Before The Killing Starts

The frown intensified.

'You need to work on your confused face,' he said, trying to sound confident.

She shook her head. 'I have no idea what you're talking about.'

'The other person in the photo,' he prompted.

'There isn't anyone else in the photo.'

'Okay then, the other person's arm. The arm that's round your neck.'

'Show me.'

Was it a trick to get it back? Or was he making a mountain out of a molehill?

'Don't worry; I'm not going to try to take it—even though it's mine in the first place.'

He passed it back to her and she studied it carefully before giving it back to him.

'I honestly don't remember who that was. I'm not even sure when it was taken. I just grabbed the first photo I could find of Dixie.'

'Why cut it in half?'

'For Christ's sake, Evan. If I could have found one of Dixie on his own . . .'

She trailed off as something occurred to her. She let out a genuine laugh.

'I don't believe it. You think it's Sarah. Don't you?'

Evan wasn't sure what he thought now in the face of her reaction. If she wasn't being genuine, she was one hell of an actress.

'You do, don't you?' she said again.

'I recognize the bracelet,' he said. It sounded pretty lame to him now.

She held out her hand and flicked her fingers at him.

'Show me.'

Again she studied it carefully before handing it back.

'It doesn't mean anything to me.'

'But it does to me. I bought it for her.' He was sounding increasingly desperate in his own ears.

'And it's one of a kind is it? You commissioned it personally so that nobody else in the world would ever have one like it?'

He didn't answer her.

'No, I didn't think so. There's probably thousands of them out there. Probably came out of a Christmas cracker.'

'Okay, but what's the likelihood that you know two people—Sarah and whoever that is in the photograph—with the exact same one.'

She shrugged. 'Who knows? You're clutching at straws. It's not her.'

He didn't know what else he could do or say. It didn't really matter what he said, she was adamant that it wasn't Sarah. That, or she was determined not to admit it. This wasn't how he'd seen it panning out. He'd expected to catch her on the back foot. Expected to see something in her reaction that confirmed his suspicions. In fact he'd seen the exact opposite. It made him question his own convictions.

'Okay, put a pin in that,' he said and cringed at what he'd just said. 'Why don't you tell me what's been going on.'

Chapter 32

'Who beat you up?' Evan asked her again.

She shook her head. 'It doesn't matter.'

'Was it those two guys?'

'Why? Are you going to kick their asses for me?'

I might shake their hands if you carry on like this.

'Is that why you didn't show up at the hotel?' He held up his hand. 'Don't answer that. Stupid question. Of course it was.'

He took her silence as confirmation.

'Why did they beat you up?'

'To scare me.'

He nodded and started pacing up and down. That much was obvious. He could have worked that out for himself. The question was why. It could be one of two things.

'Why? Because they want you to stop doing something or because they want to make you do something for them?' He was almost talking to himself. Asking the questions and answering them as well.

'Evan?'

He stopped pacing and looked at her.

'You're getting ahead of yourself here.'

He realized she was right. He was trying to analyze the situation without knowing what the hell was going on.

'You're right. Why don't you start at the beginning? Tell me about Dixie.'

'Okay. Why don't you sit down first? You're making me nervous pacing up and down.'

He sat on the bed and let her tell her story.

'Before I start I need to say that you're not going to like this. But just hear me out before you start going ballistic.'

He let out a short, humorless laugh. He was looking forward to this already.

'You know Dixie's an undercover cop.'

He nodded. He also knew that nobody seemed to know which side he was on any more.

'I was his snitch—'

'That's a crock. If you were his snitch, it means you have a relationship with him, a system for getting in touch and all the rest of it. How comes you need me to find him?'

'Just listen will you.'

'Why were you snitching for him?'

'Evan!' It was almost a scream. The people in the next room would have heard it easily. 'Just shut up and let me tell you. Jesus Christ.'

She took a deep breath. He held his hands open as an invitation for her to continue.

'I had a job in a real dive of a bar—and no, it wasn't Kelly's. The money was awful and so when the manager asked me one day if I wanted to make a bit extra on the side I jumped at it. It was just delivering boxes to people. No big deal. Most of the people I was delivering them to were complete low-lifes and I had to go to some pretty scary places, but he was paying me really well.'

'And you thought what? You were delivering potato chips?'

She gave him a look that said it's all very well for you to say, after the event.

'You knew what was in them?'

'I had a pretty good idea. I'm not stupid, you know.'

'But you didn't actually look?'

She shook her head. 'No. I was desperate for money. I didn't want to think about it. The consequences if I was caught. It was stupid, but it was easy work and I didn't get caught—'

'Until . . .'

'Exactly, until.'

'Dixie caught you?'

She nodded. 'Obviously he didn't make the arrest—he was working undercover. But they had me in an interview room and in he walks. The rest, as they say, is history.'

She shook her head in frustration and started picking at her fingernails.

'He gave me a straight choice. Work for him or go to prison.' She looked up at him. He wasn't sure what the emotion in her eyes was. Self-pity, most likely. 'What would you have done?'

He gave a small twitch of the shoulders. 'Same as you, I suppose.'

He couldn't feel sorry for her, even if she was Sarah's friend. She'd brought it on herself. He'd never worked for drug dealers and he'd known some pretty bad times.

'Dixie was obviously well in with them,' she continued, 'and he arranged things so that I was doing more and more for them. Obviously he put in a good word for me. Like any good employer would for one of his best employees.' She snorted unpleasantly.

Evan could almost taste the bitterness in her voice.

'It got to the point where I was going on some of the big deals with them. Lord knows why they wanted a woman along. All those macho wet backs. Maybe they wanted me along in case they fancied a cup of coffee.'

He smiled to himself. Maybe they just recognized that you were a more ruthless bastard than any of the men.

'The situation was unbearable,' she said. 'You can't imagine what it's like. Petrified that at any moment they're going to find out that you're a snitch.' She drew a fast line across her throat with her finger. 'Sayonara.'

'So what happened?'

She smiled. 'Let's say an opportunity presented itself. An opportunity to get out for good with enough money to disappear forever.'

Everything fell into place in Evan's mind.

'So you ripped them off.'

She nodded. He thought he could almost see a hint of pride in her expression. Satisfaction certainly.

'How much?'

'A lot. In the millions.'

If Evan had been prone to letting out low whistles, he'd have done it then. She had more balls than most guys he knew.

'So where does Dixie come into it.' He held up a finger. 'Let me guess—you want to find him so that he can pull you out in return for handing over the drug dealers' money.' He smiled knowingly. 'Most of it, anyway.'