Kent Conwell - Tony Boudreaux 15 - The Mona Lisa Murders (18 page)
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Authors: Kent Conwell
Tags: #Mystery: Thriller - P.I. - Louisiana & Texas
When the dust cleared, one of the remaining goons strolled over to us, the muzzle of his weapon centered on me. He glanced in the truck at Latasha, studied her a moment, then flashed me a bright smile. ‘Boudreaux?’
I eyed him suspiciously. ‘Yeah.’
His smile grew wider. He took a step back and pointed his piece toward the headlights before us. ‘Good. You two come with me. Someone is waiting for you.’
I wanted to shout, but containing my hopes, I muttered. ‘O’Banion?’
‘Yeah.’
Gleefully, I hopped from the bed and opened the door for Latasha who had not been privy to our conversation. ‘What now?’
I hugged her. ‘The cavalry has arrived. ‘We’re safe.’
When I saw the monolith Huey in his Nicky Hilton suit holding the rear door of the limousine open for us, I could have shouted for joy.
Danny grinned when I climbed in, the freckles on his face bunching together. ‘See we made it in time, huh?’
I hugged him. ‘Just in time.’
‘Well, get in and close the door.’
After introducing Latasha, I told him of Hatchet Face and Shawn in the back of the pickup.
‘Don’t worry. It’s taken care of.’
‘Those boys out there. Vasco’s?’
With a wry sarcasm, he replied. ‘Yep. Sebastian and his bunch are going to wish they’d never heard of Joe Vasco.’
‘Sebastian’s dead. Antone Moretti killed him.’
Latasha looked at me in surprise. ‘Antone? But, he was dead.’
Danny chuckled. ‘Makes no difference. Vasco’s boys will clean things up.’ The limo started moving. ‘It’s best we leave. Can’t talk about anything we didn’t see, right?’
Latasha and I both nodded.
‘What about Nemo and Uberto?’
Danny clucked his tongue. ‘Too bad. Story I got was Nemo was in a boating accident. Tragic. Uberto? I don’t know. He just disappeared. When his butler went to wake him, the bed was empty. Never slept in. Nobody’s heard of him since.’
In the dim light cast by the dashboard, Latasha and I grinned at each other.
I patted her hand. ‘Like I told you before. Leroi and me’ll take care of your tuition. You just finish that degree.’
Danny spoke up. ‘Tuition?’
‘Yeah. She’s a sophomore at Houston-Billets University. Wants to be a lawyer.’
‘A lawyer, huh?’ He grunted. ‘I can always use a good lawyer. But, I wouldn’t worry about tuition. The reward for that diamond is close to a hundred grand.’
She frowned up at me. ‘What diamond?’
I grinned. ‘It’s a long story.’
Danny spoke up. ‘We’ll spend the night in Fort Worth. You can fly to Austin in the morning.’
‘What about the diamond?’
A helicopter roared overhead, heading east.
Danny’s grin grew wider. ‘There it goes now if I’m not mistaken. It’ll be waiting for you at the hotel. You can turn it over to the cops in the morning. And don’t worry. They know you’re coming. No hassle.’
For once my cousin was speechless.
I just shook my head and grinned. A typical O’Banion climax.
Latasha shook my arm. ‘What’s going on? What diamond are you two talking about?’
‘It’s a long story.’
Danny winked at me. ‘We’ve got nothing but time.’
He was right. ‘Well, after you escaped down the slope, they hauled me back into Sebastian’s office, but instead of Sebastian, Moretti was there.’
When I finished bringing up to date, she leaned back and smiled. ‘You know, this P.I. business is kind of exciting. Maybe once I pass the bar, you’d consider me for a partner. I can see it now, ‘Domingue and Boudreaux, Private Investigators, Cajun Style’. What do you think?’
All I could do was lean back in the seat and roll my eyes. What had I gotten myself into now?
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