Nothing but Trouble_ A Kevin Kerney Novel - Michael Mcgarrity [13]
RASH OF ART THEFTS STYMIES POLICE
“Seems you’ve got a crime wave on your hands,” he said.
“Apparently,” Kerney replied as he gestured to the waitress, who approached, filled Johnny’s coffee cup, and offered Kerney a refill of his hot tea, which he refused. Johnny dumped cream and sugar into his cup and stirred it vigorously.
“So are you stymied?” Johnny asked.
“We’re investigating all creditable leads.”
Johnny laughed, put the newspaper aside, and laid a manila envelope on the table. “That means you’ve got nothing. Here’s your technical-advisor contract for the movie.”
Kerney didn’t touch it. Two days ago, Johnny had called from Denver to say he was coming to town to hand-deliver the contract and talk to him about some unspecified business.
Interested in what that business might be, Kerney had contacted the municipal court. Johnny was scheduled to appear before a judge on his DWI bust later in the morning. He wondered if Johnny would ask him once again to get him off the hook.
“You don’t have to sign it now,” Johnny said between sips of coffee. “Look it over, show it to your lawyer, and mail it back to me.”
Kerney said nothing and put the envelope aside. Through the café window tourists milled around the sidewalk, waiting to be called for the next available table. Across the street, a middle-aged man in baggy shorts and an oversized T-shirt videoed his wife and two bored-looking children as they walked along the Plaza.
Johnny put the cup down and gave Kerney a sideways look. “You’re not bailing out of the deal, are you?”
“No, but I’d like to meet the principal parties involved before I make a commitment.”
Johnny made a thumbs-up gesture. “Hey, great minds think alike. We want you to come to the Bootheel for a couple of days in September before we start production.”
Kerney was surprised: he’d expected Johnny to ask him to help get his DWI arrest dropped. “That might be possible,” he said. “What would I be doing there?”
“We’ll take a tour of all the locations before the actual filming begins. It’s called a tech scout. The producer, director, cinematographer, and key members of the technical crew visit each site and do advance planning on what they’ll need to shoot a scene.”
“I thought you were the producer,” Kerney said.
Johnny tapped his chest with a finger. “I’m an executive producer. That means, aside from coming up with the story idea, writing some stuff for the rodeo scenes, scouting out the Bootheel locations, getting my clients cast in the movie, and arranging for some product placement, I don’t have much to do with the actual filming.”
“And this tech scout thing would be done in two days?”
“Your part of it would.”
“You do know that the town of Playas is now an antiterrorism facility,” Kerney said.
“Yeah, but the governor arranged for us to use it.”
“What days would you need me?”
“It can be on a weekend.” Johnny pointed to the manila envelope next to Kerney’s elbow. “I’ve added the tech-scout trip to your contract, along with a nice bump in your fee.”
Kerney shook his head in amusement. “Even as a kid you always assumed that you’d get whatever you wanted.”
“That’s because I practice the power of positive thinking, Kerney. What are you doing later this morning?”
“Why do you ask?”
Johnny smiled and shrugged his shoulders. “I’ve got this DWI thing nipping at my heels and I could sure use a character witness.”
Many ordinary citizens weren’t shy about asking for special treatment from cops when they got in trouble with the law. But in this case Kerney wondered if Johnny had added money to the consulting contract as a way to buy