what I know. I went to the bathroom, she was fine. I come out, and she was dead.'
I nodded.
'You recognize Stephano DeLauria, if you saw him?' I said.
'Alice's husband,' Jumbo said. 'Yeah, a'course.'
'That him?' I said, and nodded out the window.
Jumbo stared at me. Then he heaved himself up and came to the window. The rain blurred things a little. But Jumbo recognized Stephano.
'Jesus,' he said.
Stephano and his posse were under an awning, leaning against the side of a Penske rental truck full of lighting gear. They were all four staring at Jumbo's trailer.
'Seem to be interested in you,' I said to Jumbo.
Jumbo looked out the window at Stephano.
'What's he want?' Jumbo said.
'Maybe he's worried that if you get busted for the Dawn Lopata thing, you might start spilling your big gut about things involving Nicky Fellscroft and AABeau and all that,' I said.
'I wouldn't say nothing about nothing,' Jumbo said.
'You know that,' I said. 'And I know that. But does Stephano know that? Maybe more important, does Nicky Fellscroft know that?'
I stepped in front of the window and waved at Stephano. He extended his right arm, sighted down it, and pretended to shoot me with his first two fingers.
'Guess he's waiting until Z and I leave,' I said.
'God, Jesus,' Jumbo said.
His voice was shaking. He looked at Don, who was now sitting on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands.
'Fuck,' Jumbo said. 'Who's gonna help me?'
He looked at me.
'You,' he said. 'I'll give you as much as you want. You want the Indian, I'll hire him, too. Both of you. Say how much, you got it. Just keep Stephano away from me. Anything you want. Anything.'
'The truth,' I said. 'You tell me what happened to Dawn Lopata, and maybe Z and I can help you out with Stephano.'
'You know about him,' Jumbo said. 'What he does? What he's like?'
'I do,' I said.
'I got nowhere else to go,' Jumbo said. 'You gotta help me.'
'Tell me about Dawn,' I said.
Jumbo took his champagne bottle from the ice bucket and drank about a third of it. He put the bottle down, belched hugely.
Then he said, 'Fuck Dawn. These guys are gonna kill me, and you're worrying about some little slut from the fucking local boondocks?'
'Exactly,' I said.
Jumbo guzzled some more champagne.
'I tell you what I know, you'll help me?'
'If I believe you,' I said.
'How I gonna do that?' Jumbo said. 'How can I make you believe me?'
'Can't,' I said. 'Gotta hope I do.'
'That fucking sucks,' Jumbo said.
'Does,' I said. 'Doesn't it.'
Jumbo looked at his bodyguard.
'Lock the fucking door,' Jumbo said. 'Can you handle that?'
Don stood up and locked the door to the trailer.
'Useless fuck,' Jumbo said.
'Hard to figure why you're having trouble finding help,' I said.
58
OUTSIDE, THE RAIN was pounding. Inside the trailer, the plan was working better than I had ever hoped.
