Laughing, I checked on our wards. ‘You OK, guys?’
They both peeked up at me from where they’d scrunched down in the seat. Faulks’s mouth was opening and closing like a fish’s. Parnell chewed at his bottom lip. ‘You two boys are insane,’ he wheezed. ‘You can’t run from the cops like that!’
‘All in a day’s work for us,’ I told him. I smiled to show I was only joking. ‘It was important for your protection that we got away, don’t forget. It’s much better for everyone if we can bury the killer without the cops ever learning who he was. It’s the only way to save you ending your days behind bars.’
I left the rest unsaid, but Parnell got it. He knew that if the cops pulled him in he’d end up telling them about the cellar. He shut his eyes, and I wondered if he was weeping. I glanced over at Faulks. He was staring into vacant space. Or maybe he was looking back into the past. I left them to their reminiscences and turned to Rink again. ‘You’ll struggle getting your mom out now. The cops will probably be watching her after this.’
‘Good. While the cops are around it means she’s safe from the killer. We can concentrate on getting our buddies here outta the way.’
I hadn’t considered that.
We took the Bay Bridge out of the city, Rink hurling his cellphone out of the window and into the water below in case Jones was tracing its signal. We bypassed Oakland and Alameda on the Nimitz Freeway and headed into San Leandro where we would be well placed for when McTeer and Velasquez arrived at Oakland International. We cut across town to meet the MacArthur Freeway, followed it for a mile or so south and then took a road into Chabot Regional Park. The area was a golfers’ paradise, with no fewer than three courses in the immediate vicinity, and the hotel we headed for was more expensive than anywhere the police would expect us to flee to.
It was set out as individual lodges that had great views across Lake Chabot to where redwood trees dominated the craggy skyline. While Rink confirmed the booking, paying for a full week’s stay on a credit card, I took over driving duties and took the old men to their lodgings. There was no fear that we’d be traced by Rink’s credit trail — the card was registered to a shell company he’d fed money into, set up for just this kind of emergency — but there was always the chance that someone might recognise Parnell or Faulks if the police chose to flash their pictures to the desk staff. It was a shame that we were in such a beautiful location, because they could not make the most of it. For the next few days they would have to stay inside while their babysitters did all the coming and going.
While I escorted them inside, and got them settled, Rink made his way to the lodge on foot. It didn’t escape me that Rink was rather distinctive, much more memorable than either of the anonymous old men, but he had taken precautions, shedding his gaudy shirt for a plain T-shirt he’d fetched from the trunk, and hiding his hooded eyes behind reflective sunglasses. I watched him approach the lodge through a window, walking slightly bent over, his hands in his trouser pockets. He didn’t look anything like his normal self, which was good.
‘Everyone comfortable?’ He straightened up as he came in, pulling off the shades and hooking them in his collar. He made a quick scan of the lodge, and found it to his liking. Parnell and Faulks were positively out of their comfort zone, though. They stood at the centre of the main room, looking abashed, as though they’d just been caught red handed in a place they’d no right being.
‘How the other half live,’ Parnell said, casting his eye over the luscious furniture and décor. ‘This must cost an arm and a leg.’
‘Make the most of it,’ Rink said. ‘I can guarantee you’ll be sick of the sight of it in a couple of days’ time. Joe’s told you that you can’t leave, yeah?’
‘Could think of worse places to be locked up.’
‘A gilded cage is still a cage,’ Faulks put in. ‘Not that I’m ungrateful, Jared, but how long do you think we’re going to have to stay here?’
‘Hopefully it won’t be too long. But who can say? It depends on how fast we locate this bastard and take him out.’
I clapped Rink on his shoulder. ‘You’ll be OK on your own for a while? I’d best go and get things over with. Jones isn’t going to wait forever before he puts out an APB on us. Best that I go and speak with him before he makes it impossible for us to move around.’
‘Take the car,’ Rink said. ‘I’ll order a rental and have it delivered here. No, wait. On second thoughts, the cops we gave the slip to would have put out a description, maybe you’d best get a cab.’
I tossed him the keys. There was a phone on the wall, and I chose to use it rather than my cell. If Jones was resourceful enough he would already have requested a call log made from Rink’s phone. It was at the bottom of the bay now, but mine could still be traced if he found the number. I opened my cell, took out the battery and snapped the SIM card in two. It was one thing throwing myself to the wolves, but I didn’t want them finding the others.
I pulled my SIG out and handed it to Rink. Not a good idea to take it into a police station with me.
Then I walked out towards the exit gate, discarding the parts of my cellphone in a trashcan on the way. My cab arrived shortly after, and I gave the driver instructions to take me back into San Francisco. We took a different route back via the San Mateo toll bridge and Bay Shore Freeway, until I asked him to stop on the corner of 8th Street and Mission. I paid the driver, plus extra for the toll charge, and gave him a decent tip. I wasn’t too lavish with the cash, because I didn’t want him to remember me, but the guy had come a long distance out of his way and had to go back again. As soon as he’d pulled off I began looking for another cab, and flagged the first to come along.
‘Police station on Vallejo Street, please.’
The driver was a bit of a wise guy. ‘Normally when I pick someone up looking like you they want to avoid the cops.’
I’d washed, but my clothing was still dirty and smelled faintly of smoke. The guy probably thought I was a street person. ‘I’m good for the fare, if that’s what you’re worried about.’
‘I ain’t worried, just saying.’
Climbing into the cab, I pushed twenty dollars at him. ‘That’s for the fare up front.’ Then I slipped him another ten bucks. ‘That’s for the good advice. But drive there anyway.’
‘Your funeral, buddy.’
‘Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.’
Chapter 22
When he’d shot at the stranger he had made a big mistake.
It wasn’t the act of shooting itself, because that had achieved the desired result. The suppressor on his pistol had muffled the retort and hadn’t attracted any untoward attention. All witnesses had turned at the sound of screeching tyres as the stranger took evasive action, and their attention held as traffic began to pile up on the street. He had to wonder what the outcome would have been if he’d shot the stranger on one of the fast-moving freeways as opposed to a surface street. As it was the carnage went way beyond anything he had anticipated. He would have liked to check that the stranger was dead, but the magnitude of the crash meant that patrol cars would be responding very quickly. He could not see how the man could have avoided certain death. A cattle truck flattened his car, and even if he had survived the bullet he’d have suffered tremendous injuries. Dead or not he’d be in no shape to offer protection to the next people on his list.
No, the mistake he’d made was in wearing his uniform while out on the street. It was stupid and reckless, and could identify him if anyone had indeed witnessed the shooting, or his quick run back to his car and subsequent speedy getaway. His work clothes weren’t distinctive in themselves — it wasn’t as if it was a police officer’s uniform or anything else immediately identifiable — but it wouldn’t take much tracking down by a determined investigator. He had been acting on impulse, he recalled. The uniform had offered good disguise as he’d fled from Yoshida Takumi’s house, but he should have shed it before shooting at the stranger. He wouldn’t make another amateurish mistake like that again.