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"I aerty said stiffly

"Yeah, and I’ to be ready to talk his head off when you walk in, looking like a Hollywood G-man," Joulette said

"You think I don’t knowon the desk

"I think we all have squat so far," Joulette said, disgusted

Haggerty was stiff as a board He straightened again, then stared at Brent, eyes filled with suspicion

"And you--if you get anything, anything at all, if you stuer at Brent "I’d better hear it first thing And if you’re all so busy pounding the streets, what the hell are you doing in here?"

Joulette stood then, too "Working so to do with your jurisdiction," he said "Blackhawk, I’ll get you those files you want"

Haggerty was frowning "It wasthat Blackhaas here on specific business," he said, his tone a warning one

"Yeah?" Massey said "Well, it’s ht from my lieutenant’s lips to hest authority, and that I’erty leaned on Massey’s desk, inhaled slowly, then exhaled "Look, all of you I know I’ht ass, but we lost one of our own You’re cops--surely you can understand hoe feel about that"

"You know, Haggerty, we consider any law enforcement officer who’s lost as one of our own," Massey said "And we know our jobs If we get anything, anything at all, we’ll give it to you"

Haggerty straightened again "All right, just as long as you reed a very stiff "Thanks" Then, "Blackhawk, glad to meet you"

He turned to leave

"Well, looks as if he’s trying not to be a coerty was out of earshot

"Yeah, well," Joulette said, co back in time to hear Brent’s words, "he’s a little too late He thinks we’re both a pair of country buround"

"Maybe he was friends with the ent That’s hard to s Pain can make people behave badly," Brent said

"I don’t think they ever , trying to be diplo about the man… oh, well You can take the Ciello files to the conference room over there"

"Thanks," Brent said, and added no more He knew that he had been let into the inner circle not so un to accept him or even like him, but because they really hated the fed who’d been thrust upon theotten what he wanted

As he sat in the dingy conference rooet what he needed

"So," Patricia said, sipping a café au lait and staring hard at Nikki, "Nathan and I are doing the St Louis cemeteries tomorrow afternoon"

"Yes, just like you always do on a Friday afternoon," Nikki said, not understanding why her friend was staring at her They were all staring at her, come to think of it

"Okay, what is it?" she asked

Patricia looked at Nathan, who looked at Mitch, who in turn looked at Julian

"What?" Nikki demanded

"We… well, if Nathan and I take the ceet the Garden District"

"Right… so?" Nikki said

Patricia looked at her with tremendous empathy The two of therown up in the sarounds Patricia had gone away to school in Virginia and learned to speak without any accent whatsoever

When she wanted to, though, she could slip back into the Cajun patois She had co people who often had the whole group out to the bayou for some of the best meals ever