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Then a cell phone rang in his pants pocket, and Badde quickly grabbed his Go To Hell phone. But when he looked at the screen, there was nothing.

And the ringing was still coming from his pants pocket.

Other damned phone.

About time it’s not the Go To Hell phone.

He exchanged phones, then looked at the caller ID.

What does Jan want?

“Whut up, honey?” he said into the phone.

“Damn it, Rapp, I thought I told you not to do things with PEGI without my knowledge,” she said with absolutely no pleasantries.

Uh-oh. Bad tone.

She’s way beyond pissed.

Now all I have to do is figure out which thing I’ve done without telling her.

That list could be endless.

“I’m sorry, honey. But—”

“Don’t goddamn ‘honey’ me, Rapp. What’s this about an expediter?”

“‘An expediter’?” Rapp repeated.

“Yeah, the one who just got us in a whole helluva lot of hot water.”

“What expediter?”

“Apparently, someone’s saying he’s the new expeditor at HUD and PEGI. One I didn’t hire, and I thought you put me in charge of this.”

“I did. I mean, I didn’t. I didn’t hire anyone, is what I mean. And I did put you in change, honey.”

“Knock off the ‘honey’ crap, Rapp. I know where you are, who you’re with.”

“I’m out at the West Philly row house,” Badde said somewhat piously. “Want to talk with Wynne?”

Smiling smugly, he exchanged glances with Roger Wynne.

Jan said: “Don’t change the subject, Rapp. We got problems here.”

H. Rapp Badde, Jr., then looked at the empty filing cabinets and thought, Honey, if you only knew . . .

VIII

[ONE]

Jefferson and Mascher Streets, Philadelphia Sunday, November 1, 5:12 P.M.

Speeding down Girard Avenue, just past the Schmidt’s Brewery development and just before the Hops Haus complex, Sergeant Matt Payne pulled a hard left onto Howard Street, putting the unmarked gray Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor into a tire-squealing four-wheel drift.

Moments earlier, Jason Washington had reported that not only were there three dead at the Northern Liberties scene, but a call had come in saying that a blue shirt at the scene reported another shooting had just taken place a block away.

Matt had floored the accelerator pedal.