Perkins said. “Parents are coming
tomorrow to claim the body. You want to talk to them?”
“You do it,” Jesse said.
“You pulling rank on me?” Perkins said.
“You bet,” Jesse said. “How
about the ex-wife?”
“She lives in Paradise,” Perkins said.
“On Plum Tree Road.
Probably kept the house when they split.”
“Seen her yet?”
“No. Hasn’t returned our calls.”
“I’ll go over,” Jesse said.
“Swell,” Perkins said. “I get to
question the grieving parents,
you talk to the ex-wife, who is probably delighted.”
“Not if she was getting alimony,” Jesse said.
“That’s cynical,” Peter Perkins
said.
“It is,” Jesse said.
“What’s the ME say?”
“Nothing special. Shot twice in the chest at close range. Two
different guns.”
“Two guns?”
“Yep. Both twenty-twos.”
“Which one killed him?”
“Both.”
“Equally?”
“Either shot would have done it. They both got him in the heart.
You want all the details about what got penetrated and stuff?”
“I’ll read the report. We figure two shooters?”
“Can’t see why one guy would shoot someone with two guns,”
Perkins said.
“Any way to tell which one shot first?”
“Not really. Far as the ME could tell they entered the victim
more or less the same time.”
“Both at close range,” Jesse said.
“Both at close range.”
“Both in the heart,” Jesse said.
Perkins nodded. “Gotta be two people,” he said.
“Or one person who wants us to think he’s two people,” Jesse
said.
Perkins shrugged.
“Pretty elaborate,” Perkins said.
“And it gives us twice as many
murder weapons.”
Jesse drank more spring water. He didn’t say anything.
“We got his phone records,” Perkins said.
“Anthony and Suit are
chasing that down.”
“Debt?” Jesse said.
“Not so far. Got ten grand in his checking account.
Got a mutual
