Title: Superheroes and Friends

Chapter 3

*****

I hear a knock at my office door; but before I can react, it swings open.

"Webb," I say.  I've been expecting him.

He stands there frowning at me, his arms crossed.  He's dressed in casual clothes.  I suppose that means I've interrupted his day off. 

After a few moments, he tosses a file on my desk.  "Here's the file you ordered," he says.  Then he adds, "You want fries with that?"

"Funny," I say.

I thumb through the file, stopping when I hear a long-suffering sigh.  Glancing up at Webb, I say, "What?"

'Would it kill you to say thank you?"

"Thank you, Clay."

"You're welcome." He keeps staring at me.  "So, what are you working on?  Case?"

"Favor," I mumble. 

Last night, an old friend of my father's stopped by and asked me to look into the disappearance of his brother.  But I'm not going to tell Clay that.

"You know," he says.  "You don't have to have an excuse to call me."  He leans against the door frame. "It would be nice if you called me for social reasons."

I cross my arms and look up at him.  He doubts our friendship.  He always has.  Clay's mom once told me that he's always been a loner.  So, I guess he doesn't have a lot of experience having people who care about him.

"Okay," I say.  "Why don't we go fishing sometime?"  I lean back in my chair, waiting for him to argue with me. 

"Fine," he nods.  "I'll have Mother bring my gear down from the attic."

"You actually fish?" I ask incredulously.

 "Yeah, Rabb," he says irritably.  "I fish."

Over the years, pushing Clay's buttons has become a hobby of mine.  But I have to watch that I don't push too far.  For a guy some people call "the tin man," Clay's feelings get hurt pretty easily.  I've always wondered if he was bullied as a kid or something.

Still, I can't resist one more dig.  "So, do you have one of those hats with the lures hanging off of it?"

"No," he spits. 

I smile.  "So, do you know anything new about your dad?"

He lets out a breath.  "Rabb, I told you.  I just wanted to bury him."

"You don't want to know what happened to him?"  I ask.

He stares at the wall. "I gave my right to know," he says quietly.

I lean forward.  He's lying, and I know it. "Come on, Clay.  Aren't you curious?"

"Rabb," he says irritably.  "Haven't you ever heard the phrase 'curiosity killed the cat'?"

I have to bite my lip to keep from laughing.  "Curiosity killed the cat?"  I stand up.  "I'd want to know."

He glowers at me. "And let's see where your little adventures to find your father took us.  There was the time you got framed for murder.  And there were all the frequent flier miles we racked up between here and Russia."

"And there was Sergei."  I take a step forward, so I'm right in front of him.  "And we did find out what happened to my dad.  I got closure."

He exhales, his breathing a little staggered.  "Rabb, why are you doing this to me?"

"I just thought you'd want to know."

"It happened a very long time ago."

I shrug.  "Where'd they find him?"

"Classified."

"Oh, come on."  He uses that excuse to hide from everything he doesn't want to face.

Clay stares at me for a long moment, and then he starts to back out the door.  "They found him in Russia, okay?  Now leave me alone."