I give her a hug, then head for the courtyard gate. As I touch the rusted handle, she says, “I don’t know if you know, but Shad’s about to call an out-of-town witness.”

I stop and turn back. “Who?”

“I don’t know. But he’s an old guy, and he flew in from Ohio.”

“Is he some kind of expert?”

Jewel turns up her palms. “No idea. I’m just giving you what help I can.”

“Thanks, Jewel.”

She blows me a kiss, then picks up her cigarettes and lighter from the table. She won’t leave until I’ve been gone at least five minutes.

After exiting the courtyard, I stand on the sidewalk of Washington and try to decide my next move. If I walk two blocks west, I’ll be at Edelweiss, and I can relate Jewel’s information to Quentin face-to-face. If I walk five blocks east, I can be home with Annie. After a few seconds’ deliberation, I turn east and dial Doris Avery’s cell phone. She answers on the second ring.

“It’s Penn,” I hear her say.

“Is he calling to congratulate me,” Quentin asks, “or to bitch at me some more?”

“Did you hear that?” Doris asks.

“Yep. But I’m not calling to either bury or praise him. This is kind of an emergency.”

I hear a clatter as she hands the phone to Quentin. He protests a little, but at last he comes on the phone. “What is it?”

“You know the county coroner, I believe? Better than most?”

This kills Q’s attitude in a hurry. “I seem to recall that case, yeah.”

“She just passed me some disturbing information, and I’m not talking about your cocksmanship.”

“Let’s hear it.”

As quickly and obliquely as I can, I relate everything Jewel told me about what the deputy overheard, and the conclusions I have drawn. Quentin listens without interrupting, but when I finish, he says, “What do you want me to do with that?”

“I just thought you should know.”

“Well, now I know.”

“Aren’t you pissed off about it?”

“I’m not going to raise my blood pressure over something I expected from the start of this case. Billy Byrd’s the kind of throwback who’d beat a prisoner with a phone book, open his cell, then shoot him in the back and say he tried to escape. Tampering with evidence is nothing to that jackass. And we both know the DA’s not above holding back exculpatory evidence. So, what’s new about this?”

“Well, this obviously means they’re trying to conceal someone’s involvement in the crime. And Jewel says Byrd is tight with Billy Knox.”

“And?”

“Well, that would mean Billy Byrd is up on the stand trying to convict Dad while privately trying to protect a wanted criminal who probably murdered Viola.”