now.”
Rose wrinkled her forehead as she studied the photograph. “No telling.”
She paused as he unlocked his car door and tossed the picture on the seat. “What are you going to do now?”
“Show this around. See if anyone can tell me any more about her.”
“Show it to whom?”
He leaned back against the side of the car. “I’ll show it to the cops in the Fraud Division. The ones who deal with con men, bunco artists, phony psychics, fortune-tellers, and the occasional medium.”
“I thought fortune-telling was legal.”
“It’s all legal, as long as you stay within the bounds. Don’t threaten people with dire things if they don’t give you cash. Don’t tell them the spirits want them to invest in Nigerian bank accounts. As long as fortune-tellers just tell fortunes and mediums just talk to spooks, and that’s what the people paid for in the first place, it’s legal.”
Rose watched him with narrowed eyes. “Suppose the person pays for something above and beyond what’s legal, but he’s satisfied with what he gets in return?”
Evan shrugged. “As long as it isn’t something nasty, like, say, the death of the mark’s mother-in-law, the cops probably won’t get involved. Who’d make the complaint?”
He could swear he saw her shoulders relax slightly. Then she took her car keys out of her purse. “Do you have anything else you want me to work on?”
“Do another search on Bradford. See what you come up with on the local front. What’s he been doing since he moved here? Give me a call tomorrow and we’ll touch base.”
Rose’s lips tightened slightly. “Count on it, Evan.”
Chapter 6
Rose stood watching Evan Delwin’s car turn up Novalis, probably heading for the police station on Nueva. She considered going back into the Nightmare. Augie said he had a referral but hadn’t given her any names.
Not that they needed another commission for Locators right now. They were already behind on the ones they had currently, what with this new Evan Delwin project. Skag was spending a lot of time in spirit spaces, doing who-knew-what but not working on Locators projects.
Rose sighed. She should go back and talk to Augie again. At least he and Rudy had stiff-armed Evan Delwin enough that Delwin shouldn’t be too eager to ask them any questions about Rose herself. She could imagine Augie’s reaction if he tried it. Delwin would be lucky if he got off with nothing worse than abrasions. Which would be a shame, actually. Because Delwin really did have nice eyes.
And good hair—dark and slightly disheveled. And very nice lips.
No, she really didn’t want Augie beating up Evan Delwin, even though there’d been moments during the afternoon when she’d wanted to punch him herself.
She flipped her purse strap over her shoulder.
Screw it.
Truth be told, she didn’t really want to talk to Augie right now. She could always call him later. She didn’t want to do anything except go home, even if it meant she’d have to spend time checking for society news about William Bradford.
And checking in with Skag, too, of course.
Oh joy.
She parked her car in the driveway at the back of the house as she did every day, and then, as she did every day, took a quick detour to the end of the backyard where the ground sloped down to the water.
The San Antonio River flowed wide and smooth between grassy banks. On the far side a man and woman pushed a stroller on the hiking path that ran along the river’s edge.
Rose stepped through her back gate and then ambled down the path on her own side of the river as far as the graceful iron footbridge at Johnson Street, watching a canoe glide lazily with the current. Despite everything, including her resident ghost, when she came home in the evening, she still thanked Grandma Caroline for bequeathing her the house in King William.
After a few minutes of watching the thick green water flow lazily under the bridge, she sighed and headed back home. She jiggled her key
Rose wrinkled her forehead as she studied the photograph. “No telling.”
She paused as he unlocked his car door and tossed the picture on the seat. “What are you going to do now?”
“Show this around. See if anyone can tell me any more about her.”
“Show it to whom?”
He leaned back against the side of the car. “I’ll show it to the cops in the Fraud Division. The ones who deal with con men, bunco artists, phony psychics, fortune-tellers, and the occasional medium.”
“I thought fortune-telling was legal.”
“It’s all legal, as long as you stay within the bounds. Don’t threaten people with dire things if they don’t give you cash. Don’t tell them the spirits want them to invest in Nigerian bank accounts. As long as fortune-tellers just tell fortunes and mediums just talk to spooks, and that’s what the people paid for in the first place, it’s legal.”
Rose watched him with narrowed eyes. “Suppose the person pays for something above and beyond what’s legal, but he’s satisfied with what he gets in return?”
Evan shrugged. “As long as it isn’t something nasty, like, say, the death of the mark’s mother-in-law, the cops probably won’t get involved. Who’d make the complaint?”
He could swear he saw her shoulders relax slightly. Then she took her car keys out of her purse. “Do you have anything else you want me to work on?”
“Do another search on Bradford. See what you come up with on the local front. What’s he been doing since he moved here? Give me a call tomorrow and we’ll touch base.”
Rose’s lips tightened slightly. “Count on it, Evan.”
Chapter 6
Rose stood watching Evan Delwin’s car turn up Novalis, probably heading for the police station on Nueva. She considered going back into the Nightmare. Augie said he had a referral but hadn’t given her any names.
Not that they needed another commission for Locators right now. They were already behind on the ones they had currently, what with this new Evan Delwin project. Skag was spending a lot of time in spirit spaces, doing who-knew-what but not working on Locators projects.
Rose sighed. She should go back and talk to Augie again. At least he and Rudy had stiff-armed Evan Delwin enough that Delwin shouldn’t be too eager to ask them any questions about Rose herself. She could imagine Augie’s reaction if he tried it. Delwin would be lucky if he got off with nothing worse than abrasions. Which would be a shame, actually. Because Delwin really did have nice eyes.
And good hair—dark and slightly disheveled. And very nice lips.
No, she really didn’t want Augie beating up Evan Delwin, even though there’d been moments during the afternoon when she’d wanted to punch him herself.
She flipped her purse strap over her shoulder.
Screw it.
Truth be told, she didn’t really want to talk to Augie right now. She could always call him later. She didn’t want to do anything except go home, even if it meant she’d have to spend time checking for society news about William Bradford.
And checking in with Skag, too, of course.
Oh joy.
She parked her car in the driveway at the back of the house as she did every day, and then, as she did every day, took a quick detour to the end of the backyard where the ground sloped down to the water.
The San Antonio River flowed wide and smooth between grassy banks. On the far side a man and woman pushed a stroller on the hiking path that ran along the river’s edge.
Rose stepped through her back gate and then ambled down the path on her own side of the river as far as the graceful iron footbridge at Johnson Street, watching a canoe glide lazily with the current. Despite everything, including her resident ghost, when she came home in the evening, she still thanked Grandma Caroline for bequeathing her the house in King William.
After a few minutes of watching the thick green water flow lazily under the bridge, she sighed and headed back home. She jiggled her key
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