Todd nodded. “Night shots, too?”

“I spend your dollar wisely,” Behm said.

Todd picked up a print. “Where’s this?”

“Outside a bar in midtown.”

“Janis doesn’t go to bars.”

“Maybe she just likes to stand outside them.”

“You didn’t follow her in?”

“I would have stood out.”

Todd looked at Behm. “I don’t get you.”

Behm pulled out two more prints.

“You don’t really know this town, do you, Mr. Milstead?”

“I’ve lived here most of my life,” Todd said.

Behm pointed to a photograph of Janis outside a different bar. “That’s Janis outside Flagg’s Bar,” he said.

“Never heard of it,” said Todd.

“No reason why you should,” Behm said. He picked up another print.

“Laura’s Place,” he said. “Doubt you heard of that one either.”

Todd shrugged. “Where are we going with this?” he asked.

In answer, Behm took a red matchbook from his pocket. LAURA’S PLACE it said in brutal black letters. He flipped it over. On the back was a drawing, not too badly executed, of two androgynous figures embracing.

“Laura’s Place is a gay bar,” said Behm. “So is Flagg’s.”

“Gay?” said Todd. “But Janis isn’t a man.”

Behm looked at him.

“Nor,” he said, “is the person she’s been seeing.”

*  *  *

“Well, I think it’s pretty cool,” Sara said. Todd had gone straight around to hers after writing Behm another check.

“Explains a lot, I guess,” said Todd.

“You mean she never liked you because she never liked guys?” said Sara. “I think that’s a little simplistic, Todd.”

“What other explanation could there be?” Todd said.

“Maybe we should go into this some other time,” Sara said. “It’s late.”

Todd agreed. It was all too much for him.

“This guy you hired to follow Janis,” said Sara. “Did he say who she is?”

“Who?” said Todd.

Sara raised an eyebrow. “The woman she’s seeing, of course.”

*  *  *

When Todd got home, he poured himself a whiskey for the first time in he didn’t know when, drank it, thought about having another, decided against it, and went to bed. He tried to read for a while, but the only book he could find was an old paperback that Janis had left behind, and after wasting a half hour trying to find clues about her secret life by reading Watership Down, Todd gave up and drifted into uneasy slumber.

*  *  *

That night, Todd dreamed he was back in Legolas Books.

“Hi, Timothy,” said Todd as the bell tinkled behind him.

But Timothy didn’t reply. He was bent over something at the counter.

“Nose deep in a book as usual?” said Todd.

“Not exaffly,” Timothy said in a muffled voice and turned around. He was face deep in Todd’s copy of The Catcher in the Rye, shredding it with his teeth like a dog tearing into a ragdoll.