Jenna DiNolfo put a silver hoop earring in her left ear as she rose from of her never-slept in queen bed. She glanced in the mirror, making sure her makeup was straight before heading into the living room. Adjusting to her three-inch heeled boots and the snug fit of her jeans, she wobbled a bit down the hallway before acclimating to the higher elevation of her shoes. She pulled a tube of lip gloss from a rarely used purse and lacquered her lips to coordinate with her smoky eyes. It appeared that the Sergeant had a date tonight.
DiNolfo hit the button on her answering machine again. She had forgotten the name of the place she was asked to go to. A man’s voice on the tape briefly spoke.
“Meet me at the Rusty Nail.”
The Rusty Nail, huh? Charming.
DiNolfo grabbed her keys and her gun from the end table, and gave her apartment one last look around before heading out the door.
*
Joe Piedmonte arrived at the Rusty Nail shortly before 9:00 that night and took a seat at the far booth on the right. He ordered a pair of drinks while he was waiting, a pint of Allagash for himself and a glass of Riesling for DiNolfo, and he stared out the window waiting for his dinner partner to arrive. Finally, DiNolfo arrived, parking the Skylark in the parking lot in back of the establishment before walking to the back of the restaurant, knowing exactly where Joe would be sitting. She let out a sigh as a smirk grew on her lips. Joe was simply staring; it had been years since he saw Jenna with her hair down. It was quite becoming.
“Here,” offered Joe, as he pushed the glass of Riesling towards her, “Drink up. You need it.”
“That is a true statement if I ever heard one. It’s been a rough first week on the job,” Jenna replied appreciatively.
“I’m glad to see you’re back, and I know the Morrows are thrilled to have a competent officer on the task.”
“Speaking of them….”
Joe’s face turned a little red as he spoke, “Somehow I knew we weren’t here for my good looks and charm.”
Jenna let out a laugh and sheepishly said, “Well, I wouldn’t go that far, I was just curious if you had some insight. You know that’s not why I agreed to come though.”
“I know, I’m only kidding with you. Drink some more. We gotta lighten you up a bit.”
DiNolfo took a sip from her wine glass and smirked at Joe as he gulped at his mug of beer.
“You know, I’m more of a beer girl.”
“I can get you one. What do you want?”
“What are you drinking?”
“This. Some new brew Chuck got in… Allagash I think it’s called. Pretty good actually.”
“I’m game.”
Joe ordered his dinner guest a tall one and then diverted his attention back to her. “So what kind of insight are you looking for?”
“What is Earl and Amos’ deal, and what do they have against Jack Morrow?”
Joe pensively thought about her question, mulled it over, but sat quiet. Just as Jenna was about to open her mouth and ask “Well?” he piped up.
“There is a very specific reason I asked you to come to this lovely establishment.”
Jenna looked around. She couldn’t decide what was more “lovely” - the dusty elk head that was hanging over the front door, the collection of rusty nails that hung on the walls, or the clientele, which consisted of an assortment of foul-mouthed factory workers, a couple of modern day moonshiners trying to sell their wares and a bevy of motorcyclists, who spent more time arguing with Chuck the bartender than they did actually drinking the pints he poured.
“I would absolutely love to hear why you decided to bring me to the Rusty Nail.”
Joe smiled candidly before bringing a single finger up to his mouth indicating the need for quiet. He pointed to the booth behind me.
“Speak of the devils.”
DiNolfo’s eyes went wide as a devilish grin grew across her face.
“No! Are you serious?”
Amos and Earl had taken the booth directly behind Joe and Jenna. Unaware that their boss was sitting right behind them, Amos and Earl began voicing their grievances over their light beers.
“With Kendricks gone, we are not going to get our money. So we might as well just rat him out.”
“I never liked that term, rat. We are doing our civic duty of delivering justice. Fifteen years late.”
“We have to do it carefully. We have to make it seem like he threatened us, not vice versa. She’ll hang us by our hides”
DiNolfo sat perfectly still, fuming in her booth as Joe looked down at the floor trying to keep his face hidden. He was laughing into his palm as he sneaked peaks of Jenna’s face, red and murderous.
“What are we supposed to do about that case file though? You know she is eventually going to read through the whole thing.”
“The only person speaking the truth is a guy that’s holed up in Pennington prison. I’m not that concerned.”
“Shit, I am. That guy’s been writing to the Bugle. Didn’t you see that piece last week, ‘Was Benson Framed?’ Benson is a problem. He knows all about the pay-offs. And if Benson starts talking, Trafford will, too.”
“One thing’s for sure though, I am not covering for Kendricks if he isn’t paying his dues. They’ll swoop in on him so fast - kidnapping charges and fifteen-year-old murder charges, and who the hell knows what else. I can see it now. The papers will be calling us heroes.”
“Not if she finds out that Kendricks’ been paying us to keep quiet about Catherine.”