Page 91 of Lion & Lamb

Lupe staring back at him from the bed.Oh, you’re home.

Next to him was a slender form wrapped up in his comforter. The form stirred, then rolled over into a new position.

Cooper felt all the tension in his body dissolve at once. He undressed and slipped into bed next to Veena. The world was a dangerous, screwed-up place, but somehow this made it okay. For tonight, anyway. Veena stirred, pushing her body back into Cooper’s.

“Love you,” she whispered, then went back to sleep.

Monday, January 31

Chapter97

7:13 a.m.

ON Afew occasions, Cooper Lamb had felt the need to shower with a gun close by. But walking his dog with a gun? This was a first.

One hand he kept on the leash, the other in his jacket pocket, fingers wrapped around the grip of his fully loaded Browning. His would-be killer was still out there, and Cooper would be foolish to venture outside without protection.

Lupe knew something was up. Cooper was sure the pup could feel the tension because he kept an extra-vigilant eye on Green Street, scanning for possible threats. Of course, to Lupe, a threat usually meant a squirrel. With the energy Cooper was radiating, the poor dog must have thought a fifty-foot squirrel was rampaging up the Ben Franklin Parkway.

No squirrels attacked. No gunmen either.

When Cooper returned home, Veena was already in the shower. Cooper unhooked Lupe’s leash and walked into the kitchen to start breakfast. This Monday demanded something huge and greasy to soak up all that anxiety. Lupe kept a close eye on Cooper’s movements in case a spare treat might be thrown his way.

In one oversize pan, a pile of sliced potatoes and bell peppers for Cooper’s world-famous epic hash browns. In another pan, four thick slabs of scrapple, a Philly favorite. It was misunderstood by the world at large but incredibly delicious when grilled to perfection. Who cared that scrapple was essentially a gray block of all the parts of the pig that couldn’t be sold separately and that most people put it in the same category as haggis? With the right amount of Pennsylvania Dutch seasoning (which Cooper suspected was largely pepper), it became a delicacy right up there with caviar.

“Oooh, scrapple,” Veena said with honest delight as she sat down at the table. She was freshly scrubbed, and you would never know her clothes had been draped over Cooper’s desk chair all night. Cooper, however, looked as if he’d rolled down a hill and slept in a gully. A shower was definitely in order.

“So what’s next?” Veena asked as they were finishing breakfast.

“What, this artery-clogging feast wasn’t enough for you? Should I put some baby backs on the grill?”

“With the Archie Hughes case,” Veena clarified.

“Oh, what’s next withthat,” Cooper said, then added with a note of solemnity, “Well, considering I was almost killed last night in pursuit of the truth—”

“Whatever,” Veena replied. “What’s next?”

“I’m actually being serious here, V. Someone took a few shots at me outside Maya Rain’s building. I trailed him all the way to Penn, but I lost him in the crowd.”

“Maya Rain’s place. Huh.”

“Yeah. She said something that’s been knocking around in my skull all morning.”

“I’m sure she did.”

“No, not like that. About Archie having more enemies than just the ones on the field.”

“You’re thinking Archie himself was in some kind of trouble. This is interesting. Maybe our focus is too narrow. Let’s think outside the NFL.”

“Sure, but the NFL was Archie’s entire life. To the point that the Sables were jealous when Archie spent time with his family.”

“That’s not entirely true,” Veena said. “Janie found some financial breakdowns that…well, never mind that for now. But Archie’s credit cards say that he spent a lot of lazy afternoons at the Merion Golf Club.”

“You think his golfing buddies got mad and ordered a hit? What, did he play multiple balls on the same hole?”

“I doubt that’s punishable by death.” Veena polished off the last of her hash browns, then walked her plate into the kitchenette. “I’m just saying it’s something we should look into.”

Cooper pondered this. “Fair enough. I’ll do it.”

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