Neon Nights Chapter 32

The world felt hushed after the final note played. The neon lights had all gone dark.

The fireworks, lasers, and all other manner of sensory gatecrashers had been quieted, and the only colors left flickering in the sky were red and blue. Peace had returned, even if not fully realized until the circus was loaded up on the eighteen-wheelers, and the revelers found their way to the interstate in the morning, free again to chase their neon-colored dreams to the next city or town.

It wouldn't be at Neon Jungle anymore, but there would be plenty of other options.

Marc and Carly got checked over by the EMTs and pronounced good enough to drive home, though Marc wasn't sure how long it would be until his injuries healed, given the new ones he had sustained in his tangle with Alec.

His phone vibrated against his thigh, and he pulled it out to look at the unknown number out of South Florida.

"Hello."

He could hear that the person on the other end of the line had been crying, and there was still a faint sniffle left their voice.

"Hello," Marc said again.

"When he was seven, we went to the zoo. It was all three of us, which was rare. He'd never been, and he was blown away by everything around him, especially the monkeys," Brad Bass said, a chuckle finding its way through his tears. "We watched them for like an hour

… so long that I never wanted to look at a monkey again."

Marc listened patiently, all too aware of his niece's childlike ability to transfix on something that adults simply couldn't understand.

Bass continued.

"I remember we got ice cream after that. The chocolate sandwich kind with the vanilla ice cream in the middle. He walked between us after that and had us each hold one of his hands …"

The only things Marc could have said would have felt empty and patronizing, so he opted to say nothing and allow the man his tears.

"We were walking to the next exhibit … I think it was the lions … and he stepped funny where the pavement ended and twisted his little ankle. You would have thought that he was run over by a car. I picked him up and carried him the rest of the day so we didn't have to leave."

Again, Marc didn't interrupt the moment.

"I said the other day that he failed me," Bass said. "I know I failed him. I did it his whole life, except that day at the zoo."

"I'm really …"

Before he could finish his sentence, Brad Bass hung up the phone.

Chief Rome pulled up wearing a huge smile across his face and parked next to Marc, who was sitting with Carly on the tailgate of the truck.

"Quite a show you two have put on over the last twenty-four hours. No more encores, right?"

Marc winced as he looked over at Carly. "I got nothing, you?"

She shook her head.

"We haven't had any hits on Billy yet," Rome said. Marc nodded.

"No surprise. For the moment, I'll bet he's long gone. I know him, though, and he won't stay away forever."

Rome looked at Carly.

"The girl you helped, Crystal, she's talking and connecting the pieces for us."

Carly smiled. "I hope she can get on the right track now."

"You know how it goes for people sometimes. It's not always that cut and dry," Rome said.

Carly shrugged her shoulders. “True."

"Clyde killed Trailer and Jameson, according to Crystal. She said that he had made her dress up in a wig and knock on the man's room, and when Trailer came to the door, Clyde shot him. She also said Clyde was bragging to some of the members about another hit he had done for a kid that was making things harder for them. One of his friends had reached out to him and paid him $25,000 in cash to kill him at their campsite.”

"Any idea which one?" Carly asked.

Rome shuffled his feet and blew a breath out.

"No, and with the other two dead, I'm not sure we'll ever know." "You think she knew that's what he was doing?" Marc asked.

"Nope, and I think it traumatized the shit out of her. I'm not pushing for an accessory or anything like that. I'm just happy to have Clyde off the street, hopefully for good."

The three of them were silent, trying to digest the weight of the last four days.

Carly hopped down from the tailgate to stand next to Rome and locked eyes with Marc.

"So, Detective?"

Marc slapped his hand to his forehead. "Here it comes."

"Stay or go?" she asked.

Rome crossed his arms and brought his left hand to his lips, trying to cover his smile.

Marc looked out over the fairgrounds and at a moon so big and bright that he felt like he could reach out and touch it.

Carly rolled her eyes. "Hello?"

"Stay," Marc said.

Without another word, he lowered himself off the tailgate, walked to the driver's side door, and drove off into the night.

When he rolled over and opened his eyes, he checked his phone. 5:30 p.m.

"Holy shit. I slept in until 5:30!" he said to Clark. Slept in was a severe understatement.

Then he looked around the room and didn't see Clark anywhere. Mary and their date.

He looked back at his phone and saw twenty-eight notifications.

Damn, nearly everyone under the sun had touched base to see how he was.

Everyone except Mary.

He sat up slowly, put his head against the headboard, and took a deep breath.

"Clark! Where you at, buddy?!" No response.

"Clark!"

He crawled out of bed, slid on a pair of shorts, and walked down the hall to the kitchen.

Where the hell is my dog?

He looked through the house and called his name a few more times when he finally heard a series of barks from outside. He darted to the front door, which he found unlocked for some reason, and threw it open.

In the front yard, Mary knelt with a frisbee in one hand and playfully scratched a one-eyed pitbull's neck with the other.

"Does my insurance cover this in-home visit?" he asked her from the porch.

Startled by the sound of his voice, she turned to smile at him as Clark bolted in his direction.

"You don't want to see the bill for this," she said. "How did you end up over here?"

"I looked at your paperwork and came here to poison you in your sleep for missing our date."

She made a slicing motion across her neck. "Serious business, this health care stuff, huh?" Her face drew up into a playfully devilish grin. "Deadly."

"Have I been asleep the whole time?"

"Out like a light. Carly showed up this morning at the hospital and filled me in. She said there was a better-than-average chance you wouldn't be able to participate in life today and that if I wanted, she would lend me a key so you could have a friendly face to wake up to. Also, that your poor dog would probably need a little TLC. She's awesome, by the way."

Marc was caught off guard at the thought that Carly would do that, but she was a truly unselfish person, and if he was being honest with himself, it didn't surprise him all that much.

"She's great for sure," he said.

"So, do you feel up to some dinner and a movie?" she asked. "I can't think of a thing I would rather do."

"Good," she said with a massive grin spread across her face. "Well, I'll start the fire then. Burgers okay with you?" "Absolutely … wait a fire, not the grill?" she asked, confused.

Marc motioned for her to follow him, and they walked around to the backyard where the stone fire pit area was. Marc grabbed a handful of kindling and logs from the wood pile and started building a teepee with them.

"Anything you don't like on your burger?" "Umm, I guess no."

"Cooked how?" "150 degrees."

"Wow, that's specific. I like it."

"A girl knows what she wants," she said. "How do you like yours?" "151 degrees."

"C'mon."

"Price is Right rules," he said, grinning.

Marc pulled two huge patties from the freezer to thaw while the flames lapped at the wood.

"I hate that I only have a frozen burger for you, but the blend is so good, you may not even notice."

"Okay, what's the blend, so I know what to expect?" "Nope, not a first date conversation."

"Serious business, this cooking stuff, huh?"

He raised his eyebrow and gave a small nod and a smile. "Deadly."

Marc sat down on the chair next to her as the frogs began their evening concerto from the tree line. Clark lay between them, and they each reached down to scratch one of his ears, bumping hands as they moved to the top of his head. Their fingers circled each other's and settled perfectly into the grooves on the other's hands.

For the first time in as long as Marc could remember, he was at peace.

THE END