Laura was in the cruiser directly in front of me. At intervals she would twist around to make sure I was still right behind. To my surprise, rather than being taken to the station house, we pulled into the parking lot of the Good Night Motel. In its defense, the Good Night did not pretend to be anything more than what it was, a rectangular-shaped lump of cement built to be an inexpensive alternative to more popular places near the lake. It offered beds and air-conditioned rooms. It reminded me mostly of the practical motels outside every military base in the world, paper-thin mattresses available by the night or the hour affordable on an enlisted man’s salary. No frills, no thrills, we called them.

Laura and I were escorted into a small room. Gunn was ordered to stay with us. The room had pale yellow walls and a single thick-curtained front window that looked out onto the parking lot; it contained two single beds, a bureau, and a desk. There was a large wood-framed mirror above the flimsy desk, a night table between the beds with a lamp and alarm clock on it, a closet, and a bathroom. Over each bed was a cheap print of flowers in a vase that somehow was sadder than empty space would have been. An old Sony Trinitron TV sat on the bureau. An ancient but still functioning air conditioner clunked every few seconds. Truth in advertising, I thought. Years of disinfectant seemingly had soaked into the walls and seasoned the air. The doorframe was just wide enough for Mighty Chair to squeeze through.

While Lieutenant Carty made sure we were safely settled, I asked him what we were doing there. “Don’t we have our rights as American citizens to be taken to jail?”

Carty didn’t even try to hide his displeasure at this whole situation. Everything about him read professional, from the polished shine of his shoes to his politeness. “We’re just doing what they told us to do. I don’t know why, they said they didn’t want you on the books. There’s two Homeland Security guys coming to pick you up, and they told us to keep you safe and secure until they got here.”

Laura looked puzzled. “What does that mean, ‘not on the books’?” She turned to me. “Can they do that, Rollie?”

Carty appeared to be embarrassed by his own answer. “Yeah, well, turns out we can. But I promise you, it doesn’t mean anything except you get worse towels and better food than you’d get with us.” He tapped his chest as if confirming a pledge. “I promise you, nothing’s going to happen to you long as you’re in our charge. Officer Gunn here is going to stay with you for the first shift. One of our people is gonna be outside too. You have any problems, you need something, tell Gunn and he’ll find me.” He seemed reluctant to leave, finally saying apologetically, “Believe me, I don’t like this any more than you do. But this is just the way things are now and we have to get used to it.” He couldn’t even meet my eyes as he said sadly, “We’re just doing our job.”