“Of course not. I like Jimmy. We were cellmates. I don’t know why he made up this crazy story, but it is crazy.” Rankin chuckled. “Jimmy is fucked up in the head, if you ask me. Bullets bouncing off me. Who ever heard of such a thing?”
Robin decided to go while the getting was good. “Thank you for your time, Mr. Rankin.”
“I ain’t got nothing but time. Say hi to Jimmy for me when you see him, will you?”
Jeff led Robin to their car.
“What do you think really happened?” Jeff asked when they drove away.
“I think Jimmy shot Mr. Rankin, but Rankin doesn’t want to press charges.”
“Why?”
“Maybe because he’s helping a friend who was lied to by Peter Knox, or maybe he’s afraid Jimmy’s friends will come after him if he testifies.” Robin shrugged. “It really doesn’t matter, if we can get the DA to dismiss.”
“And the gun and the bullets?”
“My guess is that Rankin got rid of them.”
“What about O’Leary’s crazy story about the bullets bouncing off Rankin?”
“It’s not so crazy. I talked to Paul Baylor at Oregon Forensics. Those bullets had been sitting around for a long time in an old shed. Jimmy told me that the cardboard box that held the bullets was waterlogged. When you fire a gun, the hammer hits the back of the bullet cartridge and ignites the primer, which ignites the powder charge. If the charge was wet, it could deteriorate and you could get a dud that would travel only a few feet with very little power.”
“So maybe Jimmy isn’t crazy.”
“Crazy or not, it looks like he’s going to walk.”
Robin went back to her office and called the deputy DA who had the O’Leary case. He wasn’t in, so she left a message asking him to call her. As soon as she completed the call, she started checking her emails. Halfway through, the receptionist told her that she had a call.
“Miss Lockwood?” a voice from the past asked.
“Chesterfield?!”
“It is I.”
“Why are you calling?”
“Do you still have my retainer?”
“It’s in my trust account.”
“How much is left?”
“Most of it. I didn’t do much work on your case.”
“Excellent. I was wondering if you might bring the balance to me in cash.”
“I’ll have my secretary go to the bank tomorrow. Come by after noon, and it will be at the front desk.”
“Actually, I was hoping that you could meet me this afternoon.”
“I have a lot of work to do. It would be easier if you came here.”
“I agree, but I’m being followed, and I’m concerned that these individuals might stake out your office.”
“What kind of trouble are you in, Robert?”
“It’s nothing you need worry about.”