"Why?"
"Because I'm looking for someone. Someone who used to work with them. Someone who disappeared."
Frank was quiet for a long time.
"Gabriel Mire."
My heart stopped.
"How do you know that name?"
"Because I helped him disappear. Not on purpose. Not directly. But I knew people who knew people. And I heard things."
"What kind of things?"
"That he went underground. That he's still alive. That he's been hiding from his brother's people for months."
"His brother?"
"Runs the family business."
"Where can I find him?"
"You can't. Not yet. He's protected. He has people everywhere. But I can give you a lead. A place to start."
"Where?"
"There's a warehouse on the south side. Off Meridian. They use it as a drop site for shipments coming in from overseas. You'll find people there who know people who know."
"How do you know this?"
"Because I used to work there. Before I got out. Before I decided I'd rather be a drunk than a monster."
He finished his bourbon and stood up.
"Be careful, Bunny. The people you're looking for—they're not like Matt. They're not like me. They won't hesitate to kill you."
"Neither will I."
He looked at me for a long moment.
"No. I don't suppose you will."
The warehouse was on Meridian, just like Frank had said.
I'd walked for an hour to get there—through the warehouse district, past the abandoned factories, past the homeless camps that clustered under the overpasses. The moon was hidden behind clouds, and the only light came from the security lamps that flickered on the corners of buildings.
The warehouse was dark.
But I could see movement inside.
Flashlights. Shadows. The shape of men moving through the aisles.
I pressed myself against the wall and counted.
Two.
Maybe three.
