“Ancient,” frowned Irish. She laughed, shrugging her shoulders.
“Listen, I’m just telling you what I know. He’s not a good student. Barely passes most of the exams but the point is that he does pass them. That’s all that matters. I’m just not sure nursing is his passion. That seems a weird choice for him. It doesn’t fit his personality.”
“How do you mean?” asked Hoot.
“Well, nurses do have to be tough and stoic. We’re faced with a lot of life and death situations and decisions. But we also have to be able to connect with the patient. I just can’t picture him doing that.”
“Thank you for your time,” said Irish. “Good luck on the last exam.”
“Thanks,” she nodded, immediately going back to her studying.
Their next stop was the small home in Tremé, that Weil shared with three other men. The outside was decorated for Mardi Gras, with purple, gold, and green wreaths hanging from the doors and windows, purple, gold, and green lights around the porch, and beads hanging everywhere.
“Nice house,” said Gator.
“Four guys can probably make this reasonable,” said Hoot. He knocked on the door and waited, hoping someone would answer. When they didn’t, they knocked louder.
“Coming, coming!” The door opened and a man of small stature, messy hair, and wearing a dirty t-shirt and sweatpants stood in front of them. “Oh. Hello.”
“Hello,” said Irish. “We’re friends of Willa’s. Can we ask you a few questions?”
“Oh, sure,” he said opening the door. “I’m Weil. Pronounced ‘While’. Jeannie said you might be coming by.” They all nodded, not sure whether that should concern them or not.
“If she called you, do you have anything to add to what happened the other day?” asked Gator.
“I don’t know the guy very well at all. It’s not like I tried to get to know him better, it’s just that it didn’t feel as though he were open to that. He’s not gay and I think he sensed that I am. Some guys are weird about that.”
“Did he say something that would make you think he was bothered by your sexuality?” asked Hoot.
“No. No, no. Please don’t think he did. I just never got the ‘friend’ vibe from him. We would go to lunch or sometimes meet for breakfast as a class and he always joined us but I wouldn’t say he participated. Does that make sense?”
“I think so,” nodded Gator. “So, he wasn’t very talkative with all of you?”
“Not at all. When he joined our class we all asked about where he was from, did he have family, just the usual. He was pretty tight-lipped. It did seem odd the way he reacted when Willa announced that she was engaged. Although, in truth, I was surprised.”
“Why? Did it seem unreasonable that she would be engaged to someone?” asked Gator.
“Not at all. Willa’s a babe. She’s beautiful, smart, sweet to everyone she meets. I love her. She just plays for the wrong team,” he grinned.
“No, what I meant was that she never once spoke about a guy in her life. She’s definitely someone who is private. I mean when we asked about her family she would always give vague answers. We had a bet whether or not they were mob. It was just surprising.”
“We’re not mob,” said Gator with a straight face. Weil just nodded at him with a strange expression.
“Did you ever have any altercations with this guy? With Morris?” asked Hoot.
“No. He doesn’t strike me as the altercation kind of guy. I can’t tell you why or what it could be, but I do think he’s hiding something.”
“Why do you say that?” asked Irish.
“Have you found his address yet?” They all shook their heads. “When you do, let me know. We’ve tried to send him invites for class events, holiday parties, even our Mardi Gras party here. No one can give me an address for this guy.”
“Thank you, that’s very helpful,” said Hoot. “One more question. Did you ever see him with a woman, like out on a date or at a restaurant?”
“Never.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
“Hiro and AJ are working to try and find a physical address for this guy,” said Gator. “Until then, we have the address for Nicole. Let’s see if she has anything to contribute.”
