LITMIR.BIZ

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Decker said. “I found that out.”

      A little too late.

      “Have any other names of snuff men?” he asked.

      “Nope. I’ll see what I can do.”

      “Lie low, Kiki. This is getting messy. You’ve done enough. I’m working on paying you back like we discussed.”

      She was silent.

      “You there?” he asked.

      “Yeah. I can’t believe you’re coming through.”

      “Call me back in a week,” he said. “It should be all set up.”

      “Okay. I’ll see what I can dig up in the meantime.”

      “No!” Decker said, more loudly than he’d intended to. “Just cool it. We’ll find Pode ourselves. Don’t do any more.”

      She was silent again.

      “Kiki, if you keep poking around, you’re gonna get whacked. Is that straightforward enough?”

      “Hey, I did all right so far. I can take care of myself.”

      “Honey, I’m sure you can,” Decker said, backing off. “How ’bout you doing me a favor and just keep your nose clean until I can get you into this program?”

      A long pause on the other end of the line.

      “What’s it like?” she asked in a tiny voice.

      “It’s a really good place, Kiki. Lots of trees and grass and a swimming pool. The people are good—strict but honest. You’ll do real well there.”

      “Will you visit me?”

      Decker hesitated, then said, “No. But you’ll make loads of friends, honey. Good friends.”

      “What if I don’t make it, you know? I mean what if—”

      “Kiki, let’s take it one day at a time.”

      “It’s just that I’m not so sure it’s what I want. I mean I want to get off of the streets you know, but I’m real independent like.”

      “You’ll do fine.”

      “I mean I got a couple of quirks you know.”

      “Everyone has quirks.”

      “Do they have TVs there?”

      “Yes.”

      “Do they watch Walley George?”

      Decker smiled. “I’m sure you’ll get TV privileges.”

      “I dunno … dunno just dunno if I’m ready. Maybe I’m better off working for you.”

      “Kiki, if you want to help me out, keep yourself out of trouble until I contact you, okay?”

      “How will you know where to find me?”

      “Still got my card?”

      “Uh huh.”

      “Then come by the station house in a week. You need bread in the meantime?”

      “I’m okay.”

      “Then come by in a week.”

      She was silent for a long time.

      “I’m a little nervous, you know.”

      “That’s okay, Kiki. Everyone gets nervous occasionally. Even big, macho cops who pack iron. You come by in a week. Deal?”

      “Deal,” she said, then hung up the phone.

      Decker placed the receiver back in the cradle and leaned back in his chair. He felt good. Marge came over to him with a hot cup of coffee.

      “Drink,” she said.

      “Thanks.”

      “How much sleep did you get last night, Rabbi?”

      “’Bout two hours.”

      “Taking the morning off?”

      “Not until I find Pode.”

      “Good luck,” she said. “I’m off to the Galleria.” She zipped up her shoulder bag and looked at the leather shredding around the seams. “Maybe I’ll look at purses as long as I’m there. This one is shot. Literally. An old gun I used to carry accidentally discharged and blew a hole out the bottom. I patched it up with electrical tape. Think it’s time for a new one?”

      “I’d say that’s reasonable.”

      “Can I pick you up anything as long as I’m out?”

      Sleep, a steak, and sex, he thought. In that order.

      “No thanks,” he said.

      “Anything?” Decker asked hopefully.

      “Nothing,” Hollander answered.

      Angrily, Decker crumpled a piece of scratch paper and threw it in the garbage. Marge hadn’t come up with anything at the Galleria either. If he didn’t come through with some hard evidence, Lindsey would remain an open file. He felt he owed her more.

      “What’s ole Dustin like?” Decker asked.

      “A sleazebag,” said Hollander, taking off his jacket. He pulled up a chair and sat down, his widespread buttocks overflowing the seat. “Wouldn’t trust him to clip my hangnail.”

      “What’d you ask him?”

      “Well, first thing I do is try to develop the old rapport. Told him his jacket was pretty sharp. Next thing I know, I’m getting a goddam fashion lecture on where to buy clothes. He knows this fart and that putz who’ll give him fifty percent off on all Italian silk imports. The upshot of the whole thing is the guy loves to play teacher. So I’ll play the dupe. Maybe we’ll get lucky and he’ll talk himself into a corner. But no dice.”

      “You wouldn’t put it past him to make snuffs?” Decker asked.

      “Hell, no. I wouldn’t put it past him. Guy has radar eyes. Always trying to size you up then figure out his angle.”

      “What did he tell you about his dad?”

      “Hasn’t talked to Daddy in months. They aren’t as close as they used to be.”

      “Maybe we can pull out phone bills that says he has.”

      “So what?”

      “Well, if it were to show lots of calls between the two of them, at least we’d establish Dustin as a liar.”

      “Then what?”

      Decker shrugged. “I don’t know.”

      “We’d prove what I already instinctively know,” said Hollander. “The guy’s an asshole.”

      “What did Dustin think about Daddy’s sideline in porno stills?” he asked.

      “Dustin got pissed at that one—claimed that Daddy is just a downhome country photographer. If Daddy ever did anything nasty like that, it was just to feed his poor li’l chilluns!”

      “How dare we besmirch Daddy’s blemishless image!” Decker mocked.

      “You’d better believe it. Guy was ready to call in the ACLU. I calmed him down. I asked him what kind of car he drove. Guy chewed my ear off on the marvels of the Mercedes.”

      Mike scratched his nose, thought a moment, then said, “The guy plainly likes his father. He didn’t say much about his mother.”

      “You asked him about the fire?”

      “Yep. He said this. Mom got drunk a lot. She was very careless about drinking and smoking in bed. More than once he had to pull her out of smoldering bedcovers. Most of the time he’d gotten

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