“Well, I know what you mean. My wife tells me I sound like that Ben Stein guy. You know, like in the Ferris Bueller movie? I don’t hear it myself. Anyway, here’s the thing, Mr. Moran. My partner is getting a search warrant for your apartment. I’m going to stick around, and so are my friends out there, until he gets back. You can invite me in or not, but we’re going to come inside sooner or later.”

“A search warrant? Based on a fake 911 call?”

“And other things,” the detective replied.

“Like what?”

“I’m happy to explain all of it to you, if you let me inside.”

“Detective, I swear, this is a crazy misunderstanding. I didn’t make that call.”

“Yeah, I heard you say that. The thing is, if it’s a misunderstanding, how about we clear it up? Because to be totally honest with you, Mr. Moran, I didn’t show up here because of that 911 call.”

“No?”

“No. I was already on my way. See, I’ve had a colleague of mine sitting in a car down the street all night, watching to see if and when you came back home. He got me out of bed a while ago to tell me you were here. And then, as I was driving over here from Glenview, what should I hear on my radio but a report about a really weird 911 call involving you. Funny coincidence, don’t you think? Oh, and believe me, it takes a lot for a 911 dispatcher to consider a call weird.”

“Am I under arrest, Detective?”

“Not at all. I just want to talk.”

“Well, I told you, I’m not talking.”

“That’s okay, too. How about I talk, and you listen?” He held up his briefcase. “I’ve got some things in here you’ll find pretty interesting, but it would be easier to do it inside. We don’t have to go farther than the nearest chair. I had my hip done in the spring, and it’s a bitch to stand for very long. Give me ten minutes. Any time you want me to go, I’ll go.”

I was under no illusions. I knew he was playing me, trying to lay out what he’d learned about me and Scotty Ryan and get me to talk. If he was being honest about the warrant, I also knew that I’d be under arrest as soon as they finished their search. The only thing I could do was run. But I couldn’t do that with the police staking out the front and back of the building.