Trying not to sound as troubled as he felt, he said, “Haskell has to poke his head out sometime. Keep your eyes and ears open.”
“Always,” she said, sounding a bit let down that she hadn’t been given a more adventurous assignment.
Just as he ended that call, another came in from Oz. He answered, and Oz said, “Disaster averted. The drivers got wind of two speed traps on I-10. Texas DPS. Didn’t want to risk it. They separated and each took a different back road, and, as an extra precaution, turned off their phones till they were well past the traps.”
“Good news,” Roland said, meaning it.
Oz clicked off before saying anything more. That was that. Things were looking up.
Soon after they disconnected, someone knocked on his office door. “Come in.”
El Paso strolled in looking surly. “Some asshole woke me up, said you wanted to see me, drove me over here.”
He’d sent his chauffeur to the flop house where El Paso had gotten lodging. Roland looked him over. “You’re stoned.”
“Duh.” El Paso shut the door hard and raised his shoulders in an insolent shrug. “You told me to lay low, I was laying low.”
“Get sober by closing time tonight. Meet me at the kitchen door ten minutes after closing. You’re running an errand with me.”
His red-rimmed eyes brightened a bit. “Cool. I guess I’m forgiven?”
“Pending.”
He scoffed. “Pending.” Then said, “See you ten minutes after closing, boss,” and slunk out.
Roland went over to the door and locked it, then returned to his desk and opened the lower drawer. He took out a new garrote and gave it a few test tugs. Perfect. His cousin never failed him. His stock was getting low. Tomorrow, he would need to place an order for a couple more.
With that in mind, he picked up the phone he used to communicate with Dylan and read again her sweet but lying text. On a whim, he called her number, just out of curiosity for how she would sound and what she would say. It went to voice mail.
That was all right. It gave him more time to savor the thought of killing her.
Chapter 32
As soon as Mitch returned with Dylan and Andrew to the fishing camp, he called John to update him on Hank’s condition, Mary’s state of mind, and Andrew’s transfer of watch care from the neighbor to him. “Poor kid was so glad to see us.”
“‘Us?’”
“Dylan.”
“She went along to Lafayette?”
“I wasn’t going to take her home or leave her out here alone.”
“Nobody knows about the camp.”
“I’m not taking any chances with this bunch, John. When we came out of the hospital, I noticed a car in the parking lot slowly making laps up one row and down another.”
“Looking for an empty space.”
“He passed them up. He wasn’t looking to park his car. Now call me paranoid, or maybe it was just my ops training working overtime, but I was glad we were in a car that wouldn’t be recognized.”
“How would Malone and company have known you were going to a hospital in Lafayette?”
“Come on, John.”
“Walls with ears?”
“Right-o. And these sons of bitches are smart and bold. If they pick up even a tidbit, they’re gonna act on it.”
