Loitering with Intent

53

THE HOUSE WAS down a little lane a few blocks from the Marquesa, and it was tiny: two small bedrooms and a sitting room with an old TV.

“Don’t worry,” Tommy said to Evan, “you’ve got cable. And by the way, don’t use your cell phone.”

“I left it in the cottage, at Stone’s insistence. Gigi is supposed to think I forgot it.”

“Good idea. Got everything you need?”

“Oh, it’s great,” Evan said, tossing his suitcase on the bed in the larger of the two bedrooms. “I hope you don’t mind, I’m going to take a nap,” he said, then he closed the door. Stone, Dino and Tommy sat down in the living room.

“Tommy,” Dino said, “can you put a guard on him, or do we have to do it ourselves?”

“We’re not going to be here long,” Stone said, “and since nobody knows where he is, a guard won’t be necessary.”

“You know something we don’t know?” Dino asked.

“Look, our only shot is to get Manny White to agree to arrange a hit on somebody, then nail him, right?”

“Right,” Dino said.

“Well, you, Tommy and I are out; he knows us all, and he won’t trust any of us.”

“When you’re right, you’re right,” Dino said.

“So who are we going to get to do this?”

“I don’t think my boss would go for sending a Key West cop up there,” Tommy said, “so don’t count on any of my people.”

“Okay,” Stone replied. “How about a Miami cop?”

“The interdepartmental thing is complicated,” Tommy said, “and it could take a while to set it up.”

“And Miami would get the collar,” Dino pointed out.

“Oh, I don’t give a shit about that,” Tommy said.

“Who do we know who could pull this off that Manny doesn’t know?” Dino asked.

“I can think of one guy,” Stone said.

“Yeah, who?”

“Evan.”

“And why do you think Evan could pull this off?” Dino asked.

“He’s a very calm guy,” Stone said. “He doesn’t rattle easily.”

“I’ll give you that,” Dino replied.

“And he’s motivated,” Tommy pointed out.

“That too,” Dino said.

“Okay, let’s say he’ll do it,” Stone said. “Who’s the target? Who does he want killed and where?”

“Somebody in South Florida,” Tommy said, “not Key West.”

“Good,” Stone said. “Who and where?”

“You guys ever know Mike Levy, who was an investigator for the DA’s office?” Tommy asked.

“No,” Stone and Dino said simultaneously.

“He’s retired, lives on the inland waterway, somewhere between Stuart and Palm Beach. Is that too far north?”

“Is it near the interstate?”

“Yeah. It’s only a couple of hours’ drive from Miami, and being on the waterway, it could be approached by boat. That might appeal to the shooter.”

“Does Levy have any family?”

“His wife died last year; I went to the funeral. He’s got kids, but they’re both in the New York area.”

“So he’s all alone there?”

“Yeah, and Mike might find something like this entertaining.”

“Who do we get for backup?” Stone asked.

“The local sheriff might play,” Tommy said. “I worked on something with him a while back.”

“We’re going to need a lot of cash for bait,” Dino said.

“Evan can supply that,” Stone said.

“We’re going to have to get him some fake I.D.,” Dino said. “Manny’s going to be careful. He’ll search him for a wire, maybe even check him out.”

“Let me work on that,” Tommy said. “We’ve done that kind of thing for undercover drug buys.”

“There’s something else,” Stone said. “We need a connection to Manny White that can’t be traced back to us. Evan’s going to have to say that somebody sent him, somebody Manny would trust.”

“Wally Millard,” Dino said. “Wally’s sent him business before; Manny would trust him.”

“You think Wally would do it?” Stone asked.

“Let me talk to him about it,” Dino said.

“What else haven’t we covered?” Stone asked.

“I think that’s about it,” Stone said. “I’ll talk to Evan.”

“Talk to me about what?” Evan asked.

Stone turned to see him standing in the bedroom door, in his shorts, rubbing his eyes.

“Evan,” Stone said, “go back in the bedroom and use the phone to call your grandfather’s house. Tell his secretary that if anyone calls for you to say you’re on your way there, or if it’s tomorrow, that you’re in town, but not in. Tell her to confirm that your grandfather has had a stroke, if anybody questions that. Then put on some clothes and come sit down for a minute,” Stone said. Evan went back into the bedroom and closed the door.

“You think he’ll do it?” Dino asked.

“We’re about to find out,” Stone said.

Dino took out his cell phone. “I’m going to go call Wally,” he said, going out onto the screen porch.

Tommy stood up. “And I’m going to go call Mike Levy.”

Evan came back into the living room and sat down. “I made the call; the secretary and my grandfather are both on board.”

“Evan,” Stone said, “have you ever done any acting?”

“Yes, in high school and university theater. I played both leads and character parts.”

“Well,” Stone said, “we’ve got an important role for you.”

“Oh?”

“How much cash do you have on hand?”

“Do I have to pay to play?”

“Only temporarily.”

“I’ve got about sixty thousand in my briefcase. You may remember that I’ve given you forty thousand over the past week. Why don’t we use your money?”

“I’ve already wired it to New York,” Stone lied. “Unlike you, I don’t like to travel with a lot of cash.”

“To each his own,” Evan said. “I’ve always found cash on hand comforting.”

“It just makes me nervous.”

“What kind of role do you want me to play?”

“It’s the lead,” Stone replied.