Page 73 of In Too Deep

Devine took a stainless case from her purse, pulled out a business card, and slid it halfway across the table. “She can if she wants. Norush. It could be interesting background, I guess, but we couldn’t bet the farm on it. There’s no chain of custody, so it would be no use in court. Which just leaves you.”

“I have no memory of meeting him. I can’t recall anything. Not the crash. Not the hour before.”

“You can’t recall yet. But let’s be positive. Let’s assume you will. Maybe the best thing is to take it easy for a couple of days. Give your memory a chance to heal. And when it does, think what an asset you’ll be to the case. A decorated army major as an eyewitness.”

“I’m retired.”

“Doesn’t matter. You still scrub up just as well, I’m sure. And in the meantime we’ll do our best to take care of you. We really are grateful for what you’ve done. The time you bought us has made all the difference. Without that we’d have responded to Albatross’s missed contact in the regular way and found Fletcher and Co. blown to the four winds and nothing else apart from a burned-down house.”

“And the Lincoln. With the prints and the DNA.”

“Yes. That was their only mistake. They probably thought it would burst into flames when it hit the bottom of the gorge. Just goes to show. There’s no such thing as the perfect crime.”

“What’s happening with funeral arrangements? That kind of thing?”

“Too early to say.”

“Did you know Gib…Albatross personally?”

“No. I only knew him by reputation.”

“What about his handler? Must be tough on her. I bet she has all kinds of survivor guilt now. She’s probably thinking,What if I’d kept him talking five minutes longer? What if I’d wrapped the meeting up ten minutes sooner?”

Agent Devine smiled and wagged her finger. “Come on, Major—Mr.—Reacher. You know better than that. I was born at night. Butnot last night. I’m not going to reveal any details about Albatross’s handler, or his or her location, or movements.”

Reacher shrugged. “You can’t blame me for trying.”

“Any other questions?”

“Just the standard ones. Food? Billet?”

“You’ll find basic refreshments in the kitchen, twenty-four seven. We’ll get you guest access to our portal so you can order main meals. Oh. Wait. You’re the one who doesn’t have a phone?”

Reacher nodded.

“Not a problem. I’ll arrange for a pad of paper and a pen. You can write down what you want. We’ll have a delivery once a day, for the duration. As for sleeping arrangements we’re using the bedrooms, upstairs. You’re in room 6. Number cards are going up on the doors. Then we’re just waiting for some furniture to arrive. Nothing fancy. Just a bed, really. More of an army cot. So I guess you’ll feel at home.”

“Honestly? I never liked those things. Never could get comfortable. So I’ll just go back to the motel. Stay there for another couple of days. Then you’ll know where I am if you need me.”

“No. Better you stay here.”

“I’ll be more comfortable there. I’ll get better rest. Improve the chance of my memory coming back.”

Devine shook her head. “I’ll make a call. Get you a better bed for upstairs. This is where you need to be. Just for a couple of days.”

“Am I being detained?”

“Detained? Of course not. Why so dramatic?”

“Then why do you care where I sleep? One minute you say you’re grateful. The next you’re putting me under house arrest.”

Devine leaned forward and lowered her voice. “We’re doing this because we’re so grateful. There’s a delicate aspect to this situation. The way you brought the information to us was…unconventional. It put another agent in a position where he had to make a choiceabout how to proceed. Unfortunately, the choice he made was…suboptimal. So we’re trying to massage the records to show that your report of a rumor of a dead agent came through the proper channels. That isn’t easy with all the oversight we have to work around these days. I’m confident we can get there. It just takes time. And while we’re dealing with it, it’s important that we keep a handle on every part of the narrative.”

“Then I guess I’m sleeping here.”

“Thanks for your understanding. It won’t be for a moment longer than necessary. I promise.”

“Is there anything else for me?”

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