Memory Man

Decker waits outside to follow Leopold after he’s released from custody. Leopold walks to the seedy side of town and enters a dive bar, and Decker follows him in. Leopold has taken a seat in the middle of the bar, but Decker goes to a table at the back where he can observe. A blond waitress whose hair smells strongly of chemical bleach serves Decker a beer.

Several minutes go by, but no one comes to sit with Leopold. Decker takes a seat beside Leopold and starts a conversation. Leopold seems lucid, but his comments are no less vague than when Decker questioned him before in his cell. Decker hopes to find out who planted the idea of the confession in Leopold’s mind but doesn’t receive any straight answers: “Decker felt his irritation start to rise. What had happened to his head […] had also robbed him of his ability to deal with bullshit, deceit, and generally squirrelly behavior” (158).

Decker tries to remain patient as he leads Leopold to talk about cold cases. Leopold abruptly announces that he needs to leave. Decker waits a few seconds and follows him outside, but Leopold has completely vanished.