“Mike, I’m a cop, for God’s sake. I’m not going to run away. They’d just track me down.” He turned to Rina. “You, on the other hand—”

“Oh, no you don’t!”

“I can’t babysit the kid, babysit you, and do my job.”

“Peter, since we’ve moved here, I’ve gone to the shooting range every time you’ve gone. I’m an excellent shot. And, FYI, I don’t need your babysitting.”

“Darlin’, maybe you should visit your parents. Your father is ninety-five.”

“Don’t you play the parent card on me.”

“Do you know the temperature in L.A. yesterday? A sunny, seventy-two degrees.”

“Well, bully for L.A. And someone has to keep an eye out for Tyler, because—like you said—if you’re watching him, you can’t do your job.”

“There’s no job for him to do,” Radar said. “I’m giving the case to Boston. Let them coordinate with Summer Village—”

“No, no, no,” Decker said. “That’s not going to happen—”

“You said you’d tell me if it was too much for you to handle.”

“I didn’t say it was too much to handle. I’ve been a detective for almost thirty years. I’ve been in combat. I can handle this. Let me just see this out.”

“Not on my watch.”

“That’s bullshit!”

“Don’t swear at me.”

Rina cleared her throat. The men turned in her direction. “Uh, as much as I hate to agree with my husband, I think he’s right, Mike. Pulling him off isn’t going to take the heat away from him. If anything, it’ll make it look like Peter really knows something and that you’re trying to protect him.” Silence. “And from a personal point of view, I might also add that you will never find a detective as good as Peter is.”

“Thank you,” Decker said. “Thank you very much.”

“You’re welcome.”

Decker looked at Radar. “Well?”

“What about Tyler?” Radar said.

“We can send him back to New York.”

Rina said, “These guys are pro. Tyler’s way more vulnerable in an anonymous city than he is in Greenbury. It’s easier to take care of him here because anything unusual will stick out.”

Mike said, “I’ll put an officer on him.”

“Agreed,” Decker said. “But I still want Rina out of here.” He looked at his wife. “You need to go to L.A.”

“Peter, I’m not involving my parents in this mess.”

“I’ll put an officer on her, too,” Radar said.

Rina said, “Have Tyler move in with us. That way you only need one officer and I can shoot a gun should the occasion call for it.”

“You can’t be serious,” Decker said.