Loitering With Intent (Stone Barrington 16)

“Soon, I hope.”

“All right,” Stone said, stuffing bundles of cash into his pockets. “I’m your lawyer. If the police ask you any more questions of any kind, refer them to me. Talk to you later.” He and Dino left the room.

>

Tommy was standing outside talking to a uniformed offi cer. Stone took him aside. “Tommy, Evan has just retained me as his lawyer. I’m not entirely sure why, but in the meantime, please don’t ask him any more questions unless I’m present.”

“What’s the problem?” Tommy asked. “He hasn’t done anything.”

“I know, but in his condition I can’t go into all this with him. I assume you have both Evan’s and Gigi’s statements about the shooting?”

“Yeah.”

“That’ll have to do you for the moment. I’ll know more when I’ve had a chance to sit down with him when his head is clear.”

“Okay, Stone.”

“Thanks for having a cop out here.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Stone and Dino left the hospital and went back to their car.

“There’s an IHOP on our way back; you want to get some breakfast?”

“Sure.”

“You’re buying,” Dino said.

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ST O NE S A T THINK IN G , picking at his enormous breakfast. Dino, untroubled, was stuffing his down.

“All right,” Dino said, pausing for a sip of coffee, “what’s on your mind?”

“Doesn’t it bother you that it was real hard for us to find Evan in Key West, but an assassin found him from a standing start in less than twenty-four hours?”

“It’s certainly interesting.”

“I mean, you and I were pretty good cops, weren’t we?”

“I still am. I’m not so sure about you.”

“Tommy bothers me, too.”

“Tommy?”

“A cop like Tommy in a town this size ought to know everybody moving, but he had a hard time with Evan.”

“Have you forgotten that Tommy put a finger on Evan fi ve seconds after you mentioned his name? At the Marquesa restaurant?”

“Oh, yeah. I take it back.”

“And he’s been nothing but helpful ever since.”

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