The first thing the next morning was to inform Harvey about the conclusion of the case. I dressed and shaved, had my usual breakfast of a Lucky and a pull from Old Fitzgerald. Claudia woke up as I was leaving.
“Finishing the case?”
I nodded.
“Gotta break some bad news. Wish me luck.”
“Good luck,” she said as she blew me a kiss. I couldn’t help but smile. I never thought I was really one for romance, but this gig felt really damn good. I made my way to my car and headed out. I made it to Harvey’s in no time. I walked up to the front door and knocked. He was expecting me.
“No Isadore?”
I ignored him and walked right in. I took my seat in the high back, Harvey took his place in the recliner. He was insistent.
“Isadore?”
I took out a Lucky and lit it up.
“Remember when I said that you shouldn’t get your hopes up, Harv? Well, I got some bad news for you.”
I explained the whole situation to him. I left out the details of her becoming a madame or all the prostitution, but I told him that I had found her and that she had said she wasn’t really wanting to come back home. Harvey was devastated, and he began to weep. I couldn’t stand to see a grown man cry.
“Why doesn’t she love me anymore, Mr. Lane,” he sobbed through his hands. I stood up and put my hand on his shoulder.
“Life isn’t fair, Harv. That’s the way it goes sometimes.”
My kind words didn’t seem to resonate as he continued to sob. I patted his shoulder and began to walk out. He looked up and spoke through his tears.
“Where are you going?”
“Case is closed, Harv. I have other things to do. Good luck to you, pal.”
With that, I left the house and made my way back home to a bottle of whiskey and a beautiful woman. Sure, life isn’t fair sometimes, but my life wasn’t too bad.