He coughed. The eloquence may have been too much for him. 'I gotta go now. Quotas and such.'
He walked away from me with short, tired steps. It was going to be a long day for him.
I climbed the stairs to my office and spent the next hour pacing around, searching for a lead, some method of bringing me closer to the Supreme Recluse. None of my previous contacts would be of any help. And Zack was unwilling to offer any assistance.
While stretched out on my couch to catch a doze, an idea hit me during that moment between dreamy slumber and drowsy waking. After allowing a minute or two for my sense to catch up with my thoughts, I seized the phone and punched up information.
'City?' a raspy voder asked.
'L.A. I need the number of God Almighty.'
The computer searched for a moment, then replied in mechanical deadpan. 'Not listed, sir. Would you like an operator?'
'No, thanks. Connect me with the Bautista Corporation on Cordova.'
The line rang for a couple times, and a soft voice on the other end answered.
'Bautista Development.'
'Ann Perrine, please.'
'May I ask who's calling?'
'Dell Ammo.'
She put me on hold for a few minutes, then I heard a click.
'Dell?' Even over the phone, her voice reminded me of satin and soft lights.
'Yeah. Look, I know this is out of line, but you told me to call you if I ever needed help.'
'Of course.'
'Yeah. Well, this'll sound like a crazy old man talking. I need some... help in researching, uh, religious matters.'
Her voice betrayed a sudden interest.
'I minored in philosophy at UCLA. What do you need?'
I tried to ease it to her. 'It's sort of nuts, but there's this guy who's offered me lots of money to find God. He's convinced that God exists somewhere and can actually be-hunted down.'
Silence shot back and forth over the line for a dozen heartbeats.
'You're looking for god,' she said. 'For real.'
'In the flesh. Or whatever He uses.'
'Why?'
'The money.'
'And you want me to help you defraud this man?'
She asked the tough ones. She'll either think I'm a crook or a psycho. I preferred the latter. I'd rather be thought of as insane than dishonest. I cleared my throat.
'I don't think it will be fraud. This guy seems convinced that I can find Him.' I switched on a gizmo attached to my phone that checks for listeners. The lights flashed green-the line was secure.
'He gave me a contract to track down God and kill Him.'
