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"It’s been a long tientlemen" Mr White turned

He had once been a handso ti sick At forty, he’d looked twenty-five At sixty-then I’d last seen him, he could’ve passed for fifty A local curandero once assured me Señor White had made a pact with the devil for eternal youth

Now, as he was approaching seventy, it looked like the devil had decided to collect

His gaze was as fierce as I remembered, but the skin under his eyes was translucent His lips were colorless He reht inside

"Ly the question I didn’t dare ask "I don’t make many public appearances these days Not to worry, however My doctors are quite optilittered as if this were deeply huhten me What do you claim to know about my son’s murder?"

"Sir," Madeleine protested

White held up his hand

He gave ht’ve beenwith reptiles "You e of A dyingover a dead, worthless son"

"Sir, I never--"

"You’d never say so to reed "You don’t need to"

Alex cleared his throat "I tried to tell her, Mr W I thought you should make the call"

"Your sensitivity to my wishes is appreciated, Alex Cole"

"Sir," Madeleine said, now gritting her teeth, "the last private investigator--"

"Yes, ator tookBut you paid hily, did you not?"

White offered me another cold s at the bottom of

"I understand from the news you are both wanted men," White told us casually "Shot your wife, did you, Mr Arguello?"

"No, patrón," Ralph replied "I didn’t"

Mr White gave him a sympathetic look "You put me in an aard situation I have ht I must keep up appearances, you know Show my, ah, business associates I’m still alive On top of this, I have the Secret Service hovering outside my house"

"Secret Service?" I asked

Ralph looked at entlemen," White said, his voice a little frostier, "is that I have enough to worry about Why should I not, as a law-abiding citizen, turn you in to the police?"

"We were friends of Frankie’s," Ralph said "You know that"

White studied us What Ralph said was technically true Init, but I tried to look, wellfriendly

"My wife," Ralph said, "Ana DeLeon--"

"The homicide detective," White said

"--she was reopening Frankie’s ed the cuff of his Turkish bathrobe "I knew nothing of this"

"Ana had a fresh lead She was getting ready to make an arrest when somebody shot her"

"The police say you shot her"

"’Course they do" Ralph’s voice was raw "The police hateyour son’s uts, too But Ana was my wife I’d never shoot her The person who shot her was the suspect Frankie’s killer"

Ralph’s gaze was so steady even I was iather the pale winter light coh the"What do you propose?"

"Sir, no," Madeleine protested

"I need to find this guy to clear myself," Ralph told Guy White "You want to find hioal"

Madeleine exhaled "Sir, they have nothing to offer you We’ve triedyou’ve tried for eighteen years If there was a way--"

"All we need is some discreet help," I put in "Wheels Clothes Firepower Your leverage to open a few doors What have you got to lose?"

White pondered this His face glea with us He looked i like the man I remembered "Mr Navarre, do you truly believe you can find my son’s killer?"

"I believe I have no choice"

White’s eyes betrayed nothing "I’ve been keeping tabs on you You’re good Probably better than you realize I’ve heard you can find anyone"

"This is bullshit," Madeleine spat

I wondered how Madeleine had kept her job and her life this long, with an attitude like hers Froured he ondering the sa

"My resources are at your disposal," White decided

"Sir!"

"However," White said, ignoring her, "one of my people will be with you at all times"