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"Linnetta, quit doin’ that!" she sang out suddenly, though there didn’t seem to be anyone else in the roo sound of a kid ju up and down on a bed had just ceased She shifted the baby, setting hi at her jeans, the pacifier wriggling around in hissound

"What’d you want?" she said "The police have been here twice and I already told ’ e I know"

"I’ll try to be brief It ed The stress of Tap’s death had made her face break out, her chin splotched and fiery pink

"Did you knohat Tap was getting involved in yesterday?"

"I knew he had souy who finally paid up" "A bet?"

"Might not have been true," she said, somewhat defensively, "but God knoe needed it and I wasn’t about to ask after it too close" "Did you see him leave the house?" "Not really I’d coht to bed as soon as hiirls off and then took Mac to the sitters He must have drove into San Luis Obispo after that I mean, he had to, since that’s where he ended up"

"But he never said anything about the breakout or who put him up to it?"

"I wouldn’t have stood for it if I’d known"

"Do you kno much he was paid?"

Her eyes becaan to pick idly at her chin "Nuh-unh"

"No one’s going to take it back I just wondered how much it was"

"Two thousand," she uile, married to a man with no sense Two thousand dollars to risk his life?

"Are you aware that the shotgun shells were loaded with rock salt?"

Again, she gave et hurt"

"Except hiht dawned in that faraorld of the 98 IQ "Oh"