Cry Havoc

Smothered the rest of diem with a pillow. Thought they'd be better off that way. Maybe she's right.'

'Did you get up on the wrong side of the bed today, or what?'

Frank almost snapped something, bit it back.

'You headed out on rounds?'

'Pretty soon.'

'Why don't you stop by on your way home? Let me kiss you goodnight.'

'How can someone so cynical and so embittered be so romantic?'

Frank rubbed her eyes.

'I'm not embittered. I'm world-weary.'

'That's very poetic. I think I'm rubbing off on you.'

'Yeah? That'd be awful nice.'

When Frank hung up she was an hour closer to that bottle of Scotch.

18

Frank was leaving a note for Darcy when Noah and Lewis strolled in. Noah slid into a chair like he'd just lost all his bones.

'Guess who's back in town,' he said.

'Elvis?'

'Not an Anglo.'

'Hendrix?'

'Not black.'

'Pancho Villa?'

'Not as nice a moustache. Tito Carrillo. Guess the border boys missed him.'

'Did you talk to him?'

Contributing to the conversation, Lewis settled her muscled bulk onto a chair that looked like it was about to become kindling.

'Not yet we haven't. I stopped at Hernandez's—'

'She forgot to have him sign his statement,' Noah snickered.

Lewis flushed, nostrils flaring like a bull's before a charge. Frank wondered what her blood pressure was like. Mad-dogging her partner, Lewis continued.

'I stopped by Hernandez's place and he told me Carrillo was back in town. He seemed awfully tense and it finally come out that Carrillo still wants to do business with him and Echevarria. I don't know why,' Lewis snorted. 'There ain't no way I'd want those two backing me. Nuh-uh. But he's determined to go through with his plan, despite what happened to Duncan and despite all the warnings they got. Hernandez said Carrillo said that he ain't scared. That some old lady isn't gonna tell him what to do.'

'Find him,' Frank said. 'Talk to him.'

Lewis nodded.

'I went by his crib but he wasn't home. His old lady said she didn't know when he's coming back. I figured I'd drop by again on my way home. But the—'

'Sister Shaft,' Noah rode Lewis. 'Don't you ever sleep?'

Frank backed her rookie, asking Noah where he'd been while Lewis attended the post.

'Now I knew you'd be pissed about that,' Noah defended, 'but wait'll you hear this. Oh God,' he laughed, clutching his stomach, 'You're gonna love this. Johnnie, listen up. This is rich.'

That was all the prompting Johnnie needed to sit back and prop his feet on the desk.

'Okay, so I was going through Belizaro's murder book this morning—waiting for Smokin' Joe,' he acknowledged his partner, 'to do whatever the hell she was doing in the girls room—and I notice he was busted a couple months ago for jackin' that butcher shop on 69th. And it dawns on me, I was talking to Mrs. Belizaro a couple days ago, and she mentioned something about how she never knew she had such wonderful neighbors. Even the butcher.'

Noah smiled, rocking his chair back on two legs. A slow grin lit Frank's face and she shook her head. Noah nodded.

Lewis looked puzzled, prodding, 'Yeah?'

'Yeah,' Johnnie echoed, 'for those of us who aren't into that Vulcan mind meld shit like you two.'

Noah continued, 'Mrs. Belizaro says, 'I never go to him, but he brought me a bag of meat. Isn't that sweet?''

'Nice,' Frank said.

'And,' Noah continued, dropping the chair back down, 'that cold case of Nook's, 'member, about nine months ago? Male black with his guts emptied out behind the Pik-Rite and chunks carved off of him? Jacked that same carniceria nine days before he was picked off. I called his baby muhvuh and asked if a butcher had come by offering condolences. 'Yeah, she says. He even brought us a bag of meat.''

'She-et,' Lewis said, disgusted, and Johnnie laughed. Noah did too, but managed to say, 'No wait. This is the best part. The baby muhvuh says'—Noah laughed, wiping his eyes—'she says, 'He was the nicest man. He knew we were Muslim and he even made it kosher.''

'Ya'll sick mothers,' Lewis said, stalking over to her desk. Johnnie was still laughing as Noah said to Frank, 'I figured you'd rather I worked on the search warrant.'

'What a fucking job,' Frank said. 'Mrs. Belizaro have any of that meat left?'

'Why, you wanna have a barbeque?' Johnnie choked.

'I already got it. Put it on ice. I'll send it to the lab tomorrow, see what we get.'

Frank said to Lewis, 'Heard the post went well.'

'It was all right, I guess. It didn't tell us much more than we already know. Seems like our boy was still alive when his throat was slit. The doctor didn't find anything unusual.'

'Did he say much?'

'Naw, he didn't talk hardly at all. I had to keep asking him things.'

Frank glanced at Noah and he lifted his hands in the air, knowing she was peeved Lewis had to work with Paul Seuter alone.

Seuter was a skilled pathologist, but extremely shy. Talking was as comfortable for him as chewing razors. Because of that, and his pasty skin, the detectives called him Boo Radley. Frank wondered what the novice detective had missed and hoped she could spot it in Seuter's prelim report.

'Anything else?'

'Yeah,' Noah piped up. 'What else did Sister Shaft do today? Close all our opens, catch Jack the Ripper, and still get to soccer practice on time?'

Lewis glared at her partner.

'Do you mind if I finish?'

'A'ight,' Noah rapped, 'I'ma head for the door, I'ma give you the floor. Y'all wanna speak, then talk to Le Freek.'

When it came from anyone other than Noah her nickname had a nasty edge, but Frank applauded his rhyming skills.

'Shit,' Lewis whined, 'why I gotta work with some crazy-ass O'Malley think he Busta Rhymes?'

'Hey, I ain't no O'Malley. I'm a Jew.'

'Jewish, Irish, shit, y'all look the same to me,' Lewis zinged back. Frank was pleased to see her holding her own, not getting her back up too much.

'Now let me finish,' Lewis continued. 'We leaned on Hernandez some. Jack Lord here,' she said, tilting her head to Noah, 'he ran the 'you're the best suspect' number on him again. Hernandez did his crybaby thing then allows as how he was at Carrillo 's the night Duncan's murder went down. Not only was he there,' Lewis gloated, 'he and Carrillo saw one of the twins get out of Duncan's car after parking it and drive off in another car. Looked like a gray Benzo, sedan model.'

'That's the good news,' Noah interjected. 'Now tell her the bad news.'

'Ain't no way he's gonna cop to it in court. He knows Mother Love'll kill him. He messes his pants just thinking about her.'