it was important.

“One of us will be with you all the time in case Masters or Larson shows up,” Jack said.

She nodded, knowing the precaution made sense.

“Plus, we’re keeping an eye on Max, in case that Davidson guy figures out where he is,” Jack added.

Olivia clenched her fists. “I didn’t think about that.”

“Max told us he cut Davidson, so maybe he’s not in the best shape to attack again,” Shane said.

“Or not yet,” Jack added.

“You think the Baltimore PD is looking for him?” Olivia asked, not expecting much after their experience with Hamilton.

“Max said that before we talked to him, a Baltimore city detective showed up in the ER and took a report from him. It was someone named Will Ryker, a guy Max knew from his time on the force, and he was a lot friendlier than Hamilton. I think that if Davidson is in Baltimore, Ryker will get a lead on him.”