Show of Evil

Jimmy Durante.'

'Okay,' said St Claire.

'You disagree?' Vail asked.

'Nope, just thinkin' out loud.'

'You got another nudge?' asked Meyer.

'Kinda.'

'What's a kinda nudge?' Meyer asked.

'It's just, you know, a kinda nudge. Ain't a full-fledged nudge yet.'

'Your nudges make me nervous, Harve,' Vail said.

'Why?'

'Because most of the time they turn out to be harbingers of doom.'

'Can't help it, just happens.'

'I'm not knocking it, I'm just saying they make me nervous.'

The police car was parked a block away from Rudi Hines's apartment. The driver was an old-timer named John Bohane. His partner, Richard Luscati, was a rookie, two months on the job.

'Lieutenant Johnson said we should wait here for you, Mr Vail, so as not to rile anybody up. We did walk down there and look around.'

'And…?'

'Her car's parked around back in an alley. Bonnet's warm. And there's a lot of blood on the front seat.'

'Uh-oh,' St Claire said.

'You think she's in there then?' Vail asked.

'Yes, sir, I do.'

'Okay, let's do this cautiously. This lady should be considered armed and dangerous.'

'Right.'

Meyer pulled the car in front of the patrol car and parked. The five men walked up the quiet deserted street to the converted row house.

'That's her apartment,' Bohane said, pointing to the corner of the second floor.

'There a back door?' St Claire asked.

'Uh-huh.'

'Whyn't you two go in the back, we'll take the front, just in case she decides to take a drive.'

'Right.'

The two patrolmen disappeared quietly down the paved walk that separated the two houses. Vail, St Claire, and Meyer walked quietly to the front door.

Vulpes watched as the second car pulled up beside the police car. He couldn't see what was going on. Then the new arrival pulled over to the kerb in front of the patrol car and three men got out. The cops joined them. They started across the street towards the apartment building. As they passed under the street light, he recognized Vail. His pulse throbbed in his jaw, increasing the pain, but he ignored it. He was overwhelmed with hatred. There was Vail, a block away, and he could do nothing about it.

Damn you, damn you, Vail! You figured it out faster than I gave you credit for.

Well, perhaps the police did not know about the attack on Stenner and Venable yet. Stenner was surely dead. Venable was out cold, so probably Stenner's car wasn't hot yet.

Maybe I hurt the bitch more than I thought. He laughed thinking about it. Still, he had to ditch the car in a hurry.

It was too late to help Hydra. Hopefully she was so far over the edge, she wouldn't give away the rest of the plan. Too bad, he thought. It was such a perfect plan and she had carried it out flawlessly until now. But Venable had screwed him up and now Vail had beat him to her.

He had to get away from there, lift another car and ditch Stenner's. He checked the map and found a group of high-rise apartments. Perfect, he thought. He had to find a parking lot and heist another car.

Goodbye, Hydra. Sorry it didn't work out.