“Do you have any evidence of that?”
“No, but I understand the police are looking into it.”
“When did your Uncle Harry die?”
“Three months ago. I saw his obituary in the New York Times. ”
“So you’re not going to sign the papers okaying the sale?”
“No, I’m not. That will royally screw my father, and I’ll enjoy that.”
Shit, Stone thought. “Then I’m wasting my time?”
“Yes, you are. By the way, I owe you an apology. I’m sorry you got socked in the neck the last time we met.”
“Why did that happen?”
“My girlfriend is sometimes a little overprotective. Apparently, she thought you meant me ill.”
“Where is she now?” Stone said, looking behind him.
“Relax, she’s in the ladies’ room.”
“Good. By the way, did you know that Charley Boggs is dead?”
Keating’s face fell. “What are you talking about?”
“I saw them fish his body out of Garrison Bight this morning. You’ll read about it in tomorrow’s paper.”
“Oh, shit,” Keating said.
“Well, yeah. The police want to talk to you about it.”
“Me? I would never hurt Charley. We’ve been friends since prep school.”
“Prep school? I thought Boggs was just some Key West drug dealer.”
“He may be that, but it wasn’t a part of our relationship. When I came to Key West, he was the only person I knew here.”
7 1
S t u a r t W o o d s
“The police found a bag of cocaine in his motorcycle storage locker and a hiding place on his houseboat where more drugs were probably stashed.”
“I wouldn’t know anything about that,” Keating said. “How did Charley die?”
“Bullet to the back of the head. Do you own a nine-millimeter pistol?”
“No.”
“Why was your boat out at the reef in the middle of the night a couple of days ago?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Keating said.
“It was spotted there.” Stone didn’t tell him how. “The police are going to want to talk to you about that, too.”
“I’ve only driven the boat once, the day I bought it. It’s been at anchor ever since.”