“I find it hard to say no to her,” Archie said. He came around the bar again, and found his shoes on the floor where he’d taken them off hours before.

“Remember, she only gets the sensitive-stomach Science Diet,” he said to Rachel.

“Enough chitchat,” Gretchen said. “Time to go, darling.”

Archie bent over to pull on his shoes, momentarily blocking Gretchen’s view of him. “Rachel,” he whispered immediately. Her eyes moved to him. “Tell Henry Susan is the priority,” he whispered. “Not me. If they have to shoot me to put a bullet in Gretchen, tell him I said that was okay,” he said. Her eyes widened almost imperceptibly. Archie knotted his shoes and stood up. “By the way,” he added, no longer whispering, “I think we should split up.”

He turned to Gretchen. “I’m ready,” he announced. “Let’s get this over with.”

Chapter 37

CHAPTER

37

The vinyl banner hanging outside the Dancin’ Bare said that tonight was the HALLOWEEN EVE STRIPTASTICA. Claire already had to pee. Her fingers were swollen from being on her feet so much today. And she was hungry enough that she was seriously considering the two plates of fried onion rings for the price of one advertised on the banner. “You take me to the nicest places,” she said to Henry as they approached the door.

“Wait until you get inside,” Henry said.

“Oh, I’ve been inside,” Claire said, grabbing him playfully on the ass of his black jeans.

Henry jumped and turned back to her, eyebrows raised, just as the bouncer stepped out the front door with his hand on the back of a patron he was in the process of eighty-sixing. Claire and Henry both stopped short as the bouncer gave the man a gentle push and he staggered past them. The expelled patron was dressed in some sort of psycho clown costume, which in Claire’s book would have been reason enough to kick him out of the club. The rubber clown mask had a frizz of neon-orange hair, a red ball nose, and a black-lipped, yellow-toothed maniacal grin. He had several one-dollar bills clutched in his white-gloved fist. They watched as he stumbled drunkenly over his size-thirty shoes and disappeared around the corner. Claire heard the sound of retching a few moments later, and had to swallow hard to keep from following suit.

“I hate Halloween,” the bouncer grumbled.

Henry and Claire both flashed their badges.

“So, what?” the bouncer said, narrowing his eyes at them. “You’re dressed as cops?”

Henry started to open his mouth to explain, but Claire cut him off. Henry would take too long. She wanted to get home to bed. “We are cops, Einstein,” Claire said, lifting her chin to stare up into the bouncer’s broad, bearded face. “Now step aside. I feel like my unborn child is getting crabs just standing here.”