Lost Proof by Michael Stagg

Author:Michael Stagg [Stagg, Michael]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-03-22T16:00:00+00:00

Have you ever been to a party after a 10K or maybe a Spartan race or something like it? The Brickson No Mercy Eve party was a lot like that. People rolled into the Railcar in waves tied to their level of done-upness—athletic clothes followed by work casual followed by full-boat New Year’s Eve ensemble—but no one took long and all of them were in a festive mood from feeling like they’d earned it.

Besides the drinks, Cade and Olivia laid out a massive amount of food. Everyone has their own rationalizations for what is acceptable to eat when, especially with a crowd like this, but it appeared to be a universal truth that anything eaten or drunk after a workout at midnight on New Year's Eve simply does not count.

At one point, I went to fill a plate when I found Cade standing at a table wearing a sleeveless tuxedo and combat boots and you just have to trust me when I say that in some way, beyond all comprehension, it worked for him.

He saw me, excused himself from his conversation with several patrons, and came over to give me a hug.

“Josie having a good time?”

“She is.”

“Maybe you all can join the fun part next year.”

I smiled. “This is about all the fun we can handle.”

Cade shrugged. “You have to push these things. Hey, I found out about your boy Carver in the jail.”

“What's up?”

“He has made friends with a couple of guys that don’t have any obvious local affiliations.”

“How about out of town?”

Cade shook his head. “They don’t appear to be connected to Detroit, Chicago, or Toledo. And none of the rural mid-Michigan groups you run into now and then. Seems to be just a couple of local boys from up around Dellville, one serving a few months for a bar fight that went bad and the other accidentally spilled a load of fertilizer on the highway and caused a non-fatal accident. I don’t think either of them will be serving more than a few months.”

“So neither have an affiliation? They’re just helping Logan?”

“Looks that way. Sounds like the guy Logan cracked was bothering everyone but was going after Logan in particular. These guys helped Logan stand up for himself.”

“I guess that’s good.”

Cade shrugged. “Could be worse. Sticking around for a bit?”

“I am.”

“I’m going to get back then,” he said, pointing at the table where it did indeed appear that several people were acutely aware of his presence. “I’ll catch you later.”

I returned to Josie with a couple of plates of savory and tasty things just as she returned with another round of drinks, and we welcomed a year of new possibilities.

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