“Yes, sir, that is the truth.” Marge offered her hand as well.

Holmes shook hands with her as well. “Then we’re done.”

“Absolutely,” Decker said. “You’re free to go and I promise not to call you unless I have a specific question in mind.”

“What does that mean?”

“You did know the woman,” Decker said. “Maybe I could call you for some help…some insight.”

“As far as I’m concerned, I’ve helped you as much as I can,” Holmes told him.

“I’m sure you’re right. Good-bye and good luck.”

Holmes looked at Decker with agitated eyes. “What does that mean? Good luck?”

“Take it easy, sir.” Decker smiled. “I was referring to your house. Good luck with your construction.”

“Oh…okay. Thanks.” Holmes tried to return the smile but failed. “And good luck to you with Roseanne and the case. I mean that.” He dabbed his forehead with a tissue. “But don’t bother me again. I mean that, too.”

With that, Holmes left the room; he elected to slam the door shut.

THE EXTRA DAY in San Jose gave Marge and Will Barnes another night together. Although the two lovebirds extended a dinner invitation to him, Decker politely declined, anxious to get home. He wanted to take a taxi to the airport, to be alone and think, but Barnes insisted on acting as chauffeur. As he drove to San Jose International, the two lovebirds spent the majority of the ride talking about what restaurant they wanted to go to. Decker zoned out, emptying his mind, which wasn’t hard. In his present state of maximum fatigue, it seemed impossible for him to will up a conscious thought. He fought sleep, deciding to succumb on the plane ride back to L.A.

When they pulled up to the curb of passenger loading and unloading, Marge got out with him. “What now, Loo?”

“For me, a hot dinner and a hot shower sound like a plan.”

“What’s our next step with Roseanne?”

“I haven’t gotten that far.”

“I should talk to Ivan again,” Marge told him. “We know he lied about the time of the fight. He said it was in the afternoon and we know that Roseanne left L.A. in the late morning. I say we ask him about it, using the approach that we’re just trying to button down a couple of details and there’s been a little inconsistency, blah, blah.”

“Great.”

“I’ll have Oliver call him tonight to set something up.”

“Do you want to bring him into the station house for questioning?”

“I think we’d get more information if we came to him.”

“Set it up and let me know.” Decker rubbed his eyes. “Have you finished checking off the names of your tenant list for the Seacrest apartment?”

“I’ve done a little over half.”

“I’ve done about sixty to seventy percent. Let’s all finish up with that within the next couple of days.”

“I’ll make it a priority.”

Decker gave her a thumbs-up sign. “Have a great time.”

Marge smiled. “He’s taking the position…Will is.”

“In Santa Barbara?”

“Yes. I’m excited. It takes everything to another level.”

“Yes, it does.”

Spontaneously, she gave Decker a big hug. “Regards to Rina.”

As Decker watched her slide into Will’s car, the two of them zooming off, he realized he had a big smile on his face.

“DO YOU THINK they’ll get married?” Rina asked him.

Decker pulled back the covers and nestled into bed. “Not right away. They’re still about ninety miles away from one another. But now it’s a car trip instead of an airplane ride, so it’s moving in a more committed direction.”

“How old is Marge?”

“Past forty.”

“And he’s in his fifties?”

“Yes.”

“Good age for both of them,” Rina said. “I hope Will likes the flute.”

Decker smiled. Marge played the instrument, but only when she was alone. For her, it was personal expression, like singing in the shower. “They really do seem to have a lot in common.”

“That’s nice.” Rina moved over to be closer and Decker put his arm around her shoulders. “I wish them happiness and lots of luck.” She faced her husband. “You look exhausted.”

“I am.”

“Fruitful trip?”

“In some ways. Roseanne’s ex-lover passed a polygraph and a flight attendant was pretty sure that Roseanne took the five o’clock flight from San Jose back to Burbank the following morning. It still seems that she disappeared once she reached Burbank.”

“You’re still thinking about the husband?”

“Yes, that’s the logical choice. I’m sure he has some secrets.” Decker shrugged. “All the people who died in the accident, I bet they died with a lot of secrets as well.”

“Secrets from man, but not from G-d.”

“That’s a humbling thought.” Decker frowned. “I don’t know if I really believe in that personal of a God. I, for one, feel that God has better things to do than to get involved in the trivialities of our petty lives.”

“Sometimes I think that’s true, too. I mean, why would Hashem care if I wore a blue or pink dress? Although that isn’t the Jewish way. We really do have the precept of Hashgacha Pratite-that G-d watches over our every moment and our every movement.”

“To each his own.”

“Then there are other times where I’m positive that Hashem is involved with our petty lives. So many important things happen serendipitously that I just can’t chalk them all up to coincidence.”

“I suppose if you’re an atheist, that’s exactly what you do…chalk it up to coincidence.”

“I’d rather believe in divine intervention. It’s much more romantic and much more poetic.”

“That’s because you have romance and poetry in your soul. Me? I believe in God but for an entirely different reason. I need God. Who else is there to curse when things go poorly?”

24

I T WAS ONE of those rare moments when he took time out to smell the roses. Looking down at his sleeping daughter, her carrot-colored hair flowing over her face and the pillow, he realized that although life was passing too rapidly, he hadn’t gone through his days on earth without producing miracles. Two of them to be exact, but this time around he had been more fortunate. Cindy, although full-time in his heart, had been only part-time in his life. With Hannah, he was fully experiencing her teenage years with all their trials and tribulations. Sometimes it felt as if the drama would never end, but the flip side told him that he was lucky to be there when she needed him.

He tapped his daughter’s shoulder. “Wake up, Rosie O’Dee. It’s a beautiful morning and I love you.”

Hannah inhaled deeply and opened her eyes. “Love you, too.”

He kissed her forehead. “I’ll be waiting in the kitchen for you.”

“Five more minutes?”

“Not today. I’m taking you to school.”

She rolled over and pulled the covers over her head. “Can’t Eema do it?”

“You don’t want my scintillating company?”

“I love your company, Abba, I just want to sleep.”

“I realize that you have an unlimited capacity for slumber. Unfortunately, it’s time to face the music.”

“Can you feed my fish and take my backpack?”

Decker glanced at his daughter’s aquarium. Going to the tropical fish store used to be a weekly outing. Lately Hannah had better things to do on weekends, and the tank was down to two angelfish, and two enormous bottom-feeders-an upside-down catfish and a clown loach. The good news was that the remaining stalwarts were healthy. He dropped flakes into the water and picked up Hannah’s book bag, which weighed no less that fifteen tons. “Do you have any preference for breakfast?”

“No.”

“How about cereal and juice?”

“I’m not hungry.”

“You have to eat something.”

“Just juice. I’ll have a glass of milk at school.”

“I see we’re on the liquid diet today.”

“With all this conversation we’re having, I could have had my extra five minutes of sleep.”