had.
Samantha was waiting for Eddy in front of his villa when he returned.
“Where have you been?” She noticed the troubled look on his face.
“I took the photograph into the police lab to have it analyzed for facial recognition.” He unlocked his door and opened it for her.
“What happened?” Samantha followed him in. “Did you get a match?”
“No match yet. I don't think.” He frowned and tossed his keys into a small ceramic bowl on the table and placed his hat on the coat rack. “I should hear soon.”
“Are you doing okay, Eddy?” Samantha asked. He had barely looked at her.
“Yes, I just wish that we were a little closer to finding the actual killer. I mean we have theories, but none of them really hold water yet. We need the missing pieces.”
“I know you're frustrated. So am I,” Samantha said. “I hate to admit it, but I'm not comfortable in my own home. I keep thinking about what will happen if the killer is spooked.”
“Samantha, you shouldn't have to worry about that. I will do my best to make sure that you don't have to.” Eddy looked as if he was about to say more, but the ring of his cell phone interrupted him.
Eddy picked up his cell phone on the first ring.
“What do you have for me?”
“I have the identity of the man in the picture you gave me,” Chris said. “He's a well-known loan shark.”
“A loan shark?” Eddy asked.
“Doesn't that sound right to you?” Chris sounded troubled. He was always eager to please Eddy.
“No, I'm sure it's right, it's just not what I expected. Did he have any involvement with drugs in the past?”
“No, nothing like that.”
“What about working as a hitman? Or even hired muscle?” Eddy suggested.
“No, his only arrests have been non-violent,” Chris insisted. “I don't even see any known associates that were involved in violent crime or drugs. He seems to be purely a financial predator.”
“Thanks for your help, Chris.”
“I'm sorry if I didn't get you the answers that you're looking for.”
“You did great, Chris. Thanks a lot.”
“What did he say?” Samantha asked eagerly as Eddy hung up his phone. He looked puzzled as he thought about what Chris had told him.
“It seems that our drug dealing hitman is neither. He's just a loan shark.” He shrugged.
“A loan shark?” Samantha pursed her lips for a moment as she replayed in her mind the encounter they had witnessed. “So, the money she gave him was likely to pay off a loan.”
“Well, we don't know that for sure. It's possible that he branched off into more violent activity recently. It's unlikely given his lack of violent history, but it's always possible.”
“I suppose. It just seems like we're going around in circles with this.” She sighed.
“There's really only one way to find out exactly what he was up to. We can go to him and ask him.” Eddy smiled.
“As if it's that simple?” Samantha laughed at the idea. “I don't think that he's going to talk that easily.”
“Maybe not, but we won't know unless we ask, will we? I can have Chris text me some of the places he frequents. I don't think that it will take us long to find him, as outlandish as his style is.” He chuckled at the memory of it.
“That's true. I suppose that it couldn't hurt to try. Shall we go together?”
“I was hoping you'd agree.” He picked his keys up out the bowl. “I'll drive.”
“All right.” Samantha nodded. As they walked towards the parking lot, Walt waved to them from the office. The three met in the middle of the courtyard.
“Where are you two off to?” Walt asked.
“We're going to pay a visit to a loan shark.” Eddy looked towards the office. “Were you in the office?”
“Yes, I was just giving Lily my rent check,” he said as he ushered the two of them away from the office. “I just saw Lily on one of those online poker sites,” he whispered.
“Really?” Eddy asked with wide eyes.
“Yep.” Walt nodded. “When she saw I was