CHAPTER 1
DECEMBER 27
Barmaid! Jane Perry yelled above the din of the smokelaced barroom. Two more whiskeys for me and two tequilas for my friend! Jane came to an unsteady halt in front of the waitress, her back to Carlos. You got that? Jane said, her eyes asking another question.
The waitress cautiously looked at Carlos before quickly locking back on to Janes iron gaze. Yeah. I got it. The waitress headed back to the bar.
Jane nervously lit her fifth cigarette of the hour and surveyed the sparse crowd mingling in the center of the bar. The dim lighting painted heavy pockets of darkness across the tables and chairs, making it difficult to discern faces. A dozen beer-splattered Christmas garlands hung carelessly against the nicotine-soaked walls. It was the bars inept attempt to define the holiday season, but the cheesy decor reminded Jane of topping a dead tree with a broken angel. The Red Tail Hawk Bar was located on East Colfax in Denver, Coloradoa location that supported seedy establishments and attracted drug deals, bloody brawls, and twenty-dollar hookers. The clock with the beer keg image read 4:45. Within thirty minutes, Jane knew the grimy hole would be packed with hardcore drinkers and enthusiastic partiers, all looking to find a warm refuge from Denvers December chill and to extend their stoned post-Christmas revelry. Her jaw tightened, a sign that the stress was taking its toll. The deal had to go down tonight, and it had to go down exactly as Jane planned it. Wearing a mask of bravado, she turned around. You said 4:30. Were fifteen minutes past that. Im not used to waiting!
Chill out, Tracy, Carlos replied in a lazy tone, his oily, black hair obscuring his pockmarked, swarthy visage. I told you Id hook you up. This is a busy time of year. Santa may have stopped sliding down chimneys two days ago, but Camern and Nico are still in business.
Jane drunkenly moved around the pool table. Shit, man, Im jonesin.
Have another shot, Carlos suggested, motioning over to the approaching barmaid and her tray of shot glasses.
Two tequilas, the barmaid said, setting the shot glasses in front of Carlos, and two whiskeys, she managed to stammer as she slid two shots in front of Jane and surreptitiously tilted her head toward two men who had just entered the bar.
Is that them? Jane asked Carlos, dismissing the waitress and angling her pool cue in the direction of the front door.
Carlos squinted against the poor lighting. See? I wasnt fuckin with you! Carlos raised his hand, catching the eye of Camern and Nico, who made their way through the syrupy darkness.
Jane felt her heart race as the two Columbians moved toward the pool table. They were as imposing as she expected. Both were in their late thirties, but their road-ravaged faces made them appear fifteen years older. They seemed to drag the darkness of the bar behind them as they loomed closer. Camern was the lead guy, but Nico was clearly an equal partner.
Hey, Carlos said, proud to be part of this nefarious deal. Hows it goin?
Its goin, Camern said, sizing up Jane.
This is Tracy, Carlos said. Shes real happy to see you guys!
Are you? Camern replied, his black eyes boring holes into Janes face.
You got the stuff? Jane asked, crushing her cigarette into a nearby ashtray.
You think Im stupid enough to bring a quarter kilo inside a fuckin bar? Camern quietly replied with a sharp timbre to his voice.
Where is it? Jane said, undaunted.
First things first, Camern announced. You check her out, Carlos?
Yeah, shes got the fifteen Gs.
No gun? Camern asked Carlos, never taking his eyes off Jane.
You think Im stupid enough to bring a gun inside a fuckin bar? Jane retorted, echoing Camerns prior statement. She noted a stream of patrons entering the bar and realized if she didnt move things along, the set-up was going to get complicated. I got your cash. Jane opened her leather jacket to reveal a fat envelope secured in an inside pocket. Wheres my coke?
You gotta love these trust-fund snow junkies! Nico said with a cocky grin.
Camern stared at Jane for what seemed like an eternity. Jane matched his steely glare, hoping he couldnt hear the deafening beat of her heart. Finally, Camern nodded. Take a shot to kill that edge and then well go out to the car, he suggested.
Jane grabbed one of her two shots and quickly knocked it back. Lets do it, she declared, taking a drunken step away from the pool table.
Camern eyed the remaining shot of whiskey, shrugged and drank it. Jane turned toward him as the last drops of liquid slid down his throat.
What the fuck Camern said, checking the aftertaste. He grabbed Jane by the arm. How do you get drunk on tea?
Jane started to react, but Camern moved too quickly. He jerked Janes body toward him, opened her leather jacket, and pressed his palm against her side. Shes wired! Shes a cop! Camern pulled out his nine-millimeter handgun and aimed it at Carlos. You dumb motherfucker!
Jane caught Camerns hand, moving it just enough off target for Carlos to escape the deafening gunshot. The shockwave sent the bar into a frenzy. Patrons ducked for cover as Jane skillfully punched the butt of her pool cue into Camerns groin, causing him to drop the gun. She kicked the pistol under the pool table with her boot as Nico drew his gun, aiming it squarely at Janes head. Jane rapidly swung the cue at Nicos forearm, deflecting the gun before it discharged. A split second later, Carlos leaped onto the pool table and took a forceful dive onto her body. The loosely hung fluorescent light fixture above the pool table crashed down as Jane hit the wooden floor with a hard thud. As the fluorescent tubing exploded around them, Carlos landed a brutal punch to Janes right cheek.
Fuckin bitch! Carlos screamed, nailing Jane with another savage smack.
Jane managed to roll onto her back and slam the side of the pool cue against Carloss forehead. The momentary dazing afforded her the opportunity to struggle to her knees, just as a burly male bar patron jumped into the mle. Chaos broke loose as the muscle-bound guy pounded Carloss head against the pool table until he passed out. Jane, slightly woozy from the two punishing blows that Carlos had delivered, ducked under the pool table and swept Nicos handgun under a nearby chair. But as she turned her body, the thick envelope of cash slid out of her jacket and onto the floor, spreading several hundred dollar bills under the pool table. Jane reached for the envelope, but Nico quickly snagged it and disappeared with Camern into the dark recesses of the bar.
Jane achingly emerged from underneath the pool table just as the beer keg clock came loose and smashed to the floor. A stream of blood spilled from Janes lip and she stood, disheveled, amidst the chaotic aftermath.
All eyes in the bar focused on her.
But one set of probing eyes was more intensely interested in her than the rest.
CHAPTER 2
We need everybody to please exit the bar now! A gray-suited, Denver Police official in his mid-thirties made the strident request. His cocksure swagger caught the attention of Jane, who sat on a stool with her back against the bar.
You need a couple stitches, Detective, the paramedic suggested to Jane.
Im not a detective. Im a P.I. And I dont need stitches! Jane insisted, pushing the paramedics hand away and lighting a fresh cigarette off the dying ember of the one still in her mouth.
You got punched in the face pretty hard
Ill take an aspirin!
Bennie! The cocky officer called out to one of the investigators. You put a call in to Weyler?
Jane heard Sergeant Weylers name and her stomach tightened. Until five months ago, Weyler had been her boss at Denver Headquarters. But more than that, Weyler was someone Jane considered a friend, as much as anyone could be Jane Perrys friend. The dapper, well-dressed black sergeant had supported and defended Jane throughout her ten-year tenure working homicide at DH, even though that often meant looking the other way when Jane showed up at work hungover. She hadnt seen the fifty-sevenyear-old sergeant since late July, when she met him for coffee to tell him she was turning down his offer to promote her to sergeant. Jane had thought long and hard about taking the job. But after solving two of Denvers high-profile multiple homicide cases that summer, the subsequent barrage of media attention given to both cases, the death of her father, and her decision to quit drinking, Jane needed to take a break.