The Guilty - Jason Pinter [46]
Jack took another long sip. His cheeks were red; I could
even sense it under his beard. No doubt he'd had a nip or two
before I got to the bar, but I wondered if Jack's drinking
calendar had been more busy than usual.
"I have a few leads on the Paradis murders," I said.
Jack said, "I thought you asked me here on a date." I
scowled at him. "So what have you come up with, boy
wonder?"
The waitress came back with my beer. I felt relieved as she
popped the bottle cap in front of me. Somehow I wouldn't put
it past this place to refill empty bottles from the tap.
"It was confirmed that Athena Paradis and Joe Mauser
were killed by the same caliber bullet. And it's only a matter
of time before the cops release a statement confirming the
same bullet and weapon was used to kill Jeffrey Lourdes."
Jack mimicked jerking off, yawning while he did so.
Nobody ever said he wasn't a classy guy. "That's been run-138
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ning all morning, first or second lead in every major newspaper. It won't make Wallace bat an eye. What else you got,
Nancy Drew?"
"You're an asshole, you know?"
"I know. So spill it."
"The actual bullet used was a magnum .44-40. Very uncommon usage due to its high recoil and over-the-top
stopping power."
"That's true. Cops don't need to go around blowing
suspects in half," Jack said.
"Exactly. So it seemed odd to me that a murderer who obviously went to great lengths to take down Athena and Mayor
Perez, not to mention Jeffrey Lourdes, in such a public
manner would use such an unusual bullet to do the job."
"You're thinking..."
"The killer chose the caliber of the bullets on purpose."
"Keep talking."
I smiled, took a gulp of my beer. Jack was interested. His
shoulders were hunched forward. He hadn't touched his drink
in several minutes.
"Figure if he's using a rifle, he's also gotta be carrying
around something to transport it in," I said. "Suitcase, knapsack. And he's likely staying near transportation, a subway
stop or bus terminal."
"You're not the only one who's thought of that. Rather
than have cops sit in the subway and wait for guys in turbans
carrying ticking packages to walk by, the NYPD has started
searching bags over a certain length and width that are
brought into the subway. They're searching hotels within
walking distance of the stops, as well," Jack replied.
"That's a start, but we can't just follow the cops and report
The Guilty
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on Carruthers's statements. I want to go ahead and follow up
on the gun. Amanda was able to hook me up with one of her
old professors who's a hair away from certifiable. I gave her
a description of the bullet and rifle, and we think the killer is
using an 1873 Winchester. Like you said, the Winchester
1873 model is known as 'The Gun that Won the West.' It was
by far the most popular model of that era, was used by every
famous lawman and lawbreaker whose ass got sore from
horseback riding."
"This sounds awful thin," Jack said. My heart sank. "But
it also sounds awfully intriguing. And nobody's covered this
angle yet?"
"Not that I know of. But take that gun and the quote from
Billy the Kid, and I'd say this killer has a serious obsession
with the Old West. Somehow Athena Paradis, Mayor Perez
and Jeffrey Lourdes are connected in this guy's mind. The
other day you talked about Billy the Kid being some sort of
Robin Hood." I stopped, looked at Jack. "What if this guy
really thinks he was right in killing those people? You know
Wallace won't let me run with the story as is."
"Not with your primary source being a college history
professor, he won't. Even with the gun and ballistics it's too
tenuous."
"Were you able to get those papers?" I asked.
Jack reached into his briefcase, pulled out a leather folder.
From the folder he retrieved several pages of printouts.
"Every museum in the fifty that has a registered Winchester '73," he said.
"Oh man, this is beautiful. Thanks a ton."
"Don't sweat it."
"Can't imagine Wallace will green-light any expenses for
this, either."
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"Doubtful. That