"And you could care less who gets hurt in the process."
"Who got hurt? Byrne took the dough, not me. He might have found his ass in jail. How would that stick with his wife and son? All I did was help him out. Byrne's wife? Now she can mourn him in peace. He was a son-of-a-bitch to run out on her and his son. She's better off without him-and not knowing him for the jerk he is."
Dean considered telling Winston he'd seen Cynthia that afternoon in Colorado but it was apparent either she remained unaware that her husband was alive or that Winston was unaware of her involvement. He kept mum. After all, Winston hadn't exactly been forthcoming with him. "What about my stepfather? Nota could have killed him."
"I didn't sic Nota on anyone-that came from Vinnie Baratto by way of Arthur Atherton and it didn't have a damned thing to do with the Byrne case. You can blame your own big mouth. They were looking for Vinnie. Besides, admit it. Fred O'Connor hasn't had this much fun in 20 years!" He paused. "I saved Vinnie Baratto's life. He was a dead man. Even you benefited. Now you have a clean shot at Byrne's wife. If he were just missing, you'd always wonder if he was going to pop in." He paused. "I ought to get a public service medal."
"Wrong."
"Grow up. You're not going to blow any whistle. Who'd benefit if you did and who'd believe you? We've done a damned good job covering our tracks-painting the Scranton Apartment, swiping motel receipts with Byrne's signature on them...."
"There's no dead body..."
"You want one? Don't you think we could pull that off too? There are plenty of stiffs around. All I'd need is a little DNA and Byrne would certainly be cooperative. Maybe that's a good idea. We could cremate him and spread a few ashes around so the widow has a place to mourn."
Dean shifted his position. "You can never be sure Byrne won't get a conscience..."
"Byrne won't do diddly." Dean looked sharply. "No, we didn't kill him. We're not a bunch of assassins. We may shmuck around the facts a little and lie when we threaten him but we're still the good guys, remember? No, Byrne's just scared to death now. He won't say a damned thing." Winston stood up and began to pace the room. "I suppose I ought to thank you. It was you who put us on to Byrne in the first place. But I've got to say, this whole gig would have gone a lot smoother if you and the old man hadn't been so nosy."