Celeste Boggs, Project Justices office manager and self-proclaimed head of security, looked up from her Soldier of Fortune magazine with a stern expression and pointed to a clipboard. Sign in there, please.
Oh, but Im not
Celeste tapped the clipboard with one impatient finger and glared, daring Claudia to complete her argument.
Claudia signed in. It was hard to defy Celeste. Though the former Houston cop was in her seventies, she was one scary mama who claimed to know fourteen ways to kill someone with her bare hands. Celeste dressed as if she were auditioning for the role of Worlds Most Eccentric Senior Citizen, but Claudia wasnt fooled by the flamboyant red, ostrich-feather-trimmed shirt or the huge earrings made from shotgun shells.
Celeste meant business, and no one got past her into the rest of the building unless she let them.
Billy, Celeste said into the phone, your date is here. I hope you bought a corsage for her.
Is that how Claudia appeared to Celeste? she wondered with some alarm. Like a high-school girl all primped for a date with the quarterback? Shed opted for a more casual look today, a pale peach linen sundress with a wide brass belt. The skirt was one of her shorter oneshad she subconsciously dressed provocatively for Billys sake?
The possibility was troubling.
A loud clanging of metal and a snort coming from the vicinity of Celestes feet interrupted Claudias uncomfortable musing. Whats that noise?
Oh, thats just Buster.
You have a dog down there?
No, not a dog. Celeste tried and failed to hide a mischievous smile. Want to see him? Hes a beauty. She leaned down and grabbed on to something that turned out to be a metal cage. As she hefted it up, Claudia saw that inside the cage was a large, furry, fierce-lookingpig? It was excitedly trying to dig its way through the steel bars with sharp, cloven hooves.
Claudia took an instinctive step back. Oh, my God, what in the hell is that thing?
Its a javelina! Havent you ever seen one before?
In a zoo, maybe. Whats it doing here?
It was in my backyard, and it kept digging up my vegetables. I caught it. My grandsons school mascot is a javelina and their previous one diedor maybe they ate it. So Im donating this one to the school.
Youre donating a vicious wild animal to a school? That did not sound like a wise plan.
Hes not vicious. Ive been taming him down. Watch, hell let me pet him now.
Uh, are you sure thats a good idea? Claudia took a few more steps back.
Celeste opened the cage door. Dont worry, hes really rather sweet. Arent you, Buster? Celeste petted the animal on the head, then scratched it behind one ear.
The beast didnt look as if it enjoyed the attention. In fact, it was frozen in a classic defense posture designed to make it invisible. Its next move would be to bolt for freedom. Freeze, fight or flight.
A frosted glass partition separated the lobby from the rest of the building. Just as Celeste withdrew her hand and was about to close the cage, Billy burst through the glass door like a freight train.
Good morning, Claudia!
The wild animal bolted out of the cage at the speed of light, sliding across the polished surface of the reception desk, plopping to the floor and wiggling right past Billys feet and through the door before it closed.
Claudia screamed just from the sheer surprise, and Billy backed up against a wall, his right hand automatically reaching under his jacket for a weapon.
Holy crap, what was that thing?
Celeste was the only one who didnt look perturbed. A javelina, what did it look like? She calmly picked up the phone and pushed the intercom button. Attention, all staff. Please be advised there is a small, hairy, piglike animal loose in the building. If you see it, would you mind calling the front desk so I can catch it?
You brought a live javelina to work? Billy asked, as if wanting to be sure hed heard right.
It would have been fine if you hadnt scared it.
Billy looked at Claudia. Now would be a good time to leave.
Sign out! Both of you.
Once they were out the door and heading for Claudias car, they burst out laughing.
What the hell was that about? Billy asked. Celestes new pet?
She caught it in her yard, Claudia said, and shes donating it to her grandsons school because they need a mascot.
Her grandson? Celeste doesnt have any children. She never married. You must mean her great-nephew.
She said grandson. Im sure of it.
Billy shrugged one muscular shoulder. She must have misspoken, then.
Elderly ladies didnt normally speak of grandchildren they didnt have. How odd.
As they approached Claudias silver-green Nissan Roadster, she used her remote to unlock the doors.
Billy whistled appreciatively. Sweet ride.
Thanks. Shed insisted on driving for two reasons. First, it gave her something to do with her hands, somewhere to focus her attention besides on Billy so she wouldnt give away her roiling emotions. And second, she wantedno, neededto have control of something. Relinquishing the driving all day long yesterday to Billy had been a tough challenge, particularly since she hadnt felt shed had a strong grip on anything else, especially her own feelings.
She glanced over at him as he fastened his seat belt. A lot of men would balk at allowing a woman to drive them anyplace. But Billy was obviously secure enough in his masculinity that it didnt bother him. Or maybe it bothered him and she wasnt able to tell.
Why wouldnt he be secure? Lord, he was handsome in a striped button shirt and a lightweight summer jacket, worn to disguise the fact that he carried a sidearm in a shoulder holster. A crisp pair of boot-cut Levis, the ostrich-skin boots to go with them and a white straw Stetson completed the picture.
He took his hat off and settled it on his lap, then donned reflective mirror sunglasses.
One reason cops wore mirrored sunglasses was so they wouldnt telegraph their actions with their eyes. Was it possible he deliberately hid behind those opaque lenses to make it harder for her to read him? Did he really not want her to know who he was?
She supposed that was only fair. She didnt exactly go out of her way to broadcast her true self, either. She punched Angie Torress address into her GPS, then slid her car smoothly into downtown morning traffic.
Angie Torres lived in a run-down area of Harrisburg Boulevard in Magnolia Park, a hundred-year-old neighborhood of Houston in the early stages of rehabilitation. But this block hadnt yet been gentrified; the apartment was above a strip of white-brick stores, most of which were boarded up.
Mary-Francis had said her daughter worked in a medical office, leading Claudia to believe she was a functional addict, but this looked to be the sort of place where the near-homeless, prostitutes and other victims of society ended up.
Claudia and Billy climbed a dark staircase into an equally dim hallway, alive with roaches and smelling of urine. Billy placed his body between Claudia and the door as he rang the bell. Though it was a simple display of caveman machismo, it had an undeniable effect on her. His protectiveness made her skin tingle with warmth. Few people in her life had ever put her safety and well-being above their own, even casually.
No one answered. Billy knocked, then pressed his ear against the door and listened.
I dont think theres anyone inside. I dont hear voices or a TV, not even sounds of a pet. Lets check around the back. Theres probably a fire escape or something.
Once outside, Claudia was grateful for a breath of fresh air. She tried to follow Billy on his quest to find a back door, but the tangled, thorny brush behind the small, two-story building proved a bit much for her leather sandals and bare legs, so she waited for him in the shade of a tattered store awning, welcoming the small breather. Being around Billy was a lot of work.
She couldnt even tell whether he was attracted to her. Normally she could discern in a heartbeat if a man was interested in her, at least on a physical level. The signs were so obviousthe covert studying of her body, the way an interested man leaned in when speaking to her, the length of eye contact, the way his gaze would move from face to breast to legs, then back, and that unique male shifting of weight to accommodate a burgeoning erection.
Billy had flirted with her, but flirting was automatic with him. Hed have probably flirted with Celeste if he hadnt been so surprised by the javelina. But Claudia absolutely couldnt tell if anything lurked behind the flirting.
With Billy, she was drowning in a sea of unknowns, confused about where she stood. For the first time in years, the ball of fear in her stomach just wouldnt go away. Her built-in alarm system was warning her of Danger! in flashing red letters.
Unfortunately, the same thing that made Billy a mystery also made him undeniably exciting. What if he could read her attraction to him? How awful would that be?
She had some control over the physical signals she broadcast to the world, but she couldnt do anything about the pheromones that were undoubtedly wafting from her body in waves.
As she waited for Billy, a young, skinny Hispanic man covered with tattoos exited from the door that led upstairs.
He noticed her as he walked toward a beat-up truck, and did a double take, this time perusing her up and down, his expression at first hostile, then more curious.
Claudia slid her hand into her pocket where she kept a small device that, with the push of a button, would emit a piercing siren. She never went anywhere without it.
¿Qué pasa, mama?
Hola, señor. Her Spanish was limited, but she knew enough to have a stilted conversation if necessary. Do you speak English?
You want me to speak English, I speak English, he said with almost no accent.
My partner and I are looking for Angie Torres. She hoped the use of the word partner would cause the man to think she was a cop.
He smiled slowly. Police? You? He laughed and shook his head. Then he continued in perfectly good English, No cop I know dresses like that.
Do you know Angie? she persisted.
The man leaned against a post and crossed his ankles as he lit a cigarette. The signs said he was flirting, not dangerous. She slipped her hand out of her pocket.
Yeah, I know her. And didnt care for her, apparently, judging from the way he flashed a slight sneer. She moved out. She inherited a house. Her mom murdered her dad and went to prison for it. She was a piece of work, that girl. The man closed his eyes and shook his head.
Why do you say that?
Always carping about how selfish her parents were, that they were rich and never gave her a dime. But who could blame them? Any money they gave her went up in smoke. I wouldnt put it past her to kill her dad and blame it on her mama so she could get hold of their money.
An alarming possibility, one they should probably look into, though Angies only criminal record consisted of a couple of misdemeanor possession charges.
What kind of drugs did she use?
The young man took a long drag on his cigarette and blew it out slowlya classic move someone took to collect his thoughts before speaking. Anything she could get her hands on. Got fired from her last job for stealing Vicodin.
That would explain why she wasnt working at the medical office anymore.
Thanks. I appreciate the information.
No problem. He flicked his ash into the breeze. You busy later?
Lord, she hoped so. She cast a glance toward the back of the building. Um, my partner is really jealous. You probably dont want him to see us talking.
The man gave her a regretful look, then turned and sauntered away.
Billy reappeared around the corner. No fire escape. This building is a code inspectors nightmare. Who was that guy you were talking to?
A neighbor. He says well find Angie at her parents house, which she now considers hers.
Probably at least half of it is. Mary-Francis wouldnt have been allowed to keep the profits from her crimein this case, her half of the community property. Was there a will?
I dont know.
Lets check out the house. He paused just before getting into the Roadster. Theres no reason you have to waste your whole day running around checking out leads. You can drop me at the office and get back to your work. I can do this on my own.
I want to meet Angie, Claudia said firmly as she opened the car door. It had sat in the sun only a few minutes, but hot air wafted out, and she waited for it to cool off slightly before she climbed inside. I want to see for myself how she acts when we bring up the coinsand her father.
Billys eyebrows lifted. You dont trust me. You dont think I can handle it.
Oh, no, Billy, its not that. I justI feel so responsible for Mary-Francis ending up on death row. The prosecution used certain parts of my evaluation to make things worse for her. If theres any chance of saving herI just want to do my part, thats all.
You did your part. You drew the case to our attention. We can take it
Billy, dont be difficult. I want to go with you to interview Angie.
So you can do your hocus-pocus on her.
My assessment could be of value to you. Why dont you just accept my help?
I work better alone.
If I hadnt been here, if I hadnt talked to that neighbor, you wouldnt even know where to find Angie.
I would have figured it out.
We dont have all day. If Angie finds the coins
If the coins even exist.
They do. Mary-Francis was telling the truth about that, though not necessarily about the particulars.
He rolled his eyes. Fine. You can come with me. But I dont want to have to look out for your safety all the time, okay? I almost had a heart attack when I saw you talking to that lowlife just now, and I realized I shouldnt have left you alone.
I was fine. That guy was not dangerous. Just because hes poor and has tattoos doesnt mean
Save me from a lecture about stereotypes. Im a former cop and I can smell trouble. That guy was no angel.
We wont be going anywhere dangerous, Claudia persisted. Even though she was the one with the car keys, Billy had taken firm control of the reins.
Angie could be dangerous. She has something to lose, if she thinks we might be challenging her right to her parents stuff. Addicts do desperate things when theyre cornered.