When the waitress returned with his drink, Mallet downed the whiskey, slid the empty glass to the edge of the table and motioned for another. He discreetly dropped some bills on the table, then got up and headed toward the restrooms, bypassing the mens room for the rear exit at the end of the hall.
He opened the door and slipped outside. Pressing himself into the shadows, he peered down the alley toward the street. When the coast seemed clear, he hurried to the back where he climbed a chain-link fence and jumped down on the other side.
A few minutes later, he was back at the cemetery.
The gates were closed and locked by this time, but he scaled the brick wall easy enough and soon he was making his way through the crypts and mausoleums to his first wifes vault, where hed been earlier.
Dropping to the ground, he leaned back against the still-warm concrete as he removed his gun from his pocket and tucked it beneath his leg. Then he pulled a fifth of whiskey from his other pocket, uncapped the bottle and took a long swig before letting his head fall back against the vault.
After a while, it started to mist and he turned his face skyward, letting the moisture cool his overheated skin. He was nervous and punchy, but being back here with Teri helped calm him. It always did.
Man, he still missed that girl.
Shed only been eighteen when they married, fresh from her high school graduation when they ran off to Biloxi. Hed just celebrated his twenty-first birthday. Young, stupid, crazy in love.
Back then hed wanted nothing more than to be with her day and night. Even now, he could remember feeling that he would never be able to get enough of her.
A year later, she was dead. Killed by a drunk driver when his car hit hers head-on.
Nathan had quit drinking after the accident. He felt he owed her that much. For years, he never so much as touched a drop, but then his life had taken one bad turn after another. His mistakes had started to catch up with him, and hed sometimes have a drink or two just to get through the day. Before he knew it, he couldnt crawl out of bed without the sauce. He went to sleep loaded and he woke up reaching for his next drink.
His second wife, Kathy, was a good woman and God knows she deserved a lot better than what hed put her through over the years. But after all this timewell over a decadehed never been able to forget about Teri. Hed never been able to stop thinking about what might have been. If only hed been with her that day. If only shed taken another route home.
Nathans visits to the cemetery had become both easier and harder over the years. Easier because it was the only place where he ever felt any real peace. Harder because it always hit him anew how much hed lost when Teri died.
Hello, Nathan.
With an effort, he opened his eyes. He hadnt even realized hed drifted off, but when he saw the man standing over him, he came fully awake and a warning shivered down his spine.
He couldnt see the mans face, but he knew that voice.
Long time no see, Nathan said as he dropped his hand to the ground beside his leg. I was about to give up. Thought no one was coming. Id have been mighty pissed, too, after driving all the way up here to see you.
Have you ever known Sonny to go back on his word?
Nathan shrugged. Like I said, its been a long time. People change.
You sure have. The man kicked Nathans foot with the toe of his boot. You look like shit.
Thanks a lot. He lifted the bottle and took a long swig.
You need to take better care of yourself. Maybe try a steady diet of something besides Jim Beam.
Ill make you a deal. You live your life, Ill live mine.
The man laughed softly and turned to glance around. I didnt see your car on the street. Howd you get over here?
Walked.
Walked.
From where?
From where I left my car, Nathan said, evading the question.
The man turned back to him. The feds are bound to know youre back in town by now. You sure you werent followed?
Nathan snorted. None of those fuckers know New Orleans like I do.
Dont get too confident.
Im not, he said. Matter of fact, I ran into a little unexpected trouble when I was here earlier.
Yeah, we know about that.
Nathan looked up in surprise. You know? What, you guys spying on me?
Just keeping an eye on things, the man said. Big difference.
Right.
What did Evangeline Theroux want? he asked.
Nathan scowled. What do you think she wanted?
The man hesitated. Let me rephrase that. What did you tell her?
Nothing, man.
She sure seemed upset when she left. So I repeatwhat did you tell her?
Nathan wiped a shaky hand across his mouth. She kept asking about that night. I had to tell her something to get her off my back.
And?
I told her about the woman.
Another long pause. I see.
At least now shell stop asking questions, Nathan said hopefully.
You think?
Yeah, man, were chill. He handed up the bottle to his companion. Have a drink and relax.
No, thanks, but you go ahead and knock yourself out.
Dont mind if I do. Nathan took another swallow and recapped the bottle.
What else are you on? the man asked conversationally.
What do you mean?
Im talking about drugs, Nathan. Narcotics. Chemicals. What gets you baked these days?
Hey, Im clean.
Sure you are. Thats why you look like a walking corpse. Hooch didnt do that kind of damage. If I was a betting man, Id put my money on meth. The nirvana of the Southern redneck.
Nathans hand was still beside him on the ground. Just a fingertip away from his gun. Something tells me you didnt come here just to insult me. Whyd you want to see me anyway?
Weve got some loose ends that need tying up.
Such as?
Youve got an addiction, Nathan. That makes you dangerous to Sonny. Especially with the feds breathing down his neck.
Nah, man. What are you talking about? Nathans fingers inched closer to his weapon. He didnt like where this conversation was headed.
When you run out of money, you might be tempted to start selling secrets. We cant have that, now can we?
Nathan reached for his gun, but he was too late. He barely caught a glimpse of the silenced weapon before a bullet caught him square between the eyes. His head flew back, spraying blood and membrane all over his dead wifes tomb.
He was dead instantly, but the killer pumped two more rounds into his chest for good measure. Then he squatted beside Nathans body and rummaged through his jacket until he found a wallet and car keys.
Standing, he pocketed the booty, then turned and made his way to the back of the cemetery, where he slowly walked down the row of vaults, reading the plaques.
Johnny Theroux. Rest in peace, asshole. Scaling the brick wall, he dropped like a cat to the other side.
A moment later, he disappeared into the night.
Sixteen
The next morning, Evangeline pulled to the curb in front of the address Lapierre had given her the day before. It was a little before nine, and she was glad to have a few minutes to herself before interviewing the mysterious Lena Saunders.
Evangeline hauled out the notes shed scribbled earlier at the station, but she found it impossible to focus her thoughts. Her eyes burned from fatigue, and she squeezed them closed for a moment against the blinding sunlight that bounced off the windshield of a parked car.
She hadnt slept much the night before. Too much on her mind.
On the heels of Nathans disclosure had come the news of her parents impending separation. She supposed the trouble in that marriage had been brewing for a long time, too, but shed managed to convince herself theyd work things out. If their relationship had survived the hell her brother, Vaughn, had put them through back in his youth, she would have thought they could weather any storm.
Apparently, shed been wrong about that, too.
Was there such a thing as a healthy marriage these days? she wondered.
Her parents. Mitchell and Lorraine. And now the memory of her and Johnnys marriage was tarnished with doubt.
Glancing at her watch, Evangeline saw that it was almost nine. She climbed out of the car and took a moment to gaze around the neighborhood. Lena Saunders lived only a few blocks over from Meredith Courtland in the Garden District. The houses along this street were slightly smaller, but the yards and gardens were just as well kept, the white facades of the homes just as sparkling in the summer heat.
Out on the street, two boys rode by on bicycles, ball gloves swinging from their handlebars. They laughed and clowned as they sped through the lawn sprinklers, and Evangeline wondered for a moment what her life would be like when J.D. reached that age.
She watched the boys until they were out of sight, and then she turned and started up the walkway. The bushes were still dripping from the sprinklers, and the air smelled of wet grass and honeysuckle.
The door was opened by a young man in linen pants, leather sandals and a thin cotton shirt. His light brown hair was stylishly cut, and behind the thick black frames of his glasses, green eyes twinkled with good humor.
You must be Detective Theroux, he said, stepping back from the door so that she could enter. Come on in. Lena is expecting you.
He led her from the light-flooded foyer into a large room decorated in gray and black with punches of red. The layout of the house reminded Evangeline of the Courtland home, but the clean, minimalist furnishings were a far cry from Meredith Courtlands lush, eclectic style.
But the view from the French doors was exactly the samea sun-drenched courtyard and sparkling pool.
Im Josh, by the way. He waved toward a spec-tacular leather sofa in silver. Make yourself at home. Ill go tell Lena youre here.
After he left the room, Evangeline wandered over to the French doors and stood admiring the garden. She and Johnny had always talked about landscap-ing the tiny backyard of their home, but thered never been enough time or money and neither of them had much of a green thumb anyway.
Johnny.
She closed her eyes.
How she hated this. Hated having doubts about a man shed once trusted more than anyone. Hated having her memories of their time together now stained with a terrible suspicion.
You must be Evangeline.
She glimpsed the womans reflection in the glass a split second before she spoke.