Page 114 of A Breath of Life
“Likely. After he’s had some fun with you, no doubt. Perhaps I should allow Diem to live long enough to watch.”
A familiar growl sounded in the distance.
“I’ll find Clarence. When I do, then what?”
“Call this number. We will arrange an exchange.”
Before I could ask further questions, the line went dead.
For a long time, I stared at the quiet phone, unsure of what to do. I felt like I was on a malfunctioning carnival ride with no way to get off. Only when Costa stood and tugged my arm did I blink back to reality. “Come on,” he urged.
“Where are we going?”
“To find Clarence.”
“But…”
“We’ll talk in the car.”
The walk back to the SUV was tense. My mind spun, and Costa texted nonstop. I didn’t know who he was talking to, and I didn’t have the capacity to ask.
The sound of a muffled impact replayed inside my head over and over. Diem’s groan filled my ears.
I stumbled after Costa. He drove us back to his wife’s place of employment, where he left the SUV in the same spot we’d collected it earlier.
As we crossed at the intersection and aimed for the strip mall, one blazing thought overrode all the others. “You can’t help me.”
“You’re funny.”
“You heard him.”
“Yeah, I did, which is why we’re taking precautions. You can’t do this alone.”
“I’m a qualified PI. I know how to find people.”
“Yeah? Are you willing to risk your boyfriend’s life on your newfound investigative skills, Tallus?”
“Fuck you. I know what I’m doing.”
“No, you don’t. Get in.” He motioned to the car.
“Where are we going?”
“I don’t want to talk in the open. Get in.”
Once inside the vehicle, Costa placed a call. He didn’t put it on speaker, so I had no clue who he was talking to, and listening to one side of the conversation didn’t help.
“Hey. I have a situation. Can you do me a favor?” Costa paused as the other person spoke, and then he chuckled. “Deal. I need a few things… An unmarked and some stuff from my office. Put the car in your name, not mine. Also, write this down.”
My cousin rhymed off a list of items, including a specific laptop, a phone he kept in a hidden compartment in his desk, and a labeled box he claimed was full of goodies.
Again, he chuckled. “A sexy Latino James Bond. Would I outrank your precious Daniel Craig?” Another laugh. “Yeah, yeah, stop flirting… Meet me behind Casey’s in an hour. Perfect. Thank you.”
“Who was that?” I asked when he hung up.
“A good friend.”
I didn’t pester him for a better answer. Whoever it was, we were meeting them in an hour.
