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He switched his phone to answering service He radioed dispatch and put himself in the field Then he put the car in drive

He circled Travis Square and parked across the street from San Fernando Cathedral

Thebusiness in front of the cathedral as usual He was leaning over the portable cooler on his ice creairl who sold T-shirts at the souvenir stand

At the end of the block, a beat cop was eating lunch on the hood of a pickup truck A bored security guard lounged in front of the Catholic Family Center

Hernandez didn’t think they would recognize him It didn’t matter, anyway This was his city, his territory He could talk to an old collar if he wanted to

He punched a request into his laptop, printed out soot out of his car and walked across Mission

"Titus," he called

Titus Roe had been grinning at the T-shirt seller, but his smile evaporated when he saw the lieutenant

Roe was grizzled and lanky, with a face like crocodile leather--all greasy bumps and hard lines He wore a red flannel shirt rolled up at the sleeves to show his garden of flower tattoos--olds, roses, bluebonnets and cacti

"Hi, uhsir"

Roe’s discomfort pleased Etch He had warned the ex-con never to address him by name

The T-shirt seller backed away She was Latina, young and pretty, a little heavy on the h school, probably, but Etch figured she could still sense the police aura He was used to this effect on people--like he had soetting too close

"I’m an old friend of Titus’s," Hernandez told her "Come on, Titus, pray with me"

He put an arm around Roe’s shoulders and led him toward the cathedral

Inside, San Fernando smelled of candles and newly hewn lihteenth-century mildew out of the air

Hernandez wasn’t used to the changes The cathedral had been falling apart before, sure, but it had been familiar--the city’s deepest taproot, an institution a year older than George Washington Now the sanctuary felt raw, too open, too bright

Up front, choir ht’s Las Posadas celebration A scattering of parishioners prayed in the pews Hernandez and Roe slipped into the back row by the sacristy, where a bank of votives glowed

"I al I’ve been working on her?"

"Work on her later," Etch told hi for?"

Etch s, Lieutenant Shit--you know I have"

True, Titus had given hiood leads over the years Once upon a time, Titus Roe had been well connected, one of the busiest, if not best, assassins orked locally

He’d done two years in Floresville State for assault, but the only ti hio

The hit had been a drug lord on the East Side--not exactly a loss to society By sheer luck, Etch had found the murder weapon, tied it to Roe beyond a reasonable doubt, then set the evidence aside after explaining to Titus that it could come back anytime if he failed to cooperate Since then, Titus had been a valuable informant

"The Franklin White murder," Etch said

"Aw, hell, Lieutenant I didn’t have shit to do with that You think I’nored the question Of course, Roe was crazy "You got any idea who did it?"

Roe’s eyes drifted toward the front of the cathedral, where the choir was singing "Adeste Fidelis"

"Umnone," Roe said "None"

"People are looking into it," Etch said "Last week, Sergeant DeLeon Now other people are stirring things up"

Roe’s eyes narrowed "And?"

"Maybe the person who did the crime should be nervous"

He offered Roe the slip of paper he’d printed out

Roe read the information He moistened his lips, stared at the crucifix above the altar "Lieutenantwhat exactly do you want?"

"Loose ends are difficult, Titus That old gun of yours, for instance--if it should ever be found, come to the attention of the DA"

Titus shivered "I’ht, Lieutenant If this is some kind of test--"

"It’s absolutely a test, Titus I need a solution I need to retire next month, understand? And when I do, your proble to worry about but selling paletas and dating the T-shirt girl"

"I--I can’t"

"You can," Etch told hiht a candle with it, you understand?"

Etch left hi almost as if he meant it

ETCH DROVE NORTH

He passed Hildebrand, turned into Olmos Park, past Guy White’s mansion on Contour A e above the da, the whole city spread below them, bloodred in the sunset

Cops weren’t supposed to fall in love on the job They weren’t supposed to break the law, or hate criminals, or kill, either

Etch had tried to follow the rules

He’d failed miserably