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“Shit. That’s the town where she’s from.”
“One other thing. The car was registered to a guy named Mickey Conner.”
“Yeah.”
“Who’s that? Not her husband, right?”
“No. That’s her cousin.”
“And did you know this guy was recently deceased? Supposedly an accident at work.”
“Yep. I knew that already, too. Any news on the fake Feds from last night?”
“Nope. They’ve disappeared as if they never existed. Also haven’t seen the car they were in. I’m trying to follow up with the two items they left behind, but no luck yet. I’ll keep at it. You never know.”
“Thanks, Duke. Anything else?”
“Nope, that’s all I know.”
“Thanks for the heads-up.”
He hung up, stared at the ceiling, and prepared himself to tell Lilianna bad news, again.
Entering the bedroom, Dylan knew his voice sounded despondent when he said, “That was Duke. They found your car.”
“And this isn’t good news?” Lilianna asked as if preparing for the worst news.
“Not this time. Sorry.”
“What’s up?” Hunter asked.
“Unfortunately, they found your car burned up.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Completely burned up?”
“I’m afraid so.”
She closed her eyes, shaking her head from side to side. “So unfair,” she whispered. “Most of my belongings were in that vehicle. I didn’t have a lot, but now it’s all gone. And all my clothes.” Her hands moved to cover her face.
“I’m so sorry, honey.” Dylan climbed on the bed opposite of Hunter.
Her hands fell away suddenly, and her head lifted.
“What’s wrong?” Hunter asked.
“I just remembered something. My landlady called me. I forgot about it because of the second call.” She shook her head. “Anyway, she said I left a box of stuff behind in storage. I’m not sure of everything that’s in it. I probably should have thrown it away, but at least I didn’t lose absolutely everything.”
Hunter shook his head. “I don’t think you should go back to that area. At least not anytime soon.”
She pushed out a sigh, rolled up, and sat cross-legged on the bed between them. “I’m going to have to go back there anyway, for another reason. Because of the other call.”
“No call or really any reason is good enough,” Hunter said, then looked at Dylan as if he should also weigh in and agree.
“Hunter’s right. You should stay as far away as possible from your old hometown, and the loan shark. He’s certainly being more destructive than I would have expected. Allegedly.” He stroked his fingers over her knee.
“The thing is, I got a message early this morning from Mick’s bookie. Herbert said he wants me to come visit him, or else he’s going to tell whatever he knows to Sammy instead.”
“So? Let him.”
Lilianna said, “I suspect that Mick owed him money. And if he did, it wouldn’t be unheard of for Sammy to buy up the debt and add it to the amount he’s already decided that I owe him from Mick’s stupid bet, and ramp up his search to even more invasive lengths.”
Dylan sat up. “You do not owe anyone anything for your dead cousin’s debt. It’s the law.”
“Tell that to Sammy. He makes up his own law back home. As a matter of fact, in Winston, he is the law. He’s rumored to have connections with organized crime in Chicago, and promptly lords that over everyone who might think to cross him. “
Hunter’s eyes narrowed. “Do you know who Sammy’s connection is in Chicago?”
She shook her head. “Somebody big. That’s all I know.”
“What makes you think so?” Dylan asked.
Lilianna plucked at the sheets. “Mostly just rumor and gossip around town. There have been lots of stories over the years about guys that borrowed and couldn’t pay back what they owed.
“Mostly they would go off with Ted or rough types no one had ever seen before or ever did again. Sometimes, those that couldn’t pay disappeared forever. At least that’s what people gossip about. Truth is, no one knows what happened to them. Maybe they were just run out of town, but maybe they never made it out at all and are buried in the foundations of buildings around town.”
