“No no,” I said. “I don’t know Stefanie at all.”

“Because I know she’s been seeing somebody else lately. Maybe even a couple people, you know.”

“Not me.”

“Uh-huh.”

“No, you see, her mother’s address? That was the only one I had for her. I did find something of hers, and I was just trying to return it, that’s all.”

“And what would that be?”

“Her purse.”

“And why do you have her fucking purse?”

“I found it,” I said. “She’d dropped it at a store.”

Rick nodded knowingly. “Did you have a good look at what’s inside that purse, Mr. Walker?”

“I looked at her license, so I could find a way to get in touch with her.”

Rick eyed me suspiciously. “I think you’re giving me a load of bullshit, you know that?”

“No, really, I have it.” I was about to dig it out for him when the phone on my desk rang. We looked at each other, neither of us knowing whether I should answer it, and then it rang again. I leaned over and looked at the call-display feature. “It’s my wife,” I said. “I better answer it.”

“I’m not here. Understand? Unless you’d like that phone cord wrapped around your neck.”

“Sure,” I said, unconsciously raising one hand to touch my neck while I reached for the receiver with the other. “Hello?”

“Me again,” said Sarah. “I tried the cell and when I didn’t get you I figured you must be back home.”

“Yeah.”

“How’d the interview go? With Ms. Wilton?”

“Oh, you know. Okay. More or less. Not so good.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, he’s not, he’s, well, he could be working a little harder. That’s pretty much the gist of it.” Rick was taking a model of the Millennium Falcon off my top shelf, examining it.

“There was nothing more?”

“Well, some, but I can tell you all about it when you get home. How’s it going there?”

“Pretty quiet.”

“What about that story you mentioned to me earlier?”

“The body out our way? Still waiting for more details. Cops don’t have a name or anything yet, but she was banged up pretty bad.”

“Hurry up,” Rick whispered.

“I’m worried about you,” Sarah said. “I think you need to take some time off. I’ve never seen you stressed out quite the way you were tonight.”

“I’m okay.”

“I was talking to Deb, you know, on Foreign? Her husband, he had the same problem, and he got that prescription? The little blue pill?”

“You were telling Deb about this?” I asked.

“No, not specifically. Just generally, you know?”

“Sort of like, I know this guy, but it’s not necessarily my husband, who’s got erectile dysfunction?”

Rick grinned, made a drooping finger.

“No, don’t worry about it. You seem really touchy.”