Tobey’s giggle echoed in his ear.

“You’re too kind, that’s a good one.”

Cleo joined in.

“Too kind, what an ass potato.”

They sounded like chipmunks.

“Would you two shut up?”

“Up—”

“—up.”

Daniel stared at the mammoth stuck in the sludge, head back, tusks high, like it was begging God to pluck it from the muck. He wondered if the Bolivian was lying about the arrow dude. If the guy was a merc, then maybe the Bolivians had hired the sonofabitch to find Rainey and Platt just like they hired Daniel. Maybe they fed him all the same information, and had given him all the shit they learned from Daniel. These things were possible and made Daniel’s head hurt. Made it hurt bad.

Tobey’s calm voice soothed him.

“Stop it, Daniel.”

Cleo’s gentle echo comforted him.

“Make it stop, stop.”

Daniel concentrated on the mammoth, trying to imagine what it felt like to be boiled in hot tar. Probably not so hot.

Tobey’s laugh boomed like faraway gunshots.

“That’s a good one, Daniel!”

Cleo laughed, too. Like revved-up chainsaws.

“You’re killin’ me, killin’ me!”

Daniel pushed the paranoia aside. Either the Bolivians were fuckin’ him or they weren’t, and they probably weren’t. Even the Bolivians weren’t stupid enough to fuck with a werewolf.

The dude with the arrows had probably heard about the reward, and was working for himself. Daniel was fine with it. Being a mercenary meant the guy was in it for the money, which meant he could always be bought if it came to that, but for all Daniel knew, the dumb asswipe lost Rainey and stopped off for a hamburger. Daniel might never see the tattooed, sunglasses-wearing asscheese again.

Tobey gently chided him.

“Let’s not be stupid.”

“Stupid, stupid.”

The boys were right. If the Bolivians hadn’t fed the arrow dude information, then the guy was fuckin’ good. Way he showed up at the canal, way he popped up on the billboard—this guy was dangerous good.

Daniel picked up the woman’s phone, and looked at her. She was lying back there like she was dead. Daniel liked’m that way.

“Your fuckin’ boyfriend better call soon. I’m gettin’ anxious.”

She didn’t move. Not even a twitch. Just stared at him with these narrow, watchful eyes. Like she was thinking.

Daniel jiggled the phone, and smiled at her.

The deader the better.

Chapter 38

38

Both ends of Azzara’s street were blocked by black-and-white radio cars when Button and Futardo arrived. By then, LAPD barriers and yellow crime-scene tape ran from the house to the street, and Hector’s Monte Carlo was hidden by a collapsible screen. Hollywood Station owned the crime scene, but the Malevos Pacificos and Venice Trece belonged to Button.

Button hammered Pike and Cole with questions as they walked through the scene, but Pike wanted him focused on Azzara.