Susan and Archie eyed each other warily. Her hair had dried and looked curlier than usual. It made her face look softer. She reached up and scratched at a tiny pimple on her forehead. Archie put his hand out and wiped the peanut butter off Susan’s T-shirt with his finger. She gave him a half smile.

“Walk her to her car,” Archie said to Henry.

“You heard the man,” Henry said to Susan, giving her a push toward the door.

Archie watched as they all gathered.

Sanchez held back, engaged in an e-mail or text. When he finished, instead of heading for the others, he came over and squatted next to the arm of Archie’s chair. He pulled out his tin of mints and offered it to Archie. Archie shook his head. Sanchez put a mint in his mouth, closed the tin, and stowed it.

“Tell me something,” Sanchez said. “You ever step out on Debbie before?”

“No,” Archie said. “Not before Gretchen.”

“And the one time you do, it’s with a serial killer?” Sanchez said, his face glowing. “You poor fuck.”

“Yeah,” Archie said.

Sanchez was shaking his head, amazed, the white mint clenched between his teeth.

“Thanks,” Archie said. “For earlier.”

Sanchez scooted forward and the bill of his FBI cap grazed Archie’s forehead. “Leo told you I’m dirty, didn’t he?” he said.

“Let’s go,” Henry called from the door.

Archie kept his face neutral, barely daring to breathe.

Sanchez nodded, reading Archie’s reaction as affirmation. “Hm,” he said.

The others were talking by the door, immersed in their own discussion.

Sanchez’s eyebrows knitted. “We’ve known each other, what, fifteen years?” he said quietly. “You really believe for a second I’d do something like that?” Archie didn’t know what to say. Sanchez exhaled slowly. His breath was warm peppermint. “I’d tell you I’m not,” he said. Then he shrugged with a laugh. “But I guess I’d tell you that either way, right?” He laid a hand on Archie’s shoulder as he stood up. Then he turned and headed for the door to catch up with the others. Archie watched them all leave. Then the door closed, and he was alone. The smell of Sanchez’s mint hung in the air.

Archie got up and walked over to his empty kitchen. Susan had left four pieces of sandwich crust sitting out on his counter. He picked up a piece of crust and put in his mouth. The sky was dark. Dead leaves stuck to the factory windowpanes. He couldn’t figure out where those dead leaves came from—there weren’t any trees around. Flashes of red and blue light bounced off the glass as the patrol cars down below pulled away from the curb. Archie ate the rest of Susan’s crust. The bread was stale and stuck in his throat.