“I agree,” I said. “And any suggestions about the information I send would be welcome, too. My knowledge of the publishing racket is almost zero.”
“How’s the search for what’s his name going? Y’know, the Willie character.”
I shrugged. “Slow. We just heard his boss died, and I happen to think that might bring him back into the game. But so far, not a word about his whereabouts, except hints.”
“Y’mind if I have some of my folks look around, see what we can scare up?”
“Not a bit. More the merrier. Might help stir the pot enough to at least get a couple new rumors for us to follow.”
Several minutes later he made his goodbyes. I hung up, deep in thought. Yes, I’d definitely detected a solid interest in helping start up a publishing house. If not John, he probably knew someone who’d help. I took a deep breath, and let it out. Hope he was interested enough to come and talk. Be nice to see him again.
At lunchtime, Dave and I headed a couple blocks away to a diner. I’d been waiting for him to have a talk with me. From the serious look on his face, this was the time. Once settled in with coffee, he opened up. “It’s time to head home, I think.” He looked down at his coffee. “My sister called again last night. Our family’s getting together next week for a reunion. Thought I’d head back and see how things go.”
I nodded. “Been expecting it. You know, of course, you’re always welcome here. In fact, it’d be good to have you close by if the publishing business picks up. Could use your expertise. But family comes first.”
“I appreciate it, man,” he said. “Once I come back, I’ll do just that.”
It was another three days before Dave left, sent off with a night out on the town, and the next morning marked by Alice’s tears when he exited. I really hoped he found what he was looking for.
The day after, my boredom meter bottomed out. Going from super active to nothing going on hit me the hardest, since everyone else was busy. No training needs at the moment. I headed out early for lunch, going to a nearby mall to pick up flowers for Alice. She always loved a little color on her desk. A stroll around the mall was a must, especially through the bookstore. Visiting the mysteries section was called for. My eye was drawn by the colorful artwork on some of the covers. I took out a small notebook. Needed to find a couple good artists that would do covers for books. I browsed through several of the hardbounds, looking for more ideas.
On my way out of the store, I felt the extra weight in my pocket. Whups. Sure enough, I withdrew two billfolds that weren’t mine. A quick backtrack to the customer service desk was in order. Damn, hadn’t even noticed lifting those. It had been over a year since I’d boosted a wallet without knowing it. Thought I was over that little problem. Apparently not.
Alice glared at me when I came straggling in. “Where’re the flowers? I’ll bet you got busy watching girls, and forgot the flowers!”
I turned around and trudged up the stairs. No wonder I didn’t remember stealing those wallets. Couldn’t even remember what I went after. Shit.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“I don’t know why it’s been so hard to crack this particular code,” Wilbur said, shaking his head in disgust. He’d been busily working on the information I’d gotten from Phil about where the counterfeit money was hidden, but no joy yet.
“That’s okay. If you aren’t able to break it, no one can. Not worth getting overly frustrated.”
He gave me a smile. “Hey, I’m not frustrated. Just the opposite. I love a challenge like this!”
“Oh. All right, then keep on keeping on, my man.” I patted his shoulder and moved off with a shrug. He might act weird sometimes, but Wilbur definitely didn’t give up on a problem.
My cell phone rang. “This is Francis.”
“Hi, Francis. This is John.”
I headed for my office, excitement building. “Thanks for getting back. This about the business brief I sent you?”
“It definitely is, and I’m definitely interested. How about I fly up there in about three days time. That fit your schedule?”
I snagged a pen and pad as I sat at my desk. “Email your information soon as you can. I’ll get with the airlines and reserve a ticket. That okay?”
“Sure. And by the way, I just emailed you a list of Willie’s past acquaintances that are still in the biz up there. Let me know if there’s anything else you might want on these folks.”
Alright, John. See you soon.”
Once off the phone, I checked my email. Yep, a message from him. I’d been studying the information John had sent for almost an hour before I came up for air. Wow, this was good stuff. Six names, a detailed bio on each, and what they’d been suspected of doing with Willie. Plus all of them lived in Washington. I dug back in, a hint of excitement building.
“Francis, you want to go to dinner with us?” Nate stood in the doorway, a smile on his face. “Man, when you get focused you’re one hard dude to wake up.”
I gave a stretch and looked at the clock on my desk. Six o’clock already. “Yeah, guess I do. And dinner sounds great. Let me shut down here and I’ll be right out.”
Three days flashed by. Time to meet John at the airport. Once we got together at Sea-Tac Airport, it was a quick trip to the office in Auburn. Shoot, hadn’t realized how close we were to it, compared to our old location. Another plus for our choice to move.
When we pulled into the garage and proceeded through the tunnel into the basement, his eyes lit up. “I like the entryway. Must’ve cost a pretty penny to put this in, though.”
I chuckled as we came
