Dangerous Attachments (Dr. Sylvia Strange Book 1) by Sarah Lovett Page B

over?"
    Matt frowned. "Missing body parts . . . I think the whole thing smells like gang bullshit." He shook his head slowly. "I'll tell you who to talk to . . . one of the honchos during the riot belonged to the Aryan Brotherhood. That dude knows everything that's going on. Bubba Akins, a real sweetheart, remember him?"
    Just as Rosie was about to answer, Ray stepped up and delivered a punch that connected with Matt's shoulder.
    "Time to try a few hands among friends."
    "My poker's rusty, Ray," Matt said.
    "Hey, all the better," Ray laughed.
    Sylvia stood several feet away, arms crossed over her chest. Angelique ignored Sylvia, but greeted Ray with a smile that was sixty degrees warmer than anything she'd flashed Rosie.
    "Matt, have you met Sylvia Strange? She's an old friend—"
    "I know who she is." Matt's voice sharpened with sarcasm, "She wrote the book on inmates who love too much." For the first time, he looked directly at Sylvia. "I see you got your acquittal on the Allmoy case. Remind me to get your phone number. I'll give you a call when he murders someone."
    "Screw you," Sylvia said flatly.
    Rosie grimaced and watched Sylvia stride toward her car. "Matthew, you little brat." She shook a finger at him. She heard Sylvia's car door slam.
    "What?"
    "You know what." Rosie waited while Sylvia's Volvo slowed on its way out of the lot
    Sylvia leaned her head out of the window and called to Rosie. "I'll give you a ring tomorrow." She glanced back at England and mumbled, "Macho fuck."
    Rosie found Matt waiting beside his pickup truck. She leaned against the fender of the Mazda parked in the next slot. "Why were you so rude? I'll never forgive you."
    "Yeah, you will." He crooked a finger, motioned her close enough to hear his confidence. "Did you ever hear me talk about the jackal?"
    Rosie's butt slipped off the Mazda and she caught herself. She stared at him, stunned. "The jackal?"
    "Right after the riot, that's when I heard about him."
    Rosie shook her head. "The jackal existed fifteenyears ago?" She sighed. "I only heard about him from Angel Tapia."
    Matt raised his eyebrows. "After the riot a snitch told me,
'El chacal
was scavenging.'"
    "Does that mean what I think it means?"
    "Collecting miscellaneous body parts? Isn't that what jackals do—scavenge?" Matt grinned. "Interesting,
no?"
    "Was your source reliable?" Rosie asked.
    "Under normal circumstances, yes. But OD'd on Thorazine ain't exactly normal." Matt frowned, "If the jackal existed, the dude was invisible."
    From inside the truck, Angelique leaned across the seat and rolled down the driver's side window. "Can we go? I'm tired." She sounded angry.
    "In a minute." Matt kept his eyes on Rosie. "I'd like to help you track him down."
    El chacal
. As far as Rosie knew, the name wasn't on file, but she'd run a thorough check tomorrow. She patted Matt on the arm and said, "Thank you, officer. And you try not to wear yourself out tonight, ya hear?"
    Matt laughed as he climbed into the truck.
    Ray was waiting in the Camaro when Rosie slid behind the steering wheel. She took a swipe at the tiny baby shoes suspended from the rearview mirror and said, "Thanks for waiting, handsome."
    As she pulled her car into northbound traffic on Cerrillos Road, Ray remarked, "What was that between Matt and Sylvia?"
    Rosie shook her head. "Professional animosity. I could wring his neck."
    "Just stay out of it, Rosita."
    Rosie clucked her tongue against her teeth. "What did you think of that babe?"
    Ray belched. "I never knew Matt was such a lady-killer."
    "He's the lamb, and she's the wolf," Rosie said. She drove cautiously, on the alert for drunk drivers. Ray gave a noncommittal snort.
    "I could tell you liked her," Ray said.
    "I could tell you did, too."
    Ray sank down in his seat and his belly expanded. "She's not my type."
    Rosie laughed. "You'd better say that." After a pause, she added, "She's totally wrong for Matt."
    Now Ray pulled himself up in the seat and ran his hand over