sank. He was the last one she
would have picked. Castro was a jerk, his head was as empty as a drum, and if
he was involved he’d know the bare minimum. Plus there had been that bathroom
fight. They’d barely spoken since and Emilia had always managed not to be alone
with him.
“Fine,” Emilia
said. “Whatever we find you and Gomez can run down along with the wife’s alibi.
Names, addresses, business cards, whatever.”
“You think el
teniente kept the name of his killer in his desk drawer?” Silvio asked, a
hard edge of sarcasm in his voice.
“We’ll regroup at
6:00 pm as planned,” Emilia said, ignoring the jibe. “Until then I’ll be at the
brother’s and then at the coroner’s to get the autopsy report.” She looked
around the room again. The atmosphere still throbbed with hostility but there
was a new feeling of purpose as well. Might as well see how far she would sink
before she drowned. “Standing meetings at 9:00 am every morning for the
duration,” she said. “Any questions?”
“Yeah.” Gomez
rifled his cards into a tidy deck and slapped it on his desk. “You fucking
Obregon?”
The room went
perfectly still. The fluorescent light gave another soft death rattle.
“Six o’clock,”
Emilia said, the blood pounding in her ears. “Back here. Everybody.”
☼
Rico shouldered
Castro out of the way and slammed Lt. Inocente’s office door behind him. “What
the hell,” he said in a furious whisper. His face was vermillion. “I’m not your
partner anymore?” He snapped his fingers. “Just like that? Nobody made you a
real lieutenant , chica .”
“How much are we
going to learn if we just stick together?” Emilia whispered hotly from behind
the desk. Rico could be so boneheaded sometimes and she was suddenly
unaccountably angry at everything that had happened that day. “You estupido .
Which of these detectives was in it with Lt. Inocente? We need to mix it up,
see what they say when they’re tired or angry.”
“So you couldn’t
tell me your plan first?”
“When did I have
time?” Emilia waved her arms in frustration. “I didn’t ask for this. Obregon
and his goon just walked in here and bam, everything went upside down. You were
there, remember?”
“All right.” Rico
inhaled and simmered down. “But why stick me with Fuentes? I got nothing to say
to a little kid like him.”
“Fuentes is all
right,” Emilia said. “He’s smooth. Let him talk to the snotty hotel guests.”
Rico’s eyebrows
went up. “And what’s the deal about getting somebody to clean the office? Get
one of the fucking cleaners to box up all this crap and send it to his
penthouse in the sky.”
Emilia rolled her
eyes. “You know we have to look through it. Who is going to be worried about
what’s in this office?”
“You think
Castro’s going to tell you that he played lookout for Lt. Inocente?”
“I think Castro
volunteered because there’s something in this office he doesn’t want me to
find,” Emilia said, nearly at the end of her patience.
“Oh.” Rico stared
at her blankly and then blinked as he got it. “Okay. I get it.”
“Good.”
“Fuck.” Rico ran
an agitated hand through his hair and paced in front of the desk. He stopped
abruptly. “You feel good about Obregon?”
“No,” Emilia said
truthfully. “I don’t trust him. He said no arrests, that he’d handle that.”
“So he’ll make the
arrests?” Rico frowned.
“Yes,” Emilia
said. “Unless I can prove the wife did it, I’m just supposed to tell him what
we find. No arrests. He’ll do that.”
“So he can pick up
whatever racket Inocente was in.”
Emilia nodded.
Sometimes Rico got it.
“You could have
refused,” Rico said.
“I tried. Obregon
said I’d never work again,” Emilia said. “In the entire state. And you know he can
do that.”
“Sure,” Rico said
and she didn’t know if he believed her or not. He gave her a sideways look.
“I’ll deal with Fuentes. But
would have picked. Castro was a jerk, his head was as empty as a drum, and if
he was involved he’d know the bare minimum. Plus there had been that bathroom
fight. They’d barely spoken since and Emilia had always managed not to be alone
with him.
“Fine,” Emilia
said. “Whatever we find you and Gomez can run down along with the wife’s alibi.
Names, addresses, business cards, whatever.”
“You think el
teniente kept the name of his killer in his desk drawer?” Silvio asked, a
hard edge of sarcasm in his voice.
“We’ll regroup at
6:00 pm as planned,” Emilia said, ignoring the jibe. “Until then I’ll be at the
brother’s and then at the coroner’s to get the autopsy report.” She looked
around the room again. The atmosphere still throbbed with hostility but there
was a new feeling of purpose as well. Might as well see how far she would sink
before she drowned. “Standing meetings at 9:00 am every morning for the
duration,” she said. “Any questions?”
“Yeah.” Gomez
rifled his cards into a tidy deck and slapped it on his desk. “You fucking
Obregon?”
The room went
perfectly still. The fluorescent light gave another soft death rattle.
“Six o’clock,”
Emilia said, the blood pounding in her ears. “Back here. Everybody.”
☼
Rico shouldered
Castro out of the way and slammed Lt. Inocente’s office door behind him. “What
the hell,” he said in a furious whisper. His face was vermillion. “I’m not your
partner anymore?” He snapped his fingers. “Just like that? Nobody made you a
real lieutenant , chica .”
“How much are we
going to learn if we just stick together?” Emilia whispered hotly from behind
the desk. Rico could be so boneheaded sometimes and she was suddenly
unaccountably angry at everything that had happened that day. “You estupido .
Which of these detectives was in it with Lt. Inocente? We need to mix it up,
see what they say when they’re tired or angry.”
“So you couldn’t
tell me your plan first?”
“When did I have
time?” Emilia waved her arms in frustration. “I didn’t ask for this. Obregon
and his goon just walked in here and bam, everything went upside down. You were
there, remember?”
“All right.” Rico
inhaled and simmered down. “But why stick me with Fuentes? I got nothing to say
to a little kid like him.”
“Fuentes is all
right,” Emilia said. “He’s smooth. Let him talk to the snotty hotel guests.”
Rico’s eyebrows
went up. “And what’s the deal about getting somebody to clean the office? Get
one of the fucking cleaners to box up all this crap and send it to his
penthouse in the sky.”
Emilia rolled her
eyes. “You know we have to look through it. Who is going to be worried about
what’s in this office?”
“You think
Castro’s going to tell you that he played lookout for Lt. Inocente?”
“I think Castro
volunteered because there’s something in this office he doesn’t want me to
find,” Emilia said, nearly at the end of her patience.
“Oh.” Rico stared
at her blankly and then blinked as he got it. “Okay. I get it.”
“Good.”
“Fuck.” Rico ran
an agitated hand through his hair and paced in front of the desk. He stopped
abruptly. “You feel good about Obregon?”
“No,” Emilia said
truthfully. “I don’t trust him. He said no arrests, that he’d handle that.”
“So he’ll make the
arrests?” Rico frowned.
“Yes,” Emilia
said. “Unless I can prove the wife did it, I’m just supposed to tell him what
we find. No arrests. He’ll do that.”
“So he can pick up
whatever racket Inocente was in.”
Emilia nodded.
Sometimes Rico got it.
“You could have
refused,” Rico said.
“I tried. Obregon
said I’d never work again,” Emilia said. “In the entire state. And you know he can
do that.”
“Sure,” Rico said
and she didn’t know if he believed her or not. He gave her a sideways look.
“I’ll deal with Fuentes. But
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