Bosch nodded. He wasn’t surprised that Mendenhall was going to San Quentin. He was just a little surprised that she had told Hannah. It wasn’t good investigative practice to tell one interviewee about plans regarding another, even if they were mother and son.

“Doesn’t matter if she goes up there,” he said. “Shawn doesn’t have to talk to her if he doesn’t want to. But if he decides he wants to, he just needs to tell her the—”

Bosch stopped talking as he suddenly realized what Mendenhall might be doing.

“What is it?” Hannah asked.

“The cover-up is always worse than the original crime.”

“What do you mean?”

“Her telling you she’s going up there Monday. Maybe she told you because she knew you would tell me. Then she’d see if I would try to get to Shawn first to coach him on what to say or to tell him to refuse the interview.”

Hannah frowned.

“She didn’t seem to be the sneaky type. She seemed really straightforward. In fact, I got the impression that she wasn’t happy about being in the middle of something that was politically inspired.”

“Did she call it that or did you?”

Hannah had to think about it before she answered.

“I might have first mentioned or implied it, but it wasn’t news to her. She said she was considering the motivation behind the original complaint. I remember that. That came from her, not me.”

Bosch nodded. He assumed she was referring to O’Toole as the originator of the complaint. Maybe he should have faith in Mendenhall, that she would see things for what they were.

Pino served their Caesar salads and they dropped discussion of the internal investigation while they ate. After a while Bosch moved the conversation in a new direction.

“I’m on vacation next week,” he said.

“Really? Why didn’t you tell me? I could have taken some time off. Unless . . . that was the point—you wanted to be alone.”

He knew she would come to that conclusion or at least consider it.

“I’ll be working. I’m going up to the middle of the state. Modesto, Stockton, a place called Manteca.”

“Is this on the Snow White case?”

“Yes. There is no way O’Toole would approve travel for me. He doesn’t want this case solved. So I’m going up on my own time and my own dime.”

“And without a partner? Harry, that’s not—”

He shook his head.

“I’m not going to be doing anything dangerous. I’ll just be talking to some people, watching others. From afar.”

She frowned again. She didn’t like it. He pressed on before she could voice another objection.

“How would you feel about staying at my house with Maddie while I’m gone?”

He could clearly see the surprise on her face.