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Be
“Now what?” Co
“Busy night up here, isn’t it?”
“Shit, yeah. Sirens. Assholes everywhere. Lockdown. They keep waking us up. I can’t get any rest.”
“The only ones who can are Valencia Mendoza and Leonia Page.”
Co
“That’s a good start. Let’s talk about what’s true.” Be
“No.”
“You killed Leonia.”
“No.”
“Tell the truth.”
“I have.”
“I’m sick of your lying,” Be
“Nobody’s sicker than me.”
It took Be
“I’m not a dealer.”
“Yes, you are. You and Della Porta were in it together. I found your nest egg tonight. Half a million bucks under your living room floor. You killed Valencia to shut her up.”
Co
“This isn’t a game. I asked you a question. You killed Valencia, didn’t you? And you killed Della Porta, too.”
“No,” Co
“I don’t believe a word you say, not after this. You’re a liar, you’re a cheat. You sell drugs for money and you murder without remorse. You just stabbed two people to death and you’re pissed because we’re keeping you up.”
“I didn’t kill Anthony, I swear.”
“Fuck you.”
“Fuck you back,” Co
“Why?”
“You want the truth, stand the fuck up.”
Be
“Fine,” Co
Be
“I capped Valencia and that black bitch. You have to, doing what I do. It’s a cost of doing business.” Co
“I don’t believe you.”
“You should. That went down the way I told you. The cops did it, I swear to God. That’s the truth.”
“The cops? Why?”
“Money, of course. We started out in business with them, Anthony did, but I could see we could do better without them. They were deadweight, and we didn’t need them for distribution, we had the girls. So we went solo and started cuttin’ in on their action. We were gettin’ bigger and bigger, and they musta got wind of it. I think they killed Anthony because of it and set me up for the murder. Anthony always said they had friends in high places, but I have no way to prove it. That’s where you come in.”
“You expect me to prove it,” Be
“You’re goddamn right I do. You have to prove those shits did it. I didn’t kill Anthony, they did. It goes all the way to the top. The D.A., the judge. They’re all in on it. They have to be.”
Be
“Now you’re my lawyer, you can’t get out, and you have to prove me i
“I
“Whatever. And while I’m spilling my guts, everything I told you about Winslow was true, except I made up that blood syndrome and the dream shit.” Co
“Don’t ever call me that,” Be
51
Be
At dawn she drove home and slipped into bed beside a deeply snoring Grady. The sound used to make Be
Be
Her mother’s casket remained in the aisle, draped in a white cloth, dignified except for the steel gurney peeking from under the cover. Be
Be