Page 14 of Lion & Lamb

“On this same flash drive.”

“Yeah? Well, how about everything Mickey Bernstein is thinking now and will be thinking soon, including what he’ll order for breakfast tomorrow? And while you’re busy hacking into the detective’s brain, also get me a full background on the lovely Mrs. Hughes—one Francine, née Pearl.”

“It’s on the same—”

“Flash drive, got it.” Cooper slid the flash drive off the counter with his finger, palmed it, and made it disappear with a flourish. If Victor was impressed by this semiprofessional demonstration of close-up sleight of hand, he didn’t let on.

Hiring someone with the hacking prowess of Victor Suarez might have given other investigators pause. But the way Cooper saw it, Victor must have dug deeply into Cooper’s past, and since he’d still agreed to work with him, Cooper couldn’t be in better hands.

“That it?”

“No,” Cooper said. “Have some pork, put it on the company tab.”

“I’m good.”

“Yes, you are. But this isn’t a cold case. Things are going to evolve very rapidly.”

“As things happen, I’ll have them for you.”

“You sound pretty sure of yourself there, Victor.”

“That’s because Iamsure of myself.”

Cooper tried to see beyond his assistant’s stony expression, catch a glimpse of the man’s inner life. But such a thing was impossible. Cooper shrugged. “All right, go do your nerd thing. I have two very important phone calls to make, and the sound of your furious illegal hacking distracts me.”

“Whatever, man.”

Chapter10

Transcript of Cooper Lamb’s phone call to Red’s Bar and Grill, Atlantic City

COOPER LAMB: Lemme talk to Red.

BARTENDER: Red’s busy.

LAMB: Yeah, yeah, he’s not too busy for me. Put the old buzzard on.

BARTENDER: Telling you, he’s not here.

LAMB: Which is it, he’s busy or he’s not there? Tell him it’s Cooper Lamb.

BARTENDER: Who am I going to tell? The thin air? It’s the middle of the day, there isn’t nobody in this place, it’s freakin’ dead.

LAMB: That’sCooper Lamb. Go on. Say my name out loud.

BARTENDER: What kinda name is that?

LAMB: Just say it.

BARTENDER: I ain’t sayin’ nothing.

LAMB: Sayyy it…

BARTENDER: You’re a goddamn pain in the ass, you know that, Lamb? Here you go.

RED DOYLE: Hey, kid, what’s up?

LAMB: Nice employee you got there.

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