Hawk laughed quietly and turned his Olatunji tape up louder. It was a quarter to six when we pulled into Susan’s driveway. My MG was there beside the car Susan had bought to replace the MG. It was a big red Ford Bronco with a white roof and four-wheel drive and heavy-duty this and that, and big tires with raised white letters.
Hawk looked at it and said, ”What the fuck is that?“
I said, ”That’s Suze’s new vehicle. For Christmas I’m getting her some foxtails and a pair of big rubber dice.“
”That’s a big ten-four momma,“ Hawk said.
We went in. Susan was the only person I’ve ever seen that Hawk seemed to have any feeling about. He grinned when he saw her. She said, ”Hawk,“ and came over and kissed him. He gave her the two unopened bottles of champagne.
”Brought us a present,“ he said. ”Spenser promised supper.“
She looked at me. ”What am I, Howard Johnson’s,“ she said.
”You’re a real looker when you’re angry,“ I said.
She took the champagne and went toward the kitchen, ”Goddamn host of the goddamn highway,“ she said.
”You forgot to take my beer,“ I said.
She kept going. Hawk and I went into the living room. Paul was watching a bowling show on television. Patty was sipping what looked like bourbon on the rocks.
”This is Hawk,“ I said. ”Patty Giacomin and her son, Paul“
Paul looked at Hawk and then looked back at the bowling show. Patty smiled and started to get up and changed her mind and stayed seated.
”Are you the other one?“ she said.
Hawk said, ”Yes.“ He drank some champagne from the bottle.
Susan came back into the room with another bottle of champagne in a bucket and four fluted champagne glasses on a tole serving tray.
”Perhaps you’d care to try a glass,“ she said to Hawk.
” ‘Spect ah might, Missy Susan,“ Hawk said.
Susan said to Patty, ”May Paul have a glass?“ Patty said, ”Oh, sure.“
Susan said, ”Would you care for a glass, Paul?“
Paul said, ”Okay.“
Patty Giacomin said to Hawk, ”I’d like to thank you for what you did today.“
Hawk said, ”You’re welcome.“
”I really mean it,“ Patty said. ”It was so brave, I was so terrified. You were wonderful to help.“
”Spenser gave me two hundred dollars,“ Hawk said. ”I figure it’ll show up in his expense voucher.“
”Are you a detective too?“ Patty said.
Hawk smiled. ”No,“ he said. ”No, I am not“ His face was bright with mirth.
I said, ”I’m going to put this beer away,“ and went into the kitchen. Susan came out behind me.
”Just what in hell do you think we’re going to feed these people?“ Susan said.
”Got any cake?“ I said.
”I’m serious. I don’t have anything in the house to serve five people.“
”I’ll go get something,“ I said.
”And let me entertain your guests?“
”Your choice,“ I said. ”I don’t care to have a fight though.“
”Well, don’t do this to me. I don’t simply sit around here waiting for your problems to drop by.“
”Love me, love my problems,“ I said.
”Sometimes I wonder if that’s a worthwhile tradeoff.“
”There you go,“ I said, ”talking that education management jargon again.“
She was looking in the refrigerator. ”If I want to say trade-off, goddammit, I’ll say trade-off. I’ve got some of that Williamsburg bacon. We could make up a bunch of BLTs.“
”Toasted,“ I said. ”And on the side, some of those homemade bread-and-butter pickles we did last fall.“
”And cut flowers in a vase, and the Meyer Davis Orchestra? You better go back in and help out on the conversation. Hawk must be ready to jump out of his skin.“
”Not Hawk,“ I said. ”He doesn’t mind silence. He doesn’t want to talk. He won’t talk. He doesn’t sweat small talk much.“
”He doesn’t sweat anything too much,“ Susan said, ”does he?“
”Nope. He’s completely inside. Come on in and talk a bit, then we’ll all transfer to the kitchen and make sandwiches and eat. There’s some cheese too, and a couple of apples. It’ll be a feast“ I patted her lightly on the backside. ”Besides, we need your advice.“
”My advice to you, big fella, is to keep your hands to yourself,“ she said.
I opened another beer and we went back into the living room. Hawk was stretched out in a wing chair near the fireplace, feet straight out in front of him, body slumped easily in the chair. When we came in, he took a small sip from his champagne glass and put it back on the end table near him. Patty and Paul were watching the six o’clock news. No one was talking.
I sat in a Boston rocker on the opposite side of the fireplace from Hawk.
I said, ”Paul, you did good today.“
He nodded.
”Patty,“ I said, ”tell me what happened.“
”I came out of the supermarket and three men with guns made me get into the car. That one that came to our house was one of them.“
”Buddy?“ I said.
”Yes. He sat in front with the driver and the other man sat in back with me and we drove to a pay phone in Boston. Then we drove to the bridge and they told me to get out and start walking. Other than that they didn’t talk to me at all or say anything.“
”You recognize any of them, Hawk?“
”Dude I threw in the river is Richie Vega. He used to shake down massage parlors.“
Patty said, ”My God, how would Mel find people like that to hire?“
Hawk raised his head slightly and looked at me. I shrugged. Hawk let his chin settle back onto his chest.
Patty Giacomin said to Hawk, ”Do you know my husband?“
Hawk said, ”No. Not if he go by Mel Giacomin.“
”Well, that’s his name.“
Hawk nodded.
Patty said, ”Do you know what this is all about?“
Hawk said, ”No.“
”You got in a fight with three men and they had guns, and you threw one into the river, and you don’t even know why?“
Hawk said, ”Yeah, that’s right.“
”And you’re not a detective or anything?“
”Nope.“
Paul was watching and listening. We had distracted him from the tube.
”A strong-arm man?“ he said.
”Yeah, something like that,“ I said.
The newscasters joked painfully with the weather forecaster on television.
I said to Susan, ”I don’t know how much Patty’s told you since she arrived, but for your benefit and Hawk’s I’ll run through it very quickly.“
I did.
When I got through, there was silence. Hawk seemed almost asleep. Only the evening news mewled in one corner.
Susan said, ”You can’t continue this way. You and your husband will have to negotiate.“
”After what he pulled today?“ Patty said. ”I will not talk to that man.“
”What about the law?“ Susan said.
”The law has already given me custody.“
”But kidnapping,“ Susan said. ”Kidnapping is illegal.“
”You mean report him to the police.“
”Certainly. You can identify at least two of the men. Hawk and Spenser can testify that they had indeed kidnapped you. Surely the police could trace it back to your husband.“
Susan looked at me. I nodded. Hawk sipped champagne and put the glass back gently on the end table. He was nearly prone in the chair, his feet stretched out and crossed at the ankles.
”He’d kill me,“ Patty said.
”You mean you’re afraid to tell the police because of what your husband would do?“
”Yes. He’d be furious. He’d… I can’t do that.“
”But he’s already had you kidnapped. Aren’t you already afraid of him?“
”But he wouldn’t try to hurt me. If I told, he’d… I can’t. I can’t do that.“
”So do you plan to employ me permanently?“ I said.
”I can’t. I can’t keep paying you. I’m… running out of money.“
Hawk smiled to himself. I looked at Susan.