Connections in Death (In Death #48)(73)

Eve looked at Aimes—defiant young face in his ID shot, dead and drained at the dump site. “Lab’s confirmed Duff’s blood and tissue on the earrings. We’d have put him away for the rest of his life. Now he’ll never see eighteen.”

Hissing out a breath, Eve rubbed the back of her neck. “And now I’ve got to send cops and a grief counselor out to the fricking Sky Mall to notify his mother because I didn’t scoop him up, lock him up, before somebody slit his throat.”

“Are you looking at Jones for that?”

“If Jones found out Aimes went around him to kill Pickering and Duff, he’d execute Aimes. But I don’t see him ordering the body dumped at the back door of a Dragon captain.”

She gestured with her coffee. “Jones is a fake. Sure he’s beating the Banger drum—but he’s cheating his fellow gang members while he’s at it. Banking profits, going into a partnership outside the group to make more. For himself. He doesn’t want attention focused on him, and sloppy murders tend to do just that.”

“And if Cohen went into partnership with him, and Jones started cutting back on the percentage . . .”

“Cohen might have gone into a partnership with someone else,” Eve finished. “Someone in the position to, and with the ambition to, take over if they could depose Jones.”

This time Eve jabbed a finger on Jorgenson’s ID shot. “It’s going to be him. He wants the war. He wants to lead.”

“If so, why not just kill Jones?”

“A harder target, but that may be coming.” She polished off her coffee. “So. Time to get to it.”

“I’m on tap if you need my awesome powers of persuasion.”

They parted ways in the bullpen. From Trueheart’s desk—he and Baxter were on their way to the Sky Mall—Strong signaled Eve.

“I know you want to get to Cohen, but I reached Ho’s sister’s ex-boyfriend. Good timing on that. Hugh Lanigan’s younger brother’s in his first year of college in Cambridge. Smart kid, got into Harvard. The parents moved to South Carolina a few months ago.”

“You’re going to tell me Ho threatened his family, so he kept his mouth shut.”

“You should be a detective. Stay away from my sister, or you’re dead. Go to the cops, and your little brother’s dead. And, hey, your mom looks pretty good. Be a shame if somebody messed up her face.”

“Now Lanigan figures they’re out of reach so he can talk.”

“He’s ready to file charges, testify, do whatever it takes to put Ho away. He talked to his family about it just a few days ago, and they’re behind him. He was just building up the guts for it.”

“Reo’s in Observation. Go get her, set this up.”

With a nod, Strong rose. “Dallas, if this goes our way, we’re going to put a hurting on two gangs. We won’t wipe them out, but they’ll hurt.”

A nice side benefit, Eve thought as she tapped Peabody. “Let’s break this prick.”

“Snap! We’re good with the feds?”

“They’re with Vinn now.”

She opened the door to interview. If anything Cohen looked more miserable than he had that morning. “Record on. Dallas and Peabody resuming interview with Cohen. I don’t see your legal representative, Sam. Should we go find him for you?”

“On further consideration I’ve elected to represent myself in this witch hunt.”

“Then, for the record, you’re waiving your right to an attorney?”

“I am an attorney.”

Eve merely sat, stared at him.

“All right, yes.”

“Okay then. And, for the record, we’re adding a third charge of accessory to murder.”

“What? This is ridiculous. This is—this is bullshit!”

“Aimes, Barry, age seventeen.” Eve mimed slitting her throat with her finger. “He’s one of the assholes you enlisted to kill Pickering and Duff. You know what’s bullshit, Sam? That there’s honor among thieves. There’s even less honor among murderers.”

“I don’t even know this person.”

Casual, confident, Eve rocked back in her chair. “You know, I don’t doubt you didn’t know his name. His name wouldn’t be important. Just that he do the job you wanted done. But you damn well know the name of the Banger who helped you set all this up. Give me the name, Sam. Even a half-assed attorney would advise his client to roll when he’s facing three counts of murder.”

“Even a half-assed cop would know I’ve been in custody since last night and couldn’t have had anything to do with slitting some gang member’s throat.”

“Gosh, Sam, you’ve forgotten all about accessory before the fact. You maybe need to hit the law books again. Add this: The newest dead guy was part of your conspiracy to murder, and is now dead due to his part in that conspiracy.”

“Buy a clue,” Peabody added. “And give us the damn name. Even a half-assed murder suspect knows he who flips first gets the best deal.”

At the hard, angry look Eve shot her, Peabody shrugged.

“Come on, Dallas, he can’t be that dumb.”

“What kind of deal? No, no,” Cohen said immediately. “I don’t want to hear it. I don’t know anything about any of these killings. My partnership with Marcus Jones was real estate. How he earned his share of the investment has nothing to do with me. If he’s a criminal, arrest him!”