Summary

Chapter 25 opens with Parker waiting at the local pub to meet a retired detective named Rick Smith. Although Rick does not wear the typical detective's garb, he does have an air of stoicism that is "expected on the job" (170). Parker knows that he too wears the mask of stoicism, save for when he is around Becca, who brings out the free-spirited Parker he has tried to suppress. Rick tells Parker he thinks it is odd how the people of Portland do not like to talk to cops about the goings-on in town. Parker knows that he and his fellow townspeople share a loyalty to Portland. Parker's father had been the town's doctor and would secretly treat injured Scions.

Rick and Parker discuss the details of the current case. Rick seems to be putting himself on the case with Parker, referring to them as...