“This is a bad man you’re playing tag with,” she said.
“I’ve been going on that assumption.”
“What can I do? As a lawyer maybe I can give him some grief.”
“Don’t even think about it. I don’t want you anywhere near this creep.”
“I don’t think you automatically get the final word on that.”
“The hell I don’t. I don’t want him to even hear your name.”
She looked angry but I cut her off with my own look. “Listen, goddammit, you make me more vulnerable, not less. I’ve got enough on my hands with Koko and myself.”
She made a little arch with her fingers and held them up to her face like a woman praying. I looked at her fiercely and said, “Don’t make me sorry I told you.”
“Nice try, but I’m not buying that.”
“You’d damned better buy it.”
She came straight up in her chair. “Or what’s gonna happen? Gonna take my dolls away?”
What I said next was stupid and false. “Erin, I appreciate your concern—”
She wadded up her napkin and bounced it off my head. “Don’t give me that imperious male baloney. If you want me out of your life, at least be man enough to say so in plain language. Is that what you want? Yes or no.”
“God, no.”
“Then shape up. Behave yourself. Don’t talk down to me. Don’t try to protect me.”
I thought about what to say and settled on this: “In your world every conflict has a legal answer. You think you can just file a brief in Denver District Court and force him to become human, but it doesn’t work that way. Don’t take this personally, but you’re out of your league with this boy.”
“And you’re not?”
“I don’t know.”
She shook her head. “I can’t just stand by and do nothing.”
“Well, you’ve got to.”
“And if he kills you, and there’s no evidence, what am I supposed to do then?”
“Nothing. What can you do anyway but get killed yourself?”
“I can’t accept that.”
“What can you do about it?”
“I’ll hold him down while you cut him a new one.”
It was one of those crazy unexpected comments and at once we were convulsed. She dabbed her eyes and said, “Stop it, this isn’t funny,” and we laughed all the more. I said, “Listen, I’m going to handle this,” and we laughed like idiots. “Don’t you make it harder,” I said, and we laughed.
I coughed. “I’m sorry, was that too much imperious male baloney?”
“Yeah, it was, but the groveling tone helps.” She smiled at me from somewhere far behind her face. “How much time do you think you have before he finds you?”
“I don’t know that either. There’s no reason yet to assume he knows where we went.”
“You hope.”
I fiddled nervously with the saltshaker.
“Are you afraid of him?”
“I’m…wary. I’ve had enemies before, some of them real badasses. I just get the feeling there’s no limit with this guy. My biggest fear is I may never see it coming.”
She was sober now, the laughter of the moment gone and forgotten. “This makes our little rivalry pale by comparison, doesn’t it?” A moment later she said, “I want to tell Lee.”
“What good will that do?”
“I don’t know, maybe none.” She looked away, then back. “Three heads are better than two.”
“Tell him, then. If he’s got the good sense I think he has, he’ll tell you to stay out of it.”
“Lee doesn’t own me and neither do you. You really are annoying when things don’t go your way.”
“That’s why people want to kill me.”
