Raylan_ A Novel - Elmore Leonard [60]
“I’ve heard of ones have to get ripped before they go in,” Raylan said. “These girls look like they just cashed their paychecks.”
“What do they get paid in,” Hicks said, “yen? Have to bring store bags to carry it?”
“I guess what I mean,” Raylan said, “we don’t see that many women stickin up banks. I think it’s maybe five or six out of a hundred. Here you’ve got three at once. Which one you think’s Jackie?”
“The one wearing the baseball cap,” Hicks said, “down on her eyes. Some of the other tapes you’ll come to, you see her lookin up.” He stood to watch Raylan go through the prints.
Lloyd said, “Buzz, you recall we had two girls doin banks at the same time?”
“Not around here,” Hicks said.
“Was down toward the state line,” Lloyd said, “seven, eight years ago. They’d hit a bank in some dinky town off sixty-four and cross over to Louisville. A guy with the girls was teachin ’em how to rob banks.”
Hicks said, “How you remember that?”
“It stuck in my mind,” Lloyd said. “I remember a confidential informant fingered them, but they were released for lack of evidence.”
Raylan said, “You remember what happened to the snitch?”
Lloyd was squinting, trying to recall before nodding his head. “A guy blew off his right arm with a shotgun.”
Raylan said, “Delroy Lewis?”
“That’s the guy was questioned,” Lloyd said, “about the bank jobs.”
“You mind,” Hicks said, “if we settle on this job here?” and said to Raylan, “That one, where she’s lookin up. All of us but Lloyd said that’s Jackie Nevada or her twin.”
“It could be,” Raylan said. “I stopped by Butler and got a look at her picture. I can’t see the girl in the yearbook playing to a surveillance camera.”
“We like her motive,” Hicks said. “She needs dough.”
Raylan was shaking his head. “These two comin out, mugging right at the camera.”
“Doped up and thinks it’s a hoot. It’s your people in Lexington,” Hicks said, “sent us all the bank photos. They picked out Jackie and asked for our confirmation.”
“The three almost look alike,” Raylan said. “Young, the same size. Three girls having fun.”
Hicks said, “Robbin banks.”
“Your fugitive,” Raylan said, “I can see why you want her to be Jackie. I hope you’re right and I’m dead wrong. But I can’t see three girls wanting to rob banks. I can see some guy putting ’em up to it. Gives the girl’s some toot and drops ’em off. I don’t know for sure, but we’ll find out, won’t we?”
“We respect your opinion,” Buzz Hicks said, “but hope you’re wrong this time. We been followin you since you called out that Zip in Miami, Tommy Bucks? You gave him twenty-four hours to get out of town. He drew on you and you put him down.”
“And got demoted to Harlan County, Kentucky.”
“But then shot it out with that transplant nurse.”
“You’re havin fun with me, aren’t you?”
“Well,” Hicks said, “you’re doin a job the way we like to see it done.”
All the way to Reno’s betting office, Raylan thought of the Jackie he saw in the yearbook photo and had copied. She could be a Miss Nevada but would rather play poker.
Raylan came to the barbershop, a few blocks from Lucas Oil Stadium. Went in and walked past three empty chairs to a door that had to be Reno’s office. He knocked twice and said, “Raylan Givens. I called you about twenty minutes ago . . . ?” The door buzzed open and he went in.
Raylan thought Reno looked Cuban, cell phones and a computer on his desk in lamplight, stacks of betting-sheet printouts and handwritten notes.
Lions and Niners 20 times reverse. Bears a nickel, New England ten.
Raylan said, “You have to speak the language to lay down a bet?”
“My regulars, yeah, they do. Guy calls, says he wants the Saints minus seven thirty times. What’s he betting?”
“Beats me,” Raylan said. “But what if the guy loses and says he never made the bet?”
“I got him taped. I got miles of it. I ask the guy, does he want to hear himself putting it down?”
“You say you gave Jackie backup money. She says you didn’t.”
“Come on—nobody coverin for her? She don’t have enough to pay a win, she calls me. The ones bet with her know she’s in the business; she