“But I’d like to see—” “Beat it!” Henderson said, pushing Hoke’s shoulder. “All right. But call me tomorrow, Sanchez. There’re a few things—” “I’ll call you,” Sanchez said. “But right now you’d better get going.” “You call me, too, Bill.”

Don’t talk to the press or to anyone else about the case. You’re not going to have any problems at the hearing. Deadly force was justified, and you’ll be cleared.”

“Well, Violet Nygren resigned a few weeks back.

If she claims she didn’t know he was going to rob the store, we can’t hold her as an accessory.” “Is she really that dumb, or is it an act of some kind?” “It’s consistent, whatever it is. Why don’t we just take her statement and put her on a bus for Belle Glade so she can get her damned car.”

“I guess his gun didn’t do him much good, then, did it? I’m sorry to hear that. I never wished him any harm. I wasn’t going to tell on him, either, about Martin, I mean, but I don’t want to get in no trouble on account of Junior. I didn’t do anything. I just want to go back to Okeechobee. All I’ve had is trouble of some kind or other ever since I c

“With a gun in his hand,” Sanchez said, looking up with a smile. She raised Freddy’s unbandaged left hand. “See? Three fingers missing. When the ME matches them up, Sergeant Moseley’ll be credited with a quick solution to a double murder.”

His knees buckled, and as he dropped to the floor, he managed to break his fall with his right hand. He fell over on his left side, groaned piteously, and fished in his jacket pocket for his pistol. As the .38 cleared the pocket, Hoke shot him in the stomach. Freddy screamed and rolled over, trying to get to his feet and get the pistol out of his p

All of it, including the 10,000 Mexican pesos they hadn’t been able to exchange. Freddy laughed. So Susan had skipped out on him, taken some of her clothes, the money, and gone home.

Some traffic cop or meter maid had made her move, and she had either circled the block while he was still in the coin shop, or made a second tour of the block and perhaps a third. She might still be downtown, circling the block again and again, but she would give up eventually and drive home to Dania.