In the Company of Liars

ONE DAY EARLIER
WEDNESDAY, MAY 5

Ram Haroon sits at the counter of the diner and rotates the coffee cup on its saucer. He steals a look at his watch, sees that it’s eight on the dot. By now, most of the families have left the restaurant, most of the little kiddies. There are some couples lining the booths, mostly older folks, one pair of teenagers on a cheap date.

He gets up and heads to the men’s room at the back. It’s a bigger room than he would have thought. There are two urinals and two stalls with red doors. One of them is occupied. He sees the gym shoes. Normally, one would expect to see pants bunched up at the ankles while someone sits in a bathroom stall. Which means his contact is good, but not that good.

A men’s room, he thinks to himself.Of all places.

Haroon enters the neighboring stall, puts down the toilet seat, and sits on it. There is probably no point in going through the motions of dropping his pants. It seems a little odd, in fact, given the familiarity with his neighbor.

He hears paper unwrapping in the neighboring stall. A moment later, a single piece of stationery creeps along the floor into his stall. He picks it up and reads it.

Countryside Grocery Store. Corner of Apple Drive and Riordan. Back. Delivery entrance. You will see a yellow post against the fence. Look right there. You are not keeping this so write it down.

Ram doesn’t write it down; instead he commits it to memory.

Countryside Grocery Store. Apple and Riordan. Yellow post in back.

Countryside. Apple. Riordan. Yellow.

Ram takes the message and, with his pen, writes a single word on it and hands it back under the stall.

When?

The answer comes back in less than a minute.

Get it now. It will need to happen soon. Wait for my call.

Ram Haroon gets to his feet and flushes an unused toilet. He walks back to the counter of the restaurant, where his dinner awaits him. He keeps his eyes on the Cobb salad before him.

Countryside. Apple. Riordan. Yellow. He says the words over and over in his head, paying no attention to anyone who might happen to pass by on the way out of the restaurant.