Decker was stunned. “And this can’t wait until calmer times?”

“No, because who knows the future? Besides, I’ve survived bullets and maniacs before.”

“And that’s supposed to calm me down?”

I took my father’s hand. “Ineedto do this.” My smile was plaintive. “Daddy, I think he’s the one.” I took in a breath and let it out. “I mean, Iknowhe’s the one.”

“Oh my, my.” The Loo’s eyes abruptly moistened. “Are you sure?”

“I can’t picture my future without him. So I guess that’s that.”

Decker covered his mouth with his fist. Then he dropped his hand and managed a wistful smile. “He’s a great guy, Cindy. A great guy and a good man. You chose well.” His hug was brief but with feeling. “I love you, Princess.”

“I love you, too, Daddy. Nobody will ever replace you in my heart. Lots of guys out there in life, but a girl only has one father.”

“You deserve the best.” His voice was choked. “You tell him that if he ever,evergives you a hard time, I carry a gun and know how to use it.”

“Daddy,Icarry a gun.”

My father laughed and so did I. Then he turned serious. “When are you leaving?”

“We’ll be in Israel for Rosh Hashanah-that’s the main reason we’re going right now-but we’ll be back before Yom Kippur.” I shook my head. “Listen to me, planning my schedule around Jewish holidays. I’m beginning to sound like you.”

“There are parallels in our lives,” my father noted.

I considered his words. “Yes, you’re right. Except Koby’s more flexible than Rina. He may not go out to a restaurant or a movie onShabbat,but he does drive and turn on lights… watch TV if there’s a play-off game. He’ll even work if the hospital’s short staffed.”

“He’s still a far cry from what you were raised with.”

“That’s true. So I suppose some of your current lifestyle has rubbed off. Keeping kosher doesn’t seem as daunting as it once did. Of course, people often revert to what they grew up with when they have children. So we’ll see what Koby’s like when the occasion arises.”

“You haveplentyof time for that.”

I bit my lower lip to keep from smiling. I had hit a sore spot. The Loo wasn’t ready for the role of grandpa. I said, “Can we talk business for a moment?”

Dad turned all cop. “Of course. What’s wrong?”

“Something’s really bothering me. I figured I’d bug you about it.”

“Go on.”

“I’ve got these loose ends, an unsolved crime that at first I thought was connected to Sarah Sanders’s rape. I thought it might have been the work of Joseph Fedek or one of his cohorts. But after talking to them, grilling them extensively, I don’t think Fedek was involved.”

“What crime are you talking about?”

“Belinda Syracuse. The hit-and-run that Koby and I witnessed.”

“Yeah, yeah. How’s that going?”

“It isn’t. It’s dead in the water.”

“They’ve got the car, don’t they?”

“They hauled it in a long time ago. They’ve even got some DNA from a blood smear on the license plate. But they don’t have a suspect, so there’s nothing to match.”

Decker held out his hands and shrugged.

“I went to Fordham Communal Center the other day. I saw a picture of her-Belinda Syracuse. Weird to see what she looked like with her face whole.”

My father nodded.

“I went there to check in with Mr. Klinghoffner, to see if by any chance David Tyler had contacted him. He hadn’t, of course.”

“Still looking for him?”

“Off and on. Anyway, Klinghoffner had pictures of both Belinda and David Tyler posted on his wall. Like a memorial.”

He waited. “And?”

“I suddenly remembered seeing her before, when she was alive. The first time I went to Fordham to find the information that led to Sarah Sanders’s discovery, Belinda Syracuse was working in the backyard garden.”

“She lived there, Cindy.”

“I know. But it was something else. The way she looked when I saw her. She had this longing in her eyes… like a girl in the throes of heartbreak. I can’t get that expression out of my mind.”

I looked around the living room, shoving my hands in my pants pockets.

“I have this gnawing in my gut about it. Like I’m on top of it, but I have no evidence. Just this vibration… like she’s talking to me.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Okay. Here goes. There’s this real obnoxious guy who works at Fordham. His name is Buck. The first time I went there, we started talking-Buck and me-and I saw Belinda Syracuse staring at us through the window, holding a hoe, her nose pressed against the pane of glass. With this hurt look in her eyes…”

I was seeing the memory as I spoke.

“This man Buck, he turned around and smiled when he saw her. Then he got up to talk to her. It was completely out of character.”

“I don’t understand.”

“He’s anasshole.Why was he being so nice to her?”

“Maybe he’s not as big an asshole as you think.”

“Or maybe he can be charming when he wants to be… when there’s something in it for him.”

“And your point is…”

He knew what my point was, but he wanted me to tell him. “Let me see if I can formulate some theories.” I collected my thoughts. “When we last talked to Sarah Sanders, she was embarrassed when talking about sex.”

“Yes.”

“And we thought she was sitting on something else.”

“Yes.”

“Do you think that she and David… Do you think that they would have sex with each other without having had it before?”

“Absolutely. It’s a natural thing. Being mentally disabled doesn’t mean your plumbing doesn’t work.”

I didn’t say anything.

“Did you need someone showing you how to do it? I didn’t.”

“Daddy, we knew about sex way before the actual feelings came about. We knew about it because we’re of normal intelligence and we had information about it that we could comprehend.”

“They have sex education in the center. You told me that yourself.”

“Very clinical stuff, Dad, not the same peer-to-peer giggling and gossiping and bragging that most of us go through. I was just thinking that maybe… maybe Sarah Sanders had had experience before David.”

“That the gang rape wasn’t her firstforcedsexual experience.”

“Why not?” I exclaimed. “Maybe that’s what Sarah Sanders was sitting on. That someone in the center had been molesting her. It wouldn’t be the first time a retarded girl has been taken advantage of sexually. And it could be that it was more of a seduction than a forced sexual encounter because that would make Sarah reluctant to give him up. Because she might have felt that she had some complicity in it.”

Decker said, “And you like this obnoxious guy for the molester?”

“Yes, because he truly is odious.”

“Molesters are often charming, Cindy.”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying! He’s a jerk, but he was nice to Belinda. Why?”

“Okay. Even if he was molesting Sarah, what does that have to do with the hit-and-run?”

“Now, this is where it’s getting a bit… speculative. Maybe Buck was also molesting Belinda.”

“Because he got up and talked to her?”

“Just hear me out, okay?”

“Go on.”

“Buck knew we were talking to Sarah. And he knew we were investigating a gang rape. If Buck was molesting her, maybe he thought his molestation would come out in the course of our investigation. And if it did, then the other girl, Belinda, maybe she’d also have a story to tell. Now could be he figures he can handle Sarah Sanders, especially since at that time she wasn’t regarded in a positive light. She had abandoned her baby. You know, his word against hers. Sarah wasn’t much of a threat. But if there had been others…”

Decker didn’t speak.

“Okay, it’s loony. Forget it.”

“It’s not loony; it’s a… theory.”

“Dad, I have a good relationship with Louise Sanders now. I set her up with David Tyler’s conservator, and she’s getting a little money for Ella-that’s the baby’s name. Actually, it’s Cinderella. Louise let Sarah name her daughter. Anyway, David’s lawyer gave her enough money to hire a nanny, so I’m definitely on Louise’s good side. Plus, Koby and I have visited them several times. SarahadoresKoby. I think he reminds her of David. So there’s a lot more trust than when we first interviewed her.”