Last Call

Theo grimaced, as if the chain of deduction were suddenly broken. "Some loser killed my momma over twenty years ago. How is that guy suddenly smart enough to tap my telephone right before Isaac calls and tells me he can name the killer?"

Trina groaned, as if perturbed by the microanalysis. "Back up a second. You geniuses are missing the big picture here."

"What's that, baby?"

Trina reached inside his gown and plucked several chest hairs, which made Theo yelp. "Stop calling me baby'' she said.

"Okay, okay."

The look of concern returned to Trina's face. "What I was trying to say is that maybe Jack's right. This shooting probably wasn't random, which creates one huge problem. Whoever killed Isaac – and whoever tried to kill you – won't be very happy to hear that all you ended up with is a concussion and a few stitches."

"You got a point there, ba-"

Her glare killed the pet name. Theo crossed his arms to prevent further chest-hair removal.

Jack said, "Trina's right. He'll be back to finish the job."

Uncle Cy massaged his temples, as if he didn't like the information his brain was processing. "What do we do about this?"

Jack said, "That's something Theo and I need to discuss in private, attorney to client."

Trina looked miffed, but Jack knew that Uncle Cy was the one Theo would really want kept in the loop.

"Why can't they be part of this?" said Theo.

"Lots of reasons," said Jack.

"Give me one," said Trina.

"All right. Because the answer, I think, involves FBI Agent Andie He

Theo looked at his uncle, then at Trina, as if to assure them that Jack knew whereof he spoke. "That's a pretty good reason."

"None better," said Jack.

Chapter 20

Jack met Andie in the hospital's coffee shop. He'd dialed her cell expecting to leave a voice mail message. To his surprise, she answered. To his even greater surprise, she was already in the Jackson Memorial complex.

The coffee shop was nearly empty. Most of the chairs were turned up on tables as the janitor mopped the floor. The only other occupied table was across the room, where a sleepy intern was eating either di

"How's Theo?" Andie asked, stirring a pink pack of sweetener into her decaffeinated coffee.

Jack told her the good news. "How's the young woman Reems abducted?"

“Fine.”

Jack waited for her to elaborate, but one-word answers from Andie usually stood by their lonesome or, at best, were followed by the official "I'm not at liberty to discuss" mumbo jumbo. It was one of the things about Andie that really drove him crazy. That, and… Stop. Focus, Swyteck.

Andie stopped stirring and, for a moment, put the business expression on hold. "How are you doing?"

Jack hadn't given that much thought, and the question forced him to stop and consider it. "It's been crazy, but Theo and I have survived worse."

"You've always been there for him."

"And him for me."

"Old friends are the best friends. You're lucky to have that."

Jack didn't know how to respond – one more pro-Theo plug from Andie, yet another refutation of the basis for his decision to stop dating her.

"What is it you wanted to talk about?" she said.

"I want to deal with you."

"Me?"

"Well, the FBI, actually. And you, specifically, because you're heading a task force that is supposed to find out how Isaac Reems escaped from prison."

Her business face was now firmly back in place. "Are you saying that Theo has information about that?"

"No. He told the police everything he knew the first time, after Isaac came to see him at Sparky's. What I'm offering up now is something we figured out afterward."

"Do you know who helped Reems plan his escape?"

"We think it's the same person who killed Theo's mother in 1986."

"And who is that?"

"Don't know. The crime was never solved."

"Why do you think there's a co

"Not so fast. I said I came here to deal, not to do my singing-canary impersonation."

"Shouldn't you be talking to a prosecutor about that?"

"Prosecutor? For what? Is Theo being targeted for something?"

She paused. Then it came, one of those all-too-familiar sighs. "I'm not at liberty to discuss-"

"Yeah, yeah, blah, blah, blah. Come on. Theo was about an inch away from going facedown on the sidewalk with a bullet in his brain."

"All I can tell you is that the waitress who was abducted by Reems told me something tonight that isn't especially helpful to Theo."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that I'm not at liberty-"

"Will you cut that out already?"

Andie swallowed more coffee. "Take my advice. Talk to the prosecutor."

Jack locked eyes with her, gazing over the rim of his own cup. "A prosecutor won't give Theo the protection he needs," he said.

"Protection from what?"

"The person who killed Isaac."

She blinked. It was hardly noticeable, but Jack seemed to be developing a sixth sense when it came to reading Andie's body language – another one of those strange co

Jack added, "He's the same guy who tried to kill Theo tonight."

She lowered her cup, seeming to collect her thoughts. "I'm open to that possibility."

"You should be. By the way, did your fingerprint analysis turn up anything on the listening device we found on Theo's phone line?"

"Nothing."

"I'm not surprised. In fact, an installer smart enough not to leave prints fits perfectly with my theory. Reems finds out who killed Theo's mother. He extorts the killer into helping him escape. The killer-"

"Wait a second. How does Reems find that out? And how does a prisoner on the inside extort a killer on the outside?"

"I don't know yet," said Jack. "But this is the point I'm making. The killer knows better than to trust the likes of Isaac Reems. In fact, Isaac told Theo – and Theo told the police – that this outside helper didn't deliver the car, the cash, and all the other stuff that was supposed to be waiting for Reems when he escaped. It's possible that somebody stole that stuff before Reems could get to it, but I think it's more likely that the killer played along with the extortion only to a point."

"And then he had second thoughts?"

"I think he had second thoughts all along. So he pla

Andie seemed intrigued. Or suspicious. "Did Reems in fact make that call to Theo?"

"Obviously not. Or we'd know who the killer is."

"Did Reems make any calls at all to Theo?"

This was more than Jack was ready to confirm. "What if he did?"

"Well, I suppose there could be a few possibilities."

Jack studied her expression. "Such as?"

"He could have told Theo to meet him in the alley behind the old Homeboy's."

Her insights were impressive. Then again, maybe it tied in with what the abducted waitress had told Andie. "Could have," said Jack.

"And Theo could have packed his pistol and gone."

"Except that he was at his girlfriend's house. Which leaves only one other possibility. Whoever tapped Theo's phone heard Reems say where he was hiding. He went there, and he killed him."

"Because he feared that Reems was going to tell Theo who killed his mother," she said.

"Glad to see you're with me."