“Did you tell the police about any of this, Dana?” I asked.
She hesitated, the tip of her tongue tickling the ring in her lip for a moment. “I didn’t. They didn’t ask about Linc. And if they had, I still probably wouldn’t have said anything. I don’t wanna rat him out.”
Her logic was misplaced, but right on for a young college kid.
“You know anyone that bought a gun from Linc?” I asked Dana.
She was staring at Carter and he was staring back. Two people a little off-kilter, caught in each other’s tractor beam. I snapped my fingers between them and got her attention.
She looked at me. “There’s this one kid. He’s in a class with me. I saw him walk out of here with a package two weeks ago, I think.”
“Know where he lives?”
“No, but the class I have with him starts in five minutes. I’m bailing today but you could talk to him there.”
It wasn’t the kind of forward progress I was looking for, but it would have to do for now. There were still more loose ends than I cared to think about, but at least it felt like I was doing something.
Dana moved her gaze from me back to Carter. “You know what?”
Carter smiled. “What?”
A reluctant grin curved her lips. “I’m glad that you’re here. You make me feel safe.”
“It’s my muscles.”
I looked at both of them, thought about telling them to knock it off, and then realized what a futile effort that would be.
“Come on, kids,” I said, walking between them and out of the room. “Let’s go to school.”
Fifteen
The San Diego State campus is a myriad of gray concrete buildings and asphalt. The administration, in trying to upgrade, courted a major cable company to build an on-campus arena for sporting events, hoping that it might serve as a focal point for the students and foster a new sense of school spirit.
So far, it had led to nothing more than a bunch of empty seats and tuition hikes.
Claphorn Hall was just to the west of the arena and that’s where Dana took us to meet her classmate.
“We can wait here,” she said, pointing at a stone bench adjacent to the building. “They should be out pretty soon.”
“If he went to class,” Carter said, taking a seat on the bench.
Dana stood in front of him, pulling her dreadlocks back into a fat ponytail. “He’s one of those pretty-boy fraternity types. Trust me. He doesn’t miss too many.”
“Unlike yourself.”
She smiled at him. “Some of us don’t need class all the time.”
“That happens to be Carter’s motto,” I said, easing myself down next to him.
“Oh, I’ve got class,” he said, stretching out his long legs, crossing them at the ankles. “I’m just selective about when I show it.”
I looked at Dana. “Once in a lifetime would be my guess.”
She placed her hands on her hips. “Are you always so selective about showing everything?”
Carter pointed a finger at her. “Depends on what I’m showing. Got something in mind?”
Her smile widened. “I’ll let you know.”
I shook my head at both of them.
The doors to the building opened and a steady flow of students streamed out into the afternoon sunlight.
“That’s him,” Dana said, nodding at the last guy out of the building. “I’ll go get him.”
She headed toward him before I could suggest otherwise.
“I think I’m in love,” Carter said.
“I think I’m gonna be ill,” I said.
“I think she and I were meant for one another,” he said.
“I think she’s more than a decade younger than you.”
“People say I seem younger than my age.”
“They mean you’re immature.”
“Still.”
Dana came back to us, the guy on her heels.
“Guys, this is Donnie,” she said, stepping to the side. “Donnie, these are the guys. The good-looking one behind the bruises is Noah and the white-hot-looking one is Carter.”
Carter turned to me. “White-hot.”
I ignored him.
Donnie was about five-ten, a little on the thin side. A raggedy mop of brown hair sat on his head. A red T- shirt said AZTECS across the chest and his white shorts were fraying at the bottom. The well-worn black flip-flops were almost too small for his feet. One of those biker messenger bags was flung over his shoulder.
“Dana says you guys are looking for a DJ?” he said, his voice higher than I expected.
I shook my head. “Not exactly.”
He looked at Dana, then back to me. “Then what?”
“We’re looking for the gun you bought from Linc Pluto.”
His cheeks flushed and his eyes darted in several different directions. “What? I mean, dude, I don’t know what you mean.”
Donnie was a bad liar.
“You bought a gun from Linc,” I said.
“No. No, I didn’t. Who told you that?” he said, shifting his weight from one leg to the other.
“I did, dumbass,” Dana said, clearly annoyed at his lack of bravado. “They’re not cops. Relax.”
He turned to her, the corners of his mouth pinched. “Really? You told me they needed a DJ for some party. So fuck you if I don’t believe you, okay?”
Carter sat up a little on the bench. “Easy, there, Backstreet Boy.”
Donnie looked at Carter, unsure of how to take him.
“Look,” I said. “She’s right-we’re not cops. I’m a private investigator. I know Linc was selling guns and that you bought one from him. I’m not looking to bust you. I just have some questions I need answers to.”
Donnie’s threw his chest out, adjusting the knapsack. “If you’re not cops, I don’t have to talk to you.”
I nodded. “True.”
Donnie tilted his chin upward slightly. “So why don’t you and Donkey Kong just fuck off?”
“Because then we’ll have to follow you until we get you alone,” Carter said. “Then we’ll take turns kicking you in the nuts until you feel like talking to us.”
I nodded again. “Your choice, man.”
Donnie’s shoulders slumped, his confidence gone as quickly as it had arrived. “Whatever. What do you wanna know?”
“What kind of gun was it?” I asked.
“A handgun. A.38, I think.”
“You think?”
His cheeks flushed again. “I don’t know much about guns.”
“Then why did you need one?” Carter asked.
“Because.” He took a deep breath, expelling everything in his body, like a child both disappointed and relieved to be caught in a lie. “We sell X out of our apartment.”
“We?” I asked.
“Me and my roommates. We’re in the same frat. Pi Kappa Alpha. We’re Pikes.” He looked at us like that should mean something.
