Page 89 of Gem Warfare

“I’m going to very politely ask for Huff’s phone records. I want to know everyone he’s had contact with. Apparently, there’s a girlfriend somewhere around here that he wanted to be closer to.”

“Will they give it to you?”

“Maybe. We’ll see. Wait here while I find out how stringent the prison is on following rules. I’d rather not get a warrant if I don’t have to. It adds time more than anything else.” Garrett hopped out, slamming the door behind him.

While I waited, I called Lily to check in.

“What’s happening?”

“The Dugans are installing a new fence,” said Lily. “There’re a lot of gawkers, and the temporary panel keeps tipping over, so it makes sense. I’m not sure I’d want my house to be known as the dead body house but I think the horse already bolted from the stable on that one.”

“Tell Lexi that the police have all gone,” said Mom, her voice as clear as if she were holding the phone.

“The police have…” started Lily.

“All gone,” I finished. “I know, I heard.”

“They’ve added a side gate,” boomed Mom. “It’s got a padlock. That’s very wise. They don’t want any more dead bodies buried on the property. Do you think they’ll have to tear down the garage?”

“They’ve added…” started Lily.

“I heard. Why would they tear down the garage?”

“More dead bodies,” said Mom. “The Mafia do that. There’s always a dead body in the concrete foundations.”

“This wasn’t a Mafia job. It was a one off,” I said.

“Lexi says it wasn’t…” started Lily.

“Give me the phone, Lily. How do you know? Hmm, Lexi? How?” asked Mom. “This could be a start of something much bigger. We don’t know what’s in the foundation.”

“The police went over the yard and house with cadaver dogs. They cleared it. There are no more bodies.”

“If you say so,” sniffed Mom. “I suppose Garrett would have said something if there was anything to be worried about.”

I wasn’t so sure of that but it wouldn’t help Mom to tell her I disagreed. She’d whip all the neighbors into a frenzy, hire a digger, and have trenched all the backyards on the street by the end of the week. No one needed that. Least of all, my dad. He’d probably dive into the hole in their backyard and pull the turfover his head for some peace and quiet.

“The Dugans filled the hole and they put turf over it. The retaining wall Pete put in for the patio is very nice and he’s added a raised border too. He’s done such a good job,” continued Mom.

“Put Lily back on,” I instructed her before she told me about the new plants too.

“I’m here,” said Lily after some considerable huffing from my mom.

“Any suspicious characters lurking?” I asked.

“Only the man across the street. He keeps coming out in his bathrobe.”

“That doesn’t sound suspicious.”

“He’s not wearing any underwear.”

“How do you… oh.” I grimaced.

“Your mom sent everyone on their street a photo of him. He’s threatening to sue. She’s threatening to have him locked up for public indecency.”

“Have you seen Gideon Black slash Ben Rafferty or anyone who even remotely looks like him?” I asked through gritted teeth.

“No,” snipped Lily. “And I’ve visually examined every male pedestrian near the house. Your mom recognizes seventy percent of the lurkers from the neighborhood and the others don’t match our man. I’m positive our thief hasn’t strolled past or attempted to gain entry. Is that what you hoped?”

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