Anne Bonny's Wake. Dick Elam
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Название: Anne Bonny's Wake
Автор: Dick Elam
Издательство: Ingram
Жанр: Короткие любовные романы
Серия: Maggie and Hersh
isbn: 9781612549552
isbn:
“Bill and I will meet you on the second level of the Oriental Restaurant,” I said. “Come over whenever you’re ready. We’ll have a drink, watch the sun go down, and then go down to the dining room and eat some seafood. See you there, whenever . . .”
“I’ll be about forty-five minutes. Thanks, Hersh. And thank Bill, too.”
Maggie smiled. Her towel slipped, and Maggie had to grab the towel to keep from exposing more of her breasts.
If a forty-six-year-old widower can still blush, I did. Excused myself, and returned to the Chandlery.
Bill went for the jugular. He’d established a reputation for no-nonsense analysis before Annie and I joined the Agency.
“The cockfight story doesn’t ring true. They don’t fight cocks in this part of the state. Could believe that what I call the ‘Noose and Obscurer’ wanted to expose a modern Ku Klux Klan or a Swastika crazies meeting. There’s still some of that kind around here. If the newspaper caught a city dumping sewage in the Neuse River, or the university making a dollar using state equipment, or one of the governor’s men driving around drunk, then you couldn’t keep up with all their stories. But a cockfight? They wouldn’t send one of their reporters across Raleigh to cover a chicken fight.”
“You don’t think there’s anything in this area that would attract their attention?” I wanted to believe Maggie Moore.
Bill answered, “Yes. Smuggling. Josephus Daniels’s boys worry about the seacoast, the fishing industry, and dope smuggling. The editors like to front-page a dope bust at a high school. The paper complains that marijuana smokers only get a slap on the hand.”
He leaned forward in his wheelchair.
“Now, if you had told me the newspaper wanted to expose dope smuggling, I wouldn’t be surprised, but I doubt that the editors would risk a reporter for what your Maggie described. Of course, a young reporter could have taken the chance on his own.”
I sensed that Havins thought I was emotionally involved. Bill may have been correct. He had taught decision making in action situations. My forte had been posing hypotheses that I backed up with a preponderance of data and attached a statistical probability. Bill had taught intuition, used when you lacked information. He’d also taught us that intuition worked best when you suppressed personal emotions.
“What about the big, burly guy driving the motorboat? Seen anyone like him around here?”
“No, Hersh, I haven’t. But tell me, you still an early riser?”
“Yes. Still come up with the dawn.”
“Tell you what, Hersh. You borrow my pickup truck. Early tomorrow morning, drive over to Pierce Creek and talk to the old Navy chief with the smart dog. If there’s a big ‘Bear’ roaming the Neuse River, there’s a good chance the old man may have seen him. You know the old chief petty officer, don’t you?”
“Sure.”
“Then, Hersh, get to Pierce Creek before the old man leaves to fish.”
“Will do. Give me the pickup keys tonight. And did you tell Min about the girl?”
“A little bit. Min can’t wait to see what you caught in your net. Tell you what. Bet Min will get her credentials.”
“That may be a tough job, even for Min.”
“Wanna bet, Hersh? Bet you my Min gets an occupation, an age, old boyfriends, what Maggie likes to eat, and names and addresses of next of kin. And we won’t tell her what you told me.”
“I’ll bet you Min doesn’t get any of that information from this woman, except maybe food preference.”
“Bet you five bucks.”
“Make it ten.”
Bill beamed. “You’re on. Now start pushing. I need a beer.”
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