my mouth to protest but thought better of it. I didn’t want him to change his mind. Before I left, I asked his name.
‘You don’t need to know that,’ he said. ‘I’ll meet you at seven in the Mexican place across the street.’ He grinned. ‘You can buy me dinner too.’
Chapter 20
I had hours to kill and no other leads to follow. I walked past Jack and Mona’s house, wondering if I should knock, try to persuade them I was telling the truth. But I decided it would be better to wait. Later, if the barman came through, I would have a photo of Eden to show them.
I headed towards McCarren Park with the vague intention of talking to the people at the pool about looking at their CCTV too, in case Eden was on there. But I had second thoughts. I could imagine them reacting badly, demanding to know why I wanted to look at images of lots of women in bathing suits.
I entered the park not far from the spot where the car had tried to mow me down. A small area had been cordoned off with crime scene tape, which added to my unease. Were the people who’d tried to run me down around today? And why did they want to kill me? It wasn’t like I’d made any progress.
I was so deep in thought that I didn’t immediately notice the man outside the children’s playground, where hundreds of kids were running around, having water fights, climbing on the jungle gym and swinging across monkey bars, apparently unaffected by the heat. Just beyond the play area was the public pool. In front of that, a young, well-built man sat on a bench, staring into space.
I didn’t recognise him immediately. It was like when you see a familiar actor in a TV show and can’t remember where you’ve seen them before.
It was only when he lifted his face towards me that I realised who he was.
The guy I had christened Mets. The one who had harassed Eden at the pool. He wasn’t wearing his baseball cap. But it was definitely him – and he clearly recognised me too.
To my great surprise, he looked scared.
‘Can we—’ I began.
He jumped up from the bench and ran.
‘Hey!’ I shouted, as he sprinted away from the playground towards the road. ‘Hey!’
I broke into a run, calling after him again. What was going on? He certainly hadn’t been afraid of me the last time I’d encountered him. I almost collided with a woman pushing a baby buggy, then a pair of children ran into my path and I skidded to a halt. A young boy gawped up me and I heard his dad yell something, though I wasn’t sure if he was shouting at me to watch where I was going or at the kid.
I ran towards the road beside the park, sure I had lost Mets before I’d even started to properly pursue him, but then I caught sight of him across the street, going into an apartment block.
I jogged across the road and approached the building. The door was firmly shut and there was no sign of Mets. It was a large, rather shabby-looking building, far less upmarket than the new apartment blocks down the street. Was this where Mets lived?
I hung around for a while, hoping he would come out so I could ask him what was going on. A large group of kids with skateboards under their arms passed me and went into the building. I thought about following them inside, but the teenage boy at the back of the group eyed me suspiciously – aggressively, even – and I decided against it.
I stood there, unsure what to do, remembering the scene by the pool. Mets and his friend, the one I had christened Muscles, harassing Eden. And I remembered what she had said to him before we’d parted.
Dead men walking.
Had she come back to do what she’d promised?
The Mexican place opposite Alison’s was tiny, with just a few benches at the back of the restaurant, where the barman was already waiting. It seemed that most people were getting takeout and, after asking my new friend what he wanted, I joined the line. I was hungry but my stomach was knotted with tension, so I wasn’t sure how much I’d be able to eat.
‘I don’t know your name,’ I said, sliding into the seat opposite the barman.
‘It’s Joe,’ he said, with a slight smirk, like it wasn’t his real