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12
Tulane-Gravier, New Orleans, Louisiana
TUESDAY, JULY 26, 6:15 P.M.
Fucking hell.Lamont shoved his fingers through his hair, too frustrated for words. This day couldn’t have gone much worse.
He’d dialed the defense attorney nine times in two hours, all the calls going to voice mail. If Hodges didn’t pick up, he was paying the lawyer a personal visit to find out why.
But the man finally did answer. “For fuck’s sake. Do you know the meaning of patience?”
“No,” Lamont answered flatly, walking over to the window. “Where is Eckert?”
“In lockup. He’s been booked. He’ll be arraigned tomorrow morning. I’ve only just returned from the police station. Eckert said nothing, not to the cops or to me. All the cops have on him is possession of illegal firearms and aiming his gun at another driver who cut him off.”
Stunned, Lamont could only gape for a few seconds. “He did what?”
“A truck cut him off when he was trying to exit, just before the bridge. He aimed his handgun at the driver of the truck, who then braked. It was too late for Eckert to do anything but cross over the bridge, where the cops arrested him. One of the cops saw him pull the handgun, but the person he aimed at kept going. It was a really boneheaded move, but we’ll claim road rage. With a plea deal, he’ll walk away with a misdemeanor.”
Because Hodges didn’t know that he’d hired Eckert to kill the Morrow kid. Nobody did but Eckert. He’d have to make sure the man knew to hold his tongue.
Lamont stared out of the window, watching the hundreds of tourists filling the streets, while he tried to think. “Why would he pull a gun? That doesn’t make any sense.”
“I agree. It’s not like he knew the driver or anything. It was some random person in a pickup truck.”
Pickup truck.Where had he heard about a pickup truck recently?
Oh. Right.“What color was the truck?”
“Red. Why?”
Because the lady PI who Gabe Hebert hired drives a red pickup truck.It could have been a coincidence. But if it hadn’t been a coincidence... If the PI had been following Xavier Morrow...
But why would she have followed Xavier? How would she have known Xavier was driving to New Orleans?
Unless Morrow had called Gabe.
Or was she following Paul Lott’s white BMW?
Did she know Paul Lott? If so, how?
What had Lott done that had gotten him killed?
Had Paul Lott told Gabriel Hebert what they’d done? Is that why Hebert had hired the PI?
Too many questions.
“Just curious,” Lamont replied mildly. “I like to have the facts.”
“Okay.” Hodges didn’t sound convinced, but Lamont couldn’t have cared less.
“I may be in the courtroom tomorrow.” Lamont needed Eckert to see his face so that he could warn him against saying a damn word.
Hodges didn’t miss a beat. “I don’t know you. Never seen you before.”
“Thank you.”
Now Hodges hesitated. “And now we’re even? You’ll get rid of the photos?”
