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“Rush in? Why?” Gator asked.
“Well, you did threaten to kill him.”
“Hmm…yeah, well, I was just pissed with the way I thought he was treating Sylvie. What made you decide to enter the house?”
“I just had a feeling I needed to investigate. The front door was open…it was quiet, I assumed something had happened, and my expectations were that whatever it was, it wasn’t good.” Bruno’s expression turned serious, as if he was reliving the moment in his mind.
* * *
“So…Marvinwas working for you, and these criminals found out and had him killed?” Gator said, thinking out loud.
Bruno sighed, rubbing his forehead. “Yeah, that’s what I think. And it’s not just because of Marvin’s ties to them. It’s also because of what I found on his body.”
Gator’s eyes narrowed. “Hold on a minute...you didn’t even touch him. How could you have possibly found something on him?” Now, Gator found himself grappling with whether or not he could believe what Bruno was saying. It just didn’t make sense.
Bruno hesitated for a moment before pulling a small, folded piece of paper from his pocket. He unfolded it and handed it to Gator. “This,” he said. “It’s a list of names, addresses, and other information. I found it in Marvin’s pocket when you went to check on Sylvie. I noticed it when I came back in to get my keys.” Gator nodded, recalling Bruno forgetting his keys. “I think it’s crucial to the investigation,” Bruno said.
Gator scanned the list. He recognized some of the names as known criminals, but others were unfamiliar. “Do you think Sylvie’s in danger?” he asked, his voice tense. He continued to look down the list while he was waiting for Bruno to answer when he said, “What the fuck!” He was shocked when he saw Sylvie Bourgeois on the list. “Sylvie’s name! Why the hell is she on this list? What has she done?”
Bruno looked at him gravely. “I don’t know, Gator. But I do know that we need to find out who killed Marvin, and why. And we need to do it quickly, before Sylvie gets hurt.”
Gator pulled out his cellphone and started to swipe through his contacts.
“What are you doing?” Bruno said.
“Calling Sylvie.”
Bruno grabbed the phone from Gator’s hand, and Gator shot up out of his seat, coming around to Bruno, who instinctively slid his chair back and held up his hand. He clearly hadn’t forgotten his takedown back in school and still harbored fear for what Gator could do. “Wait!” he said.
The few people still in the café were now looking at them. Bruno nodded towards them, indicating to Gator that he was making a scene.
“You can’t tell Sylvie any of this just yet.”
“You think I was going to do that?”
“I don’t know what you were doing, but I couldn’t risk you saying something that might cause her to panic and run. Someone could be watching her right now.”
“And you only thought to tell me this now? Now! You could have told me as soon as you found that fucking paper.”
“I was going to...but I needed to get my guys on it first, to make sure she was safe,” Bruno said.
“So she’s under police surveillance now?” Gator asked.
“Yeah.”
“Where?” Gator wanted to know if Bruno even knew where she was.
“At her friend’s place where you dropped her off.”
Gator remained standing over Bruno, silent for a moment.
“Chelsea Jones. Brown hair…5'7". 40 years old. Secretary at Bayou Body & Paint. No husband or partner...”
“Okay. And I wasn’t going to tell her all of this.” He pointed to the paper on the table. “I was going to invite her to stay at my place to ensure her safety.”
“Sure, that’ll work.”
“It will work because if anyone comes looking for her there, they’ll end up like Marvin.”
