Ch. 27: state of mind
He entered through his private entrance. But, he slammed the door so damn hard, she nearly jumped out of her seat. Ruby looked up, her eyes shifting to Vic. That answered the question as to how things went with Jim Wilkins.
As expected.
Vic stood up and walked to the closed door. She tapped before she opened the door. Walt was standing, one hand on the back of his head. Vic slipped in and closed the door behind her.
"I take it Wilkins was his usual charming self."
Walt's hand dropped to his side.
"Yep."
She could see the anger etched into his features. He was tense. She studied him with a practiced eye.
"You didn't do anything stupid, did you?"
Walt shook his head slightly.
"No. Thought about it."
He came around his desk and breathed out a sigh. Vic approached, stopping maybe a foot from him.
"You didn't really expect him to help."
It wasn't a question.
"No, I didn't. But…"
He stopped short, seeming to throw the thought away before he vocalized it.
"You were gone for a long time."
She was cautiously trying to ensure that he hadn't done anything he would regret when his head was clearer and his anger receded.
"Drove around."
He seemed to sense what she was doing and his face softened a bit.
"I didn't go there. I almost did. But..."
"But…"
She closed the short distance between them.
"But…me flying off the handle will only make it worse."
Vic gave him a surprised look.
"Wow."
He had been able to admit to himself in recent times, during his civil trial, that he sometimes contributed to his own problems. While he could be measured and thoughtful, he could also be quick to anger when the right button was pushed. The tension in him eased up.
"I'm working on myself."
She gave him a half smile.
"Better late than never."
She reached up and placed her palm on his chest.
"You getting arrested by Jim Wilkins is definitely not helpful."
"That's why I'm here and not there. I'm not giving him that satisfaction. This isn't over, though. Don't think it is."
"I would never."
He smiled.
"How are you?"
"Okay."
"Really?"
"Yes, really. I uh…I sent Ferg out to see if any of the businesses have cameras. Maybe someone got something we can use."
"He back yet?"
"No. Zach canvassed the area and no one around us was open when it happened. So, no one saw anything as far as we can tell. We're checking for prints. But…you know how that goes."
"Yep."
She took a breath.
"We work this case like any other one. Nothing stupid. No cutting corners. You are too close to retirement."
"I don't care about that."
Vic tossed him a look.
"I know you don't. But, I do. You have worked too hard to reach this point. These fuckers aren't going to mess that up. So…steer clear until we have something more concrete."
He gave her an amused look.
"Isn't that my line?"
Vic shrugged.
"You're not the only one who's been working on themselves."
She grew serious, relieved to know that he hadn't taken matters into his own hands. She was scared of that when he didn't come back within a reasonable amount of time.
"Thank you."
Walt looked confused.
"For what?"
"For not losing your shit."
His head dipped.
"I wanted to punch Wilkins."
Vic laughed humorlessly.
"I want to punch Wilkins every time I see him. The man is an arrogant ass."
"Yep."
Walt stepped back from her and leaned on his desk.
"Anything else?"
Vic perked up a bit.
"Henry…came by to see you."
"Something wrong?"
"No, he asked if we were free for dinner tonight."
The statement clearly piqued Walt's interest. That was unusual in and of itself.
"Dinner?"
"Yes. He has someone he wants you to meet."
Walt gave her a long look.
"A…woman?"
"Seems so. You have any idea he was seeing someone?"
"None."
"He said they were being discreet. Anyway…you should call him."
"Are you up for dinner?"
She shrugged.
"Might be a good distraction."
Walt nodded.
"I'll give him a call."
"Has he ever…wanted you to meet someone he was seeing?"
"Nope."
"Damn, must be serious."
"Must be. I just assumed Henry would be a bachelor forever. A lot has changed."
"And here you are right in the thick of it. Who would have thought that?"
He smiled and pushed up off his desk just as a knock sounded on the door. The door opened and Ferg stuck his head in.
"Busy?"
Walt shook his head.
"No. Come in."
Ferg opened the door all the way and came in, phone in hand. His face was flushed.
"I checked with all the businesses in the vicinity and only one has cameras pointed this direction."
"Can you see anything?"
He tapped on his phone, pulled up a picture and offered it to Vic. She held the phone up to her face and squinted.
"It's dark but…you can see them. Sort of."
She zoomed in on the picture before she handed Walt the phone.
"Recognize that little shit?"
He looked.
"Yep. Looks an awful lot like Derek Gilbert. Might be enough to get us a warrant."
Ferg smiled.
"If not. This…"
He took the phone back, swiped, and handed it back to Walt.
"…this might be. Car with a visible tag."
Walt's eyes snapped up to hers as he turned the phone around.
"Looks like the same car that dropped him off at your trailer park."
She looked at the picture and returned her eyes to his.
"Sure does."
He gave Ferg the phone back.
"See if you can get these cleared up so that we can see this tag number. Get stills of these printed out."
Ferg gave him a nod.
"Sure thing."
xxx
"Did you call Henry?"
It was an offhand question and not one that meant very much in the grand scheme of things. It filled up the quiet space between them. They were waiting. So much of law enforcement was rooted in waiting. Waiting for information, waiting for people.
In this case, they were waiting for Ferg to finish up with the pictures. The younger deputy seemed confident that he would be able to pull at least a partial match with the tag. If the car matched back to someone connected with Derek Gilbert, they would be in business.
Walt was leaned back in his chair, his hands resting on his stomach.
"Not yet."
"You should probably call and let him know you might be running down suspects."
He was quiet for a moment.
"I've been thinking about that."
Vic stood up from his couch and stretched her arms up over her head. She wasn't good at waiting.
"What about it?"
More silence. She was starting to think that she wasn't going to like his answer. Were she to give it enough thought, she would have come up with the beginning of his response.
"First of all, you're not coming when I drive out there."
She opened her mouth to respond. But, Walt lifted his hand in a manner that stopped her from objecting.
"Let me finish."
Vic sighed as he stood up slowly. He was in full Sheriff mode, a careful mask over his features. Walt walked around his desk so that there were no barriers in between them. It was a calculated move. Vic recognized that.
"You are too close to this, Vic. We both know that. Now, I admit, I've made some questionable choices lately, but this isn't going to be one. You…are the victim in all of this. It opens up too many doors for you to be there."
He made sense and that drove her crazy. She made a face when he called her a victim even though it was technically true. She hated that label above anything else and the image that it conjured in her mind.
"Walt…"
He shook his head, telling her that his mind was already made up and there probably wasn't anything that she could do to change that.
"No. I'll take Ferg with me."
There was that tone she knew. In moments like this one, she hated it.
"Jesus."
She pushed out the word on a breath of frustration. Walt didn't respond or try to make her feel any better. He would know that anything he tried would be batted back at him.
"Fine."
She tossed out the word and Walt's head bobbed a little.
"So…what else?"
She knew there was more. Walt seemed to be relieved that the first part of the conversation was over. He likely expected her to put up more of a fight than she actually did.
"I don't think I'm going over there today."
Vic tilted her head, confused by that choice.
"Why? If the tag comes back…you have cause."
"I know. And, I plan to talk to them. But…"
He paused and leaned on his desk.
"…I'm willing to be they think we can't touch them where they are. They're in a different county and everyone knows how Jim Wilkins feels about me. It wouldn't be a stretch at all for them to feel overconfident in all of this. I'm inclined to let them continue to think that. They'll think that if we don't show up quick, then we're not coming at all. We wait and go over there tomorrow, maybe we catch them off guard. Surprise them."
The element of surprise was not to be overstated in their line of work. What he was saying made some sense.
"So…no matter what Ferg finds out, you're not going today?"
"Nope. Don't think so. I'm thinking that you and I should go and have dinner with Henry."
Vic studied him. He was calm now in contrast to how he was earlier when he got back from seeing Jim Wilkins. This was the Walt who got things done. The Walt who was thinking through his every move and could outsmart anyone.
He straightened up off the desk and let his arms fall down to his sides. He approached her slowly, his expression shifting slightly.
"I'm not gonna mess this up."
Vic tilted her head back slightly, looking up at him.
"I know."
"I mean it, Vic. I'm not going to let them get away with this. Not this time. We are going to do this right and you won't have to worry about these people anymore. This will all be over."
She wanted to believe him. She wanted to have faith in that statement. He seemed sure. She wanted that same certainty. God knows that was what she wanted. What she needed. What they both needed. She bit her lip and nodded. She didn't quite trust her voice. Not with the way he was looking at her.
Such sincerity.
He meant every word that he was saying.
She found some solace in that.
Walt's eyes released her and she blinked.
"Okay."
One corner of Walt's mouth quirked up.
"I expected you to put up more of an argument."
Vic shrugged.
"Would it do me any good?"
He smiled slightly.
"No."
His voice was low.
Vic huffed out a laugh that didn't hold any real humor.
"So…why waste my time beating my head against a wall."
He tipped his head down slightly.
"You know that I'm right about this."
Vic rolled her eyes.
"I do and I hate it."
She smiled at him.
"So…you should call Henry. Let him know that we can meet him."
He nodded and took a step back from her.
"Yeah. You're up to it?"
Vic let out a sigh.
"Yep. Nothing else to do anyway. Might do us some good to not…worry about this so much. And…I'm curious about this mystery woman."
Walt made a humming sound agreeing with her on that front. As much as he kept it tamped down, she knew that he was just as curious as he was.
Maybe more.
xxx
He convinced Henry to compromise.
Henry originally wanted to meet them at the casino restaurant. In spite of the fact that Henry was running the place now, and that Walt urged him to take the position, it still didn't feel right to him. It almost felt like a betrayal of sorts. To the memory of Martha and the fight she waged against the early plans to build the casino, and against his own convictions. Ideas he still hadn't entirely discarded.
There might come a day when he felt differently. He suspected that was likely as time passed and old wounds eased up, fading. But, now was not that time. He simply wasn't ready to take that step.
To his credit, Henry seemed to understand and accept that. Henry knew better than anyhow how Walt felt about this. Though they might disagree, Henry respected the way he felt. Walt appreciated that.
He would have been perfectly fine with the Red Pony. Henry seemed reluctant to take that route. So, they settled on a fairly generic place in town that would satisfy everyone. Neutral territory and all that.
He didn't have any idea what to expect. Henry didn't really have a type. He didn't date enough women to establish a pattern. The most recent one that Walt knew was Dena Many Camps. It wouldn't take much to improve on the woman who actually stole from Henry.
Henry's truck was already parked in the lot when they arrived. Vic slipped from the Bronco and waited for him to come around. It felt oddly normal to be meeting another couple for dinner. They didn't do normal.
He took in Vic as he rounded the hood. She looked nice wearing jeans and a lavender button down shirt. Just casual enough, but not too much so. Her hair was pulled back, keeping it out of her face.
She gave him an impatient look.
"Come on. Stop dragging."
"I'm not."
Vic answered with a predictable roll of her eyes.
"You might like her."
"I didn't say anything."
She dismissed his insistence and started for the restaurant. He increased his strides just before they reached the door and pulled it open for her. Vic smiled.
"Trying to score points?"
He huffed out a laugh as she passed him.
"Trying to be a gentleman."
She tapped her hand on his chest.
"Why start now?"
It was rhetorical and he didn't bother. Walt scanned the room and his eyes landed on Henry who lifted his hand and waved them over. Henry rose as they approached and offered up a smile.
"I am glad that you could come."
He gestured towards the woman sitting beside him. Walt noted that she was Cheyenne, like Henry. At least partially. Her hair was so black that it shone under the lights. It was thick and fell almost all the way down her back. It was pulled back at the sides which was effective in keeping it out of her face. Her hands and wrists were decorated with an assortment of rings and bracelets that he knew were hand made on the Rez.
"This…"
There was a slight pause in the introduction.
"…is Joy Whitehawk. Joy, this is Walt Longmire…and Vic Moretti."
She smiled at Walt and rose partially, extending her hand.
"It's so nice to meet you. Henry has told me so much about you."
Walt shook the offered hand.
"It's good to know he tells someone something."
Joy laughed and offered her hand to Vic. Vic smiled politely.
"Nice to meet you."
They took their seats and a waitress came over for their drink order. Once she was gone, Joy settled her eyes on Walt. They were dark, intelligent eyes.
"So…you've known Henry since you were boys?"
Walt nodded.
"Long time."
"I guess you're the one I need to for stories."
Henry shook his head.
"No."
She laughed again.
Their drinks arrive and Walt lifted his beer to take a drink while they ordered food. Once they were alone again, Joy gave him a look across the table.
"I can't say that I've ever had dinner with a Sheriff."
"Might be your last chance. I'm retiring."
"I heard. What are you plans for retirement?"
He gave her a noncommittal look.
"Still working that out."
Her dark eyes shifted to Vic.
"Henry tells me you're from back east."
Vic leaned on the table.
"Philadelphia."
"I've been there. It's an amazing city. That's quite a move. Not to mention a lifestyle change."
"It's definitely a change."
"Do you miss it?"
"Sometimes."
"Your family is there?"
"Yeah."
Joy nodded a little.
"Do you plan to move back at some point?"
Vic was quiet for a beat.
"Not anytime soon."
Joy's eyes stayed on her.
"I…apologize for all the questions. It's just that I was born here and raised. I've traveled a good bit, but I always wind up back in Wyoming. There's just something about the place that you're actually from. Nowhere else can ever really replace it. People who've made moves that big interest me. But, in my experience most of them wind up going home at some point."
Vic studied the woman.
"Well…none of us really knows what the future holds."
It was a generic answer. Walt knew it was designed to end the conversation.
"True."
"So…what do you do?"
It was an attempt by Vic to divert the conversation down a different path, one that didn't focus on her.
"I'm an artist. I make jewelry."
She indicated the pieces that she was wearing.
"I…also paint. But, it's the jewelry that really pays the bills. I was actually…"
She gave Henry a quick look.
"…doing some artwork for the casino. That's how we met. He wanted some murals and he got in touch with me."
Walt looked between the two of them. He didn't have a good read on Joy yet and couldn't say for sure if he liked her. There wasn't anything to dislike so far.
"You work together?"
Walt nodded.
"For now."
"That's tricky, I suppose."
Walt shifted in his seat.
"Sometimes. We manage."
She smiled at him just as their food arrived.
xxx
"Do you like her?"
Vic gave him a look of expectation as he drove towards the cabin.
"I don't not like her."
She huffed.
The rest of dinner had been pleasant enough. They moved on to more benign topics and stories about Henry and Walt in their younger days. Some Vic knew. Some she didn't. They were all entertaining to hear.
All in all, there was a lot of small talk and that was something Walt wasn't good at. She wasn't all that great at it herself with someone she didn't know. But, at least she could carry a conversation.
"That's real helpful."
"Doesn't matter if I like her or not."
"Henry is you best friend. I'm pretty sure it matters to him."
He didn't respond.
"Or, are you guys not like that. I know he wasn't thrilled about you and me. But, he seems to have gotten over it."
"It wasn't because of dislike. It was…caution."
"Yeah. So…it wouldn't bother you if Henry was still opposed to us?"
"He was never opposed. He was worried about the same issues that you and I were. It's not the same thing."
"That's not an answer to the question."
He sighed.
"Yes, it would bother me. Not enough to change anything. But…I don't think you can really compare us to them. He just met this woman. There's no history."
"True. So…do you like her?"
She tossed the question at him again and Walt shook his head slightly while keeping his eyes on the road.
"I don't really have an opinion yet. She seems nice."
"Nice."
Vic repeated the word with a tinge of something. She looked his way.
"No one ever says that when they meet me. She's…nice."
She injected a chipper tone into her voice when she said it that time. He smiled to himself and chose not to step into that particular trap. They were quiet for a few minutes as he drove.
Unusually, it was Walt who broke the silence.
"Do you like her?"
"She seems nice."
She managed to get the sentence out with a straight face before she gave up and smiled. Walt laughed quietly as he pulled onto the dirt road that led to the cabin. Vic's phone rang and she pulled it out.
"It's Ferg."
She answered the phone on speaker.
"Hey, Ferg."
"Hey. Are you with Walt?"
She held the phone over in his direction in a move that was familiar.
"Yep."
Walt responded as he bounced down the road.
"We weren't able to get any prints. They were probably wearing gloves."
It wasn't exactly shocking. It was about what she expected.
"Yep."
"But…we were able to get a complete tag number from our camera shots and the car is registered to an…Aaron Massey."
"Chance Gilbert's cousin."
The comment came from Vic.
"The very same."
Walt gave her a quick look as he pulled up in front of the cabin and parked.
"Good work, Ferg."
"You want to ride over to Cumberland County?"
"Not tonight."
"Are you sure? I can meet you."
"No, we'll go in the morning. Bright and early. They're not going anywhere."
"Okay. Do you need anything else?"
"No. Thanks for calling."
"No problem."
Vic ended the call and slid her phone into her jacket as they got out and went inside. She had actually managed to get through the evening without thinking about this mess. Now, it was all back in force.
"I assume you aren't taking this to Wilkins."
Walt hung up his hat.
"No."
"Is that smart?"
"I don't know about smart. But, it's what I'm gonna do."
Vic let out a breath.
"What are you gonna do when he throws a fit about you overstepping your jurisdiction?"
"Remind him that he didn't want to help me."
Vic looked around the living room, suddenly feeling restless and with nothing to focus on.
"You ever think about getting a TV?"
He glanced around, taking in the space.
"I don't watch TV."
"Yeah, I know. But…do you ever just want to…not think."
She waved her hand at him and shook her head.
"Never mind."
His brow furrowed.
"Do…you…want me to get a TV?
He seemed confused by the sudden topic.
"I've never known you to watch it a lot."
"I don't. It's just…so quiet here."
"That's never bothered you before."
"It doesn't bother me now. I just…"
Walt looked around as though he were looking for something.
"Do you want me to put on some music?"
Speaking of music…her eyes drifted to the piano.
"You could play me some music."
He hesitated.
"Is that what you want?"
"Are you not in the mood?"
"I don't mind. It's just…one minute we were talking about the case and the next…you asked if I had a television."
"I'm…sorry. Just…nerves. I do want you to play something. Do you know anything upbeat?"
"Yep."
Walt took a seat at the piano and started to play the fastest song she'd heard him play yet. He missed a couple of notes, but kept going. Vic alternated between watching him and watching his hands. The concentration on his face was no different than how he looked when he was reading or looking over evidence. There was something so steady in all of that. She never got tired of watching him when he was in that mode.
He finished the song and raised his eyes.
"How was that?"
"That was nice. I liked it."
She smiled.
He smiled. After a moment, his smile faded a bit.
"Vic, can I ask you something?"
"Yes."
"Once we resolve this case, are you going back to the trailer park?"
For a drawn out minute or two, she simply looked at him. Doubt must have clouded him. He spoke up before she answered him.
"I'm not…trying to pressure you. I just…I like this."
"This?"
"You. Here. All the time."
Vic inhaled and looked down at the piano.
"I don't know."
She could see the disappointment he tried to hide.
"Okay."
"That doesn't mean no, Walt. It just means…with everything that's going on, I really haven't thought about it."
His eyes held hers.
"Will you? Think about it?"
The idea didn't quite cause the panic in her that it did before.
"Yes. I will think about it."