Jack nodded. “Yep. And Ryan got us pizza and hot wings. Mom said it was okay.”
Sean said, “Thanks for ordering it and feeding him, Ryan.”
Ryan’s eyes stayed fixed on the screen and his jaw clenched. Sean had been hard on him, and his son’s remorse seemed to have shifted to anger.
Sean went upstairs to his bedroom, glancing at the bundle under the covers. There was a faint smell of vodka in the air again. If Emily didn’t come out of this soon, he’d need to call someone. Maybe it was time for her parents to come stay. He could hear the usual commentary on how expensive yet small his house was, the terrible traffic, and the unfriendliness of the store clerks. He might explode if Emily’s parents, as they did every visit, mentioned the dangers of living in a major city. That look from her mother: We warned you … Maybe it wasn’t the right time for them to come.
In the bathroom he stared into the mirror, dabbing his eye lightly with his ring finger. His blood-spattered dress shirt remained draped over the bathtub from earlier in the afternoon. He thought about the teenage girl Chipotle Man had pushed against the wall, and imagined Abby dealing with the man. He thought of Chipotle Man ripping the gold chain from Abby’s neck. She wouldn’t have given it up voluntarily. The necklace and pendant were antiques. They’d been worn not only by Sean’s mother (someone Abby had never met but was always fascinated with), but also by Abigail Adams, one of Abby’s heroes.
Sean’s fists were bound into hard balls. In a fog, part anguish, part anger, part utter irrationality, he made a decision he would later relive in agony over and over. Sean went back to the bedroom, searched Emily’s jewelry box for a tiny key, and opened the lockbox he kept hidden in the back of the closet. Inside was a small black box that had the word TAURUS on the front of it. He removed the .357 Magnum. It was cold and heavy. He slid in the small safety key above the handle and unlocked the hammer so the revolver was fireable. He tucked it in his waistband and bolted out of the house.
CHAPTER 27
No one seemed to notice the black SUV idling across the street from the Chipotle. At 8:45 p.m. on a weeknight, traffic was surprisingly light by Bethesda standards, and Sean had a clear view through the restaurant’s large front window. There were only a few customers. The place must be closing soon. He’d seen Chipotle Man get up and walk around the restaurant and speak with a group of kids, but for the last fifteen minutes all he could see was the top of the red ball cap peeking over a booth.
He felt the gun at the small of his back. He’d bought it years ago when the neighborhood was experiencing a rash of burglaries, but had never fired it. And he had no intention of firing it tonight. He just wanted to talk to Chipotle Man. To get some answers. He would try to catch him alone, but was prepared for another three-against-one situation. He assumed the mere sight of the weapon would scare off these small-time criminals and prevent another beating. There was, of course, the obvious question: Why not just call the police? He had no answer. Had he lost his shit? He was starting to think so. But for some reason he just didn’t care.
The restaurant started to clear out. The two blond guys, the ones who had worked him over earlier that day, left, but Chipotle Man stayed behind. That was good. A few minutes later, Chipotle Man got up from his booth and did a complicated handshake with a black kid. He opened the glass door, lit a cigarette, and began walking down the street.
Sean waited until Chipotle Man morphed into the shadows before pulling the SUV from the curb. It took only a minute before the comical red outfit appeared in his headlights. Sean surveyed the path ahead. On the right, tall brick apartment buildings and dated commercial office space. On the left, the campus of Bethesda–Chevy Chase High School. A high school, a perfect place for a drug dealer to skulk around at night. Sean drove past Chipotle Man and turned into B-CC’s campus. He parked in a secluded spot near the front of the main building. Sure enough, the skinny man in red made his way onto school grounds. Another burst of adrenaline flowed through Sean, heightening his senses. The man walked past the steps to the main entrance and veered down a path to the rear of the school.