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Clete went down the hall and tapped on Sherry Picard’s half-open door. She was on the phone but waved him in. She smiled when she hung up. “How you doin’, Mr. Purcel?”
“Clete.”
“How you doin’, Mr. Clete?”
He gave her a look. “I want to run a couple of things by you regarding the Penny homicide.”
“I’m all ears.”
“Am I about to put my head in a bear trap?” he said.
“I was on the phone with social services.”
“About Homer?”
“I think maybe they found a good home for him.”
He felt a thorn pierce his heart. “He’s got one now.”
“It’s only temporary. You have to accept that.”
“Right is right, wrong is wrong. I’m not big on rule books.”
“How did you make it through the Corps?”
“The Crotch was a breeze after New Orleans.”
“What’d you want to tell me?”
“Remember when we were talking about the latents at the Penny crime scene that weren’t in the system? You said it bothered you because a guy like Penny didn’t hang out with normal people.”
“Right.”
“Run everybody who works for Jimmy Nightingale. Also start looking hard at Spade Labiche.”
“I can’t randomly pull in people and fingerprint them, particularly when they’re from St. Mary Parish.”
“There’re other ways.”
“I know your methodology. I want to keep my job. I’ve got another problem, too.”
“Like what?”
“You and Dave Robicheaux have a way of getting into it with rich guys. It doesn’t do a lot for your credibility.”
“I’ll try to explain that. Most rich people here made their money off somebody else’s back.”
She looked him up and down, biting the edge of her lip. Unconsciously, he put his thumb in his belt and tightened his shirt.
“You got anything on Nightingale?” she said.
“Penny said he made deposits for Nightingale and delivered skanks to Nightingale?
?s house.”
“Do you believe him?”
“I don’t like Nightingale. I think he’s a bum. Not because he’s rich. Around here, you screw down and marry up. He doesn’t marry up. He just screws everybody. In answer to your question, nothing Penny said was trustworthy. He told me Nightingale’s sister came on to him. I have a hard time buying that.”
