Tico said, "Spear-thrower Jaguar," nodding his head.
"Your girlfriend," Dawn said, "is taken up to the top of the temple to be sacrificed as a gift to the gods, who will freak when they see her, she's a beauty. But," Dawn said, "you can save her life if you're willing to take her place, have your heart cut out instead of hers."
Foley said, "What's the girl's name?"
The way Dawn hesitated he knew she was taking a few moments to think of one.
Foley said, "How about Spear-chucker's Honey?"
Dawn stared at him with a straight face getting her act back together. She said, "You know who the spirit is I was put in touch with? Spear-thrower Jaguar's girlfriend herself. Everyone on the other side calls her Heart, short for Heartless Virgin, because of, you know, what happened to her. She passed over and loves being a spirit guide. Tico, she said you turned chicken, even though the chance you'd be sacrificed was next to zero. You're the son of Fire Is Born, you're popular, brave, you're a good-looking guy, especially in your headdress, with all the feathers and ornaments. Heart said the headdresses were quite heavy and resulted in neck ailments. But you wouldn't risk it, you let Heart be sacrificed. Aren't you sorry, Tico, you didn't step up?"
"You telling me," Tico said, "she's my girlfriend but she's still a virgin? How long am I going with her, a day or two? I don't see I know her well enough to, you know, offer my life."
"You're saying you wouldn't try to save her?"
"I don't even know her. Maybe if I see her again."
"According to Heart," Dawn said, "when you didn't do the right thing, it got our Higher Power pissed enough to make you, in your next several reincarnations, bugs. That's why I had trouble locating you in a previous existence."
Foley said, "Did she say what kind of bug he was?"
"No, she didn't," Dawn said, refusing to look at him. "She did say Tico, when he passed over, would come back as another insect unless he redeems himself."
"How's he do that?"
"The usual way." Dawn said to Tico now, "You have to risk your life to save someone from certain death."
Tico said, "I do?"
"You'll know it when it happens," Dawn said. "It's your only chance to get a better life from now on." Tico said, "Man, I don't know."
"Go home and think about it," Dawn said. "Do you want to be a bug all your lives?"
"Getting swatted," Foley said, "and stepped on?"
Tico looked confused saying he wasn't sure what to think about. Dawn told him the secret was to empty his mind, keep a channel open by trying not to think, and there was a good chance the spirit guide would contact him.
Foley said, "Maybe your old girlfriend, the Heartless Virgin."
After Tico had left Foley said, "If he wasn't aware of being a bug until you told him, what difference does it make if he was?"
"I got carried away," Dawn said.
"I thought you were setting him up."
"For what?"
"I don't know-to use him?"
"You knew I was making it up," Dawn said, "most of it," turning her eyes on him. "You want to take a shower?"
Once they were in there soaping each other up, Foley said, "Don't forget, you have to put a bathing suit on you in the painting."
Dawn said they should get Little Jimmy to do it. "He finished and took his paints with him."
Foley said or they could buy a tube of paint and dab some on her here, and here…and here. What color did she like?
Dawn said, "Mmmmm, black?" and slipped her clean shining arms around his neck. She kissed his mouth and said she wasn't sure about the color, he should ask Jimmy. She said, "You ready?" Then had to ask him, "Jack, why're you wearing shoes in the shower?"
They were lying across the bed now on their towels.
Dawn said, "I almost told you about Cundo, what he said on the phone, but decided not to ruin our shower. They're releasing him a week early. He'll be here Friday, the day after tomorrow."
Foley said, "Why didn't he tell me? I spoke to him-I did everything I could to get rid of him. I put him on hold to watch you come out of the house in my sixty-nine-dollar drip-dry sport coat. Why didn't he tell me he's getting out early?"
"You're a little ripped, aren't you?"
"I was."
"Jack, we've only got forty-eight hours to act crazy, maybe try something new, like I'm on top."
"There's a reason he didn't let me know."
"He wanted to tell me first," Dawn said. "He likes you, Jack, but doesn't go to bed with you. The way to look at it, the sooner he gets here, the sooner we pull the job and leave."
The job.
Foley closed his eyes.
The sooner we pull the job. After we find out what the job is and how we go about pulling it. We're not going in a bank. Not we. You. Keep it simple. Do you know where this is going? What you're getting into? Who's who? If you don't know that you don't know anything. The sooner we pull the job. Why isn't she biting her nails? What does she have going with Tico the spear-chucker? Why didn't Cundo tell you he's getting out early? Why wasn't he excited, wanting you to know about it, his old buddy? Why was it the other day, you and Dawn finding each other, talking about the job, you didn't see a problem? Didn't get down and look at what you'd have to do. It left Foley with the feeling, What you see isn't what you think it is.
He opened his eyes.
Dawn was lighting a cigarette.
"Are we picking him up at the airport?"
"He said a friend at Glades is arranging for a guy in L.A. to meet the flight and bring him here."
"He doesn't have a friend at Glades."
"Well, someone is saving us the trouble."
She placed her cigarette between his lips and watched him draw and let the smoke drift out of his mouth.
She said, "You want to rest a little more…?"
THIRTEEN
FOLEY CALLED LITTLE JIMMY ABOUT THE PAINTING THAT needed to be fixed before Cundo arrived, walked in the bedroom and saw Dawn on the wall bare naked. "It's where I've been sleeping," Foley said, "since I got here."
Little Jimmy said there was time. Didn't they have a week or so?
"He'll be here tomorrow," Foley said. "They're letting him out early."
It caused an alarm to go off in Jimmy, wanting to know, Jesus Christ, why nobody told him.
"What'll it take you," Foley said, "three minutes. That gives you a minute a dab. Or, you decide to paint a one-piece suit on her I think you'll have time."
Little Jimmy told Foley to fuck the bathing suit-why didn't somebody tell him Cundo, Christ, was almost here?
"I'd like to come over and see you," Foley said. "You can show me your office, what you do."
Ten years ago Cundo told Jimmy to buy the three-story building on Windward, a block from the beach, and fix it up. Before this the property had been a youth hostel. Jimmy had walls removed and rearranged and now his offices took up the second floor and his apartment was directly above: a big one he did with an art deco look, lots of color and round corners. There were also rooms on the third floor for Zorro, who lived here and was always close if Jimmy needed him. The street floor was occupied by Danny's Venice, a cafe with smart red-and-white-striped awnings in front, where Jimmy had his lunch every day.