Denouement by E. H. Reinhard

in Atlanta?”
    “I’m just packing up and getting ready to head back up to Chicago. What’s up?”
    Ray leaned against the bar. “How did the show go?”
    “I sold a handful. I’d say it was about average.”
    “Are you taking inventory back? Inventory in the under-the-table variety?”
    “Some.”
    “Do you want to head south and unload it?”
    “Well, that depends. To who?”
    “Me,” Ray said.
    “You?”
    “Yeah.”
    “Oh, I thought… I just heard that you were having, um, some financial roadblocks.” Erik’s voice sounded hesitant.
    “I’ll buy two grand of whatever you got.”
    “Two grand?”
    Ray tapped his fingertips across the granite top of the bar. “Yeah.”
    “Two grand isn’t going to get you very far.”
    “Look, I’ll take whatever you can give me that hits that dollar amount,” Ray said.
    “Um. I don’t know, Andrei. Two thousand dollars isn’t really enough to make it worth my while. Five, and we may be able to come up with something. Ten would be better.”
    Ray scratched the side of his head and looked down at his watch, the Rolex he’d acquired on his very first job. A pawn shop would at least give him a few thousand dollars for it. He shook his head in disappointment. “I can do five.”
    “And you have the cash on hand?”
    “Yeah, I have it right here.”
    “Okay. I’ll finish getting loaded up and head down. Where am I meeting you?”
    “It will be somewhere around the Tampa area. I’ll call you with an exact location. When will you be here?”
    “Maybe five o’clock or so,” Erik said.
    “Sure. What’s the cell phone number you’re using?”
    Erik gave it to him, and Ray jotted it down.
    “Good. I’ll call you this afternoon with the spot.” Ray clicked off.
    He took a sip of his whiskey, swirled the ice cubes at the bottom of the glass, and finished the drink. The five thousand he would have to spend on guns could be doubled by selling them on the street. That would take only a week, a smart decision. Ten thousand would be enough to get him out of the country. Another thought crept into Ray’s head. He could just kill Erik and take whatever guns he had. Plus, he’d have a different vehicle to move around in. Ray poured himself another drink and contemplated the decision.

Chapter 15
    My desk phone didn’t make a full ring before I pulled it from the receiver. “Lieutenant Kane,” I said.
    “Hey, Kane, it’s Terry downstairs.”
    “Yeah, Terry. Did you get anything?”
    “They gave me a bit of a runaround, so I had to throw the words subpoena and warrant out there. After that, they gave me her information. Iris Sanchez on Collins Avenue in Miami Beach.”
    “Apartment number?” I asked.
    “Hold on. I have it right here. Um, apartment three thirty-nine.”
    “Okay. Yeah, that’s the same address as on her sheet. It was worth a shot. I appreciate the effort.”
    “Yup. No problem, Kane.”
    I hung the phone back on the receiver.
    “Nothing new on the website stuff?” Hank asked.
    “Nope. It’s the same apartment address.”
    Hank tried covering a yawn with his hand. “When did Harrington say he was calling back?” he asked.
    “He said a half hour.”
    “It’s been a half hour. Did you hear anything from Faust lately?”
    I shook my head. “Nothing today, in fact. I was going to give him a call in a little bit and see what, if anything, was going on.”
    “What are we doing in the meantime?”
    I held my palms up. “Waiting.”
    Hank yawned again and stretched. “I didn’t sleep worth a crap last night.”
    I pointed down at my desk. “Well, you saw how I slept.”
    “Yeah, but I probably would have still traded you.”
    “Did you have some more late-night dog adventures?” I asked.
    “No. Porkchop was fine, surprisingly. This time it was Karen. She was just a complete emotional mess. I think it’s the hormones she’s been taking. She cried for a solid three hours over a recipe for potato salad. She went on and on that it