Winning Texas (44 page)

He walked away as Travis headed toward her desk, looking excited. At this rate, she didn
’
t know if she
’
d get to her mail and messages today.

“
What
’
s the latest on the case, Trav?
”
she asked.

“
The dominoes are falling,
”
he said.
“
Behar Zogu is singing like a lark and he
’
s implicated Bobo Simmons and two others in Nate Hardin
’
s murder.
”

“
That
’
s great news,
”
Annie said.
“
Glad something
’
s finally breaking loose about Nate. The Hardins deserve an answer. Tell me about it.
”

“
The indictment says Bobo killed Nate, at the behest of Juliana Souza. Juliana apparently tipped him off that Nate was headed to the club to cause big problems that could destroy the business. Bobo was so much under Juliana
’
s influence that she knew he
’
d do anything to please her. She allegedly told him to attack Nate and make it look like a late-night robbery. There
’
s a third unindicted co-conspirator who allegedly tipped off Juliana that Nate was coming to the club. Police won
’
t identify that person, but I bet I
’
ll be able to get it from my sources.
”

“
How did Zogu find out about Bobo
’
s role?
”

“
He
’
s told police he overheard Juliana talking on the phone with someone and later to Bobo,
”
Travis said.
“
Zogu searched Bobo
’
s locker and found the tire iron apparently used to kill Nate. Police have identified Bobo
’
s fingerprints on it.
”

“
Interesting,
”
Annie said.
“
Keep digging. What
’
s in it for Zogu?
”

“
He
’
s so crucial to the whole case that he
’
ll get a light sentence for his part in the smuggling piece of it. Also, police have agreed not to prosecute his wife Genta.
”

As Travis hurried away to work on the latest installment, her desk phone rang. She saw that it was Matt Sharpe and picked it up with reluctance. She
’
d avoided talking to him ever since she
’
d caught him in bed with Monica, the married cop, and found out about his other amorous adventures. If he wanted to go out again, she
’
d turn him down.

“
Hi, Annie,
”
he said.
“
Wanted to see how you
’
re doing. Sorry I haven
’
t called earlier. I
’
ve been following the story in the paper and worrying about you.
”

“
Thanks, Matt. It
’
s been a tough time, but I
’
m recovering. What have you been up to?
”

“
Wanted to tell you something before you hear it from anyone else,
”
he said.
“
I
’
m going to work for Kyle Krause, managing his Texas Girls clubs while he works out his legal problems.
”

“
Are you serious? Why would you do a thing like that? You
’
re a cop.
”

“
Just for a few more days,
”
he said easily.
“
My retirement from the force starts Monday. Remember I told you I
’
d be leaving once I got my thirty years in?
”

“
Yeah, I remember. But why would you go to work for a felon?
”

“
He
’
s not a felon,
”
Matt said.
“
He
’
s accused of some serious things, but he and his lawyer think he has a good chance of proving his innocence. Juliana masterminded the whole thing and he knew very little about what she was doing.
”

“
Matt, give me a break,
”
Annie said.
“
Surely, you
’
re too smart to believe that.
”

“
Who says I don
’
t believe it? The Texas Girls clubs are very profitable and I think I can make them even more so,
”
he said.
“
Over the years, I
’
ve learned the pitfalls of the strip club business and how to avoid them.
”

“
You
’
re selling your soul for a few dirty dollars? I can
’
t believe you
’
re doing that.
”
Annie raised her voice a few notches and didn
’
t care who heard.

Matt chuckled.
“
Quite a few dirty dollars, I must say. I told you I
’
m tired of being a poor, disrespected cop. I can do this for a few years, pay off all my debts and enjoy a retirement on a nice lake.
”

“
Have you really thought this through? You did so many good things on the force.
”

“
I
’
ve been bored for a while,
”
he said.
“
Same old crimes, same old red tape, same old problems that never get solved. Idiots and crooks have always run this place and they always will.
”

“
You
’
re trying to justify a terrible decision. I don
’
t think you really believe that.
”

She
’
d apparently touched a nerve, because his voice turned harsh.
“
Why are you acting so high and mighty, Annie? Your newspaper
’
s going to be a second-rate website. You have no job security and unless you leave, not much of a future.
”

“
You may be right, Matt,
”
she said.
“
But at least I
’
m not exploiting women and pandering to the worst in men. I can look myself in the mirror.
”

“
That
’
s not going to get you much in Houston, Annie,
”
he said.
“
See you around.
”

CHAPTER 52

Travis had invited Lila Jo Lemmons to stop by without giving a hint of what he wanted. So she showed up in a good mood and accepted his offer of a diet drink. She looked good, he thought dispassionately. Her pregnancy was barely visible and her beautiful skin and eyes glowed with good health.

“
Lila Jo, I learned something this afternoon I wish I
’
d never found out,
”
he said.
“
It
’
s about what happened that night we met Nate at Ninfa
’
s. It was the same night he got killed in the parking lot of the Texas Girls Club.
”

He knew instantly that his guess had been right. Her eyes narrowed, she bit her lip and took a big gulp of soda.

“
You called Juliana and warned her Nate was headed to the club. You probably told her he intended to cause big trouble for Kyle Krause,
”
Travis said.
“
Juliana told Bobo, and he killed Nate to stay in her good graces. Why would you do that? He was a great guy who
’
d never hurt anyone.
”

“
Trav, honey, you have to believe I had no idea it would turn out that way,
”
she said.
“
Nate said he was investigating illegal gambling, and I knew he must be talking about the poker games. I
’
ve run them for Kyle for years and we make a bunch of money. I bring in new players, set up the games and we split the profits. It
’
s my bread and butter.
”

“
Was I just another mark for you?
”
he said.

“
Of course not. You know how much I love you.
”

“
How can you say that? You killed my best friend.
”

“
I don
’
t think Juliana meant for Bobo to kill Nate. She just wanted the bouncer to scare him a little, maybe rough him up or rob him in the parking lot. We didn
’
t know it would all turn to shit.
”

“
That
’
s the understatement of the year,
”
Travis said.
“
How did you get to be the unindicted co-conspirator?
”

“
The police came to talk to me and I told them I was pregnant,
”
she said.
“
I promised to do anything they wanted to avoid prison for me and the baby. I
’
m helping them shut down poker and maybe even find Juliana. Everything will be all right.
”

“
Everything will never be all right again,
”
he said.
“
We
’
re over. I
’
m done with you.
”

“
Trav, you don
’
t mean that,
”
she said.
“
Think about it long and hard. You need me
–
and I
’
ll sue you for child support.
”

“
Go ahead, Lila Jo. Is the baby even mine?
”

“
Yes, you bastard. Don
’
t mess with me or you
’
ll be very sorry.
”
She slammed the door on her way out.

CHAPTER 53

Rob Ryland ducked into a coffee shop for a quick latte. The cozy place near the
Austin Comet
offices was where he always headed for his afternoon caffeine fix. He was surprised to see Annie Price standing in line directly in front of him.

“
Annie?
”
he said.
“
Is that you? Are you following me again?
”

He said it lightly, because he didn
’
t want to create the kind of scene that had festered since their last meeting a few weeks ago. That had been stupid and unnecessary. She turned around and smiled at him. She looked good and seemed happy, despite her bandaged arm.

“
I
’
ve worried about you, getting shot on that crazy ranch,
”
he said.
“
How are you doing?
”

“
Better, Rob,
”
she said.
“
Thanks for asking. I had to stop in today at the Texas Rangers to give a statement about the ranch conspiracy, as they call it. Now I
’
m craving a coffee before I hit the road.
”

“
Heading westward, to Marfa? He smiled.
“
Going to see Tom Marr?
”

“
Now you know that
’
s confidential information. No comment.
”

“
No problem,
”
he said, matching her playfulness.
“
I have unimpeachable sources.
”

She turned serious.
“
I wanted to congratulate you on the
Comet
’
s
cover story about the ranch
’
s operations and the attack on me. It was beautifully written and researched and I appreciate the nice things you said about my investigative reporting. The paper
’
s lucky to have you.
”