towel, ripped off a strip, and gagged him. Then I went outside again to wait.
152
A BLACK-AND-WHITE PULLED in about seven minutes later. Two officers, male, one old, one new.
The old one said, “You the guy who called the Southwest detective?”
“Stein,” I said.
“He’s on his way. What’s going on?”
“Two inside,” I said. “Attacked me with a knife. Weapons in plain view. I think we have an ex-felon in possession here.”
The new one was looking through the front door. “He’s got ’em tied up.”
“How’d you do that?” the old one said.
“I’ll explain when Stein gets here,” I said. “You might want to order up an ambulance. The rooster is going to need medical attention.”
“Rooster?”
“Have a look. And don’t let them talk to each other.”
Stein arrived about thirty minutes later. Still no ambulance, but Sonny was now on a sofa in the house, covered with a blanket. Knuckles was screaming from the kitchen, where the new cop was holding him.
Stein had a partner named Santos. Santos started talking to the older patrol officer while I talked to Stein.
“First thing,” I said, “make sure you question these two separately so they can’t cook up a story.”
Stein said, “And what’s your story?”
“You’ll find a rifle and some handguns in the bedroom,” I said. “The rifle will turn out to be the one that shot Sister Mary. The screamer, he’s got to be the ex-felon.”
“You searched the house?”
“I did.”
“How?”
I was still holding the towel on my wound. I showed Stein the blood. “The one on the sofa is a street guru—he knifed me. I came here to question the other one, who I followed here. The kid who got beat up, Daryl, he said—”
“Where is he?”
“Motel 6. He ID’d the smell of this guy’s hair. He thinks this guy is the one who bopped him. So I followed him here, and knocked on the door. He didn’t want to let me in at first, but I convinced him.”
“How?”
“Let him tell you.”
Stein scowled.
“And so,” I said, “if you know your Fourth Amendment jurisprudence, the amendment does not apply to private citizens, so long as they are not working in concert with law enforcement. That’s why I didn’t contact you first. I didn’t want some tricky lawyer, somebody like me, arguing for exclusion of the weapons because I was acting as your agent. So now I’m giving you the observation, and I suggest you get a warrant before going in. Then we’ve covered all the angles.”
“You’ve done some thinking about this,” Stein said. “You realize, of course, you could be facing a big fat lawsuit from one or both of these guys.”
“Be still my heart,” I said.
Stein smiled.
153
I FAVORED MY good cheek as I drove to St. Monica’s. When I got there, I told Father Bob what happened and he laughed.
“Very sympathetic,” I said.
He put me facedown in his trailer and started dressing my wound. It was the most humiliating experience of my life.
“Humility,” Father Bob said. “It’s a good thing.”
“Can we talk about something else? Can we talk about Sister Mary?”
“By all means. You want stitches?”
“No,” I said. “Just tape me shut. Just don’t tape the wrong crack, okay?”
“I think I’m capable,” he said. “Sister Mary is doing fine physically.”
“Okay, what’s that mean?”
“That’s as far as I can go.”
“Come on, tell me what’s wrong with her.”
“I was talking about your buttock. I’m through. That’s as far as I can go with it. You can get up now.”
I did. “What’s wrong with Sister Mary?”
Father Bob sighed and sat at his little table. He offered me a chair but, under the circumstances, I preferred to stand.
“I suppose it would be easier if you heard it from me,” Father Bob said. “Sister Hildegarde is going to officially sanction Sister Mary, for being a recalcitrant. She is stating her opinion in a letter, which will go to the archdiocese, that she has strong doubts about Sister Mary’s fitness to continue as a nun.”
My face got hot.
Father Bob put his hand on my arm. “Let us handle it from here. I’ll be speaking for Sister Mary.”
“I have a few words to say, too.”
“Don’t. You’ll only make it worse.”
“I don’t get you people.”
“Most people don’t get us. Leave it there.”
I started to say something but he gripped my arm harder. “Leave it there,” he said again. “Sister Mary and I believe that God works all things for the good of those who follow him.”
“Which is another way of saying when people shaft you, it’s a good thing. No worries. God’s plan. And the