Page 34 of Hanging and Burning

“No. Just a name and a photograph next to Twyla.”

“Did you tell Arman about Blass?”

“I just said about the photograph. I don’t know if I even mentioned the man’s name.”

“Do you think I might be able to get a copy of that photo?”

Shelley Toomes moved around a little in her seat, getting ready for a confrontation, I believed.

“I don’t know you, Mr. Oliver. You tell me that you’re working for Arman, but he hasn’t said a thing about you to me, and I talk to him at least once a week.”

Taking a big chance, I said, “Call him, then.”

If Arman heard that I was talking to Shelley, he’d know that I was investigating him as well as the maybe disappearance of Twyla. But if he was honestly searching for his granddaughter and he had any cunning, he’d conclude that anything I found would help him in the end.

Shelley picked up the receiver of the landline on her desk.

I leaned back, trying to look unconcerned.

She dialed a number.

It must have been to a cell phone, because after the span of two rings she said, “Arman? This is Shell. I have a man here who says his name is Joe Oliver. He says he’s working for you, looking for Twyla. Is that true?”

Her expression was hard, even angry. But as information passed over the line, she softened.

“He’s asking about that picture I told you I saw. There’s a man standing next to her, and Mr. Oliver thinks he might have some bearing on where she could be.”

She listened for a few seconds more and then handed the receiver to me.

“He says he wants to talk to you.”

I took the phone and said, “Mr. Babylon.”

“What the fuck are you doin’ with Toomes?”

“I look at it like this, Arman. You say you love your granddaughter and that you want to make sure that she’s safe. Those are my marching orders. I intend to protect her from anybody, including you.”

There was a short silence and then he said, “All right. Okay. I been lookin’ you up too. The people I talked to said that you’re a standup guy. I guess we’re both doing the same thing for the same reasons.”

“Okay. Now that we understand each other, will you ask your friend here to give me the picture of your granddaughter and her boyfriend? Ask her to send it to you too. Maybe it’ll remind you of something.”

Shelley and Arman shared a few more words and she hung up.

“You say that you talk to Mr. Babylon on a regular basis?”

“Yes,” she replied, not knowing whether to smile or frown.

“Do you know each other from New York?”

“No. Why do you ask?”

“He’s not from out here and he didn’t come out west to socialize.”

“It’s like I said. I visit the hospital pretty often. I like talking to people, Arman does too, so when he found out that I studied Hebrew for my grad school linguistics degree, he told me that he needed a linguist’s help.”

“What kinda help?”

“He’s been studying Yiddish. Specifically Yiddish terms and adages.”