Page 100 of Never Flinch

He sees Telescope come in, holding the two bucks John gave him in one arthritis-twisted hand. It gives him an idea. “Oh, you know, he owes me ten. What’s he look like?”

“You loaned him ten bucks and you don’t even know what helookslike?”

Jesus, John thinks,it’s like pulling teeth. And Holly does this for a living?

“It was awhile ago.”

2-Tone shrugs. “He looks like anybody. Medium tall, glasses, dressed kinda Mr. Businessman.”

“White?”

She swivels toward him on her stool. “You loaned him ten and you don’t even know if he’s white? Come on, what’s the deal?”

“Want a piece of pie to go with your coffee?”

“Could do.”

“Washe white?”

“Course he was fuckin white.”

“How old?”

“I don’t know, maybe your age, more or less.”

John is thirty-four. He slides a fivespot to her coffee cup. “Remember anything else about him?”

She considers it, then says, “He got a scar along the side of his jaw. Said in that Upsala meeting that his father gave it to him when hewas drunk. That’s the only reason I remember him at all. Did he do something to you, John? Is that why you want to find him? Tell the fuckin truth, Ruth.”

He smiles. “I’m not Ruth.”

She only looks at him.

“He maybe did something to someone.” He grabs a napkin from the dispenser and writes down his phone number. “Will you call me if you see him again? There’d be fifty in it for you.”

“Man, how bad did he fuck you?”

“Get some pie, Cathy.” He pats her on the shoulder and leaves. Outside he sits on a bus bench and calls Holly.

3

Jerome googles Westboro Baptist Church and sees their motto isGod hates fags and all proud sinners. This is attributed to Psalm 5, verse 5. Out of curiosity, he chases down the psalm in question and sees it says nothing about homosexuality, just “workers of iniquity.”

He goes back to the Westboro Wikipedia page and finds a link to “churches accused of assault and disorderly conduct.” He draws a yellow legal pad to him and begins to jot down notes. Before he knows it, he has fourteen churches. Two hours have passed, and he’s still only skimming the surface. He wants to chase this some more. The thought-processes of these groups are fascinating, not to mention the way they twist the scripture to align with their whackdoodle beliefs. He reads about three churches—not one, not two, butthree—that have engaged in female sexual mutilation, justifying the practice with a verse from Proverbs: “Her feet go down to death, her steps take hold on hell.”In other words, Jerome thinks,FGM is doing them a favor.

One church in Wisconsin espouses hormone therapy for “men and boys with sinful female urges.” What that seems to mean is chemical castration when praying the gay away doesn’t work.

This is far more interesting than his lame private eye novel, which is full of crash-and-bash and nothing like the investigative work he’s done for Finders Keepers. This stuff is real. Nutso but real. Beside hisdesktop computer is his two-hundred-page manuscript ofThe Jade Killers. Slowly, and with little regret, he pushes it to the edge of his desk, then off and into the wastebasket.Flump, and gone. Of course it’s still on his computer, but it’s the gesture that counts (or so he tells himself). With that taken care of, he returns to his research. Holly’s interest is being overshadowed by his own, and he’s wondering how many of these churches he might actually be able to visit before he starts writing something he really cares about.

4

“Thank you, Madison! You’ve been great!”

The audience is on its feet, applauding like crazy. Except for the boo-birds, of course.

Holly’s phone, clipped to her waistband, rings. She ignores it, standing on tiptoe next to Corrie like a runner about to sprint. Sheisready to run from the wings at stage left if she needs to. Because instead of walking briskly offstage with a final tip of her Wisconsin Badgers cap, Kate goes to the lip of the apron and begins to shake waving, outstretched hands. This is new, and Holly hates it. Any one of those hands could seize Kate, pull her off the stage, a beating could follow, a knife could flash…

Oough, I hate this job.

---