The Third Rail Read Online Free PDF

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, people. It's still a bit early in the game to be drawing too many conclusions. Agent Lawson, anything else?"
    Lawson took the hint and shrugged. "I think we're good for now."
    Rudolph stood up and extended his hand. "Mr. Kelly, thanks for helping out. If you could give us a few moments?"
    And then I was gone, out of the inner circle, armed with a new appreciation for why people consider a life of crime to be such a lucrative career choice.

CHAPTER 10

    T he feds stuck me in another small room, this time with a pot of cold coffee and a door that was locked. Every ten minutes, a sallow-faced woman would check to see if I had accomplished anything worthwhile--like, perhaps, hanging myself. No such luck. After two more hours of nothing, Rodriguez walked in.
    "Let's go," he said.
    "So soon?"
    The detective grimaced and handed me my coat. We didn't say much more until we had cleared the building and were safely in his car.
    "They're not happy."
    "I wouldn't think so," I said.
    "They can't get a handle on any pattern to the shootings. And they definitely don't like the fact that he called you."
    "And then there's all those dead people."
    Rodriguez ignored me. "They're thinking of giving you a new cell phone, one with your old number. If this guy calls again, they'd be able to trace it. By the way, Rudolph's worried you might go to the press."
    "Rudolph's a fucking moron. Not as much of a moron as that profiler, but he's still awfully dumb."
    "Yeah, well, the good news is Lawson thought you'd keep your mouth shut, and that seemed to carry a lot of weight. Still, it's the Bureau. They don't trust anyone. Especially, anyone inside."
    "Who said I was inside?"
    "You're not. So that's another point in your favor. At least, it was."
    "What does that mean?"
    Rodriguez sighed and spun the wheel. His car scraped onto Halsted Street and accelerated. "Rudolph decided the Bureau doesn't want to be on the hook alone in case they don't catch this guy."
    "Let me guess, a task force?"
    "Just got off the phone with the mayor and my boss. Local, state, and federal. Lawson is running point."
    "Bet the mayor loved that."
    "I'm the scapegoat for the city."
    "Even better."
    "Fuck you, Kelly. At the end of the call, Lawson pipes in that she might want you attached to the investigation."
    "As what?"
    Rodriguez pulled his car to the curb in front of a fire hydrant at the corner of Halsted and Adams.
    "That's what the mayor wanted to know. Come on, let's go."
    Rodriguez popped out of the car and walked across the street. We were in the heart of Greektown, home away from home for out-of-town businessmen looking for a shot of ouzo, a leg of lamb, or a wayward belly dancer.
    We ducked our heads inside a restaurant called Santorini.The bar was warm and filled with dark men in starched white shirts with nothing to do. Rodriguez flipped open his badge. The bartender smiled and nodded toward a set of stairs. Rodriguez turned to me.
    "He's at a table upstairs, Kelly."
    "Who?"
    "Who do you think? And don't be an asshole."
    I WALKED UP two flights alone and surfaced in a dining room that was as large as it was empty. A burst of sizzle and flame flared to my left. Two small Greek men danced around a table, clapping their hands and crying "Oopah" while a third worked on containing the small inferno he'd created. In the midst of it all, Mayor John J. Wilson sat and scowled. The dish was called saganaki, essentially a piece of cheese doused in booze and set on fire. Wilson had a forkful halfway to his mouth as I approached. The mayor waved me to an empty chair.
    "You like this shit, Kelly?"
    I shrugged. "It's fried cheese. What's not to like?"
    "Give him a piece," Wilson said. The waiter smiled and set another hunk of cheese on fire. After I had my portion, Wilson gave the boys a look, and they disappeared downstairs. We were alone. Just me, the mayor, and our saganaki.
    "Feds busting your balls, Kelly?"
    "A little bit, yeah."
    The mayor