26He didn’t want to do it. Maron stood in his office at the station, staring at his phone as though he expected it would suddenly begin talking, and tell him what he should do next.
Pull yourself together, man.
He tapped Dufort’s number.
“Bonjour, Ben,” he said, managing to sound confident. “I’m wondering if you have some time this morning for a quick consultation. It’s the Gault case. Thought we were right on top of it—just about to make an arrest. But it turns out our prime suspect has an alibi, a tight one.”
Ben had anticipated that Maron would call eventually, if the case didn’t resolve quickly. The man had little patience, and Ben was not fooled by his swaggering tone—he knew perfectly well that being acting chief had thrown Maron for a major loop, and he had not regained his foot
