His face went sullen and his breathing grew loud. He had more of the Hamm’s. He had more of the Hamm’s again. My neck was hurting so bad I thought it would go into spasm.
He said, Have you heard of two bank hitters named Marchenko and Parsons? Holman watched her stiffen and knew she was finally interested. Now she wasn’t just being nice or killing time until she could...
He made a sympathetic shrug, then spread his hands. Flexibility, my friend. Flexibility is the key to all happiness. Remember that.
Green looked at it without touching it and shook his head. This means nothing. For all anyone knows you wrote it yourself. It isn’t admissible. Not in a court of law, Jonathan. But we’re going to try...
Grebner shuffled warily to his feet. Pike turned him around, tied off his hands, then pushed him back to the floor. Grebner squinted at Pike, trying to read him, but saw only the mirrored surface of P...
Flynn seemed to want a response, so Pike nodded. I respect your service, but I don’t give a rat’s ass about it. Half this police force was in the Marines and the other half is tired of hearing about i...
Elvis Cole LARKIN CONNER BARKLEY wouldn’t talk to him. Cole asked about the property owners and tenants near her loft, but he might as well have spoken in a foreign language. Her lips pulled into a pe...
Does the Great Colinski have a first name? Royal. Such a name, don’t you think? Royal Colinski from East L.A. The burner vibrated in my pocket, but I was learning too much to stop. Why
Darkness towered above Joe Pike like an ominous black cloud. He did not know when or where he was, or how he came to be trapped here with this awful thing. He only knew the giant shadow would smother...
Daniel loved these damned hurricanes. He folded back the shutters, then opened the window. Rain hit him good. It tasted of salt and smelled of dead fish and weeds. The cat-five wind clawed through New...
Cole got out of his car first. He scanned the surrounding roofs and windows like a Secret Service agent clearing the way for the president, then meandered around his car to the passenger side. He heft...
Chen tried to speak, but his mouth was too dry. He worked up some spit. You’re not—listen, Chris, you’re not going to tell—well, I mean, Harriet doesn’t need to— LaMolla, still considering him with he...
Chen didn’t get back to the lab until almost six, only to find Harriet haunting the gun room like the Ghost of Christmas Future. Pike was certain to be impatient with the delay and no doubt would be g...
Can you talk? Absolutely. What did you find out? I’m going to put you on speaker. Terry’s here. The sound qual ity went from crisp to hollow when she put him on speaker. Hey,
COLE STOPPED by his office that morning to pick up the calling logs before heading on to stay with the girl. His friend at the phone company had faxed twenty-six pages of outgoing and incoming phone n...
Bud handed them to Pike, and tapped the top picture. This man was one of the original home invaders. You shot him in Malibu. He’s the only one of the five you shot who was also one of the home invader...
Behind the parking lot was a larger, two-story corrugated-steel building. The front building blocked most of what lay behind it from view, but Pike could see that the grounds were crowded with stacked...
Because of the wind, the crows were pointing in one direction but traveling in another. I wondered if they knew it, and, knowing it, understood it, or if they were simply oblivious, carried along by a...
As Cole and Pike slipped out, Stone said, Want the M4? It’s ideal for urban assault. Cole frowned at Stone. You have an M4? Shit, yeah, man. Suppressed. Frangible bullets so you don’t kill a buncha pe...
Are you pleased to hear her living? Is this what you wanted? Pike hesitated. Keeping his voice level was more difficult this time. He nodded to let Cole and Barkley know she was alive.