“That’s exactly what it is, Bernie.”
“You’ve probably already identified him from fingerprints and dental records. You just need somebody to eyeball the deceased and confirm what you already know.”
“So far we didn’t get any kind of a bounce from the prints or the dental records. But we sure as hell know who he is.”
“So it’s just a formality.”
“Didn’t I just say that, Bernie?”
I made up my mind. “All right,” I said. “It’s Candlemas.”
“Way to go, Bern. For the record, you’re formally identifying the man you just saw as Hugo Candlemas, right?”
If this had been a movie there’d have been an ominous chord right about now, so that you’d know the hero was about to put his foot in it. No, you’d want to cry. No, you fool, don’t do it!
But would he listen?
“Ray,” I said, “there’s no question in my mind.”
CHAPTER Ten
Ray dropped me at the subway and I was in my own apartment with time for a shower and shave before I headed for the Musette. I was there first so I bought two tickets and waited in the lobby.
I was still waiting when they opened the doors and started letting people take seats. I followed the crowd inside and threw my jacket over a pair of seats halfway down the aisle on the left, then went back to the guy taking tickets. He knew me by now, and why wouldn’t he? He’d been seeing me every night for the past two and a half weeks.
He said he hadn’t recognized me at first, that he wasn’t used to seeing me without my lady friend. That, I told him, was the problem. I gave him Ilona’s ticket and said she’d evidently been delayed en route. He assured me there would be no problem; he’d let her in and steer her toward where I was sitting.
I went and bought popcorn. What the hell, I hadn’t had anything to eat since that slice of pizza around noon. It felt strange, though, sitting there with no one next to me, dipping into the popcorn without risk of encountering another hand.