“As you like. I’m only interested in the TVs.” He waited for her to return to the house before he went back to the car.
“Butz is bringing a van,” Buddy told Sullivan.
“Mrs. Butterick volunteered that the fifth TV is inside.” Sullivan leaned in the window and addressed the prisoner. “How much stolen stuff do you have inside, Drew? Your wife won’t let me in without a warrant. That tickled my interest.”
“She doesn’t know anything. She thinks she’s protecting me, only I ain’t done anything wrong.”
“Yeah, well, we don’t have to go back and forth about that now.” He straightened and looked down the street. “Van’s here.” Sullivan tapped the roof of the car, stepped back, and waved Buddy on. Then he moved to the driveway and motioned to Butz to back the van in. It took a little time because Sullivan had to move the tables and other yard sale detritus out of the way.
“You look beat,” Butz said, climbing out of the van.
“Halfway through my double. I’m feeling it.” He hadn’t been asked to do the double. He volunteered because he wanted to follow the theft through to the arrest. Losing some shuteye was a small price to pay for the priceless ending.
Butz looked around. “Selling stolen TVs at a goddamn yard sale,” he said, shaking his head. “Don’t that beat all.”
Sullivan grinned. “My thought exactly.”
17
“You’re kidding,”said Ramsey.
Sullivan shook his head. “Could I make that up?”
“I don’t know.”
“Well, I’m telling you, I don’t have the imagination.” He picked up a twelve-pack of blunt tip LED light bulbs. “Are you familiar with these? I need replacements for a couple of ceiling fan lights. These are soft white. I wonder if that’s what I have in the fans now.”
Ramsey snapped her fingers in his line of sight. “Hey. It’s me. Do I look like I know anything about light bulbs? You’re the one that stalks Aisle Fourteen like it’s your second job.”
He looked up and found the hanging placard that indicated he was indeed in Aisle Fourteen. “Huh. So it is. I didn’t realize. I always turn left after I see plumbing supplies.”
“Yeah. Aisle Thirteen. Now you’re in my area of expertise.”
Sullivan put the pack of bulbs under one arm. “I guess I’ll get these.”
Ramsey smiled, amused, and looked him over. He was wearing faded jeans, factory ripped at the knees, scuffed loafers with no socks, an olive green tee that saidi’m silently correcting your grammar, and a navy blue windbreaker. “Are you off duty or undercover?”
“I don’t do undercover.”
“So off duty, then. And you’re here in your favorite haunt.”
“I drove past your house, saw your car was gone, and figured you’d be here. I wanted to see you…and I needed lightbulbs.”
“If you’re not on midnight, shouldn’t you be home sleeping? Ihaveto be here.” She checked her watch and yawned. “Two twenty. I shouldn’t have looked.”
“You get off at eight?”
“Seven. I started at eleven.”
“How about meeting for breakfast? Eat’n Park okay?”
“You know we have that concert coming up.”
“That’s still a couple of weeks away, and this isn’t a date. It’s breakfast.”
“All right. But don’t say I didn’t warn you that familiarity breeds contempt.”
“I promise.” The corners of his mouth turned down and his flinty eyes narrowed as he turned thoughtful. “Who says that anyway?”
