Swan Dive - Jeremiah Healy by Jeremiah Healy

him and the Angel were doing
beautiful things together when somebody interrupted them."
    I said, "Look, Marsh came on like a piece of
shit, but I wasn’t about to kill him."
    "Your gun, Cuddy."
    "What?"
    Guinness said, "Was your gun did the Angel."
    "How do you know?"
    "Registration number, you stupid shit. Computer
matched you right off."
    "You mean you found the gun at the scene?"
    “ On the floor, by the window. But we didn’t find
Marsh’s clothes."
    "His clothes."
    "That’s right. No clothes, his or the Angel’s.
And no suitcase."
    I thought for a minute. "If` he didn’t have
any clothes, how’d you ID him?"
    Guinness said, "Thought you might wonder about
that."
    I turned back to Holt. "Lieutenant?"
    "We found his wallet. On the floor in the
closet, like maybe it fell out of his pants when they were hanging
up."
    "Before his pants pulled the disappearing act."
    “ Yeah."
    Guinness said, “We also didn’t find his stuff."
    "What stuff?"
    Holt said, "His cocaine stuff."
    "That’s where I come in," said Dawkins,
speaking for only the second time. "Homicide here like to know
why you killed Marsh and the fox. Me, I’d like to know what you did
with a quarter-million street value of J. J. Braxley’s snow."
    I put my head down, taking a couple of deep breaths.
"Somebody set me up."
    Guinness said, "Sure they did."
    "Think about it, will you? I get knocked out,
they take my gun, kill Angel here and Marsh, and leave the weapon
there to link me with a guy I already didn’t like."
    Holt said, "Or you fake the hit on the head,
toss Marsh through the window, and lose the Angel as a witness."
    “ And leave my righteous gun at the scene?"
    Holt and Guinness exchanged glances, Dawkins kept his
eyes on me.
    Holt said, "You don’t have a righteous gun
anymore, my friend."
    "Meaning?"
    "Meaning you didn’t report the loss of your
gun like you were supposed to, and the commissioner has pulled your
license to carry."
    “ Just like that."
    "The statute says he can do it ‘for cause’
and ‘at his will’."
    "I told you why I didn’t report it."
    "The statute also says ‘forthwith.' You lose
it or get it stolen, you’re supposed to report it ‘forthwith,'
not when you fucken get around to it."
    Guinness said, "That means we catch you with a
piece, you’re gone for a year, pal. No deal, no parole, no way
0ut."
    I said, "Your theory is I do those things with a
registered weapon instead of a throwaway, then leave the registered
piece on the floor somewhere?"
    Guinness said, "You got surprised, and—"
    "I had a date scheduled with Nancy Meagher last
night."
    Holt said, "The assistant D.A.?"
    "That’s right. Because of getting hit, I stood
her up. Tried to call her but never got through."
    "You try to call her, but you’re too punchy to
report the gun, is that it?"
    "That’s it."
    "So?"
    "So your theory is I plan to ace Marsh, and do
this Angel in the bargain, leave my traceable gun at the scene, then
don’t show up for a date with an assistant D.A. and don’t even
warn her."
    "You panicked. Didn’t think it through till
this morning? '
    I jerked my head toward the door and immediately
regretted it. Massaging behind my ear, I said, "And what about
the little show-up outside there?"
    "What show-up?"
    "The two pensioners on the bench. The ones you
brought in from the Barry. They live there or what?"
    No response.
    I said, "Either way, Lieutenant, they didn’t
make me, did they? You had a little talk after Guinness al waltzed me
past them, and neither one ever saw me before."
    Guinness picked at his teeth. Holt and Dawkins just
watched me.
    "C’mon, Lieutenant. Somebody set me up,
somebody who wanted Marsh dead."
    Dawkins said, "Or the Angel."
    Holt said to him, "The Angel?"
    Dawkins said, "Yeah.
Somebody wants the Angel dead, he just have to appreciate how Cuddy
here have it in for Marsh." Dawkins treated me to a sugary
smile. " ’Course, I’d still like to know where J.J.’s
stuff got to, and so will he."
    * *