Jacob Lomax 05 Grave Doubt by Michael Allegretto

Author:Michael Allegretto [Allegretto, Michael]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Mystery & Detective, Private Investigators, Hard-Boiled, Thrillers, Suspense
ISBN: 9781480462786
Google: zFNRAgAAQBAJ
Amazon: 1531808921
Publisher: Open Road Media
Published: 2013-12-30T21:00:00+00:00

18

I GUESS I SHOULD’VE felt lucky to be alive.

But I doubted luck had anything to do with it. If Hal was right, Manny was a professional hit man, a stone-cold killer. He could have snuffed me in my apartment, no problem. And if that had been his intention, he wouldn’t have been deterred by the intrusion of old Mrs. Finch.

So he wanted me alive. Probably hoping I’d lead him to Blyleven.

Which meant he was nearby, watching me.

Maybe I should lead him in a circle, get behind him, and deal with him the way I’d dealt with Jack. Then I could ask him all the tough questions. Why does the Mafia want Blyleven dead? Who blew up the plane four years ago? Did it involve World Flock and Franklin Reed?

There were a few problems with talking to Manny, though. First of all, it would be difficult if not impossible to ambush him. He was too crafty a predator to let himself be easily trapped. Second, even if I somehow managed to knock him down and tie him up, I doubted that he’d be as cooperative as Jack. He’d spit in my eye. And third, it was quite likely he didn’t know all the answers. He didn’t need to know them. He’d been hired to do a job. And when guys like Manny are told to kill somebody, they don’t ask, “Why do you want him dead? What did he do to deserve it?” No, they ask only one question: “Where is he?”

Manny was hoping I’d answer it for him.

But who could answer my questions?

I’d bet that Joseph Scolla could. Or course, even if I went to Tucson, it was doubtful that Joey the Jap would grant me an interview.

There was someone else, though, much closer to home.

I phoned the Church of the Nazarene and asked for Reverend Reed. I got as far as Matthew Styles.

“How may I help you, Mr. Lomax?”

“Grant me an audience with your boss.”

“I’m afraid Pastor Reed is tied up for the rest of the day.”

“Tell him it has to do with Joseph Scolla.”

He hesitated. “Who?”

He knew. “A friend of Reed’s in Tucson. Go ask him. I’ll hold.”

He hesitated again. “Just a moment.”

I listened to dead air for ten minutes before Styles came back on the line. “As it happens,” he said with forced nonchalance, “Pastor Reed has a break in his schedule at three this afternoon.”

“I’ll be there.”

“Not at the church. The reverend will meet you at his home.”

He gave me the address. Not exactly the poor side of town.

“Please don’t be late,” he said, and hung up.

So Reed and Styles knew Scolla. But why were they being so obvious about it? Styles could’ve simply hung up. Maybe Reed wanted to find out exactly how much I knew. The trouble was, I knew very little. I needed to pick up a few more facts before I met with him.

I dialed a number in Castle Rock. A young girl answered.

“May I speak to Earl?”

“Grandpa’s working in the garden. Hang on and I’ll go get him.

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