“So what did he do? Give you bad legal advice?” Winger prompts.
“No legal advice.” I open a few drawers and cupboards as I pass.
“There are no knives. I noticed your affinity for weapons.”
“You forgot the forks,” I joke, pushing the drawer closed.
“If you manage to kill me with a spoon or fork, I’ll consider it my time to go.”
“Is that a challenge?” I question but move away from the island, so he knows I’m not planning on taking him up on it.
“No, and if you try, there will be consequences. I think I’ve already proven I have no desire to hurt you, so don’t force my hand, Max.”
“Maybe you’re just trying to get me to let my guard down.” I finally take a seat on the opposite side of the sofa. It’s closer to him than I want to be, but I need to show him trust.
“Why?” he asks simply.
“Because there’s something you want from me.”
“The only thing I want from you are answers. Why did you follow me, why were you at the club, and why did you leave a dead body on my doorstep?” He ticks off his fingers. His questions are valid. If I was in his position, I’d want to know too.
“I already gave you most of the answers, but we can go over it again.” I sigh and flick a piece of lint off my pants. “I was curious about why you stopped that guy from robbing me. Things weren’t really going to plan that night, and getting robbed was just the shit topper on the cake. I didn’t want to kill the guy and draw attention to myself, but I couldn’t let him have the bag either.”
“You were carrying evidence,” he states.
“Yeah, I wasn’t supposed to shoot Cloven so fast, and it messed everything up, but the moment I saw his face…” I put my hands together like I want to strangle him and kill him all over again. “Anyway, it was your bad luck to help me, and in my moment of weakness, or clarity, who knows, I became curious about you. I just couldn’t figure out why you helped me but didn’t ask for anything in return. That’s obviously not something I’m used to.”
I look up after several seconds of silence, not sure what to expect, but a scowl wasn’t on the list. I guess that means he doesn’t believe me.
Maybe I should have made up some elaborate lie about one of the guys on my list wanting him dead so I could have killed two birds with one stone, literally. I would have given him what he wanted, and another person on my list would be dead. I might have been too, though, but I’ll never know.
“I can show you my list. Your name isn’t on it,” I offer as a last resort.
“I want the list,” Winger says darkly. “I also want to know why every name is on it. I don’t need details, but I need to know, Max. This is nonnegotiable.”
“Why? It means nothing to you.”
“Because I said so,” he tells me, and I know he’s not going to budge if I ask again. He seems more pissed off now than when I broke his nose.
“So when are we going?”
WINGER
“Going where?”
“To get the list,” she answers like that was the dumbest question ever asked. “I don’t have it keistered.”
“Have it what?”
“Shoved up my ass. You don’t know what keistered means?”
“Jesus, I know what it means,” I reply. I don’t even know why I asked for clarification. “Tell me where it is, and I’ll get it.” It’s my best bet to find out who hired the man from the parking lot. Iron found a text message from a burner account on the dead guy’s phone. It contained her name, address, and ten grand. I’m guessing that would have been the payout.
I’ve been watching her house to see if anyone comes to finish the job, but they either know she isn’t there or they are lying low for a while, because no one has shown up. I even installed a security system to let me know if anyone tries to break in because I can’t be there twenty-four seven.
“No.” She crosses her arms over her chest.
“No?” I question doubtfully, wondering how she thinks she has the power to tell me no.
