The Big Enchilada

governor’s mansion to Washington. He could have it. He wouldn’t get my vote, but nobody else would either.
    I drove across to Medco. For a change, there was hardly any traffic and I made good time. If everything went as well there as it did at the club, friend Domingo would have a nice surprise in the morning.
    I hadn’t told Burroughs about Mountain. I wasn’t sure why I didn’t warn him, but I thought it might tip him to Domingo, and I wanted the man to myself. If Burroughs had run into Mountain, he would really be pissed at me, so I had to hope that the giant hadn’t shown up.
    Medco was dark and quiet. I saw the unmarked cars parked at the back of the building, and there were no ambulances around, so I figured Mountain hadn’t been there.
    I went to the side door off the alley. It was being guarded by a cop who recognized me. He said that everything had gone well. I went in and found Burroughs in the lab. The chemists were across the room, cuffed, guarded, and not looking terribly pleased with developments.
    Burroughs seemed pretty happy, or as happy as that sour son of a bitch ever got.
    “Good tip, Hunter,” he said reluctantly.
    “These the only ones you found here?” I said, gesturing at the three prisoners.
    “Yeah.”
    “You couldn’t have overlooked a guy about seven feet tall? Weighs five hundred pounds and looks like he escaped from a Japanese monster flick?”
    “Who’s that? You didn’t tell me anything about that. What’re you trying to pull?”
    “Take it easy. He wasn’t here. And you could have handled him anyway. He’s not nearly as tough as he looks. Cut off his arms and his legs and he’s nearly defenseless.”
    “Hunter!” he growled at me.
    I had mixed feelings about Mountain. If the cops had got him, I would have felt more comfortable. On the other hand, he owed me a lot, and I wanted to collect so badly it made my fingers ache.
    “How’d it go?” I said.
    “Perfect. We caught them making the junk. Quite a setup they had here. There’s no question this is the source of all the shit that’s been floating around. Christ, they must have processed twenty kilos a week. In a little while there are going to be some mighty unhappy people on the street. Looks like a long, dry summer ahead.”
    “Have you gone through the company records yet to see how all that extra money was accounted for?”
    “Not yet, but we have lots of time. There’s only one thing I want to know.”
    “What’s that?”
    “Where Acker is.”
    “Why?!’
    “He’s not at home. I called.”
    “You called?” I said. Shit.
    “Don’t worry. I just asked if he was there. Some woman answered. Said she didn’t know where he was and she didn’t care. She sounded like she meant it.”
    “She did. That was his wife.”
    “Oh. I just hope the bastard hasn’t skipped.”
    “Why should he?”
    “How the hell should I know? I just want that scumbag.” He looked at me curiously. “You wouldn’t by any chance know where he is, would you?”
    “I might have an idea.”
    “Well?”
    “I’ll check it out and let you know.”
    “Hunter!”
    “Stay calm, Burroughs. I haven’t let you down yet.” If I could manage it, I wanted to see Acker before the cops got him. There were still some loose ends, and I thought I might tie them up easier than the cops. I was also thinking about
    Clarissa Acker. If I was going to pull her out, I had to get going.
    “All right, Hunter. But remember, you still got a rope attached to you. If you fuck up, it’s your ass.”
    “Your confidence in me is really encouraging,” I said as I left the lab.
    Christ, I gave Burroughs the biggest score of his life, and he still treated me like I was the enemy. Fuck it. He was right. I was the enemy. I just happened to be on his side for this one.

TWENTY-EIGHT

    I figured that there was a good chance that Acker had gone to his private apartment, a rodent returning to his hole. I drove into West L.A. and parked in front of the ten-story building that had about as much architectural interest as a freeway off ramp.
    I went into the underground garage, spotted Acker’s car, and took the elevator up to the sixth floor. Using the key that had gotten me into the apartment once before, I silently opened the door and went inside.
    There were no lights on, and at first I thought that Acker must be asleep. As I became accustomed to the darkness, I noticed there was an odd glow coming from the living room, and I heard a strange