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Back Just Thieves Save as PDF
Chapters (42)
  1. Cover
  2. Other Titles
  3. Dedication
  4. Epigraph
  5. 1
  6. 1
  7. 2
  8. 3
  9. 4
  10. 5
  11. 6
  12. 7
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. 10
  16. 11
  17. 2
  18. 12
  19. 13
  20. 14
  21. 15
  22. 16
  23. 17
  24. 18
  25. 19
  26. 20
  27. 21
  28. 22
  29. 23
  30. 24
  31. 25
  32. 26
  33. 3
  34. 27
  35. 28
  36. 29
  37. 30
  38. 31
  39. 32
  40. 33
  41. 34
  42. ACCOMPLICES AND EASY MARKS

“Like I said, I don’t want to get into the habit of not finishing things.”

“You did all right,” Froehmer said. “I know it hasn’t been easy, but you’re going to be okay.” He nodded his head and put the bag under his arm.

“I’m ready to work,” I said.

“I know you are. I’m going to ask about moving you up.” He suddenly seemed startled and quickly got into his car. “I’ll send someone around with something extra for you.”

I went home and thought about what he said. He was going to ask about moving me up. It was the first inkling that I had of being part of an organization. I always knew that Froehmer didn’t work alone, that I wasn’t even the only one working for him, stealing for him, but it was the first time he’d ever mentioned it out loud. And it was the first time he gave an indication that he wasn’t at the top of the organization. He reported to someone the same way I reported to him. I didn’t know if I liked it. I knew I didn’t like the fact that someone else probably knew all about me, someone I didn’t know at all. Froehmer was going to talk to them about me. About moving me up. I didn’t know if I wanted to move up. I didn’t even know what it meant. I certainly didn’t want him talking about me. But what could I do about it?

The more I thought about it, the more I thought that the reason that this conversation had happened now wasn’t because I’d passed whatever test they had for me, it was because Frank was gone. Froehmer had never liked us together from the beginning, and maybe his boss (or bosses) didn’t either. They only tolerated it because we got the work done. We could have moved up together, the two of us. We should have. It should have at least been talked about. Maybe that was the message Froehmer was sending. I was right where they wanted me. I wasn’t going anywhere they didn’t want me to go. Only I was.

22

THE DOORS

I WENT BACK TO THE CITY, BACK TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD WHERE WE’D DONE THE JOB, BACK TO WHERE FRANK HAD RETURNED AND NEVER COME BACK, BACK TO THE HOUSE WHERE IT ALL STARTED, BACK TO WHERE THERE HAD TO BE ANSWERS.