Black Fly Season. Giles Blunt

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СКАЧАТЬ hundred and fifty pounds of mayhem in motion, known to his friends and associates as ‘Haystack.’ If he’d had a neck it would have been a size 20, about the size of the snakeskin cowboy boots on his feet.

      ‘Who the fuck are you assholes?’ His tone lacked warmth.

      ‘It’s okay, Haystack,’ Lasalle said. ‘I’m dealing with it.’

      ‘I’m Detective Cardinal, and this is Detective Delorme. Algonquin Bay Police.’

      ‘News flash,’ Haystack said. ‘This ain’t your jurisdiction. Now get the fuck out of here before I rip your arm off and beat you to death with it.’

      ‘Who’s your fat friend?’ Cardinal said to Lasalle.

      Calhoun stepped out of the doorway so that his chest was an inch from Cardinal’s face.

      ‘Go back inside, Haystack,’ Lasalle said.

      ‘Cardinal,’ Calhoun said. ‘That’s an Indian name.’

      ‘Not today,’ Cardinal said. ‘But thanks for the compliment.’

      ‘How about I send you back to the tepee? On the end of my boot.’

      ‘Tell you what, Shitstack – why don’t you go back inside and trim that goat’s ass on your face? Oh sorry – is that meant to be a beard?’

      Lasalle blocked the punch an inch from Cardinal’s cheekbone. His knuckles were white where he gripped Calhoun’s wrist. ‘I said, go back inside.’

      Cardinal held up a pair of handcuffs and jiggled them at Calhoun. ‘Here, boy! Walkies?’

      Calhoun smiled, gold gleaming amid the unwholesome thickets of his beard.

      ‘Next time, Cardinal. Next time.’

      ‘Count on it.’

      Then Calhoun was gone, and Lasalle gave them a what-can-you-do shrug.

      ‘You haven’t answered my question,’ Delorme said. ‘When was the last time you saw Walter Guthrie?’

      ‘Is there any reason I should answer that question?’

      ‘I can think of several.’ Delorme was giving him her best French-Canadian deep-freeze. ‘One, you’ve got nothing to lose by answering it. Two, there are the interests of diplomacy to consider you can’t put a price on goodwill with your local police force. And three, there’s the problem with getting your building up to code.’

      ‘You see any code violations here?’

      ‘An inspector might. Just like Natural Resources might find you have a problem with your garbage out back. Just like the health department might find you’ve got a problem with your septic tank. Just like the—’

      Lasalle looked at Cardinal.

      ‘She always this irritable?’

      ‘You haven’t seen her irritable.’

      ‘Look, lady,’ Lasalle said. ‘I haven’t seen the guy. Nobody’s seen him. In fact, if you should happen to come across the Wombat in your travels, bring him here when you’re done with him.’

      ‘I thought you guys were blood brothers,’ Cardinal said. ‘Don’t tell me he done you wrong.’

      ‘Let’s just say old Wombat has some ‘splaining to do.’

      ‘Which might answer the question of why he’s missing. Maybe you already made your point with him and he isn’t coming back again.’

      ‘Where did you see him last?’ Delorme said. ‘You still haven’t answered that.’

      ‘Believe it or not, I don’t keep track of his comings and goings. Last time I remember seeing him we had a few people round, we watched a video, Wombat passed out on the couch. Not unusual for him. I expected to find him here next morning but I didn’t. Now he doesn’t answer his cell phone and he doesn’t seem to be home and I have no idea where he is. He doesn’t write, he doesn’t phone, and we’re all just worried sick.’

      ‘You want to find him,’ Delorme said. ‘You’re pissed off at him.’

      ‘What are you, my therapist? You want to explore my feelings, honey, make an appointment. Don’t just come banging on my door.’

      ‘Where would Wombat be most likely to go?’

      ‘You’re letting the bugs in,’ Lasalle said, and closed the door.

      Cardinal and Delorme hopped back to the car, each in a penumbra of flies.

      Delorme started the engine. ‘That was a weird testosterone display you had with Haystack.’

      ‘Guys like that are like dogs. They need to know where they stand.’

      ‘If you say so. Anyway, me, I get the feeling the Vikings are seriously annoyed with Wombat.’

      ‘Which could mean they did away with him.’ Cardinal rubbed at a bite on his neck.

      ‘Don’t scratch. You’ll only make it worse.’

      When they were back on the highway Delorme said, ‘You know, that Lasalle is seriously good-looking for a biker.’

      ‘Well, we’re very good-looking for cops.’

      They were quiet for the rest of the drive back. There was only the sound of wind and tires and the odd squawk from the radio. Cardinal was thinking about the young woman with no memory. Those green eyes looked so innocent, her whole manner was so benign, it was hard to imagine anyone wanting to kill her. Then again, who knew what her previous personality may have been? For all Cardinal knew, she could be Bitch Incarnate. The only thing he was sure of: with no home and no memory, she must be the loneliest woman on Earth, and he wanted to find the person who had done that to her.

       6

      Catherine Cardinal had packed her cameras several times over the past few days, only to unpack them, check the lenses and batteries, and pack them again. But she had left her personal packing to the last moment. When the rented minivan with its load of student shutterbugs honked outside the house early that morning, she was still folding T-shirts and zipping up toiletries and searching in the closet and under the bed for extra shoes.

      Cardinal answered the door. The woman on the porch was tall, maybe forty, not exactly pretty, but she looked smart, and Cardinal always found that attractive.

      ‘I just thought I’d see if Catherine needed any help,’ she said.

      ‘I think she’s got everything under control. It’ll just be a minute.’

      ‘My name’s Christine Nadeau,’ the woman said, putting out her hand to shake. ‘This is the third course I’ve taken with your wife. Do you have any idea what a great СКАЧАТЬ