Just as he draws up his chin to be defiant, I stab him in the thigh again. He cries out. “Nope, but you’re going to tell me everything.” I look around at the cinder blocks. “You did a good job soundproofing this basement.”
“Thanks.” He coughs up more blood. I rip the knife out. The sound he makes is indescribable. I’ve been stabbed before. I know how it feels. He swallows rapidly. “You’re going to kill me.”
“Yep,” I say. “It’s up to you whether I do it in the morning or right now.”
He reaches the bargaining part of the dance. “How about we come to a different agreement?”
“I’m listening.” I have no intention of reaching any other conclusion, but I find that giving somebody hope in their last hours is not a bad thing to do.
“I have money. About two hundred thousand dollars. We’ll split it.”
Considering my funds were released earlier, and I already went shopping, that’s a piddly amount. But I smile. “Right now, I want information. Why does Reyes want you dead?”
He swallows, and more blood gurgles out of his lips. I think I may have punctured one of his lungs because he’s wheezing. “He must’ve found out Paco was making a move to take over Twenty-One Purple, and I’m one of his lieutenants.”
“Yeah, but that’s not all.” It’s expected that somebody will make a move. “What else?”
Miguel shudders violently. Yep, definitely nicked a lung. “I don’t know how he found out. There’s no way she talked.” Miguel’s eyes get a faraway look as if he forgets my presence.
I’m sure it’s the brain’s way of protecting itself. “Who?”
He jerks. “Reyes’s old lady. Juan, Paco’s other lieutenant, made a play for her. She wasn’t receptive. He didn’t care.”
I sit back. “What does that have to do with you?”
“I helped him cover it up. I threatened to kill her if she said anything.” He spits out blood. “I meant it. She has no protection now that Reyes is gone. She should’ve taken Juan’s offer.”
“Doesn’t sound like an offer to me,” I say. Juan is the third name on my list, so at least now this makes sense. “Where does she live?”
He rattles off an address that’s three blocks away. “She ain’t going anywhere, man. She lives here. Reyes makes sure she has enough money to live and feed that kid, but she’ll never get out of here. Like I said, she should’ve taken Juan’s offer.”
“Where is Juan?” I ask nicely.
Miguel’s eyes look up, cloudy and brown, the bloody one looking darker than the other one. “Why?”
“He’s third on my list,” I admit.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. No. If you and I are going to split the money, part of the deal is Juan lives.”
Interesting. Loyalty among assholes. “Why?”
“Because he’s the man. I’ll take you to a party on seventh so you can meet him tonight. Now that Paco’s dead, Juan will take over. He’s got some great ideas, and he’s always been our best bitch trafficker.”
Yet another reason I’m going to kill Juan. It occurs to me that the man I’m killing them for is probably worse than the three of them put together, but right now he’s safely in prison, and I don’t have to worry about him.
“You’ve been pretty helpful, Miguel. Thanks.” He’s bleeding out, and I wonder how much time he has left. He isn’t noticing that he’s losing blood faster than he can make it. The guy’s not the brightest.
He’s bald with even more tattoos across his skull. There’s actually one of a skull with the word hell spelled with three l’s beneath it.
I make sure there isn’t too much blood on my jeans. There’s a fair amount, damn it. “Tell me about Howard Fissure.”
Miguel blinks. “Fissure? Why? What do you want to know about him?” He pales beneath his brown skin. “Oh God, Reyes knows about Fissure?”
“Yep,” I say. “Who is he?”
“He’s the owner of Nero Tech. It’s some startup that has to do with the web.” Miguel hangs his head. “Is there anything that Reyes doesn’t know?”
“Probably not,” I say agreeably, wiping off the knife on a clean spot on his jeans. He works to loosen the ropes behind his back, but I know how to tie a rope.
