She smiled again. A cold smile that never touched her eyes. “I have a dozen ways that I can kill you right now, Mr. Trubble. What do you have?”
“A favor.”
Her brow creased. “A… favor?”
“That’s right. A wise man once told me that if you wanna stay ahead of the game on the streets, you gotta know how to handle your favors. You gotta know when to deal ‘em and when to call ‘em in. Case in point: Mr. Luzzatti. He was the type of man that got along well with a lot of people. You know, well-liked by folks all over New Haven. A modest but respected individual.”
“Your point, Mr. Trubble?”
“You might not know this, but when someone like Luzzatti is mowed down, it affects other folks in the community. Some of those people who thought well of him are pretty upset about how things went down. One of those persons would be Mr. Shapiro. You probably wouldn’t know him, but he’s the owner of several profitable nightclubs in the Uppers. Including this one.”
The Red-Eyed Killer blinked.
I smiled. “So when I called him ahead of arriving here and explained the situation, he jumped at the chance to grant me a favor and let me park the Mean Ol’ Broad under the table here. That would be what I call my iron, by the way. What can I say? You’re right about me giving her a name.”
She placed a fist under her chin. “Do you really think that you can reach your firearm before I can kill you? If so than you’re much more foolish than I took you for.”
“Oh, I believe that you got the skills. Take that necklace for instance. The key medallion really clashes with your set of pearls. Someone else might just chart that up as a style mishap, but I know a lot about weaponry. It’s a talent I have. I remember everything except my past. So what do I do in my spare time? Read encyclopedias. Including the ones on firearms.
“Like that key gun of yours. Before the Cataclysm they had a powder version that could be used to blast open locks in case the key failed. Your medallion seems to be an updated version, modified with mech parts. Easy to include with your jewelry at the door to bypass the scanners, but powerful enough to punch a hole through a body.”
She leaned back and stroked the key gun. “You’re a very astute man, Mr. Trubble. It’s almost a shame to have to kill you.”
“Yeah, it would be. So I have to repeat my warning. You make a move, and it’s gonna get pretty ugly for you. I got a soft spot for dames, but you’re a horse of a different color. I can’t say that I’d feel bad with you being rubbed out of the picture. So don’t push your luck, because the odds are stacked against you, especially tonight.”
The Red-Eyed Killer took a wary glance around the room. “You have a hidden triggerman that I don’t know about, Mr. Trubble? Some accomplice with a grudge?”
I followed her gaze. The crowds went about their business at their booths and on the floor as the synoids on stage played on, the synchronized music swelling the joint with a throbbing sound. The songbird sang and danced across the stage like it was her last night on earth.
I smiled at the Red-Eyed Killer. “Not my style, sweetheart. My business is with you.” My hands remained where they were on the table. “This is where it ends. Right here, right now. You can do the right thing and call it off. I’ll take you at your word. But if you wanna take this all the way, then make your move and pay the price.”
She stared at me as if trying to read the intent on my face. Tiny beads of perspiration glimmered on the bridge of her nose. “Did you come here to die, Mr. Trubble? Is this your way out of the mess that you got yourself into? Because you seem pretty confident for a person who has to reach under a table in less time than it takes for me to kill you.”
I stared into her catlike eyes. “I didn’t come here to die, sweetheart. I came here to rub out the Red-Eyed Killer. And that’s what will happen if you don’t wise up and quit while you’re ahead.”
Her fingers tapped the key gun around her neck as she studied me. I leaned back and smiled. The band played on, and the folks around us went about their business as though we were invisible. But we weren’t. In fact, we were the only two people who existed in that moment of time. Everything else was just insubstantial blurs of movement that whirled about as the Red-Eyed Killer and I locked gazes and played the ultimate game of truth or dare.
She made her move.
All I heard was thunder.
Chapter 10: Slick Talk
“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t bury you deep in the coldest meat locker and throw away the key.”
Captain Grave’s mustache was even more bristly when he was angry. Right then he was furious. I sat in the lobby of the Black Dahlia with my wrists in electronic cuffs. Sure, I could have ran for it, but I was pretty worn out by that point. The job was finished and the last thing I felt like was ducking the law.
The boys in black packed in the nightclub, questioning witnesses and securing the scene. A lot of them shot dirty looks at me as they passed. I guess my little gambit at the Luzzattis didn’t sit too well with them. One thing you can say about the brass is that they’re loyal to the shield for the most part. You hurt one, you gotta face them all.
I gave Graves my most infuriating grin. “Don’t you have enough of a mess on your hands? With a gang war about to spill over on the streets, you’d think that an important man like you couldn’t spare the time for a little ol’ Troubleshooter like me.”
His eyes narrowed. “How did you…?” He took a deep breath. “If I find out that you had anything to do with what went down at Pike’s place tonight…”
“No need for threats, Captain. I’ve been too busy trying to protect an innocent girl from certain death to go around instigating gang wars. But every action has a reaction, right? It’s simple physics. Now I don’t have much of an egg for science, but I do know that when you’re in the game of double-crossing folks, then eventually you might get strung up by your own set of wires. Speaking of which, what happened to ol’ Pike anyhow?”
Graves took a long look at me before answering. “He got perforated at his pad by a chopper squad. From all reports it looked like Moe Flacco’s crew did the deed. Earlier this evening they took a major hit by an unidentified synoid killing machine. Word out is that Pike was responsible.”
“So what goes around comes around. What does that gotta do with me?”
Graves paced back and forth, frowning. “I know that Pike was the one who set up the hit on the Luzzattis. His unexpected death is mighty convenient… for you.”
I shrugged. “Someone just saved me the trouble, that’s all.”
Graves glared. “Then there’s the hit on Big Louie, who was the handler for the Luzzatti murder. Seems he was toasted at his pad earlier as well. You wanna tell me where you were around that time?”
“Not really. But I’m sure I was nowhere near Big Louie’s joint. I was in a bit of a bind with a young lady who needed protection, remember? Didn’t have time to knock off any marks. I’ve been tied up looking for the Red-Eyed Killer. Unless you got any surveillance or eyewitnesses…?”
Graves seemed ready to explode. “The only witness was a bruno named Joey. He barely made it out of the building alive. We asked if you were the one who did the hit.”
I raised an eyebrow. “And…?”
He exhaled heavily. “He said there was a gas leak. Swore it on his mother’s grave. As if a lowlife skel like him has a mother.”
“Well it sounds to me like it’s an open and shut case, Captain. So why am I in bracelets?” I held up my bound hands.