Blood Orchid (Holly Barker 3)

“Then you’re in the clear.”

“Yeah, Harry called some captain there for me, asked them not to put my name in the paper, just in case Trini read about it.”

“Who?”

“Trini Rodriguez.”

Grant sat up. “Holy shit.”

“Huh?”

“You killed his brother?”

“Or his cousin; don’t know for sure.”

“He had a brother, Ernesto.”

“That’s the one. How do you know about Trini?”

“The Rodriguez brothers are famous, in certain circles,” Grant said.

“What circles?”

“Enforcement circles.”

“What kind of enforcement?”

“Loan collections, used to be. Last I heard they’d branched out into contractual work.”

“Hit men?”

“Yes, but nothing too refined.”

“Not like anything that required accuracy with a rifle?”

“Nothing like that, requiring any sort of finesse; more the kind, like, walking up to somebody and shooting him in the head. They’re remorseless killers. Does Trini know you shot Ernesto?”

“Maybe, I’m not sure. You remember I told you about Pedro Alvarez? My floater’s cousin?”

“Sure.”

“I was sitting outside Pedro’s shop when Trini walked inside, stayed two or three minutes, came out, and drove away. Later, I was sitting with Harry at a Burger King when we heard that Pedro had been popped, and the time was about when I was sitting outside Pedro’s shop.”

“You think Pedro told him about you?”

“I think if Trini asked, Pedro told him. I actually met Trini, sort of, at the firing range, so he’d remember my face, though he wouldn’t know my name.”

“But Pedro knew your name and where you were from.”

“Yes.”

“Well, Trini and Pedro were talking about something for those two or three minutes.”

“I figure Trini heard about Ernesto’s getting dead, and he went to Marina’s house, then, when she wasn’t there, he went to Pedro’s shop to find out where she was.”

“Did Pedro know where Marina was?”

“No.”