Free Bellows Falls by Archer Mayor Page B

for the good of all involved.”
    Ignoring a perfect opportunity to harp on how the system takes care of its own, Norm rose with me instead and merely muttered, “Sure, sure.”
    I stuck my hand out to Jan. “It was nice meeting you, Mrs. Bouch. Thanks for your help.”
    She looked at the hand reluctantly at first, but I forced her to take it by simply not moving. My persistence paid off—her hand was hot and damp with sweat, and trembling slightly. She was a nervous wreck, and I was pretty sure why.
    She didn’t join us as Norm escorted me back through the house to the front door.
    Norm was all smiles again but without the eagerness he’d shown earlier. “I sure appreciate your coming over, and I’m sorry about my wife. This thing has really shaken her up, you know? It’s kind of a shock when a police officer pulls something like that—I mean, you don’t expect it. You were really professional about it, though. That’ll help her a lot.”
    I stepped out onto the porch and faced him. “We do what we can, Mr. Bouch. We also try to make people accountable for their actions, regardless of who they are.”
    The smile didn’t falter, but the eyes and voice turned cold. “That’s good, Lieutenant. You have a good day.”

Chapter 6
    THE CONVENIENCE STORE near the Bouch home had a small counter with a couple of stools near its front window. I sat there, watching the street, waiting for Jan Bouch to emerge.
    She rewarded me three hours later, stepping out to the sidewalk and walking toward Atkinson—the same scenario she’d painted earlier with Padget as the fall guy. She walked like someone expecting a pail of cold water to drop on her at any moment, stiff-limbed and cringing.
    I left the store and followed her from the opposite side of the street, not crossing until I’d passed her house, hoping Norm didn’t have his nose glued to the window.
    “Mrs. Bouch,” I said gently as I walked up behind her.
    She whirled around to face me, her eyes wide, her hand across her mouth. “What do you want?”
    I gave her a reassuring smile, falling into place beside her. “Don’t be alarmed. There’re a lot of questions in a situation like this. It’s like packing a suitcase for a long trip. You have to think about what you need, and sometimes you have to backtrack because you forget something. It’s just part of the process. You feeling okay about what I was asking at your house?”
    “Sure… I guess so.” She continued walking jerkily, all tensed up.
    We reached the corner at Atkinson Street. I stopped and looked around. “This where Padget approached you?”
    Her voice was almost lost in the passing traffic. “Yes… Norm should be here.”
    The side street continued opposite, toward downtown. Across from us and catty-corner, were a Laundromat and a small store. “And it was about this time of day, wasn’t it?”
    She didn’t answer. Her head was bowed and her elbows tucked in.
    “Busy,” I mused. “Shouldn’t be hard to find several witnesses who saw an officer stop his cruiser to talk with you—kind of thing people notice. It’s also the kind of thing Brian might do—stop to have a chat. He’s friendly that way, isn’t he?”
    She nodded distractedly. “And that’s something you would know, right, Jan? Because you know Brian pretty well, don’t you?”
    Her eyes were fixed on the pavement, her chin pressed to her chest. She seemed wholly absorbed in disappearing within herself. The second nod she gave was barely a twitch.
    “Still,” I continued, “all that notwithstanding, he didn’t actually stop here that day, did he?”
    “
Jan
.”
    We both turned at the fury contained in the shout, and saw Norm Bouch steaming down the street at us. His wife danced from one foot to the other, wringing her hands and moaning. As I waited for Bouch to reach us, I regretted not having steered her around the corner for our conversation.
    “What the hell are you doing?” Bouch demanded, his face red, all