Santa Fe Rules (34 page)

Authors: Stuart Woods

Tags: #Suspense, #Thriller, #Mystery

“Yes,” Eagle replied.

“Who’s the other one?” Wolf asked.

“Monica Collins. She had been hiding Julia since the killings. She’s the one who tried to have you killed.”

Wolf nodded. He felt much as he had the morning after the first killings, but more lighthearted, somehow. “Why am I so happy?” he asked.

“The drug, partly,” Eagle said. “I’m pretty happy myself; but I think it’s more than that.”

“It’s over, isn’t it?”

“It’s over, Wolf.”

Wolf began to cry.

Eagle put his arms around Wolf and held him.

It was very late before Eagle got back to his house with Barbara. At the front door, he picked her up and carried her across the threshold, then kissed her.

“Now what was
that
all about?” she asked, her arms around his neck.

“Fella does that in Santa Fe, girl has to marry him; that’s Santa Fe Rules.”

Barbara frowned. “Mama said she would come back to haunt me if I ever married a man who wasn’t Jewish.”

Eagle kissed her again. “Boy, have I got news for you,” he said.

EPILOGUE

J
ane Deering sat in the car and watched the entrance to the executive offices of Centurion Studios.

Sara squirmed in the backseat. “What’s taking Wolf so long, Mom? He’s been in there over an hour.” Flaps was asleep, her head in the little girl’s lap.

“It’s business, honey; important business.”

“What’s it about?”

“It’s about making a movie. Wolf has to convince some people that he can direct a movie.”

“But Wolf makes movies all the time, doesn’t he?”

“Yes, but he’s always been the producer, remember? You know the difference between a producer and a director, don’t you?”

“Sure. You think I’m dumb or something?”

“Well, this is the first time that Wolf has wanted to direct, and he has to get these people to give him the money to make the movie.”

“Oh.” Sara poked her mother in the back. “Here he comes,” she said.

Jane looked up to see Wolf coming down the front steps. He wasn’t smiling.

Wolf got into the car. “I’m sorry to keep you both waiting so long,” he said. “I had a pretty tough meeting.”

“What happened?” Jane demanded. “Are they going to finance the deal?”

“Maybe,” Wolf said, “but there’s an important condition.”

“What is it? Is it something you can’t live with?”

“Apparently they don’t trust me to shoot this on my own; they’re insisting I take on a partner.”

“Well, is it somebody you hate?”

“No, I get to pick the partner.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“You want to make this picture with me? You want to be my partner?”

Jane flung her arms around his neck. “Oh, you bet I do!” she yelled.

“Then there’s no problem,” Wolf said. “No problem at all.”

Flaps lifted her head and grinned at everybody.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I
would like to thank Brian Dennehy for suggesting the title of this book, and, for (sometimes inadvertently) assisting with the research, Steven and Barbara Bochco, Judy Tabb, Pitts Carr, Mark and Winanne Sutherland, Ted and Barbara Flicker, Bob and Pat Eggers, Doug Preston and Christine and Selene Gibbons, John Ehrlichman and Christie Peacock, Marcia Stamell, Ellen Windham, Landt and Lisl Dennis, Pat and Michael French, Ed Zuckerman, Bettina and Sandy Milliken, Sharon and Bob Woods, Jennifer Dennehy, and Melody Miller.

I am, once again, grateful to my editor, Ed Breslin, my publisher, Bill Shinker, my London publisher, Eddie Bell, and all their colleagues at HarperCollins for their hard work on this book.

I want to express my particular gratitude to my agent, Morton Janklow, his top associate, Anne Sibbald, and to all
the people at Janklow & Nesbit for their continued enthusiasm and support over the past ten years.

Finally, I must apologize to the Irish veterinarian Wilf Woollett for once again mangling his name.

About the Author

S
TUART
W
OODS
is the author of more than fifteen novels, including
Chiefs, Grass Roots, Santa Fe Rules, L.A. Times, Dead Eyes, Heat, New York Dead, Imperfect Strangers, Choke, Dirt, Dead in the Water, Swimming to Catalina, Deep Lie
, and
Orchid Beach
. He lives in Litchfield County, Connecticut, and Vero Beach, Florida.

Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins author.

Praise
RAVES FOR SANTA FE RULES

“A whirlwind story with a plot that twists more than Chubby Checker. Even the veteran mystery reader will be dazzled….
Santa Fe Rules
is a delight.”

—L.A. Life

“Long on heart-stopping suspense…. The plot has more twists than the Grand Canyon.”

—Palm Beach Post

“Slam-bang action…Woods weaves an intricate web of intrigue and deceit in this his ninth mystery novel.”

—Bookpage

“With its mysterious homicide, spunky characters…and steamy sexuality,
Santa Fe Rules
is thoroughly entertaining.”

—Santa Fe New Mexican

“Distinctly readable—told with speed and glamorous flourishes.”

—Chicago Tribune

“Guaranteed to keep you guessing.”

—Detroit Free Press

“Whether you are a mystery fan or not, this book will keep you reading until you’ve finished—no matter the hour…it undoubtedly is headed for the top rung of the bestseller lists.”

—Richmond-Times Dispatch

“
Santa Fe Rules
is a mystery fan’s guilty pleasure…you just keep turning the page.”

—Blade-Citizen Preview

“The writing is slick…impossible to stop reading.”

—Boston Sunday Herald

“
Santa Fe Rules
could be the basis of a sizzling movie script. Woods takes you through a wonderful, dark maze of dicey characters and subplots…a must read for thriller fans.”

—Plain Dealer

“
Santa Fe Rules
…is confident, often quite funny, and works very effectively.”

—Boston Globe

“A breakneck pace and a tight plot with several good twists, including a truly magical one close to the end.”

—Booklist

Books by
Stuart Woods

C
HIEFS

C
HOKE

D
EAD
E
YES

D
EAD IN THE
W
ATER

D
EEP
L
IE

D
IRT

G
RASS
R
OOTS

H
EAT

I
MPERFECT
S
TRANGERS

L. A. T
IMES

N
EW
Y
ORK
D
EAD

O
RCHID
B
EACH

P
ALINDROME

R
UN
B
EFORE THE
W
IND

T
HE
R
UN

S
ANTA
F
E
R
ULES

S
WIMMING TO
C
ATALINA

U
NDER THE
L
AKE

W
HITE
C
ARGO

W
ORST
F
EARS
R
EALIZED

This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

SANTA FE RULES
. Copyright © 1992 by Stuart Woods. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

EPub Edition © NOVEMBER 2007 ISBN: 9780061827327

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