‘You lost big?’ asks Rick. Pressing his side harder to try and stop the pain.
‘Yeah, and then some.’ He looks up at Rick. ‘I was going to lose the house, man. I had to do something drastic.’
‘So you robbed your neighbours?’ Moira’s disgust is clear in her voice.
‘I was desperate. Coming here was meant to be a fresh start. It was a downgrade, sure, but it was the best I could do after the trouble in Vegas,’ whines Donald. ‘I didn’t realise there was a casino here. But once I’d found it I couldn’t stay away and . . . well, I ran out of money. Needed a way to get more, and I thought I’d figured it out, but then that bitch, Kristen, sees me and it gets a whole lot worse. She was blackmailing me. She took five grand off me the first time. Then she wanted ten more. I told her I didn’t have it.’ He looks at Rick, his eyes pleading. ‘And I really didn’t have it, man. I had to take some of the valuables I took from the houses to make up the amount – five thousand in cash, and another five from a clock, some medals and jewellery. I just wanted it to be over, man, and she said if I gave her the ten we’d be done. But when I handed the stuff over, she said she’d changed her mind and I should pay her a monthly fee – two thousand dollars every month.’
Donald exhales hard. Moira’s glaring at him. Rick says nothing, waiting for him to continue. He’s gotten the sense that Donald needs to tell them what happened. He figures if he stays quiet he’ll carry on the story.
Donald hangs his head. ‘I couldn’t pay it, man. I still owed the casino, and I was in big danger of losing my house and getting chucked out of this place because I was in arrears on the amenity and community fees. She’d promised the ten grand was the last. She’d damn well promised.’
‘So you killed her?’ Moira asks.
‘I . . . I shoved the money at her and it unbalanced her – the rucksack was heavy with the valuables inside. When I saw her stagger backwards I acted on instinct. I grabbed the little gun she always held when we met, and pointed it at her. I told her the ten thousand had to be the end of it. I told her and she . . . she just laughed. So I . . .’ Donald looks down at the asphalt. Swallows hard. Then turns and looks back at Moira. ‘I was real mad then. I yelled at her and fired the goddamn gun. Didn’t even aim properly.’
Rick hears sirens in the distance. They haven’t got long. ‘What happened next?’
‘She kind of staggered a bit and then fell into the pool. I could tell I’d hit her – there was blood on her chest and she was making a weird noise, kind of gurgling and gasping. I tried to get the rucksack off her, but she’d fallen too far back into the pool. I couldn’t reach her or the bag. She was splashing around, trying to keep her head above water, and she let go of the bag and the damn thing sunk.’
‘Did you leave then?’ asks Moira.
‘No.’ Donald’s voice breaks as he says it. ‘I stuck around for a bit. Kristen was in a bad way, but the cash had gotten loose from the bag and it floated up to the surface. I can’t swim, so I lay on my belly and scooped up as many dollars as I could.’
Moira narrows her gaze. ‘You did that while she was in the pool dying?’
‘I needed the money, man,’ Donald snaps back. He’s silent then.
Moira shakes her head.
Rick clenches his jaw against the pain.
The sirens are getting louder.
49
PHILIP
The scene in the alleyway is buzzing. Four cop cars are parked across the entrance, lights still on, and there’s an ambulance due any minute. Uniforms are swarming around and plain-clothes detectives are barking orders, trying to take control. Philip smiles to himself as he takes another big breath in, trying to steady his heart rate after the chase. It’s almost like old times. And he’s right in the thick of it.