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SEVENTY-FOUR

WELL, THAT DIDN’T TAKE long.

Marcie’s SUV leaves the hospital just after four o’clock. Tommy uses his monocular to see into the vehicle from his spot across the street. As far as he can tell, Marcie does not have her kids with her.

He puts his car into gear and follows her. She keeps to main roads. She drives past the Community Bank — for a moment, Tommy was sure she was turning in there — and ultimately does a U-turn, finding a parking spot a block away on the opposite side of the street.

Where is she going? She’s parked next to a boarded-up restaurant. Next to that is a convenience store and a travel store.

She gets out and heads into the travel store. Tommy parks his car a block down from Marcie’s and waits for her to come out.

She isn’t in there long. She knew what she wanted, which apparently was a bunch of large duffel bags and a couple of luggage carriers to pull them.

Interesting.

Marcie returns to her vehicle and tosses her new purchases in the back. Then she crosses the street on foot, navigating through traffic. She walks down a block, and — yes, she’s headed to that bank after all.

She could have parked in the bank’s lot. But she chose not to. Instead, she chose to park far away. And enter the bank after dark.

Tommy can’t help but smile. Hiding something, Marcie?

He parks his vehicle a block farther still from Marcie’s. Then he jogs over to her car and jumps into the back seat.

He puts on his balaclava and waits.