stepped onto hard concrete and squinted at the light reflected off her windshield. I held my hands out, palms up, to show they were empty.
“Relax,” I told her. “I’m not going anywhere.” She was wearing loose brown pants, low-heeled boots, and sunglasses. As always, the butt of her pistol showed from beneath her jacket. It was an automatic. The grip was checkered wood; I’d never noticed that before. I tried to remember if Mills had ever shot anyone. Regardless, I had no doubt that she could pull the trigger.
“As God is my witness, I don’t know what to do with you, Work. If it weren’t for Douglas, we’d be doing this at the station house. I have zero patience for your wounded-bird act. It’s bullshit. You’re going to tell me what you know and you’re going to do it now. Do I make myself clear?”
Strain and fatigue were painted on her face thicker than the makeup she tried to conceal it with. I shook out a cigarette and leaned against her car. I didn’t know what she was making of all this, but I had an idea. “You know why defense lawyers lose cases?” I asked her.
“Because they’re on the wrong side.”
“Because they have stupid clients. I see it all the time. They say things to the police that they can’t take back, things that might be misconstrued, especially when there’s pressure to break the case.” I lit the cigarette, looked down the hill at a passing ambulance, its lights off. “It has always amazed me. It’s as if they think that their cooperation will convince the cops to look at somebody else. It’s naïve.”
“But it keeps people like you in business.”
“There is that.”
“Are you going to talk to me or not?” Mills demanded.
“I’m talking to you now.”
“Don’t be a smart-ass. Not today. I don’t have the patience for it.”
“I’ve read the papers and I’ve been in this business a long time. I know the pressure you’re under.” Mills looked away, as if to deny what I was saying. “If I were smart, I would keep my mouth shut.”
“You don’t want to be on my bad side, Work. I can promise you that.”
“That’s what Douglas told me.”
Emotion tugged at the corner of Mills’s mouth. “Douglas was out of line.”
“He just told me to cooperate.” Mills crossed her arms. “Are we going to be straight with each other?” I asked. “No crap?”
“No problem,” she said.
“I’ll be as honest with you as you are with me. Fair?” She nodded. “Am I a suspect?” I asked her.
“No.” She didn’t hesitate, and I knew she was lying. I almost laughed, she was so transparent, but it would have been an ugly laugh, an “I can’t believe this shit is happening” laugh.
“Do you have any suspects?”
“Yes.”
“Anybody I know?”
“Everybody,” she said, parroting the district attorney. I thought of Jean and prayed that she had not gotten that far in her interview with Clarence Hambly.
“Have you looked into his business dealings? Ex-clients?”
“I can’t talk about the investigation.”
“I know you talked to Hambly,” I told her, watching closely for a reaction, getting none, just the same unbending mouth and eyes I couldn’t see. “I know that you know about the will. Seems to me there are fifteen million reasons why you should be looking at me for the murder.”
“That Hambly. He’s a pompous windbag. He should learn to keep his mouth shut.” Watching her, I finally understood why she hated lawyers so much. She couldn’t intimidate them, and it killed her.
“So,” I prodded. “I’m not a suspect?”
“Douglas says to lay off you. He says there’s no way you killed your father, not for money. I can’t find any other motive.”
“But you’ve looked.”
“I’ve looked.”
“And you’re going along with that?”
“As long as you’re straight with me, I’ll give Douglas his say. For now. But in the end, it’s my investigation. Jerk me off and I’ll come down on you so hard, your friends will bleed. Is that clear?”
“Crystal,” I told her. “What else did you learn from Hambly?” I tried not to show how desperate I was for this information.
Mills shrugged again. “That your father was stinking rich and that if you didn’t kill him, you’re one lucky bastard.”
“It’s just money,” I said.
“That’s good,” she told me. “Just money.”
“Are we going to do this?” I asked.
“Yeah. Fine. About time.”
“Then let’s drive,” I said. “Barbara will probably be home soon and I don’t need her involved in this.”
“Oh, I’ll talk to Barbara,” Mills said pointedly, making it clear that she was