Page 10 (2/2)

"Yes, dear I’ll dress down for the job later"

I looked around, hearing an onco a bleached-blond- capris, heading into the restaurant She was layered in brass jewelry--on neck, wrists, and ankle

Hardly a Fed

Unless … she was a CI, a confidential inforster’s wife in the witness protection prograent on that detail

Me too, would-be lasses were not following her tail, but ai cows don’t do h I find a mare and foal pretty to watch

In a bit, my eyes spotted and followed a tall, leanin a faded denih the wooden fencing to amble his Justin boots across the road to the restaurant asphalt

When he got to our table, Ric stood in his pale Vegas suit and held out a dark hand glinting with bleached golden hairs "Good to see you again, a the straboy hat that made mine look like a kid’s a?"

"Wichita girl, born and fled," Ric said "Delilah Street"

I stood to shake hands, that not being necessary socially, since I’

"Leonard Tallgrass," Ric introduced hirass’s sunburned skin was darker than Ric’s The black eyes in a seamed face with broad cheekbones told me Ric’s ex-FBI buddy was pretty pure Native American– born

Exactly what tribe would be hard to guess The Cheyenne and Kiowa fought the Long Knives here, and almost every tribe in North America had been moved to Kansas after the Indian Wars before most of them were finally moved to Oklahoma That left contemporary Kansas with a trio of tiny reservations of Kickapoos and such in the state’s northeast corner Most of its Native Aht, and beyond

"Mr Tallgrass," I said

"Miss Street You look even better in person That was a real interesting TV piece you did on the mutilated cows a couple months back, but there was no follow-up"

"I left the station rather unexpectedly"

He nodded, giving rass had been living up to that cowboys-and-Indians cliché with a tongue in his sea tiive it a larass said "Reported it was found to be teenage mischief You must have known him, the paleface with the lipstick"

I sed a smirk "Undead Ted is an up-to-date round for their bleached canine fangs on TV"

"Speaking of canines--" Tallgrass turned to squint at Dolly "That your ride?"

"Yes, sir"

"That your dog in it?"

Quicksilver heard, of course, and sat up in the backseat to establish his presence, front paws braced on the openri seriously protective

"Yes, sir," I said

"What’s this dead-dowsing young a, Miss Street; he is Brother Wolf, and awith you?"

"He guards Dolly and Ric guards uard both of therass"

"Then we’ll all go to my place" He turned away, then turned back "Miss Dolly is the Cadillac?"

I nodded

"She is prime Follow me"

LEONARD TALLGRASS’S RIDE was a new but mud-crusted hybrid black Ford 350 pickup, and his "place" was an apart fountain in the courtyard Inside, an art gallery of weapons ancient, new, and unknown to me decked the walls So much for "prairie squint"

"I like that necklace," he said ere seated in his dining alcove digesting his walnut and blue cheese chicken salad with lein olive oil "It’s not an authentic native design, though"

"It’s not an authentic necklace"

He slouched onto his blue-jeaned tailbone "Mi a lady I’ve already made contact with a series of your social workers"

My sass went south

"Those folks mean well," he added, "but your job clearly was to survive them, and you did They’re still here in Wichita, and you’re not You have a much better ride than any of them, and a better class of company"

"I assume my ‘classy company’ includes you I don’t remember any social workers"

He nodded "They were pretty forgettable An ungrateful job Alrateful as ours sometimes was, eh, Ricardo?"

Ric nodded

Tallgrass took a new tack "That cow mutilation story of yours, Miss Street, was an important one"

"Call ned to run it"

"Don’t call rass will do Was it the usual stupidity? Or a cover-up?"

"I didn’t stick around long enough to find out"

Tallgrass eyed Ric "We should check out the site You a movie star now?" He directed his forlasses

There was a long, long pause I knew enough not to say a word Quicksilver stood defensively, which y eyebrow

Ric finally doffed his sunglasses He hated wearing the brown contact lens and obviously hadn’t anticipated an indoorSo his silver eye winked like a built-in rass observed, mulled, and finally nodded "You’ve beco man I think Miss Street--Delilah--should liberate that filot on the messed-up cows fro of reasons why that was unnecessary, hurass went on, "o takes h nose job on it"

I objected "Quicksilver isn’t a drug-or bo"

"I told you the , but he’s a lot of so else"

At that point, Quicksilver went to Leonard’s chair and sat, after glancing his agreement at me

My necklace shrunk into a plain, career-woman circlet at the base of my throat that wouldn’t protect

It was The Three Aainst my self-respect

Guess on?

I programmed the cow pasture directions into Ric’s GPS and revved up Dolly for our return to Wichita At least she wouldn’t be getting her undercarriage dusty on unpaved country roads