I could have sat around stewing about the investigation supposedly of Charlie, or I could work on my image of the day. I chose the latter. The investigation would work out or not, that was something over which I had very little control.

I did get the image of the day made and processed before word of my present situation filtered down to Mary. At least it took two hours for her to call.

"John what the hell is going on?" she asked angrily.

"Not much, what's going on with you?" I knew what she meant, I was just trying to calm the situation a little..

"I talked to daddy. He said the SBI was trying to intimidate you."

"Well, something like that." I said it hoping she would calm down.

"Well, they have no idea who the hell they are screwing around with."

"Oh I'm sure they know. Don't worry honey, I expect it all to go away in a day or two."

"If we hear anything about an interview, I will personally call you."

"Mary, I don't think they really want to interview me, if it's going to be any trouble. The things I know about Charlie a hundred other guys know as well. They won't really need me to fill in the blanks. I was just the easiest place to start, they thought."

"Well don't worry, no matter what they want, I will personally see to it that nothing happens to you. At least not before our midnight picnic." She laughed before she went on. "If there is anything you need, just call me anytime. You do still have my home number?"

"Yes, I have it. Now go back to work and make a lot money, so your dad will be proud of you." I said that with a smile in my voice.

"He is already proud of me. But yes I do need to go back to work. See you soon." she said breaking the connection.

I wasn't one little bit worried about Charlie's business effecting me. I had nothing to do with it and everybody knew it. Charlie didn't even keep me in the loop about his affairs. He knew I wanted to be far away from his so called friends. That being the case, there was nothing I could or would tell the state investigators.

My concern was Robbie and his almost severed finger. I was absolutely sure he was whining about it all over the jail. It might easily have put his court appointed lawyer's panties in a wad. He might have got someone to launch an investigation. If so, the Charlie thing was just a rouse. I didn't intend to answer any questions about anything, if I could avoid it. It was my position to let the state boys try to prove something happened to Robbie. Even if they proved that it wasn't an accident let them try to prove that I did it. I had absolutely no intention of explaining anything until I had to. Then it would be on the witness stand, where I would deny everything and come up with some logical alternative answers. Plus add, "Even if I did do it the bastard killed my best friend for no good reason," that usually worked on juries, when a clean looking, decorated cop said it about a known thug.

I did plan to tell Herbert about the problem with Charlie and his killer. He needed to know why I wouldn't take questions during a probe of Charlie. If he could limit the area of questions, fine I would talk, if not screw them all.

I made that decision at the same time I decided that the image of the day wasn't bad. At not bad it got a few minutes of my time to try to improve it. A few of my standard manipulations and I put it in the file to save. I looked at the clock on the microwave. It was six PM, when I realized that I had wasted a whole day worrying about the state cops and the image that would likely never get used.

I made myself dinner, then sat at the computer until midnight. I checked out a few sites about the bike and batteries Then I watched the news from three different all news all day sites, finally I ended the day watching an old TV series which had aired on the SciFi network a few years before.

I fell into bed exhausted.