“It’s a stretch.”
“It is, but I’d like to know, wouldn’t you?”
Tucker cursed. “Goddammit, it’s like this every friggin’ time you contact me.”
“Like what?”
“Like I wish you hadn’t. But I’ll look into it. Right now, though, I’m busy with something else.”
Mitch recognized that particular tone. His antenna went up. “Involving what? Who?”
“Can’t say.”
“Don’t know? Or can’t say?”
“Won’tsay. Bye-bye.”
“Wait. There’s more.”
Tucker blew out a gusty breath. “There always is.”
“A new item appeared on the restaurant’s menu tonight.”
It took a moment for Tucker to interpret that. “Appetizer or main dish?”
Dessert, Mitch thought, but he said, “I don’t know yet. It needs to marinate.”
“What’s it called?”
“Can’t say.”
“Don’t know? Or can’t say?”
“Won’tsay.”
“So, you’re familiar with the dish, but this is the first time you’ve seen it on the menu?”
Mitch didn’t answer, which made Tucker testy. “You realize that this batshit-crazy homeless man hadno businessbeing anywhere near there.”
“He thinks otherwise.”
“He’s beeninstructednot to hang out around there.”
“Yeah, well…”
“If he’s caught… Christ. Does the homeless man’s friend JB know anything about any of this, about his nocturnal pastime?”
Through the plate glass storefront, he saw Dylan approaching the checkout with a basket of goods. “We’ll address that later. This phone might be compromised. Next time I call you, it’ll be from a burner, so answer your phone even if it doesn’t ID the caller.”
“Roger that, but—”
“Gotta split.” He clicked off and deftly removed the battery from his phone. He palmed Dylan’s, considered taking its battery out as well, but she was pushing through the exit.
He slid his phone back into his pocket just as she reached for the passenger door handle.
Chapter 18
He drove around to the back of the store where the pickup couldn’t be seen from the road. First, he pulled away the wrap he’d taken from Dylan, which had stanched the blood flow by absorbing a lot of it. Looking at her apologetically, he tossed it onto the floorboard.
