''They're laughing. They may be coming, but they don't know we're here,''
LaChaise said. He stepped quickly across the floor and killed the TV. ''Down the back stairs. We can go out through the garage.''
''No,'' Martin said, shaking his head. ''We can't see out the back until we open the garage. If there're cops out there, they'd have us cold.'' He glanced at the window: ''Man, I don't think they know we're here, but I don't think we can risk running, either.''
''So let's set up and take them,'' LaChaise said. ''Back to the stairs. Then we got a chance to run, anyway.''
They padded quietly down the long central hallway, pushing Sandy in front of them. Sandy went to the bottom of the stairs, in the garage, while LaChaise and
Martin stopped just below the level of the top steps. Martin crouched, and
La-Chaise stood on the step below him, LaChaise with his 'dog and Martin with a . 45 in each hand.
''If they know we're here, an entry team'll try the garage door,'' LaChaise whispered. The garage door opener was plugged into an overhead outlet. LaChaise pointed at it with the gun barrel and said to Sandy, ''Pull the plug.''
Sandy pulled the plug.
''Let 'em get in a few feet. We want all of them in,'' Martin said. ''If they don't know we're here, we have to take them all…''
DEL WENT AROUND BACK, TO WATCH THE GARAGE door. Lucas led Stadic up the stairs.
''Bunch of boxes at the top,'' Lucas said. ''Supposed to be some sort of a barrier to keep the door from being rushed.''
Stadic said, ''I've seen that in a couple places. Whatever works.''
At the top, they moved the cardboard boxes out of the way. On the right side of the door, a piece of plywood was crudely nailed onto the wall.
''Wonder what that is?'' Lucas asked, looking at the board.
''Probably an extra barrier to keep people from busting through the wall,''
Stadic said. ''The guy ain't taking any chances.''
Lucas banged on the door. ''Harp, open up.''
Nothing.
''Awful quiet,'' Stadic said.
Lucas banged again. ''Huh. Wonder if he booked.''
''The way things are going…''
Lucas banged a third time. They waited for a few more seconds, Lucas looked at the lock, said, ''No way,'' and they started back down the stairs.
INSIDE, SANDY WAS CROUCHED NEXT TO HARP'S CAR, her hands over her ears. After the third set of knocks, they heard what sounded like feet on the stairs. ''I think they're going,'' Martin whispered.
''I can't fuckin' believe this,'' LaChaise whispered back. ''I gotta go look.''
Martin caught his arm. ''Best not to. Sometimes, people feel it, when something moves.''
LaChaise nodded, and they sat on the steps and listened.
ON THE STREET, LUCAS AND STADIC WALKED AROUND the corner and yelled down at Del.
Del had been leaning against the brick wall by the garage door, and he pushed away from the wall and slouched back toward them. ''Nothing?''
Lucas shook his head and they crossed the street to the car.
Stadic got in the back, and saw Sell-More Green walking down the street toward them. Sell-More worked for Harp, but he didn't know Stadic. Stadic made a quick calculation, andas Lucas cranked the car, patted Lucas on the shoulder and said,
''Whoa,'' and pointed.
Lucas and Del looked where Stadic was pointing. A thin black man in an old parka and black sneaks was scuffling along, oblivious of them. ''That's Sell-More
Green,'' Stadic said. ''He's one of Harp's dealers. Or he used to be.''
Lucas said, ''So let's ask him where Harp is.''
They waited until Sell-More was passing the car, and then popped out, three doors opening at once, and Sell-More turned sideways and thought about running, but then just stopped, hands in his pockets. ''What for?'' he asked.
''How you doing?'' Stadic asked.
''Hungry,'' Sell-More said. ''Haven't ate in two days.''
Lucas dug in a pocket, took out a small clip of bills, and pulled out a ten:
''Where's the boss?''
Sell-More licked his bottom lip: ''Who?''
''Daymon, for Christ's sakes,'' Lucas said.
''Oh, Daymon.'' Sell-More looked up at the apartment. ''He said the cops was hassling him because of these white boys killing cops. So he went on a trip.
With Jas-Min.''
''You know where?''
''He said maybe Mexico. Someplace warm,'' Sell-More said. ''Is that good for the ten?''
''You lyin'?'' Lucas asked.
''No way,'' Sell-More said. He shivered. ''If the boss was here, I'd be eating.''
Lucas handed him the ten and said to Del, ''Mexico.''
Del looked around at the snow: ''Wish I was with him.''
Stadic nodded, happy with the story. If Davenport thought Harp was involved, he'd just keep coming back. He didn't want Davenport poking around Harp's operation: not now.
They'd taken a couple of steps away from Sell-More when Lucas stopped and said,
''You wanna go for a hundred?''
Sell-More said, ''What?''
''We're looking for cops who might be… dealing. If you want to ask around, get a name or two, it'd be worth some cash.''
Stadic tensed: he hadn't planned on this. ''Do I get the bread now?'' Sell-More asked hopefully.
''Hell no,'' Lucas said. ''When I get the names-and the names better be good.''
Sell-More said, ''That's pretty dangerous, what you want.''
''Yeah, well, that ten won't last long,'' Lucas said. He took a card out of his pocket and handed it to Sell-More. ''You get hungry again, get a name and call me. Nobody has to know about it.''
Sell-More's eyes seemed to roll inward, and after a moment of silence, he looked from Lucas to Del to Stadic, and then he said, ''I think I might know somebody.''
LACHAISE LOOKED AT MARTIN: ''THEY'RE GONE.''
Martin nodded. ''Yup.''
''I can't believe it,'' LaChaise said. He looked down at Sandy and said, ''We're good as gold.''
Sandy nodded. She could still feel her heart thumping. The cops had hit the
Frogtown house the day after the first shootings. She didn't know how they'd done it, but they'd killed Butters and they would have killed all of them, probably. Now they were knocking on the door of the new place. The whole thing was coming apart, just like Elmore had said it would. Elmore had never been bright: now he was looking like a prophet.
She didn't say any of that: instead, she thought, Telephone.
LUCAS CHECKED ON HIS CREW: SLOAN AND SHERRILL were probing sources in the local biker groups. Del and Franklin were working independently, running more dopers.
Anderson, who worked for Lester, was running lists of names though personnel, asking who might know enough to crack the personnel computers. Lucas stopped by his office: '' Anything?''
Anderson said, ''Your name keeps coming up.''
''I think we can eliminate that one,'' Lucas said.
Anderson yawned and said, ''Well, that leaves about sixty more, including everybody in your group, and I'm not finished running the roster.''
''Give me a list when you get it,'' Lucas said.
He also got a copy of Buster Brown's tape and carried it back to his office and listened to it again.
''… need to know where this Weather is, and be good to know where Capslock's old lady is, her room number. And we need to know where Davenport is working, andCapslock, Sherrill, Sloan, Franklin and Kupicek. You know the list.''
Long pause.
''That don't sound right; you better be tellin' the truth, or your name'll be on the list, motherfucker… Hey, listen to what I'm telling you. .. No, not you. Did you find out anything about Elmore?''
Another pause.
''That's what we thought. We'll look those boys up when we're done here…