Page 187 of The Woman Left Behind

Now Rus’s lips were tipped up. “Damn, brother.”

“I know,” Harry agreed.

“Happy as fuck for you,” Rus said quietly.

It wasn’t too long ago, the two of them sat in this same office, sharing Irish whisky, Harry talking about Winnie, one of the first times he ever shared deeply about his loss, Rus listening.

And now there was this.

Rus’s eyes went to the credenza, and Harry knew what he was looking at.

The picture of Winnie was still there.

Harry hadn’t decided if it would remain. He’d moved on, but she’d always have a place in his heart and his life.

What he did decide was that he was going to task Polly with finding a nice frame and then he was going to frame the picture George took of them on Lillian’s front steps after they got the Halloween decorations done last Saturday. And that was going to go on the credenza too.

“Never thought…” Harry didn’t finish that.

Harry’s phone went as Rus said, “That’s just when she hits you, man. When you’ve given up.”

“Seems like,” Harry replied, reaching for his phone.

“Well, at least that’s what happened to you and me,” Rus said, straightening from his chair.

He looked at the line then answered, “Hey, Polly.”

“Rita Zowkower is here for you,” she snapped.

He knew her tone meant she tried to put Rita off, and Rita was having none of it.

So be it.

This was something else he was anticipating that took longer than he expected to happen.

“Can you bring her in?”

“I don’t want to, but I will,” Polly said and hung up on him.

“Ma Zow,” he told Rus as he put the receiver back in its cradle.

“Want me to stay?” Rus asked.

“Probably best, since this is now personal, and she’s a wildcard, a wily one. Got the time?”

Rus answered that by resuming his seat.

Polly stormed in and flung an arm behind her as Rita walked in after her.

“The madame is here,” Polly announced.

He should admonish her (not now, later), but he wasn’t going to. It was rare to nonexistent when Polly put a foot wrong. If she felt animosity toward Rita, there was a reason.

Anyway, unless Rita was there to report a crime, which she could take her pick of deputies to report it to, Harry knew Rita had wheedled her way to where she was right then, and maybe how she did it, courtesy wasn’t called for.

Polly stormed out and Harry and Rus stood.

“How can we help you, Rita?” Harry asked.

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