The Dead List Read Online Free PDF Page A

you. I’m going to let you go back to bed, but we will be talking again very soon. And if you’re having trouble sleeping, and remember anything else that might be relevant, then please call myself or Constable Drake at the police station immediately.” He handed his business card to the man at the door, making sure he took it before turning and walking back toward the police car.
    The door closed and the house was dark again by the time they were sitting in the vehicle. The sun was coming up, and the rain had tapered to a steady drizzle. Drake smiled as he started the engine. There was no financial investigation officer, and even if there was, they had no information on the dead man’s financial situation. Ryberg had played it beautifully.
    “How did you know?”
    “I’ve met them before – different street, different time. Nothing changes. Who’s Franco – a fence?”
    He’d never charged Franco, but he’d met him, and he’d become aware of his reputation shortly after arriving in town. “Yes, and he doesn’t hide it either. Owns a pawn shop, and he has money on the street – loggers who need a loan to pay off their wives after spending their paychecks, small-time stuff. No drug involvement that I’m aware of. He just likes making his money work for him, and doesn’t care how he does it. Are we going to shake him out of his bed?”
    “No, we’ll leave him for now. The two brothers who aren’t really brothers are probably calling him and making excuses – telling him that we already had his name. Let him try to get his story straight and sweat it out for a while. I’ll have Pringle pick him up later this morning. For now we have something more important to deal with.”
    Drake straightened in his seat and asked where they were going.
    “I’m starving. There used to be a restaurant in this town – semi-famous, they cooked the best breakfasts.”
    “I know it. I can take you there.”
    As Drake turned the car around and headed for the Home Restaurant, his stomach rumbled. His hunger was back. It felt like it had been days since he’d eaten.

Chapter Four
----
    Ryberg spoke on his phone while they ate breakfast and gave him little information in terms of how the investigation would proceed. He overheard him urging Sergeant Thiessen to encourage the local doctor who was doubling as their medical examiner to continue working through the early hours of the morning on the forensic examination no matter how tired he was. And he heard half of the conversations when he spoke to Myron and Pringle, giving the two of them updates and assigning further duties to each of them. He spoke in code words that had long been established among the group of investigators. It seemed to make their efforts more efficient, but for a listener like Drake, even though he was also a police officer, it made it difficult to determine what was actually being said. At one point, Ryberg covered the phone with his hand and wrote Franco’s name on a piece of paper. In hushed tones he asked Drake to step outside the restaurant, out of earshot of the other diners, and request that all information on the man also known as Frank Morrison, be ready at the station when Ryberg arrived.
    When Drake returned to the table, Ryberg looked up from his empty plate. He was swallowing pills from a small package and washing them down with a glass of water. He stared at the younger man for a moment. “The adrenaline has worn off; I can see it in your face – you’re tired. Can you feel it?”
    He knew what Ryberg was talking about, and he knew exactly where he’d been the last time he felt the buzz. It had been a long time since the fire had burned inside him.
    “No sir, I feel fine.”
    “What’s your first name, son?”
    “It’s John, sir.”
    “I understand you’re new, John. You joined the police force a little later than the rest of us.”
    Drake was silently thankful that Ryberg hadn’t called him a rookie.
    “I’ve been on the job