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"Then you get yourself some pills, drink so the streets until dawn," Hutchins said "If you don’t, you’re going to crack up or flaht by one of our fine, upstanding young crackheads"
Chris relaxed a little "All right, partner"
"You don’t argue ive you that" He held out his hand "My partners call me Hutch"
She took his hand as it was offered, with respect "Chris"
"Are you a Christine, a Christina, or a Christa?"
Norman hadn’t even cared what her name was "None of the above"
They left the apart level To preserve Chris’s cover as a fine-arts dealer, Hutch played the part of her chauffeur, requiring her to sit in the back of the Mercedes the bureau had leased for her use
"This is a little ridiculous," Chris grumbled as Hutch opened the door for her "I’m not Miss Daisy"
"Oh, but you in Jawja now, Miz Renshaw," he said, rounding his shoulders, widening his eyes and exaggerating his drawl "All the nice rich white ladies ’round here got theyselves a colored driver"
"Colored" Chris sat back on the leather seat "Do people actually still use that word?"
He chuckled as he climbed in behind the wheel "If you think Atlanta’s bad, you should spend some time at the Central Mississippi office So stickers on their personal vehicles"
The don art gallery that the FBI had appropriated for the operation had been abandoned by its ohen he had absconded to Australia with a collection of priceless European art on loan from France as well as all of his investors’ reed to suppress news of his capture and extradition back to the states, which allowed the bureau the tiallery and set up Chris as its new curator/director
"This inforo and told you about this shiph a snarl of don traffic "How did he know that the Magician was the one who sled it into the US?"
"He’s a private collector," Chris said "The Magician contacted hihts When he found out that the art had been stolen fro World War Two, he had a crisis of conscience"
He eyed her in the rearview mirror "And you believed him?"
"Normally I wouldn’t," she adrandparents murdered in Auschwitz"
Hutch nodded "That’ll do it"
Heavy daallery, effectively concealing the hive of activity behind them Hutch parked in the side lot and ushered Chris inside the building Once out of sight, he reer’s office, which was being used as their coleman, the A/V technician, didn’t look up frouely toward a pair of microphones set up on the cluttered desk "We’ll be ready for you in five or so"
Another agent carrying a sot the keys for this?"
Hutch reached into his pocket, rued, and produced a pair of keys, which he tossed to the other agent "Bring it in here for a minute" He turned to Chris "You haven’t seen the book yet, have you?"
"No, but I’ood job on it" In the past Chris had handled a number of copied artworks produced by the bureau’s resource division, and all of theh to pass visual inspection