Will’s shock must have been apparent.
Tony snorted beer up his nose. He coughed it out of his mouth. “No, man, not the mama. I’m talking about Cayla. She’d come down them stairs wearing her panties and a tight shirt and pretty soon the sheet I’m under’s lookin’ like a pup tent.” He chuckled at the memory. “I can’t even tell you the shit we got up to down there. Liked to burn down the house.”
Will fervently hoped he would not. “How long have you known her?”
Tony didn’t have to think about it. “Been in love with her since we was fifteen.”
“That’s a long time.”
“Damn right it is.”
Will looked out the window as Tony chugged his beer. There were three cans left in the six-pack. Will guessed from the shape and color of the pills in the Baggie that Tony had taken some Oxy.
Will said, “Slow down.”
Tony’s foot was already on the brake. He pressed the pedal, but the speed barely changed. “I know Cayla gives me shit sometimes, but I’m the one she always calls when she needs something.” He glanced at Will. “That’s when you know how a woman feels about you. The shit hits the fan, who does she call?”
Will tried not to think about Sara.
“You hear what I’m sayin’?”
Will nodded.
“I mean it, Bud. I love her. She’s the only damn reason I get up some mornings.” He wiped under his eyes with the back of his hand. “She’s all I got.”
Will didn’t have many male friends, but he gathered sitting around talking about love while listening to Madonna was not high on the list of manly pursuits. “You’re gonna grow a vagina if you keep talking like that.”
Tony barked a laugh. “Hell, Bud, that’s just what she does to me. Ain’t you never been in love?”
Will was so in love that he couldn’t see straight.
“What was it like at MacDill?”
Will took his time answering—not because he had to recall the details, but because Bill Black wasn’t the type to volunteer information. “Why do you want to know?”
“I dunno, man. Just curious. I knew a couple pilots from there. Sold ’em amp to keep ’em awake on long flights.”
So, that’s what Tony Dell was doing in Sarasota.
Tony pressed, “What was it like?”
“Hot.”
“That’s Florida all right.”
Will stared out the window. They were on the highway now. Several cars were out, stragglers with a long commute. “What’s the story with your nephew?”
“Benji.” Tony put a nasty spin on the name that Will didn’t like. He probably thought the kid was in his way. “His mama’s a whore. Cops caught her smoking crack in front of him.”
“That’s too bad.”
“He’s a little shit. Keeps mouthing off at school. Cayla had to leave work to pick him up. He was suspended for two days.”
Will couldn’t imagine Benji mouthing off to a kitten. “He’s a skinny kid.”
“Yeah, well, that’s what happens when you’re too busy hittin’ the pipe to stop and feed ’em.” Tony turned the radio back on. He scrolled through the song selections and settled on Cyndi Lauper.
“Seriously?” Will asked.
“I like strong women.” Tony hit the blinker as he slowed for a turn.
“Where are we going?” Will asked. Home Depot was by the hospital. They were heading in the wrong direction.
Tony held up the beer can. “Thought we’d get a real drink.”
“I’m not thirsty.”
“You’re not driving.” Tony took the turn. His voice had changed. The tough demeanor was back. “You serve overseas?”
“Why?”
“Just wondering.” Tony drank some more beer. “You been in Macon, what, two weeks?”
“Almost.”
“You lived in Atlanta before that?” Will didn’t answer.
“How’d you get the job at the hospital?”
Will tried to turn the situation back on itself. “You’re asking questions like a cop.”
“Shit.” Tony laughed. “You think I’m a cop?”
“Are you?”
He looked at Will over his beer can. “Are you?”
“Hell no, I’m not a cop.” Contrary to urban legend, law enforcement officers were free to lie with impunity. “Otherwise, I would’ve busted your ass ten days ago when I saw you taking pills off that cart.”
Tony laughed at the memory. “Near about shit my pants when I saw you looking.”
Will doubted that. Tony had clearly been testing him.
The window rolled down again. Tony tossed the can out. “Cayla used to sell ’em for me on Craigslist.”
“That’s dangerous for a woman.”
“I always did the drops.” Tony opened another beer. “College kids, mostly. We ain’t sellin’ the cheap stuff.”
Will didn’t press for details, but he was looking at Tony Dell in a new light. Faith would need to make some calls to Hilton Head and Sarasota. Tony struck Will as exactly the type of criminal who would flip on his own mother if it saved him jail time.
“Anyway,” Tony said. “We ain’t doin’ that Craigslist shit anymore. Big Whitey kicked my game up a notch. I got more cash than I know what to do with.”
“Craigslist is safer.”
“Nickel and dime, bro.”
“Big bills, big problems.”
“The bills get big enough, you can buy your way outta the problems.” Tony turned the wheel hard into a packed parking lot.
Will recognized the building. They were at Tipsie’s. The neon sign on the roof showed a woman sliding up and down a pole. “You sure you wanna be back here?”
“It’s cool.” Tony parked the truck. “I was by here before I went to Cayla’s.”
Will felt the hair on the back of his neck go up. “Why’d you do that?”
“Same as you checking out that cop in the ICU, seein’ did somebody recognize me.”
Will didn’t believe him. “And?”
“And … we’re cool.” The affable Tony was suddenly back. He pulled the keys out of the ignition, shouldered open the door. “Come on, Bud. I’m still thirsty.”
Will got out of the truck, though every atom of his being told him something bad was about to happen. He didn’t really have a choice. Jared Long was in the hospital. Lena Adams had almost been killed. There was a drug dealer out there who seemed to enjoy hurting people. If Will didn’t do his job right, a lot more people would wind up at the hospital. Or in the ground.
“Come on, Bud.” Tony walked like a bantam rooster. He was obviously hiding something. And he was very pleased with himself about it.
Will slowed his pace, trying to figure out what he was walking into. Not for the first time, he found himself wondering if Tony Dell was, in fact, Big Whitey.
Faith had brought up the possibility almost from the start. She was generally good at seeing around corners, but Will had disagreed with her. He’d met Tony Dell. He’d spent time with the man. He didn’t come across as a master strategist.