"Mommy's home!" snarled Fongoul, and he gave Mom a big shove onto the couch next to me. I made a slight move toward the gat in my pocket."Ah ah ah... that's a no-no, right Momma? Little boys shouldn't play with guns. Carol, go get the piece." Crazy Carol took the gun, then gave me a quick peck on the cheek."Still friends?" She smiled." I'd give you something else, but I'm just bashful I guess," said the fake Mrs. Gentry. Patchouli made a thick aura around her that you could nearly see." Give it to me," growled Fongoul. He had a voice like a Buick with a flat tire on a gravel road. He pointed my gun at the real Baby Gentry. "Go sit down wit your little friends."

"Now you are all gonna die, and I'm gonna tell you why, cause I don't like doin this crap without a reason. If I got a reason I like it. Course it aint as much fun for me as it is for Carol." I swear to God, Carol giggled like a schoolgirl at this and nudged Fongoul, like "gwan, quit yer kiddin." "Baby," said Fongoul, "your crime was two- timin me wit your husband. I know it was you talked him into this little scheme. He was a loyal employee for 12 years, and I hated to lose him. You, however, will be easy to replace.Mom's crime was getting involved on the distribution end of this little scheme. You shoulda stuck to Tupperware and tiples, Maw. And Blake, I don't know why you couldn't just let this thing go. You got Danny the Mick killed, you got poor old Leon killed, you still hung on like a bulldog with a bone.It's a shame.."

He slowly turned, pointing my gun at Crazy Carol. "And you, Honey, why you couldn't take care of a simple little thing like this without draggin me into it. NOBODY can know I was directly involved in one of these things, Carol. You know that." Carol was goggle-eyed, shaking her head no when Fongoul blasted her. I felt Mom and Baby tense against me as Fongoul raised the machine pistol. When the door burst in,it knocked Fongoul flat and the gun skidded across the hardwood floor. In an instant, Nesbitt was kneeling on Fongoul's spine with a .357 Magnum pressed against the back of his head, and the room was full of cops.

Nesbitt gave me a lift to my office."I can't believe you actually saved my life, Flatfoot, after spending the last decade making it miserable." Nesbitt glanced at me, then chuckled. "Believe me, Madison, I wasn't thinkin about you when I kicked in that door. I was thinkin about collaring the biggest bad guy in LA. I was a step behind you through this whole thing. At one point I thought you might be involved in the murder. However, I was sure that no matter how many wrong moves you made, you'd eventually stumble into the solution." Now I had no doubt,this guy was an unmitigated asshole. I got out in front of my office."Just remember, Madison. You owe me," said Nesbitt."Yeah, Lieutenant, like I said before you're a real prince." I walked toward the door."Oh, and Madison" said Nesbitt."Don't worry about your Mom. She turns State's evidence, she gets off with a hand-slap." I was speechless."Hey", he said, "I got a Mom too."

As he pulled away, I felt the first drops of dirty LA rain tap against the brim of my hat. Inside, the phone was ringing."Let it ring", I said aloud, and I headed towards Joe's for a drink.

The End