Stone Barrington 06-11

hold of his wallet or his passport or something and figured out he wasn’t who he said he was?”
    “Yeah, or maybe he confided in her, and she threatened to turn him in.”
    “A little blackmail?”
    “Hookers have been know to indulge in that sport.”
    Stone glanced toward the front door in time to see Tiff enter. He waved her back to the table.
    “Hi, there,” he said, giving her a kiss on the cheek.
    “Hi, back. Hey, Dino.”
    “Good evening.”
    “Good to see you,” Stone said, trying and failing to remember if he’d invited her to Elaine’s.

    “I thought you might be here, and I didn’t have anything else to do tonight.”
    “So the AG is done with you?”
    “Not by a long shot, but he’s on his way back to D.C., thank God.” The waiter approached, and she ordered a drink.
    “What was the panic about?”
    “More enthusiasm than panic, but, of course, I can’t tell you.”
    “I’ll trade information with you,” Stone said.
    “What have you got to trade?”
    “Info about your friend Rodney Peeples.”
    “I thought you didn’t represent him.”
    “Technically, I didn’t; however I’ve come into some information about your Mr. Peeples that connects him to someone I do, or rather, did represent. At one time.”
    “And who would that be?” The waiter returned with her drink, and she sipped it.
    “You remember my client, now former client, the large Texan with the glittery tuxedo and the Tiffany, at the Woodman and Weld party?”
    “How could I possibly forget?”
    “Turns out he’s not only my former client; he’s also Rodney Peeples.”
    Tiff nearly choked on her drink. “What are you talking about?”
    “I thought I was clear.”
    “Why didn’t you tell this to the Secret Service guys who called on you? Don’t you know it’s a felony to lie to a federal investigator?”
    “Because, when I spoke to them, I didn’t know that Billy Bob and Peeples were one and the same.”
    “And how did you find out? Did he tell you?”
    “I found out by doing a Google search for Peeples, an investigative technique available to any six-year-old with a computer, and one that I recommend to your Junior G-Men.”

    “And what did you find out about Peeples?”
    “That he is a used-car dealer in San Mateo, California, and a CPA in Enid, Oklahoma.”
    “And you’re sure that he’s my Rodney Peeples?”
    “No, just that he’s my Rodney Peeples. Both Web sites sport his photograph.”
    “Well, we didn’t know about either San Mateo or Enid. Did you get the two-dollar bill from Peeples/Billy Bob?”
    “I can’t say.”
    “I’ll take that as a yes.”
    “Having received information, it is your turn to impart it.”
    “Let’s just say that we have evidence of other activities of Mr. Peeples, but not the two you mention.”
    “Exchanging information with you is an unrewarding experience,” Stone said.
    “If I told you, I’d have to lock you up, so you couldn’t tell anybody else.”
    “You’d do that?”
    “Not if I could help it, but the AG would do it in the blink of an eye, if he thought you knew about it.”
    “You intrigue me.”
    “That’s the nicest thing anybody has said to me all day,” she said, batting her eyes furiously. “My office is buying dinner,” she said, reaching for a menu, “in return for the information.”
    “Oh, no, you don’t. I’m not becoming a confidential informant for the feds, and don’t you dare write my name down anywhere.”
    “I’ll have to tell some people where I got the information about Peeples.”
    “Tell them you got it from Google, which is the truth, sort of.”
    “Okay. If you insist on buying, let’s split the porterhouse.”
    “Gold digger.”

16
    STONE WAS WAKENED from a sound sleep by the ringing of his bedside telephone. He answered it as quickly as possible, to avoid waking Tiff, who slumbered beside him, her hand on his belly.
    “Hello?” he half whispered.
    “Hey, Stone.” The line was staticky and faint.
    Stone felt a wave of irritation. “Billy Bob.”
    “You left me a message to call.”
    “Not at…” he looked at the bedside clock “ . . . three-thirty in the morning.”
    “Sorry about that. It ain’t three-thirty here.”
    “Where are you?”
    “Maui.”
    “Hawaii?”
    “Got a little deal going out here. What did you want to talk to me about?”
    Stone checked the caller ID window on the phone. Unavailable. “It’s hard to remember in the middle of the night.”
    “Well, I might