“This is one of those complicated situations....” I trailed off.
“Meaning what, exactly?” asked Carlos.
“Meaning I’m not sure what he’s talking about.”
Tristan repeated: “Forty-eight hours.”
“What happens then?” Carlos asked, his eyes boring into Tristan.
“Am I free to go, Inspector?” Tristan asked.
Carlos and I exchanged a glance. He was dressed in plain clothes, and no one else had called him by his title. How had Tristan known he was a cop—and an inspector at that?
“Not if you’re making threats against Ms. Ivory, you’re not,” said Carlos.
“I am not the one who is making the threats,” Tristan said. He nodded at Sailor. “He is the one with whom youshould speak. One moment ago he threatened my life. Lily Ivory, I am staying at the Hotel Marais. On Bush Street, not far from the Chinatown gates.” He handed me a business card from a downtown hotel. “Room two seventeen. I shall be waiting to hear from you.”
Carlos, Sailor, and I watched as Tristan Dupree turned and walked down the street. He had a slight limp but was nonetheless an imposing figure.
“Lily, you sure do know some interesting people,” Carlos said, breaking the silence. “Friend of yours?”
“An acquaintance, at best,” I replied. “I met him in Germany many years ago, and haven’t seen him since.”
“What did you steal from him?”
“Honestly, I have no idea.”
“So youdidsteal something?”
“Honestly—”
“You have no idea,” Carlos finished my sentence with a nod.
“What brings you here, Carlos?” I asked, changing the subject.
“Just so happens I was down the street at Coffee to the People when Maya called. She thought there might be trouble.”
“No trouble here,” I chirped.
Sailor glowered.
“That a fact?” Carlos said. “So what’s with the forty-eight-hour deadline?”
“I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about; Tristan’s a bit of a drama king,” I said. “I’ll look through my old things, see if I might have accidentally squirreled something away.”
I was lying through my teeth. I had no idea what a beag was, much less whether I had stolen one from Tristan. I needed to give this some thought, away from the presence of the police inspector.
Sailor was staring at me, his confusion apparent.Carlos glanced at him, then at me. “All righty, then. Lily, let me know if there’s any more trouble. And, Sailor—don’t kill anyone. Matter of fact, stopthreateningto kill anyone. We clear?”
Sailor didn’t react. He did this often: The curtain would come down over his handsome features like a wall of ice. On the rare occasions that ice melted... well, it made my heart go wonky.
But right now it irritated me. Couldn’t he justoncebe cooperative and say, “Sure thing, Inspector”? Then again, I reminded myself, not everyone lies as easily as I’ve learned to do.
Carlos waited. “Sailor, I’m serious. You got a history with this guy?”
Sailor shook his head.
“Did you threaten him?”
