'Lula walked to the coffee shop? That's two blocks away. Lula never walks anywhere.'
'She parked in back and got blocked in by someone. I guess she figured it was faster to walk.'
'She must have really needed the bacon.'
'She was on a mission.'
I moseyed over to the door, looked up the street, and spotted Lula at the end of the block. She was walking fast in her Via Spiga heels, holding a white food bag against her chest. Two dogs, a beagle and a golden retriever, trotted close behind Lula. A third dog crossed the street and joined the pack. Every couple steps Lula would turn and yell something at the dogs. When the beagle jumped for the bag when Lula was half a block away, Lula let out a shriek and started running.
'Stop running,' I yelled at her. 'You're making it worse. They think it's a game.'
They were snapping at her heels now and barking.
'Do something,' Lula yelled. 'Shoot them!'
'Drop the bag! They want the bacon.'
'No way I'm giving up my bacon.'
Lula was running knees high, arms pumping. She was wearing the Via Spigas and a short black spandex skirt that was hiked up to her waist, showing Hamilton Avenue what a big woman looks like in a red satin thong.
'Open the door!' Lula shouted. 'I can make it. I'm almost there. Just hold the damn door open!'
Lula tossed the dogs a slice of bacon from the bag, the dogs dove after the bacon, and Lula rushed past me into the office. I slammed the door shut and we all stood looking at the dogs milling around outside.
Lula tugged her skirt down. 'Tank's out there, isn't he?'
'Yep.'
'I explained pretty good about the pork chop, but I'm at a loss here.'
'It speaks for itself,' I said to Lula.
Grease stains were starting to show through the bag. 'I love this diet,' Lula said. 'I love pork chops. And I love ribs. And I love bacon. I love bacon most of all.'
Lula was eating bacon like it was popcorn, chomping on it out of the bag, rolling her eyes in gastronomic ecstasy.
'How much bacon do you have there?' Connie wanted to know.
'Three pounds minus the one strip I gave up to the dogs.'
'Sounds like a lot of bacon,' Connie said.
'I'm pushing the boundaries of science here,' Lula said. 'I'm gonna be a supermodel with a smile on my face on account of I'm gonna be full of bacon.'
'I need to go to TriBro,' I said. 'I'm looking for someone to ride shotgun.'
'That would be me,' Lula said.
LULA AND TANK waited in the lot while I went in to talk to Andrew Cone.
'This is really good,' Cone said. 'I had to tell you this in person. First thing this morning I found an email from one of the people I do business with in Vegas. Bill Weber. He said Samuel Singh filled out a job application and Weber was emailing to check references. I got so excited, I called the guy. Got him out of bed. Forgot about the time change.'
'Singh's in Vegas? And he was dumb enough to list you as a reference?'
Cone bobbed his head up and down, smiling wide. 'Yes.'
'I bet he even gave a street address.'
'He did.' Cone slid a piece of paper my way with all the information neatly printed out. 'I told Weber about the visa bond and he's going to string Singh along until you get there. You're going to go get him, right?'
'Right.'
Lula was looking kind of sick when I got back to the car.
'How much of that bacon did you eat?' I asked her.
'I ate it all. It didn't seem like so much while I was eating it, but it doesn't feel like it fits in my stomach now.'
I called Ranger and told him about Singh. 'He's in Vegas, waiting for you to go get him,' I said.
'I'm having a small legal problem with Nevada on a weapons violation,' Ranger said. 'You're going to have to make the capture. Take Tank. I don't want you to go alone.'
Good grief.
CHAPTER 9
LULA WAS UP straight in her seat. 'What's this about Vegas?'
'Samuel Singh is in Vegas and Ranger can't make the capture. So either I go or Vinnie farms the capture out to a Vegas agency.'
'Don't even suggest farming it out. All my life I've wanted to go to Vegas. I hear there's a shopping center that's just like being in Venice with canals and boats and everything. And there's all those casinos and fancy hotels.
