Robert B. Parker’s The Devil Wins

32

In winter, the Gray Gull was empty at that hour of the afternoon. Even so, they tried to stop Dragoa from entering.

“I can’t let him in here, Jesse,” said the hostess, looking a little panicked. “He’s been banned by the boss. He’s caused too much trouble in here.”

“What, you buy my goddamned fish but I’m not good enough for this—”

Jesse cut him off. “It’s okay. He’s with me. It’s official police business. He misbehaves, I’ll just shoot him.”

The hostess, looking even more panicked, stepped aside. She pointed at a two-top at the rear.

“I’ll send a waitress over.”

Jesse had club soda with lime in a tall glass. Dragoa had a double bourbon, which Jesse let the fisherman drink in silence. It was only after he ordered them a second round that Jesse spoke.

“You confronted Maxie Connolly in the Whaler Lounge last night. What was that about?”

“I don’t have to talk to you.”

“You don’t, but I have video of you shoving Maxie Connolly back onto her bar stool last night. A few hours later, she was dead. You want to leave that with no explanation, fine,” Jesse said, purposely not mentioning how Maxie had died.

“I was in the bar drinking already.”

“I saw that. Did you know Maxie Connolly? Were you friends with Ginny?”

Dragoa got a sick look on his face. “No. No. I was older than Ginny. Why you bring her up?”

“You living in a cave these days, Alexio? We just found Ginny and Mary Kate’s bodies. That’s why Maxie was back in town, to bury her girl.”

“Yeah. Yeah. I know.” Dragoa waved his hand dismissively. “First I hit on her. I had a few in me and every guy in the bar hit on her. I figured, why not? I used to have a thing for her when I was young. Every guy in town did. Then when she blew me off and I got all mad, I felt bad. So I grabbed her arm and apologized. Said I was sorry to hear about Ginny. That’s all.”

Jesse bought Dragoa’s story as far as it went, then asked, “Did you know Ginny?”

“Small town, Chief. It was smaller back then.”

“That’s not much of an answer.”

“I was older than her, but I seen her around school. Everybody knew everybody.”

Jesse didn’t ask a follow-up. He let the silence speak for him. He looked out the glass doors at the wind chopping the water, thought of Maxie’s body at the base of the Bluffs. Silence could often be more effective than threats, even with the men like Dragoa, but the fisherman seemed determined to say not another word. Jesse finally broke the quiet.

“So what did you figure was going to happen between you and Maxie when you approached her? That you were going to get a room together?”

“I don’t know what I figured. I wasn’t thinking with my head. I had a few in me.”

Jesse asked, “And what did you say about Ginny?”

Dragoa got that look on his face again, like just before and when the cigarette fell out of his mouth. “I said I was sorry about what happened to her.”

“Why should you be sorry? I thought you said you didn’t know her.”

“That was a bad time in Paradise, Chief. Bad for everybody. People think my poppa and me, we don’t care about nothing. I care.”

Dragoa took a mouthful of bourbon. Went to light a cigarette. Jesse grabbed the lighter out of his hand.

“Not in here.”

Alexio asked, “What happened to her, anyways?”

“In a minute,” Jesse said. “Where’d you go after you left the Whaler?”

“Helton.”

“Why’d you drive all the way over to Helton?”

“I got a room with somebody didn’t mind getting a room with me,” Dragoa said.

“A hooker?”

“Yeah. I ain’t married no more.”

“How long were you with the hooker?”

“All night. I paid for the night. Drove straight to the Rainha this morning.”

“What motel?”

“First you tell me what happened to Maxie.”

“A jogger found her at the base of the Bluffs early this morning.”

Dragoa bowed his head. “That’s too bad,” he said. “How?”

“She either jumped or was pushed off.”

“You think it was me?” Dragoa snorted. “Wasn’t me. I was at the Helton Motor Inn from about eleven o’clock on with a blonde called herself Trixie. Go check.”

“I will.”

“Can I go now?”

“Finish your drink,” Jesse said.

“Nah, I don’t feel like drinking no more.”

With that, Dragoa stood and drifted out of the Gull. Jesse watched him go. He would check the fisherman’s alibi, but Jesse didn’t think he was lying. Still, there was something about Dragoa that didn’t sit just right.