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?Louie gave a nod. “For which he has a permit! Ain’t that right, Mark?”
?Mark recognized his cue. “Yes, I even have a carry permit.?
??
?“He even has a carry permit,” Louie repeated. “I also wish to point out that you gentlemen had a search warrant. You did not have an arrest warrant.”
?“We have probable cause to hold them,” DeStadler snapped.
?Louie held his hands up as if to plead with God. “Great! Another cop who thinks he’s a lawyer. It’s circumstantial, detective, since you, at this time, cannot prove that Mr. Watkins' gun was indeed the murder weapon, can you?”
?“Ballistics is examining it right now,” DeStadler fumed.
?“I see,” Louie snarled. “Well, then unless Mr. Watkins was?holding the weapon in his hand while standing over a corpse, my clients are not under arrest until you can produce an arrest warrant.”
?“We’ll get one,” Elvis assured.
?“I have no doubt,” Louie sneered. “But until such time as you do, I am demanding release on their own recognizance. Give them back their stuff. We are out of here.”
?“We already booked them,” DeStadler objected, but he could see he was losing.
?“Saves you paperwork later, and you are lucky I’m in a good mood and willing to overlook filing an action of false arrest,” Louie hissed. “Let’s go, folks.”
?We followed him out to the hall and he led us to the front desk, where he retrieved two manila envelopes with our things.
?DeStadler and Elvis glared at us, while Hank and Jeff stood there, amazed, as if watching a magician saw a lady in half while making doves appear at his fingertips.
?With DeSoto in the middle, we walked right out of the precinct and out onto 54th Street.
?“Thank you, Uncle Louie,” I said, and bent to give the short man a peck on the cheek.
?“No problemo, sweetie,” Louie dismissed. “They’ll probably arrest you again, once they’ve got the paperwork. Say nothin’ except ‘not guilty’ and call me.”
?He handed Mark a business card. “You might need this. Sherrie knows my number.”
?“Uh, thanks,” Mark marveled.
?Uncle Louie was off like a shot, carrying his big briefcase with him.
?“Well,” Hank Choi said to Mark. “You didn’t tell me you knew Louie DeSoto.”
?“Actually, I’m the one who knows him,” I offered.
?“Uncle Louie?” Mark queried.
?I shrugged, doing my “innocent girl” act. “He was my father’s friend. I’ve known him since I was little.”
?“You couldn’t get a better criminal attorney,” Hank informed me and turned to Mark’s agent. “I’ll be off. You’ll get the bill.”
?“Right, right,” the other man told him. “Thanks, Hank.”
?Hank gave a wave as he headed for the Eighth Avenue subway.
?“I guess you had it all under control,” the man asserted, then looked over at me. “By the way, we haven’t met, officially. I’m Jeff Moss.”
?“Mark’s agent,” I affirmed. “Sorry you had to come down here. I called Uncle Louie as soon as I could. They kept us separate, so I couldn’t tell Mark we had nothing to worry about.”
?“We don’t?” Mark stared at me in disbelief.
