“Jumbo’s the franchise,” Morrison said. “We keep a close eye on him. Ask Z.”
Z nodded.
“I worked for Jumbo, but his manager paid me.”
“Alice?” I said. “His agent?”
“Agent, manager, keeper,” Z said. “All of the above. She paid the bill, and I was supposed to report anything out of the ordinary to the company and to her.”
“But Jumbo could fire you,” I said.
“Sure,” Z said. “Jumbo got everything he wanted, as long as it didn’t damage the franchise.”
“Same deal with your, ah, successor?” I said.
Z shrugged and looked at Morrison.
“Same deal,” Morrison said. “Jumbo can be self-destructive, and we like to keep close tabs. Hell, I even followed up with Don, the new bodyguard. Lopata never got to Jumbo.”
I looked at Z.
“Maybe Tom sent a messenger,” I said.
Z nodded.
I shook hands with Morrison and thanked him for his time. Then I stood and went to the truck and took two turnovers.
As we walked away, Z said, “None for me, thanks.”
“I didn’t get any for you,” I said.
And took my first bite.
54
Stephano DeLauria came alone to introduce himself, on a drab June day with low clouds and rain spitting just enough to be unpleasant. I was at my desk and Z was standing with his arms folded on the top of the file cabinet, his chin resting on his forearms. He turned his head slightly to look at Stephano as he came into the office.
Stephano glanced briefly at Z. I opened the top right-hand drawer of my desk.
“No need for access to a piece,” Stephano said. “I am not going to kill you today.”
“Promises, promises,” I said.
I left the drawer open.
“My name is Stephano DeLauria,” he said. “Do you know who I am?”
“I do,” I said.
Z hadn’t moved. With his chin on his forearms, he looked steadily at Stephano. But there was about him a sense of potential kinesis, as if a spring was being coiled. Hawk was the only other person I’d ever known who gave off quite that kind of energy. Except that Hawk’s spring was always coiled.
“Then you probably know why I’ve come to Boston,” Stephano said.
His voice was very deep and flat. But it made the kind of throbbing purr that powerful engines make.
“I probably do,” I said.
He smiled blankly, and we sat silently, looking at each other. His face was narrow. His features were sharp and prominent. His dark hair was combed straight back. He had a healthy outdoors look about him, as if he took long hikes.
“I have come to kill you,” he said.
“Hot damn,” I said.
He smiled again, a small, aimless smile, without meaning.
“It is my rule,” he said. “I give one warning. If you stop what you’re doing, I will go back to Los Angeles — disappointed, yes. But it is the way I do business.”
“What is it I’m doing?” I said.
“We both know,” Stephano said. “So does the Indian.”
“And if I don’t stop what we all know I’m doing?”
“It will give me pleasure,” Stephano said. “It will allow me to kill you.”
He looked at Z.
“Both of you,” he said.
“Might be smart while it’s two to one,” Z said, “for us to kill you right now.”
Stephano shook his head.
“I can kill you both now, if I must. Here, now, with your desk drawer open,” he said. “But then it would be over quickly, and... I enjoy the process.”
Z looked at me. I shook my head.
“So far it’s all talk,” I said. “Let’s see what develops.”
With his chin still on his forearms, and his gaze still fixed on Stephano, Z shrugged. Stephano stood.
“Down the road,” he said, and walked out of the office.
55
I called Susan.
“I am going to have to check out for a while,” I said.
“Business?” Susan said.
“My appointment in Samara has arrived,” I said. “I don’t want to lead him to you.”
She was silent for a little while.
Then she said, “Don’t let him succeed.”
“You know I wouldn’t do that to you,” I said.
“God, you’re thoughtful,” she said. “Can you stay in touch?”
“I can call,” I said. “And I will.”
“You sound like this will take a while,” she said.
“I think so,” I said. “I think he likes foreplay.”
“So he is a sadist,” Susan said.
“I would guess.”
“While he’s enjoying the foreplay, why don’t you kill him?”
“I’m hoping to learn a little,” I said.
“Besides which,” Susan said, “you don’t do that, do you.”
“Only if it were about you,” I said.
“You just plow along,” Susan said. “You care about other people, but they don’t dissuade you, or distract you.”
“Except you,” I said.
“Except me,” Susan said. “You continue to be who and what you are, and you continue to do what you set out to do.”
“Born to plow,” I said.
“It scares the hell out of me,” Susan said.
“Scares the hell out of me too,” I said. “Sometimes.”
“But I greatly admire it,” she said.
“Good,” I said.
“You might want to exploit his sadism in some way,” Susan said.
“Suggestions?” I said.
“I don’t have one,” she said. “But if someone wants to stall for a while before he kills you, an opportunity might be lurking.”
“Might at that,” I said.
“Is Z with you?” Susan said.
“Yes,” I said. “Though not at this moment.”
“Where are you?”
“Home,” I said. “With the door locked.”
“At least you’ve locked the doors,” she said.
“I always lock the doors,” I said. “There’s no advantage to not locking them.”
“Always so logical,” she said.
“Except when I’m not,” I said.
“Except for then,” Susan said.
We were quiet again. It wasn’t awkward. Nothing was awkward with Susan. We both knew there was nothing left to say, but neither of us wanted to hang up.
“But Z will be staying with you when you are out and about,” she said.
“He will,” I said. “He’ll come and walk me to my office in the morning. We’ll probably have breakfast on the way.”
“At the Taj?”
“Probably,” I said.
“Don’t overeat and get logy,” she said.
I grinned silently.
“I’ll be careful,” I said.
“When do you suppose he’ll have enough foreplay,” Susan said.
“Same as everybody,” I said. “When consummation becomes irresistible.”
“I know the feeling,” Susan said. “In a different context.”
“Yes,” I said.
“I hope to experience it soon again,” she said.
“I’ll do my very best to survive,” I said.
“Call me when you can,” she said.
After we hung up, I wandered to the front window and looked down at Marlborough Street. Stephano was there, under a streetlight, leaning against a car. There were three other men with him. Stephano was smoking. All of them were looking up at my apartment.
I opened the window and leaned out.
“Can you guys do harmony on ‘Old Gang of Mine’?” I said.
They looked up at me silently.
“How about ‘Danny Boy’? ‘Won’t You Come Home, Bill Bailey’?”
Silence.
“Want me to lead?” I said. “ ‘Up a Lazy River’? You know that one?”
Nobody said anything; nobody moved except Stephano, who took a long drag on his cigarette and blew the smoke out slowly.