“Don’t be long,” Dan said. “I want Arlo to drive me around to Elaine’s car so I can give her the tape before the police get here.”
Martha turned around on the stairs to look at him. “Give it to Elaine? She works with the DEA.”
“No, she’s a federal prosecutor,” Dan said, “and I trust her.”
Martha came down the stairs. “They want to put Rick in jail.”
“Rick is my client. I’ll handle this.”
“Well, he’s my manager. Don’t be stupid.”
“And don’t you be such a bitch.”
Before he could think, Martha had snatched the cassette away. “This is mine, you know.”
Dan grabbed her wrist and peeled her fingers off the cassette. He gave her a little shove toward the stairs. “Hurry up. I don’t want to hear your mouth again.”
A loud knock on the front door made them both look in that direction. The knock changed into deep thuds.
At the same time a voice shouted, “Open up! Federal officers!” The door flew back and armed men came through it, a dozen or more. The letters DEA were printed like an insignia on the upper left of their dark zippered jackets. Martha jumped back and screamed.
One of them shouted at her, “Where is Miguel Salazar?”
Vincent Hooper spotted Dan and came across the living room, gun extended in both hands. “Get down on the floor, hands behind your head.”
Others ran up the stairs or deeper into the house.
“I said, get down!” Hooper’s gun pointed straight at Dan’s chest.
Before Dan could reply, Martha dashed in front of him, grabbed the tape, and ran toward the terrace. Another agent followed her. He had a shaved head, but Dan recognized him—Scott Irwin.
He could see what was happening. Using the arrest of Miguel Salazar as a cover, they had come in for the Barrios tape.
Turning to look behind her, Martha’s eyes widened and she stumbled to a stop. “Scott! You son of a bitch!” She kicked him in the shins with her boot. When Hooper’s attention went for an instant to his partner, Dan elbowed him in the side of his head. Martha ran onto the terrace, and Irwin pursued her. Dan followed. He heard the gunshot behind him, saw bits of glass from the door blow onto the terrace and fall like rain into the swimming pool. He skidded over the bits of glass and ran toward the railing. He planted his hands then vaulted over it, landing in the thick grass and rolling.
Irwin was just ahead, and farther out, Martha Cruz. They disappeared into the trees. As Dan raced over the lawn he glanced back and saw Hooper swinging a leg over the railing. Dan had the advantage; he knew where Martha was going.
He broke through the hedge and ran across the vacant lot praying not to fall on the uneven ground. Ahead he could hear thuds and snapping twigs. Then Martha screamed. Dan saw the dragline, its colors barely visible in the dim light from the shed. The boom soared over it and the massive bucket lay on the ground draped with lengths of chain. At the rear of the dragline, directly behind the twin steel tracks, Scott Irwin had caught up to Martha Cruz. He grabbed her by the hair and swung her to the ground. He reached down to rip something from her hands, and she curled around it.
Irwin did not notice Dan speeding toward the front of the bucket. A pistol lay on the ground beside Miguel Salazar. Dan found it in the darkness, picked it up, and came around the back of the dragline in the dark. Irwin was bent over Martha. “Give me the fucking tape!” He punched her in the ribs.
From just behind him Dan screamed, “I’ve got a gun! Get away from her.” He shouted across the water, “Elaine! Call the cops!” If she answered, he didn’t hear it. Irwin seemed frozen in position, his weight on one knee. Martha was curled up, half hidden by his body.
Irwin slowly turned his head. Dan stepped into the light and came around so that Irwin could see him. Both men were breathing heavily. He yelled again, “Let her go! Do it or I’ll shoot.” He heard his voice crack. The barrel of the pistol was three feet from Irwin’s temple. Dan could see the end of the silencer jerking.
“You’re going to shoot me in the head?” Irwin spoke calmly. “Have you ever killed a man, Galindo?”
“Martha, give him the tape.”
“No! Shoot him!”
“Give him the damned tape!”
Martha was sobbing. Irwin still held her by the hair. “If you pull that trigger you’ll be sent away for murder.”
Dan’s muscles were jumping. “I won’t kill you. I’ll put one in your ass. Now let her go.”
As if to comply, Scott Irwin moved back slightly. Then his right hand reached into his open jacket and a gun barrel glinted in the light. He put the gun under Martha’s jaw. She screamed and kicked. Irwin jerked on her hair to shut her up.
Dan yelled, “You want the tape, take it!”
“Drop the gun or I’ll blow her fucking head off!”
Footsteps were coming closer. A heavy tread. Dan prayed for Arlo Pate.
Vincent Hooper sped into the clearing. Dan heard his intake of breath as he came to a dead stop. The light was in his eyes. In a crouch he swung his pistol toward Irwin, then toward Dan. The barrel of his pistol swung around again, then back. He shouted, “Irwin!”
“I’m here! Galindo has a gun on me. Take him down!”
Dan screamed, “You want the tape, you can have it. Martha, give it to him!”
Hooper was circling sideways, shifting his position to see them all. “What’ve you got there, Galindo? A .22? Not much of a weapon. You could miss. I’d blow you apart before you squeezed off a second round.”
“Martha! For God’s sake give him the tape!”
She awkwardly threw the cassette toward Vincent Hooper. The timing was off. The cassette clattered to the ground in the space between them, and the tape fell out of its case.
With his gun still pointing at Dan, Vincent Hooper looked over at what she had thrown. “What is this?”
“It’s Barrios!” Irwin screamed, “Galindo! Drop it or I’ll blow the bitch away!”
Hooper’s head turned toward Scott Irwin, a momentary flicker of confusion. In that instant Dan knew that only one of these agents had come for the tape. Then the memory of two facts burst into Dan’s mind with such force that he nearly staggered. His spare key had been found in Kelly Dorff’s pocket. The neighbor had heard a scream from inside the apartment.
“Irwin!” His voice ripped into the darkness. “You shot Kelly Dorff with my speargun! It was you!”
“He’s flipping out, Vince. Shoot him!”
“Listen to me!” Dan circled slowly left, keeping Scott Irwin between himself and Hooper. “Kelly had my spare key in her pocket when she died. The doors were locked. Whoever killed her went out the front and turned the thumb lock, but he couldn’t turn the dead bolt.”
Hooper leveled his .45 at Dan’s heart. “Last chance, Galindo!”
Dan forced his words through a throat clenched with fear. “She opened the door to somebody she trusted. I know this because the neighbor heard a scream from inside the apartment. A scream, then the crash of my aquarium. The killer didn’t force his way in. He had time to pick up a speargun, maybe asking her, Hey, what’s this? When he aimed at her, she knew what he’d come for. She screamed. She pulled the tank over when she fell.”
“Shut him up, he’s crazy!”
Dan glanced at Irwin, then at Hooper, who was moving closer, closing the gap. “Who would Kelly have opened the door to? Not Miguel Salazar. And not you. She was scared to death of the DEA. Who, then? Her friend in the band. The same guy who left Salazar’s house a few minutes after she did that night. Scott Irwin knew where she was going.”
Dan’s hands were shaking so hard he had to hold the gun with both of them.
Irwin turned his head to follow Dan as he circled slowly. Shadows shifted on the ground.
Hooper’s voice was low and calm. “Lower the pistol. Nobody’s going to get hurt here. I’m not going to shoot you if you lower the gun.”
“Oh, Jesus,” Dan chok
ed out. He dropped the gun by his side, expecting a bullet to tear into his chest.
“Now talk to me.”
“Vince, what the hell—”
“Be quiet,” he said to Irwin. His dark eyes were still on Dan. “Talk to me.”
“I thought you might have done it, Hooper. You had a reason—to keep Kelly quiet about Luis Barrios. She claimed you shot him in cold blood. But I don’t think you killed Kelly, and I don’t believe you sent Scott to do it. That would be gutless. You’re a son of a bitch, Hooper, but you’re not a coward. Right now your buddy has a pistol to that girl’s head. Did you happen to notice that? Are you going to let him shoot an unarmed civilian?”
“Vince, for God’s sake! Take him out. He’s a scumbag. He works for the dopers.”
“Did you know that Scott Irwin murdered Kelly?” Dan was talking faster. “I can’t figure that out. Elaine McHale says he claimed to have an alibi. He was supposedly with you. Did you cover for him? You’d lie for a member of your team, but I don’t think you’d lie to protect a killer.”
Irwin was pivoting on his knee toward Dan. The barrel of his gun swung around. There were two flashes of light almost simultaneously and two loud shots. Irwin’s went wild. He sank to his knees and awkwardly crumpled.
Martha Cruz scrambled out of the way.
Holstering his gun, Vincent Hooper shouted at Dan as he ran. “You! Stay back!” He dropped beside Irwin and pulled open his jacket. “Oh, my God.”
From the darkness came the voices of the other agents who had heard the noise. Flashlights danced in the trees. Hooper yelled for somebody to call air rescue.
Irwin was gasping, “Why … did you—”
“Because he was unarmed!” Hooper stripped off his own jacket and holster, then a black pullover, which he pressed against Irwin’s side.
One of the agents threw Dan to the ground and put a foot on the back of his neck. “I didn’t shoot him!” Dan yelled.
“Shut up!”
Through the legs of the dozen men milling around, Dan raised his head far enough to see. One of the agents discovered Salazar’s body, and flashlights were trained on it. A familiar pair of blue jeans and sneakers hurried through the group, paused, then a moment later came toward Dan. By twisting his head around he could see Elaine McHale. She told the man to let him up. Elaine steadied Dan by grabbing his arm.
“I drove around by the entrance and showed my badge to get in. Are you all right?” She looked at him intently. Dan said that he was, then pulled her out of earshot of the men and told her what had just happened.
Her eyes slowly closed, then opened. She glanced over her shoulder at Vincent Hooper then walked over to stand behind him. Dan followed a few steps behind.
Hooper had Irwin’s head in his lap now. “Hey, you’re going to make it. Don’t give up on me. Come on, Scott.”
The younger agent’s chest was working up and down.
Elaine sat on one heel. “Scott? Can you see me? This is Elaine McHale.”
His eyes moved toward her.
“Did you kill Kelly Dorff?”
Hooper looked fiercely at Elaine, this woman who by that question had placed herself on the other side.
“Yes.” The word was a whisper.
“Oh, my God,” Hooper groaned. “He said he needed an alibi for missing a meeting with a Miami narcotics cop.”
Elaine glanced at him, then leaned closer to Irwin. “Did you ever tell Agent Hooper what you did?”
“No.”
“Leave him alone, Elaine.”
Irwin could barely mouth the words. “She was going to damage … the agency, and blow the operation. I had to.”
Hooper looked around and screamed, “Where the hell are the paramedics?”
Scott Irwin weakly grabbed Hooper’s arm to get his attention. “Vince … I wanted … Galindo. Like you … and Barrios. You shot him. Dirty doper. They all are.”
“No. No. Barrios had a gun. I told you.”
“But … he threw it down first. Kelly said … it’s on the tape.” Irwin was breathing faster. “Oh, God, it hurts. Vince—”
“Okay, Scott. Okay. I shot him. I had to do it, like you said. Hang on, buddy, you’re going to be all right.”
A helicopter was coming in fast now, a Broward County sheriff’s copter, its spotlight playing over the ground, catching the lake, then the boom of the dragline. The light settled on the people standing around Scott Irwin. He was pinned in a wash of blinding white.
Dan felt the downdraft. His hair whipped in the wind, and the agents’ jackets fluttered. Dust rose up, and dried weeds and trash swept across the ground. Then the chopper settled a distance away, and two paramedics jumped out with their equipment.
Scott Irwin was still looking up. The dust was in his eyes, but he wasn’t blinking. Dan moved aside for the paramedics. He noticed Elaine speaking with Vincent Hooper, her hand on his forearm. Their words were inaudible in the whine from the chopper. It was still running, ready to take off. Then Elaine walked back to Dan.
Her short hair was tousled. “I told Vince we’re leaving. They can get in touch with you later. Where’s the tape?”
“Martha tossed it to Hooper. He didn’t pick it up. I don’t know where it is now.”
She looked at Dan directly. “I have to turn it in to the U.S. attorney.”
Dan said, “Sorry, Elaine. It’s for Rick.”
“As a federal officer, I’m demanding that tape.”
“I don’t have it.”
She exhaled and looked around. “Well, where is it?”
“Martha might have picked it up. She was here a minute ago.” Dan walked past the crowd to get a better view. Martha Cruz was nowhere in sight.
CHAPTER 40
From the driver’s seat Elaine looked over at Dan. He could see her face clearly by the lights of the interstate and oncoming traffic.
“I’m fine,” he said.
“Your forehead is bruised,” she said.
“I have bruises all over, which you can check out later if you like.” He caressed her cheek. The amber glow made Elaine’s eyes appear huge. “Thank you for getting me out of there.”
She grabbed his hand. “I have never been so frightened, watching you in that bucket. Expecting it to tip, and I’d see you fall. Knowing that Miguel Salazar was waiting. And then Scott!”
Dan asked, “What did you say to Hooper about our reason for going to Salazar’s house?”
“The truth—that Martha wanted to give you the Barrios tape. Vince never believed it existed. He wants very badly to hear it.”
“I’m sure.”
Elaine glanced over at Dan. “Understand something. Vince believed, truly he did, that Luis Barrios shot first. Now he wonders if he could have imagined Barrios shooting at him. There was so much noise and confusion, and he has to admit that he hated the man.” She put a hand on Dan’s arm. “If I talk about Vince, it isn’t to excuse him.”
Dan saw the green interstate signs counting down the streets, heading toward the center of Miami. “You’re saying that if Hooper killed Luis Barrios, it was an accident? Or his mind slipped? I don’t think so. Not Hooper. You should’ve seen the amount of control he had tonight. Irwin’s screaming, I nearly pass out, and Vincent Hooper is rock steady.” Dan laughed in disbelief. “He blew away his own partner. He shot him. No hesitation. If it weren’t for Hooper, I’d be dead.”
Elaine held Dan’s hand. “I suppose he appreciates the irony of that as well as you do.”
Dan asked, “Why did Scott Irwin do it? He said Kelly would have blown the operation. That’s no reason to commit murder.”
“No, he probably did it for Vince.”
Dan looked at her.
“Oh, it wasn’t what you’re thinking. Scott was devoted to Vince. Many of the younger agents admire him, but Scott took everything Vince said so seriously. ‘We’re the last line of defense, the only ones with any guts,’ that sort of thing. Scott believed that Kelly Dorff would have destroye
d Vincent Hooper and that meant the destruction of everything noble and brave. I’m certain that Scott would have given anything to be like Vince.”
For a long moment Elaine seemed lost in her thoughts. Then she said, “Someday Vince is going to realize that he helped shape Scott Irwin into what he was. He’ll carry that guilt with him as long as he lives.”
“I’m glad to know the guy has a heart,” Dan said. “What is your office going to do with Rick Robbins?”
“I really can’t say. I’m not on the case anymore.”
“Well, give me an opinion, then. An agent on the case murdered the confidential informant and tried to kill the defense attorney. The man you wanted Rick Robbins to testify against is now dead. How can Rick possibly be prosecuted? What jury would convict him?”
“Dan, I can’t discuss it.”
“Okay.” He pointed at her car phone. “May I use that?”
“Why?”
“To order a pizza.” When Elaine looked around, Dan said, “I want to call my client. It just occurred to me—and I should have thought of it sooner—that the raid on Salazar’s place wasn’t to get the Barrios tape—that was Scott Irwin’s agenda. The DEA wanted Salazar. This tells me there’s a sweep going on tonight, and Rick may be on the list.” Dan waited for a response from Elaine.
“I don’t know,” she said honestly.
“Then I need to find Rick. He has to stay out of sight until after I talk to John Paxton tomorrow and persuade him not to prosecute. So may I use your phone?”
She waved for him to go ahead.
Dan dialed Rick’s home number. Sandy answered.
“Sandy, this is Dan. Let me talk to Rick.” He listened for a while, then said good-bye and disconnected. He put the telephone back in its holder.
“What was that?” Elaine asked.
“The man refuses to give up. Rick’s wife says that he’s taking Joel Friedman to dinner tonight, trying to sweet-talk him into giving Martha Cruz a special audition.” Dan said, “Friedman’s a talent scout with Capitol Records. Do you mind driving by Miami Beach? They’re at the Delano.”
Elaine stared at him. “You’re going into the Delano like that? Your pants are still wet and your sweater is torn.”
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