“I didn’t ask him about his boat.”

“Evan denies having spent a night on his boat out at the reef, and he says he lost his cell phone the day he bought the boat. For what it’s worth, Charley helped him move the boat the day he bought it, so he could have filched Evan’s cell phone and taken the boat out to the reef without Evan’s knowledge.”

“Yeah, I guess. That would support the contention that Evan wasn’t involved in the drug trade with Charley.”

“Something else makes me think Evan is clean of all this,” Stone said.

“What’s that?”

“This is between you and me, Tommy; it involves client confi dentiality.”

“Okay, it goes no further.”

“Last night I offered Even Keating twenty-one million for his share of the family business, and he turned me down.”

“He turned down twenty-one mil? Holy shit! Why?”

“Because he thinks his father owes him a lot more and is trying to cheat him. Doesn’t sound like he’d be a candidate for a quick buck dealing drugs, does it? I mean, he’s already living on one trust fund that seems to be supporting him in comfort.”

“You got a point,” Tommy said.

“One other thing, and this doesn’t sound so good: when Evan bought Chuck Chandler’s boat, he paid for it with a hundred thirty thousand in hundred-dollar bills.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. Why don’t you ask him?”

“I mean, a guy who’s got that kind of money would run it through a bank, wouldn’t he?”

“Could be some sort of tax dodge.”

“Yeah, that could make sense.”

“Did you release him?”

“Yeah, we talked for about two hours, then I cut him loose.”

“Did you get an address?”

“Yeah, he’s staying at the Gardens, which is a block or two from the Marquesa. It’s just as nice, but more expensive.”

“Be interesting to know if he’s paying cash,” Stone said. “I’ll find out.”

“Will you let me hear from you about that and the check with the prep school?”

“Sure. See you later.”

Stone hung up. “Evan is staying at the Gardens, just up the street from here.”

“I saw the sign,” Dino said.

“Oh, it was Evan’s girlfriend, Gigi Jones, who slugged me outside the restaurant. He says she’s sometimes overprotective.”

“Well, at least that resulted in your meeting the Swede. Was the blow to the neck worth the roll in the hay?”

“I think it’s going to take me longer to recover from the roll in the hay,” Stone said. “I’m supposed to call her about dinner tonight, but I’m not sure I’m up to it.”

“Take a nap; you’ll be fi ne.”

Stone’s cell phone vibrated. “Hello?”

“Hi, it’s Evan Keating.”

“Good morning.”