Part 68 (2/2)

few pieces of loose change he, and thousands of others, could witness

the intimacy of grief It was there on all the faces, though they were

bluffed. He could see the little girl, her arm in a cast and sling.

He wondered how much she had seen, how much she would remember. The

doctors he had consulted had all claimed that if she had witnessed

anything, she had blocked it. She could remember tomorrow, five years

from tomorrow, or never.

DEVASTATION ATGRAVESITE

There had been other headlines, dozens of others. Lou already had a

drawerful.

DIDEmMAMcAvoyWffNESSHERBROTHER'S

HoRRiBLEDEATH?

SON'SDEATHROCKSDEvAsTATION

CHILD MURDEREDDUR[NG PARENTS' ORGY

PiTuALKiLLING OFRocKER's BABY:

ARE MANSONF==Rs REsPONsiBLE?

Garbage, Lou thought. It was all garbage. He wondered if Pete Page

managed to s.h.i.+eld the McAvoys from the worst of it. Frustrated, he

rested his head in his hands and continued to stare at the picture.

He couldn't pull himself away from the case. He was bringing his work

home with him now, and bringing it home with a vengeance. Files, photos,

notes littered his desk in the corner of Marge's tidy living room.

Though he had good men a.s.signed with him, he doublechecked all their

work. He had personally interviewed everyone on the guest list he'd

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