Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Liminality

The old man’s apartment was just as Skinner had imagined it. The third floor brownstone was dimly lit with old, threadbare furniture that screamed that it was out of some magazine like “Better Lairs and Safe houses”. Edgar, however, was not as he imagined him. He looked like anybody’s grandfather. He was far too pale, far too skinny, with a knitted button-up sweater and thick glasses. There was a cloud of smoke around the man’s head as he sat at his desk, presumably from the Cuban cigar he was puffing on. The tools of his trade lay scattered all over his apartment. From boxes of various ammunitions, to steel cases stacked to the ceiling in several corners; this man was very obviously a gun dealer. Skinner’s mind profiled this man in a matter of seconds thanks to the hushed dealings going on with Shin Lao and the old man.

The old man obviously smoked too much, and drank even more by the look of the stack of bottles in the box by the back door. Through the years he apparently had developed ulcers or some other stomach condition because the man chewed antacids like candy while him and Shin talked. And his job had apparently been all the man ever knew since there were no pictures of family, friends or anything else to indicate that this man had done anything but sell guns, albeit top of the line, and surprisingly incredibly legal, save for the submachine guns and assorted ammunition.

“I’m going to need several of Elias’ favorites, a pair of Uzi’s, and a rifle. You know what I like.” Shin Lao made it sound like she was ordering from a fast food restaurant rather than buying instruments of death. Edgar didn’t seem to help things any with his following questions. “Would you like them in the standard matte black or nickel plated?” “Matte black will be fine. I don’t want to draw too much attention to ourselves.” “You want holsters and ammunition for this stuff?” “You know I do Edgar. I need gas vents in all of it as well.” “That’s going to cost you extra, and take some time to make the modifications.” Edgar jotted some numbers down on a piece of paper, doing the math. The man also didn’t seem to like newer technology, as anybody else would have just used a calculator. “It’s going to take about 3 days to modify the weapons. On these Desert Eagles does he want the gel grips like on his regular ones?” Skinner looked down at his shoes, apparently the old man hadn’t heard about the Viper’s death. “Edgar, Elias is…he’s dead.” Shin Lao seemed almost to choke up just saying the words. Edgar however was much more shaken and his old eyes, which seemed to resemble runny eggs in the best of situations clouded up and several large tears rolled down the elderly man’s cheeks. “H-how?” He stammered out before he composed himself. “We don’t know yet, that’s what I’m investigating. We know it had something to do with the Mac job a while back, but beyond that I’m not entirely sure.” “He was the last of a good breed. True professional that one. He had morals, unlike these thugs we have running the streets now. Give these guys a gun and an overcoat and they think they’re Chow Yun Fat. I have to say I’ll hate to see the business die down though. He had something of a trickle down effect on my business.” “How do you mean?” Skinner piped up. He hadn’t really considered the economic side of illegal gun distribution. “Well young man, the Viper was such a legend in certain circles that his jobs became almost celebrity news. When it became known that he had used a certain piece for a job, the demand for that went up incredibly. Like those DE’s he liked so much, when word got around that he used those, the market went up. Though nobody could modify one of those canned hams like he could. Most people gave up on em after they tried to rebalance them and couldn’t.”

Skinner was thoughtful on this a moment and decided that it made sense. How many times had he seen a rapper on television wearing a certain brand, and then the hood rats in the neighborhoods worn something almost identical days later. Edgar interrupted his train of thought a second later. “So, detective, I assume since you’re traveling around with our pretty little Ghost here that you’re not here to arrest me. Also I’d like to assume that you won’t be around here in a couple of days to do anything similar?” This shocked Skinner as he was in plain clothes, and thanks to Warren, no longer had his service revolver or badge on him. “No I’m not. Though how did you know I was on the force?” “I can smell your type detective. You don’t get to be seventy three years old in this business, and still be in it, by not knowing who’s who. Besides that the Viper used to talk about this detective he knew in the PD. And since you’re running around with Ghost here, I assume that would be you.” The old man was very astute. There was no point in lying to the man as he’d already been made. “Yeah, I’m detective Skinner. Shin just saved my ass at my apartment from a dirty cop. It’s been a very trying day to be sure.”

Edgar chuckled at the comment. “I can imagine it has been, though I wouldn’t imagine it wouldn’t be too harsh considering you’ve had the Viper’s case files in your hands for a number of years. Though I do have to ask, how does an outstanding detective such as yourself get to be acquainted with a killer like the Viper?” “That’s a very interesting story actually. It’s one we probably don’t have time for.” “Indulge an old man detective. I hear stories from all sorts of crooked drug dealers and two bit hoodlums. A tale from a man of the law, albeit one who has recently been involved in an illegal gun deal, traveled with a professional killer, and has witnessed the death of an officer at his own apartment, should make for a nice change of pace.” “All right, but don’t say that I didn’t warn you.”