Free Gray Night by Gregory Colt

some styrofoam contraption. He slid it back over to me and put down a big styrofoam cup full of sweet tea as well, with lid and straw.
     Brandon said his goodbyes. “What do I owe you?” I asked.
     “Find the girl,” he said. “And next time you order the most expensive dinner I have.”
     I bowed gratefully. “Thanks, Jabari,” I said, grabbing everything and heading out of the big garage. Well, that had turned out easier than I thought it would.
     “Brandon!” I called out to him. He turned around and waited.
     “Yeah?” he asked.
     I caught up with him. “Hi, Brandon. I’d like to ask you about Ruby Jordan.”
     A gust of wind blew my jacket back and Brandon’s eyes went wide. He dropped his gaze to my chest and stared at my gun. Crap, he was going to run. I took a step closer.
     “Brandon,” I started as I took a second step. He leapt forward and slapped his hands beneath mine, sending styrofoam, tea, and ambrosia everywhere, then tore off down the sidewalk. Son of a bitch!

Chapter Seven
     Brandon is fast. I know because I’m fast and I hadn’t caught him. He knew these streets. I didn’t. If I didn’t catch him soon I’d lose him. I considered my options. He was racing south. Fifty-fifty chance picking one direction to cut him off. I could outlast him maybe. Exhaust him and wait it out. I sure as hell wasn’t going to run him down like this.
     Sometimes it’s a blessing having choices taken away. Another block or two and I’d have lost him, but Brandon turned a corner and ran into a salvage yard. I was in time to see him slip inside an old building near the back of the lot I followed him into. I had him. But why would he let himself be cornered after a few blocks?
     No, that wasn’t right. Not a few blocks. Two. South. Like the garage he worked at.
     “Ah, hell,” I whispered. I have a tendency to wax eloquent during times of distress. And distress was on my mind when the garage doors opened and three guys stepped out with Brandon. On second thought not such a blessing. I’ll keep my choices thank you very much.
     Two of the three guys jogged wide around the heaps of scrap metal. By the time Brandon and the third guy were close, two other sets of shoes crunched on the gravel behind me.
     Brandon, who looked tougher now, pointed at me. “This is him. This is the guy. Came after me with a gun and everything asking about Ruby. Well, now I got questions for you!”
     “Brandon, I’ll answer all your questions—” I started.
     “Damn right you’ll answer my questions!” he said.
     “Brandon! Listen to me! Thomas said—”
     “Thomas! Man, how do you know Thomas? Where is he? What have you done?”
     There is a split second when you know what’s about to happen but you can’t do anything to avoid it. Well, I could. Saved my life half a hundred times. It was like my own personal Spidey sense. I knew what he would do. How he would move. What I didn’t count on was one of the guys behind me leaping forward in silence and hooking my arms back.
     I made eye contact with each and every one of them in front of me and gave a polite nod. “Gentlemen.”
     
    * * * *
     
     “ Oww! ” I jerked my hand back. Stupid paper cut adding injury to insult. No clues, no new direction, no nothing, and all I had to show for it was a bloody thumb. One of many reasons I preferred fieldwork. I grabbed a napkin left over from the sandwich Abner brought me for lunch and wrapped it tight.
     I’d made my calls. No one had seen or heard anything. Not the contacts I’d made through the museum, or in college, or my travels, or the local fences. Even from my own team I was only able to get ahold of Sam. He would ask around and meet me tomorrow in his office at New York University, but in the meantime...
     With nothing to do but wait, images from this morning filled my mind and my eyes glistened. I stood and paced around the room to get a hold of myself, which made it worse because when I