The Investigators (Badge of Honor 7)

“Do me one more favor, Manny. Reason with . . . the grandfather. Convince him that this is the way, that this is enough.”

“I’ll try,” Giacomo said. “But don’t, as they say, hold your breath.”

Susan Reynolds and Matt Payne had a very late lunch in Trainer’s Restaurant outside Allentown.

Neither of them had had any appetite in the Penn-Harris, and they had ridden most of the way down U.S. 222 to Allentown in silence. In his mind, Matt was going over all of the things that could go wrong with the scheme, all the things that had to be done, and trying very hard to ignore a feeling of impending doom. He wondered, idly, once or twice, what Susan was thinking about, but didn’t ask.

By the time they got to Allentown, however, they were both hungry, and Susan directed them to Trainer’s, which she said was on the way to Doylestown.

“What are we going to do now?” Susan asked when they had finished their coffee and were waiting for the check.

“First thing, you’re going to show me where your friend Chenowith lives,” Matt said.

He knew that she wasn’t going to like this announcement at all, and waited for what he was sure would be an angry reaction. He didn’t get it.

“He’s not my friend, Matt. I’ve told you that and told you that.”

“I still want to see where he lives.”

“Why?”>

“So, when this is over, I can take the cops there,” Matt said. “You may be in jail.”

The waitress appeared with the check in time to hear the last part of the sentence.

Matt smiled at her in what he hoped was a disarming way.

“Or married, or have entered a convent,” he added.

The waitress smiled. Susan shook her head at Matt.

When they got back in the car, Matt asked, “How do I get to Chenowith’s house?” again expecting a negative response, and being surprised when he didn’t get one.

“Go into Doylestown, turn right at the Crossroads Diner,” Susan said.

“Is that where you’re going to meet her?”

“That’s where I met her the last time,” Susan said. “She may change her mind this time.”

“But she is going to call you there, right?”

“Yes.”

“I’m going to cut over through Quakertown and go down Route 611,” he said.

“Any special reason?”

“No.”

“I’m a little afraid of showing you the house,” Susan said a minute or two later.

“Don’t start now,” Matt said. “I want to be in a position where I can truthfully tell the FBI that you led me to the place.”

“What if she leaves the baby in the house when she comes to meet me?” Susan asked.

“The FBI is not going to go after him with guns blazing if they know there’s a baby around,” Matt said.

“He’s crazy, Matt, you know that. What’s the FBI going to do if he starts shooting his machine gun?”