Black Rock by John McFetridge

little further into the kitchen and speak quietly to Millie, drawing Joe in closer as he spoke, and Dougherty was impressed by the detective and thinking, How do you get good at something as hard as talking to parents whose child has been killed? He heard Millie Webber start to cry softly, and Dougherty felt if he stood there another second he was going to bust open himself, so he backed away down the hall and out onto the front stoop.
    Arlene was there then, sitting on the stoop, smoking a cigarette and drinking a cup of coffee. Most of the crowd was gone, and Dougherty looked up and down the street but all he saw was Arlene’s boy a few houses down in front of another house with a few other kids playing with Dinky cars.
    Dougherty said, “They finally go to work?” and Arlene said, “No, they’re on strike.”
    â€œWho is?”
    â€œThe port.”
    â€œSince when?”
    â€œLast night, I guess. It’s a wildcat.”
    â€œLongshoremen or checkers and coopers?”
    Arlene looked up at Dougherty and said, “I don’t know, Eddie — what fucking difference does it make?” and Dougherty said, “Yeah, I guess.” He really had no idea what he was doing, what help he could be on a homicide investigation.
    After a few minutes of silence, Carpentier came out of the house and nodded to Arlene and then to Dougherty and then started back to the car. Dougherty caught up to him and Carpentier said, “Why don’t you drive?” and tossed him the keys.
    â€œWhere are we going?”
    â€œThat store, what did you call it, Boss?”
    In the car Dougherty said, “Most of these guys work at the port but they’re on strike today, some kind of wildcat walkout.”
    â€œNot them,” Carpentier said, “it’s the locks, St. Lambert and Côte St. Catherine. The ships are not getting through.”
    It was only a few blocks and Dougherty stopped the car in front of Boss’s on Fortune Street. Before he opened the door Carpentier said, “I forgot to ask which funeral home they’ll be using,”
    â€œIt’ll be McGillivray’s,” Dougherty said.
    â€œAre you sure? Could you find out?”
    Dougherty said he would and they both got out of the car.
    Carpentier walked ahead into the store, and as Dougherty started to follow him Danny Buckley came out and stopped and said, “You back again, Eddie?”
    Dougherty said yeah and stood in the way so Buckley would have to walk around him, thinking, Yeah, I’m back, but it’s different now, not just the uniform and the gun — everything. Then he watched Buckley pretend he had nowhere to go and open up the pack of smokes he’d just bought and take one out and light it and then finally say, “It’s a shame about Brenda Webber.” Dougherty said yeah, and just kept staring.
    Dougherty saw Buckley looking past him towards the street, and he glanced around and saw a car and looked back at Buckley and said, “Cadillac?”
    Buckley shrugged, and Dougherty said, “You working for the Higginses now?” and Buckley didn’t say anything.
    â€œOkay,” Dougherty said, “that’s good, Buck-Buck,” and he stepped forward so Buckley had to move to get out of the way.
    Then Dougherty stopped by the door and watched Buckley rush to the Caddy and get into the back seat without looking back, and Dougherty had to admit he was enjoying himself.
    In the store, Carpentier was standing by the cash, smoking a cigarette and talking to Herbie, saying, “Are you sure?” and Herbie, a guy who’d owned the store as long as anyone could remember and never seemed to change, was saying, “I guess.”
    â€œDon’t guess,” Carpentier said, “think. When she came in, what did she buy?”
    Herbie shrugged.
    Dougherty said, “I got Brenda mixed up with Arlene, you ever do that?” and the two men at the cash