Skin Trade(71)
“On what grounds?” Hooper asked.
“On the grounds that Max’s wife, Bibiana, would expect me to visit her before I left town. It would be a courtesy that if skipped would be a grave insult. I wouldn’t want to insult the Chang of your local weretigers, now would I?”
Hooper was studying my face. “I guess not.”
“Without a warrant, all you can do is ask questions,” Spider said, “no hunting.”
“Trust me, guys, I don’t want to throw down the gauntlet to Max and his crew while I’m here. I think if it was one of their tigers, they’d be eager to help solve this; they’re mainstream monsters. Killing cops is bad for business.”
Hooper was getting his cell phone out. “We’ll have everyone else meet us at Max’s place,” Hooper said.
“Hooper, if we can’t go in there as marshals, and I have to make this a girlfriend coffee klatch, then I sure as hell can’t take in a tactical assault team. Without a warrant, you guys are not getting in the door. Hell, I’ll be lucky to get Ted and me through the door.”
“And me,” Olaf said.
Bernardo raised his hand and said, “Oh, pick me, pick me.” Then he gave me a look so unhappy that I wondered what I’d done wrong now, but I just didn’t care enough to ask. Maybe I’d care later, or maybe I wouldn’t.
“Ted?” I made it a question.
“I’d feel better if all the marshals went in, but I don’t know how the tigers will feel about that.”
“I don’t know if I’m comfortable going in by myself, to be honest.” As soon as I said it, I knew I shouldn’t have. One, it sounded weak; two, I wasn’t sure how to explain my real reasons for being nervous around the weretigers with Shaw.
The two operators gave me serious faces. Hooper said, “We heard about the weretiger attack in St. Louis.”
I realized that he’d take that as a reason why I shook my head. I jumped on it. “Yeah, getting cut up by an animal will make you a little leery of them.”
“We’ll go in with you, Anita.”
“There is no way that Max’s security will let me take you guys inside their home on a social visit. I’m sorry, you guys are just too much what you are.”
I wasn’t sure that made sense, but they accepted it, or understood it.
“I’ll still call ahead. We’ll wait for you in the parking lot. You give the signal that you’re in danger, and we’re allowed to go in and save your asses.”
“Why, Hooper, you did read the standard clauses in the warrant, didn’t you?”
Hooper’s mouth gave a tight, unpleasant smile. It was close to the one I had, and Ted had. It was not a good look to have aimed at you, but he didn’t mean to aim it at me; he was thinking about the people who killed his friends. “It’s Sonny, Anita, and I did read it. You, meaning the marshals, are allowed to use all force up to and including deadly, if you feel that you or a civilian are in imminent and life-threatening danger. It further allows any officers who are with you, or acting in a backup capacity, to use any and all force to protect your lives and the lives of any civilians.”
I nodded. “They added that last bit after a pair of vampire hunters got killed, and the police with them defended themselves, saved the human hostages, but ended up on trial. They were acquitted, but it was a mess.”
“It’s one of the things that led to DPEA,” Hooper, I mean Sonny, said.
“Yes, so if we’re attacked, then legally we’re in the clear because we can make a case for the dead lycanthrope being in league with the rogue on our warrant. Hell, Sonny, it’s Nevada, you still have varmint laws on the books.”
“I wouldn’t want to be quoting varmint laws if we have to shoot Max’s entire family.”
“Me either, but if they throw down first, legally we won’t have broken any laws.”
“Is it true that you don’t even have to have a hearing after you shoot someone?” Spider asked.
“There’s more paperwork now that we’re federal officers, officially, but no, no lawyers, no hearings, nothing really. But then if they tied us all up in legalities, who would do all the monster slaying?”
“So, really,” he said, “excluding the weretigers from the warrant doesn’t keep them safe if they start the fight with you guys?”
“Not really,” I said.
“If they start the fight, we’ll help you finish it,” Sonny said, “but make damn sure they start it, because you may get out of jail free with your federal badge, but we live here.”