�That was below the belt,� Harry said quietly.

Diane was so angry she was trembling. Harry looked up at her, and he wanted to pull her into his arms and comfort her. But he knew she needed to believe him before he touched her again. Frustrated, he ran his hands through his hair, then sat with his elbows on his knees as he continued his story.

�So, Siquieros sent his son Alfonso to supply Lauren. He dropped my name, saying I was sorry for hurting her, saying I owed her, offering some really good shit.�

�If she hated you so much, why would she accept it and use it?�

�She�s a junkie, Diane. Turning down free heroin is not an option for her.�

�I thought you were involved in coke,� Mary challenged.

�Yes, I was. But Lauren�s appetites are far broader than that. Uh, were.�

Diane hated Denby with so much passion, and it was making her crazy listening to this story, beginning to believe it. It sounded plausible, but it was still too fantastic.

�What about the kids? Why did they leave the kids alone?� Diane leaned forward in her chair, in spite of her unwillingness to appear interested in his tall tales.

�Either he didn�t hear the kids, or he didn�t care what happened to them. He might have figured that as long as they didn�t see him, he didn�t have to eliminate them.�

�I don�t buy that mercy is in that guy�s genes,� Diane crossed her arms again.

�Well, call it a cultural bias. I don�t think these guys have much of a history of popping kids unless they are old enough to be witnesses. At least, I haven�t seen it.�

�But leaving them for dead is okay with them, culturally,� Diane squinted and nodded at Harry. Mary got out of her chair and walked into the kitchen area, trying to busy herself with preparing tea, anything to keep her from strangling Denby.

�Apparently. Assuming they knew the kids were in there in the first place.�

Mary was pacing in the kitchen, and Diane thought she was struggling with the same reticence to believe Denby. She looked like she was as angry as Diane was. They exchanged a glance, and both seemed to gather more strength from it.