At the coffee shop, she and Colin sat in a corner booth where they could watch for Margolis’s arrival.
When he finally walked through the door half an hour late, it took only a second for him to spot them. As he wove his way between tables, Maria noticed the way the fabric of his ill-fitting blazer tightened around his biceps. Like Colin, Margolis seemed to spend a lot of time in the gym.
He paused near the register to order a cup of coffee and then slid into the booth across from Maria and Colin. When he glanced at Colin, she thought she detected a trace less of his usual animosity.
Or then again, maybe she was just imagining it.
“Any problems with the Fifty-C this morning?”
“No,” Maria said. “And thank you for your help. It’s clear they were expecting me.”
He nodded. “Judge Carson will be in court today. I left word with his clerk, so there shouldn’t be any holdup. If you don’t hear from them, let me know.”
“Sure,” she said.
The waiter came by, dropping off the cup of coffee. Margolis waited until he left before speaking again.
“How did you hold up last night?” he asked Maria.
“I didn’t sleep well, if that’s what you’re asking. But at least Lester didn’t come back.”
He nodded. “I checked this morning and he wasn’t spotted on any of the patrols, either. But he’ll turn up. A guy like that tends to stand out and make people nervous, which means that calls come in. I’m confident someone will let us know when he shows up.”
“If he’s still in town,” she said. “For all we know, he could be back in Charlotte by now. Or God knows where else.”
“If he is, he’s not in the hospital. I checked this morning. No sign of him. You should also know that I had my friend drive past the Manning place this morning. No sign of him there, either in the garage apartment or the house.”
She nodded.
“On another note,” he went on, “I spoke with the sheriff’s department, and they’re okay with me serving Lester when we do find him. That’s actually good news. It’s not always that easy. But I’d hate for Lester to be located and then not get served because there are no sheriffs readily available and he disappears again before they can.”
“So that’s the plan?” Maria asked. “To wait until he shows himself?”
“I’m not sure there’s another option. I’m just trying to make the best out of a bad situation.”
“Is that why you wanted to meet with me this morning? To tell me you couldn’t find him?”
“No,” Margolis said. “A couple of interesting bits of information turned up and I wanted to get your take on them.”
“I thought you weren’t at liberty to talk about the investigation.”
“You’re right,” he said. “Which means I’ll have to limit some of what I tell you. Still, I wanted to talk to you because I need your help.”
“Why?”
“Because the more I look into this situation, the less it seems to add up. I’m hoping that you can help me put the pieces together.”
Welcome to my world, Maria thought.
Margolis went on. “Regarding the situation last night. I told you I was looking into possible weapons violations. But like everything else in this case, what seemed obvious isn’t. So let’s start with this: Lester does not have a gun permit. Nor has he legally purchased a weapon, which I thought was great news for you. However, it turns out that Avery Manning, the father, does have a permit for a handgun purchased about a year ago.”
“And?”
“The problem is that Lester and Avery, father and son, live at the same address. It’s not illegal to borrow someone’s gun if the weapon is properly permitted. So I can’t make a case on that, unless Avery Manning didn’t give permission. But there are even more complications.”
“Such as?”
“Avery Manning came to see me this morning.” He let those words hang before continuing. “That’s why I was late getting here, by the way. I figured it was better to meet with him before I talked to you. The story took yet another twist.”
“What?”