The Geographer's Library

Jon Fasman
known living relatives”). But it had grown into something else, something that
thrilled me even as it frightened me, made me feel that I had finally cracked
through the pane of smudged glass, broken the surface of the sea. I finally
felt like something other than an observer in my life. Whether it was cruising
toward a resolution with Joe, working and thinking on something nobody else
knew about when the rest of the world was asleep, or whether it had to do
with Hannah, coming to feel so deeply but uncertainly for her in such a short
time—or both bound up together—I couldn’t say. I strained against my seat
belt and drummed my fingers against the car door. I wanted to know how it
would end.
the only light in the Lone Wolf came from a college basketball game on
the television behind the bar. I immediately recognized the unrecognizably
bland-looking guy watching the TV when we walked in. He sat behind a
fortress of empty Rolling Rock bottles and wore that charlie reed’s feed &
seed cap.
“Help you?” he grumphed, turning his head beerily toward us like it was
top-heavy and poorly attached.
“Yeah, you can,” said Joe, strolling in with his hands in his pockets and
looking around. “We’re friends of Eddie’s. He here?”
“Haven’t seen him all day.”
“You break in here? Or did he give you the Customer of the Month key?”
Joe flicked the lights on to make sure they worked (they did), then turned
them off again.
“Door was open when I came in. I didn’t feel like going home, so I just
grabbed a few from the cooler. Hey, I’m gonna leave him the money, that’s
what you’re worried about.”
“It isn’t, but do it anyway.” The guy exhaled loudly, shook his head, and
turned his attention back to the game. “Do it now,” said Joe, towering over
the guy. Feed & Seed laid a ten-dollar bill on the table. “Your’re a little light,
but we’ll let it go this time.” Joe waved his badge in front of the guy’s face and
snapped it shut quickly, so the guy didn’t have time to read how far out of his
jurisdiction Joe was. “What’s your name, sir?”
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