Billy read the article again. Branche’s body had been stripped clean by his killers except for a piece of ID. All his jewelry had been stolen.
Shit, Billy thought.
Jinx Williams sat on the opposite end of the bench, trying to get a new inmate to give him his name. He saw Billy approach and stood up.
“What do you want?” the detention center hustler said.
“How’d you like to make a quick five hundred bucks?” Billy asked.
Money made the world go round. Jinx and Billy moved to the far corner of the cell away from the bars so a passing guard would not overhear them.
“Start talking,” Jinx said.
“I want to make a phone call on your cell phone,” Billy said.
“Who said I had a cell phone?”
“I did. You’re getting names of guys who just got busted and giving them to a pal on the outside, who’s calling the families and scamming them out of bail money. You need a cell phone to do that.”
“You’re a smart one.”
“That’s debatable. Do we have a deal?”
“How do I get my money?”
“My lawyer is going to show up soon. Have your guy on the outside come down and my lawyer will give him the money.”
“You’ve got this all figured out, don’t you?”
“Is that a yes?”
“Make it a grand, and you have yourself a deal.”
They shook hands on it. It was how business was done between thieves — no contracts or fancy lawyers, just a man’s word and the pressing of the flesh. Jinx glanced at the bars before bending over to tie his shoe. Pulling up his pants leg, Jinx removed a clamshell phone no bigger than a cigarette lighter. Standing, he passed the phone to Billy.
“Sit down on the bench, and I’ll stand in front of you,” Jinx said. “Keep your face close to my back so the camera in the hallway doesn’t see you.”
“Got it.”
Billy took a seat on the bench and Jinx blocked for him. The other inmates ignored them. Billy called Gabe and got put into voice mail, and he called again. This time, Gabe answered.
“Hello?” the jeweler said suspiciously.
“It’s me,” Billy said in a quiet voice. “I got busted.”
“Shit, Billy.”
“I need your help. Is your daughter still there?”
“She left. I didn’t want her here in case those animals showed up.”
“That’s why I’m calling. I may have the goods on them.”
“Really? What did you find?”
“A piece of evidence that ties them to Cal Branche’s murder. You told me earlier that Branche was a client when you owned the jewelry store in the casino.”
“That’s right. Cal came in all the time.”
“Did you ever sell him a ring with an old coin in it?”
“Now that you mention it, I did.”
“Describe it to me.”
“Guard’s coming, stop talking,” Jinx said.
“I’ll be right back. Don’t go away,” Billy said into the phone.
Billy slipped the phone into his pocket and crossed his arms in front of his chest. A guard entered the hallway outside the cellblock escorting a new inmate. The new inmate was drunk as a skunk and staggered as he walked. The guard opened the door and pushed the inmate in.
“Lie down on the floor and sleep it off,” the guard said.
The inmate entered the cell and lay on the floor as if it were a feather bed. The guard left, and Billy removed the phone from his pocket.
“Still there?”
“I’m here,” Gabe said. “I remember the coin I sold to Cal. I bought a cache of old coins that were smuggled out of Israel and turned them into jewelry. The coins came from the reign of Caesar Crispus and dated back to 300 AD. As the story goes, Crispus’s wife conspired against him, so he had her burned to death in a vat of boiling oil. They were real popular and sold out right away. The ring I sold to Cal had a brass coin and was the last of the lot.”
It was all adding up. But Billy had to be sure.
“Did Branche buy this ring for himself or as a gift?” the young hustler asked.
“For himself,” Gabe replied.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m one hundred percent sure. Cal was wearing the ring the next time he came into the store. Told me it was his favorite piece of jewelry.”
Billy had heard enough. “That’s beautiful. I’ve got to run.”
“Is there anything I can do?” Gabe asked.
“You’ve done plenty, man. Thanks.”
Billy ended the call. Jinx had stuck his hand behind his back, and Billy deposited the phone into his palm. Jinx bent down to tie his shoe and made the phone disappear. Moments later the guard returned to the holding cell and unlocked the door.
“Which one of you gentlemen is Cunningham?” the guard asked.
“You’re looking at him,” Billy said.
“Your lawyer’s here. Let’s go.”
“Nice doing business with you,” Billy said under his breath. “My lawyer’s name is Underman. Have your guy come down, and Underman will give him the money.”
“Will do,” Jinx said.
Forty-Nine
Billy had been arrested many times in Las Vegas, and not once had the guards inside the detention center felt the need to handcuff the young hustler. Partially because Billy was small in stature and the guards were all brutes, and also because of the vibe Billy gave off.
It was no different this time, and the guard escorted Billy to the visitor’s room without handcuffing him. Billy took a chair in front of a Plexiglas wall with a round hole for talking. Underman sat on the other side of the wall, tapping his fingers on his fancy alligator briefcase.
Billy sat down, and the guard retreated to the wall to stand. The room was bugged, and anything incriminating that Billy said to his lawyer would be used against him in a court of law.
Underman started to speak. Billy shushed him with a finger to the lips.
“I talk, you listen,” the young hustler said.
Underman shut up. Lawyers were paid to talk, and this was going to be hard.
“You ever hear of Custer’s Last Stand?” Billy asked.
Underman nodded that he had.
“Well, this is Cunningham’s Last Stand, and I’m going down swinging.”
“I’m in your corner,” his attorney said.
“I need for you to contact Frank Grimes and Bill Tricaricco of the gaming board and set up a meeting. Tell them that I know who murdered the union leader Cal Branche, and that I want to speak with them before I give the newspapers the story.”
Underman turned white as a ghost. “You know who killed Cal?”
“You knew him?”
“Very well. Cal stood up for his beliefs. That’s a rarity in this town.”
“To answer your question, yes, I know who murdered him.”
“Well, I’m sure the gaming board will be interested to hear what you have to say. How soon do you want this meeting?”
“Right now.”
“Be reasonable, Billy. It’s a Saturday afternoon, and these men are probably home with their families, enjoying the weekend.”
“I want the meeting right now. Tell Grimes and Tricaricco that if they don’t come, I’m going to the media with the story.”
A good attorney knew how to read between the lines. Underman took a moment to choose the right words before responding in a whisper. “This sounds like blackmail.”
“It is.”
“I’m not comfortable with this.”
“All you have to do is sit in the room and listen.”
“That’s it?”
“And bring a radio.”
“A radio? What for?”
“You’ll see.” Billy called to the guard that they were done. “See you soon.”
Back in the holding cell, Billy got to know Jinx better. For Jinx to have a cell phone in his possession was not because the guards had missed it when they’d patted him down. He had bribed the guards to look the other way, and that took a lot of guts.