“Where am I going?” Clara asked.
“We need to stash this somewhere,” Diesel said.
Clara stopped at an intersection. “We could put it in the speakeasy. There’s a second entrance in Gramps’s garage. No one would see us unloading.”
—
Diesel shoved the last bin into place against the bar. “It should be okay to leave these here short-term. I have other, more pressing problems.”
“Such as?” I asked him.
“Food. I’m starving. I need a burger. One of those fancy little meat pies isn’t going to do it.”
“I’ll drive you back to the bakery and you can get your car,” Clara said.
We filed out of the speakeasy into the short sloping tunnel that led to the one-car garage. Clara was parked behind the Rascal scooter.
“How does Gramps get his Rascal to the aquarium?” I asked Clara.
“Benita has a van with a hydraulic lift. And I hate to say this, but sometimes Gramps sets off on his own.”
“It doesn’t look like he’s home. There aren’t any lights on, and I didn’t hear anyone walking overhead.”
“He has a heavy social calendar,” Clara said. “He’s probably at the senior center cheating at cards.”
Ten minutes later Diesel parked his Porsche in a lot off Lafayette Street, and we walked the short distance to a pub.
“They better have ice cream here,” I said. “You promised me ice cream.”
“They have ice cream everywhere.”
We slid into a corner booth and ordered burgers, fries, onion rings, and beer.
Diesel waited for the waitress to leave before looking over at me. “Call Nergal and see what the deal is with Ammon. I’m sure he’s tapped in to hospital gossip.”
“Why can’t you make the call?”
“Nergal thinks you’re cute,” Diesel said. “He’s more likely to do something unpleasant for you.”
This was obnoxious but probably true.
“Hey,” I said when Nergal picked up.
“Let me guess,” Nergal said. “You want to know about Martin Ammon.”
“Yes! How did you know that?”
“Everyone wants to know. My mother called me.”
“Is he dead?”
“No. He’s in a private room with some idiot in a suit standing guard at his door.”
“Does he think he’s a dog?”
“A what?”
“Dog. Like, is he barking or anything?”