Copp In The Dark, A Joe Copp Thriller (Joe Copp Private Eye Series) (24 page)

Actually brought a smile to the judge's face when I told him that
Alfie
seemed to have an interest in law and that he would have made a good lawyer. Of course, I didn't qualify "good" and I think maybe Johansen's smile was tinged with irony.

I haven't seen Judith since last Saturday. The theater is dark and apparently will stay that way until a new producer can lighten it again. But every time I pass that corner, for the rest of my life, I will think of
Man of La
Mancha
and the quest for excellence in human affairs.

      
That's not such a bad thing to think about, not even for a
Copp
for Hire.

      
Lunceford
told me that Judith left town even before her father's funeral.

      
Said he thinks she went to New Zealand.

      
Maybe I’ll wander down that way too, some day soon, if my Visa can stand it. I dream sometimes, too, you know. And I’ll never stop dreaming of Judy, impossible though it may be.

      
Impossible, you see, because I believe with all my heart and mind that Judith White pulled the trigger on her father.