BooksBarbecue
Back The Devils You Know Save as PDF
Chapters (46)
  1. COVER PAGE
  2. PRAISE
  3. DEDICATION
  4. ONE
  5. TWO
  6. THREE
  7. FOUR
  8. FIVE
  9. SIX
  10. SEVEN
  11. EIGHT
  12. NINE
  13. TEN
  14. ELEVEN
  15. TWELVE
  16. THIRTEEN
  17. FOURTEEN
  18. FIFTEEN
  19. SIXTEEN
  20. SEVENTEEN
  21. EIGHTEEN
  22. NINETEEN
  23. TWENTY
  24. TWENTY-ONE
  25. TWENTY-TWO
  26. TWENTY-THREE
  27. TWENTY-FOUR
  28. TWENTY-FIVE
  29. TWENTY-SIX
  30. TWENTY-SEVEN
  31. TWENTY-EIGHT
  32. TWENTY-NINE
  33. THIRTY
  34. THIRTY-ONE
  35. THIRTY-TWO
  36. THIRTY-THREE
  37. THIRTY-FOUR
  38. THIRTY-FIVE
  39. THIRTY-SIX
  40. THIRTY-SEVEN
  41. THIRTY-EIGHT
  42. THIRTY-NINE
  43. FORTY
  44. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
  45. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  46. SNEAK PEEK: EXIT .45

Beauden said, ‘Well, it’s not going to be hard finding you, is it? Given they know what you look like, and where you’re staying.’ Taking the curves a little gentler on the downhill, not wanting to look like a getaway driver.

Vincent said, ‘Except they’ll think if the police catch up with me, I’ll implicate Page in something he doesn’t want to be implicated in.’

‘And what—if you’re left to roam free, you can get them out of trouble?’

Vincent nodded. ‘That’s basically what I told them.’

‘And what was this Delroy guy doing?’

‘He prefers Mr Clemons, apparently. Said he’s a fixer, and he’s trying to get Page out of trouble. I didn’t have time to push him on it.’

‘And yet he’s Sly Crow’s man, right? So how come Sly knows nothing about anything, and yet here’s Delroy in the middle of it?’

Vincent said, ‘I don’t really want to turn around and ask him.’

It was nice up here, coming south down the hill, the city visible for brief glimpses—the great basin filigreed with lights, clear and delicate in the fall darkness.

Beauden said, ‘If the wife told nine-one-one there’s an armed man in the house, but then they tell the cops it was just a kid throwing rocks, they’re going to have some awkward questions.’

‘Yeah. But whatever Page is stuck in, I figure he doesn’t want police involvement. He won’t want them hanging around the house taking statements and phoning in a sketch artist.’

‘Well, that’s one theory.’

‘They know I killed two people this morning. And they just saw me smash through a glass door with a shotgun. Hopefully I look like someone who gets stuff done.’

He thought that would get a smile out of him. But Beauden said, ‘You could’ve just explained the situation for them and left the Remington in the car.’

‘Yeah. That’s a nice idea.’

‘So now what?’

Vincent said, ‘Now Terry Page is going to call me, and confess he’s in real trouble, and he’s going to tell me all about it.’

A cop car went past in the other direction, blue and reds flashing. Beauden watched it in the rear-view mirror, sighing through his teeth as the lights faded. He said, ‘You can’t keep escalating things like this. This is fucking crazy, honestly.’

Vincent had his phone out. ‘How’s this to Erin: Car was sent by Terry Page. Page is involved but not running the job. Scared shitless but not forthcoming. Will update you tomorrow.’

‘Yeah, that’s nice. Scared shitless but not forthcoming.’

Vincent hit send. He said, ‘It might all be over with one phone call.’

Beauden glanced at him. ‘Depends who’s calling though, doesn’t it?’

TWENTY-THREE

TWENTY-THREE

The phone didn’t ring until seven am, and it was Erin on the other end.