Louisiana Bigshot

too.”
    “Huh?”
    “The computer stays with me. Give me a ride, why don’t you?” She figured that was about as likely as a sudden snow flurry, but what the hell—a police car was going to be a lot faster than hers.
    The two cops looked at each other, evidently trying to marshal arguments against it. The one who wasn’t Charvet shrugged again, unable to think of any. Finally, Charvet said, “Get in.”
    She ran for her computer, and in a moment they were speeding toward Eddie. “He’s almost at Michoud Boulevard. I sure hope you’ve got somebody close.”
    Charvet didn’t answer.
    Talba tried again. “Is anyone there yet? At the scene, I mean—with Eddie?”
    Charvet had evidently taken a vow of silence.
    Okay, fine. She didn’t need any new friends.
    The car on the screen was still moving. There were only two people in it—Eddie and his kidnapper. Surely, the guy wouldn’t shoot him in a moving car.
    She and Officer Charvet were slowing. Traffic was coming to a near stop. Then a full stop.
    They were stuck.
    Charvet got on the phone. She heard him say, “Traffic just stopped. What’s going on?”
    And then it started moving again, slowly at first.
    Charvet said, “What are you telling me?” And then, “Shit! Goddammit to hell!”
    Fingers of fear closed on Talba’s throat. She looked at the screen—Eddie’s car was still moving. So it wasn’t Eddie—he ought to be fine.
    “What is it?” she said, pretty sure she wasn’t going to get an answer.
    The big cop didn’t disappoint her.
    Enough of this,
she thought.
There’s no law they’ve got to act like apes. It’s probably discretionary.
    “Look, I haven’t done a damn thing to you today. Matter of fact, I’m doing my level best to help. Matter of further fact, I’m no helpless dip. If Eddie and I are right, that man your partner’s got is a professional assassin who’s killed at least four people that we know of, and he’s gotten away with it. He’s in the employ of some extremely important and powerful people in this state—he’s like an assassin to the stars. And guess what? I took him out with a Tee-ball bat. Little
moi.”
    The guy did a double-take in spite of himself. He said, “My
kid’s
got a Tee-ball bat.”
    “Yep. A kid’s toy. I used that and a well-placed kick—if you know what I mean.” She hoped she wasn’t overdoing it. She didn’t exactly feel like Superwoman, but she wasn’t lying.
    “Stow it, Pigtails. What about the gun?”
    “Borrowed.”
    “Who from?”
    “Another PI.” Talba avoided giving Mathison’s name, unsure whether or not she had a permit for it.
    Charvet let it pass, opting instead for his famous cop-statue imitation.
    She gave him a couple of minutes, then asked, “What’d you say was happening here?”
    “Traffic jam.” But the flow was getting back to normal.
    “Not that. The ‘shit goddammit to hell’ thing.”
    He pointed to the road up ahead. “They took out a police car.”
    “What?” Talba leaned so far forward, trying to see, trying to make sense of it that she almost knocked the computer to the floor. And it was coming into view—a police car, now on the side of the road, having just been pushed there. It must have been shot at—which might mean there were two men with Eddie now, one driving and one shooting. The first one could have stopped to pick the gunman up.
    Nervously, she glanced at the computer. The car was still traveling.
    Officer Charvet rolled up to the district car. “What happened?”
    The driver of this one was a black female. She said, “Shot out my radiator.”
I wonder,
Talba thought
if this one’s nice.
But remembering Sergeant Rouselle, she didn’t have much hope.
    A white male, also in uniform, was looking under the hood. “Who’re you?” the black cop said.
    “I’m a PI. Talba Wallis.” Talba offered to shake hands. “You know Skip Langdon?”
    To her amazement, the woman smiled. “Skip? We go way back. I’m Shaquita Radford.”
    Officer Charvet was infuriated. “Radford, goddammit, ya comin’ or not? Call ya partner.”
    Talba’s hands were sweaty. If they didn’t quit arguing and get there soon…
    Radford yelled, “Hey, John, get your butt over here.”
    Charvet said, “Get in the back, Pigtails.”
    Talba was all too uncomfortably aware that the back was a cage. “Why?”
    “ ’Cause we’re picking up two officers, that’s why.”
    “But—”
    “Look, ya want to go or not? Officers outrank civilians.”