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I nodded. Reid had a fair point, but I’d already convicted Manny in my mind. The man had something to do with this. It reeked of a setup.
And I was going to find out what the fuck was going on.
I parked the Chevy sedan on the street, exited, and walked up the path leading to the front door. I raised my hand and pounded onto the wood so hard it actually hurt.
“There’s a doorbell,” Reid said.
“Fuck off.” I pounded again.
No answer, of course.
“Manny!” I yelled. “Open up!”
“I thought we were staying under the radar,” Reid whispered.
“Open up,” I yelled again, ignoring my brother. “Open up this minute or I swear to fucking God I’ll break this door down and then I’ll break you in half!”
Nothing.
Until—
“Go away. I’ve called the cops.” Manny’s voice.
“Good!” I yelled. “I’m sure they’ll be interested to hear what you’ve been up to.”
“The cops?” Reid whispered. “If they find out who we are—”
“He’s bluffing. If he were innocent in this mess, he’d let me in. He knows I won’t hurt him if he hasn’t done anything.”
“Good point.” Reid joined me in pounding on the door.
“You got to the count of three, Manny! Or my brother and I are going to storm in there and take out all our aggressions on you. One! Two! Thr—”
The door opened.
A trembling Manny, clad in green flannel pajamas, stood before us. I pushed him out of the way and walked in.
“Did you really think we wouldn’t figure this out?” I demanded.
“Figure what out?” Manny’s voice cracked.
I rolled my eyes. “Please don’t go there.” I looked above to the light fixture in the ceiling of his foyer. “Are we being watched? Listened to?”
He shook his head.
“Forgive me if I don’t take your word for it. Have a look around, Mike.”
“Mike?” Manny said.
“Shut the fuck up. When I want your input, I’ll ask for it.” I stood on tiptoe and unscrewed the fixture, shielding my eyes against the blinding light from the naked bulb.
“He probably wouldn’t put a camera in the foyer,” Reid said.
“Makes sense to me,” I replied. “All the comings and goings.”
Reid shrugged. “Decent point.” He walked into the formal living room and started moving things.
“Just a min—”
“Shut the fuck up!” I said to Manny once more.
He complied. While Reid checked the living and dining rooms, I headed into the kitchen. I wasn’t a pro at this, but I was determined to find out if anything was amiss. After a quick scan, I didn’t see anything odd.
Still…
“Get in here,” I said to Manny. “Where’s the back door?”
“It goes out from the family room on another level,” he said. “It’s a walkout basement.”
“Show me.”
I followed Manny down a long flight of stairs to a man cave that could only belong to a doctor. I nodded toward his curio cabinet. “What the fuck, Manny?”
“It’s a…collection.”
“Of what? Sixteenth-century torture devices?” In reality, I knew exactly what the devices were. Who the hell collected that kind of stuff?
“They’re speculums. Or specula, maybe. They’re used to—”
“I know exactly what they’re used for, you fucked-up maniac. For God’s sake.” I nodded toward the door. “We’re going outside.”
He shakily unlocked the deadbolt and opened the door. I followed him out, Reid on my tail.
I scanned quickly for cameras and other equipment. I didn’t see anything, but just to be on the safe side, I pushed Manny off his redwood deck and out into the yard. Luckily the house sat on a huge lot.
I grabbed his collar. “Time to start talking, asshole.”
“Rock, come on,” he said shakily. “We’re old pals.”
“Our friendship ended the day you and Hoss finagled me out of first class airfare to come to New York to tell me nothing. You’re just a mercenary, Manny, and that’s how I’ll treat you.”
“I’m no—”
“Sell it to the Air Force,” I said. “Now you tell me exactly what you know about Leta Romero.”
“She’s a patient. You know I can’t—”
“Yes, your ethical duty. That went out the door a while ago, so I call bullshit. The woman got her ass whooped after leaving your office a few days ago. Care to tell me what’s going on?”
He gasped. “Is she all right?”
“No, she’s not all right. She got the ass-kicking of a lifetime. She’s lying in a hospital bed. My question is…who knew she was seeing you that day? Because they jumped her outside your building.”
“I wouldn’t know.”
“Really?” I increased my hold on his collar. “Think hard.”
While I questioned Manny, Reid was staking out his yard. He finally joined me. “Looks clean, but you never know.”
“We’re probably good,” I said, “and honestly? I don’t fucking care.” I turned my attention back to Manny. “Here are your options. You tell me what you know about the Romero sisters, or I’ll make sure you end up in the hospital next to Leta.”
“Rock, I don’t know anyth—”
