He said, 'Dude, you're a mess.'
Lucas stepped around Starkey and steamed to the van. She looked inside, then staggered backwards as if she had been slapped.
She said, 'Oh, my God.'
DeNice's wallet contained sixty-two dollars, a Louisiana driver's licence for one Debulon R. DeNice, credit cards, a Fraternal Order of Police membership card, a Louisiana hunting license, and photographs of two teenaged girls, but nothing that indicated how he had found Fallon or had come to be dead in the van. I had also found a set of keys, a handkerchief, and two quarters, but that didn't help me, either.
Richard and Myers pushed past Alvarez, and Richard turned white when he saw the blood.
Lucas said, 'Mr. Chenier, wait at your car. Ray, they shouldn't be here. Jesus Christ.'
Richard said, 'What's in there. Is it--? Is--?' 'It's DeNice. They left his head in Ben's shoe.' Richard and Myers looked into the van before Alvarez could stop them, and Richard made a deep gasping sound as if something were caught in his chest.
'Holy God!'
240
Richard grabbed Myers to steady himself, then turned away, but Myers stared into the van. His jaw flexed and knotted, but the rest of him was still. One of the big flies lit on his cheek, but he didn't seem to feel it.
I said, 'They left Ben's shoe. Ben's shoe was in that.' Richard raked his hands through his hair and turned in a frantic circle. I thought about what Pike had said about men like Fallon doing whatever they did for money. I thought about DeNice in the van with the blood and the gore and Ben's lonely shoe, and I knew that they hadn't done this for me. They had done it for Richard.
'They didn't just kill him, Richard--THEY CUT OFF HIS HEAD!'
Richard threw up. Starkey looked worried, but maybe because I was screaming.
'Take it easy, Cole. You're shaking. Breathe deep.'
Richard was bent over and heaving. He looked frantic and sick.
I said, 'They hit you for ransom, didn't they? They're jamming you for ransom and you got cute with DeNice.'
Starkey and Lucas looked at me. Richard straightened up, then hunched again.
'You don't know what you're talking about! None of that's true!'
Myers said, 'You're talking out your ass, Cole. We're doing everything we can to find these bastards.'
'These guys are using DeNice to scare somebody and they weren't trying to scare me.'
Richard's face blotched with fury.
'FUCK YOU!'
Lucas said, 'How can you say that?'
'Fallon's a mercenary. He doesn't do anything unless he's going to make money and Richard has money. They're working the ransom.'
Z4I
Richard lurched forward like he was going to hit me, but Myers took his arm. Richard trembled as if he was coming apart.
'This is all your fault, you bastard. I'm not going to stand here listening to this while my son is missing. We have to find my boy and you're talking bullshit!'
Richard stumbled to his limo. He leaned against the side of it and threw up again. Myers watched him, but his eyes didn't look so flat any more.
I said, 'What's going on, Myers ?'
Myers walked away and joined Richard at his car.
I said, 'He's lying. They're both lying.'
Starkey watched Myers and Richard, then considered the van.
'We're talking about the man's son here, Cole. If these guys were grinding him for ransom, why wouldn't he tell
US.Z'
'I don't know. He's scared. Look what they did to DeNice.'
'Then why all that stuff with you?'
'I don't know. Maybe it started with me about something else but when Richard got here they saw the money.'
Starkey didn't look convinced.
'And maybe DeNice just got too close to them.' 'DeNice wasn't good enough to find them. They arranged some kind of meet because they're hitting up Richard for ransom, and they used DeNice to make sure he pays.'
It was the only way the pieces fit.
Lucas wet her lips, as if the notion of it disturbed her.
