anymore?'
The silence in the restaurant gathered like a fog. Gerry's face got red.
His breath rasped. He leaned suddenly forward over the table. An elbow knocked over his mug and coffee puddled on the table top.
'You cocksucker,' he said. 'You can't talk that way to me.'
'Why not?' I said. 'You think these four guys are enough?'
'Nobody, nobody…' He seemed to run out of air and stopped and took in a deep breath.
'Lucky,' he said.
The guy with the shotgun half turned toward me and suddenly there was a gun in Hawk's hand. No one had seen any movement, but there it was. Everyone froze for a moment on the big.44, with the long barrel and the hammer thumbed back.
'Gerry goes first,' Hawk said.
The focus turned back to me. I had managed to get the Browning out and cocked. Lucky had the shotgun leveled at me. Maishe had a hand under his coat and Anthony stood motionless with his hand half raised toward a shoulder holster. Behind the bar Rocco's hands were out of sight. I kept the gun on Lucky. Nobody moved. It was very close quarters and if the balloon went up it was going to be a mess. I could hear Gerry's breath laboring in and out. The kitchen door swung open and Vinnie Morris walked into the dining room.
'What the fuck?' he said.
Nobody moved. Vinnie walked over to Lucky and casually put a hand on the shotgun and pushed the barrels down. Then he turned toward the booth where
Gerry was sitting.
'What the fuck, Gerry?' he said. He gestured with one hand toward Maishe, and with the other toward Anthony. They let their hands drop. I put the
Browning back under my arm. Hawk's gun disappeared.
'What are you doing here?' Gerry said finally.
'Joe asked me to hang around, keep an eye on things.'
'He knew about this meeting?'
'Sure.'
Gerry looked at the guy behind the bar.
'Rocco?' he said.
Rocco shrugged. 'Joe's bar,' he said.
'You fucking snitch,' Gerry said.
'I work for Joe,' Rocco said. 'No need to give me a batch of shit about it.'
'I'll give you any batch of shit I want to, you squealing cocksucker.'
'Vinnie?' Rocco said.
Vinnie nodded. To Gerry he said, 'Shhh.'
'So my father knew. So what?' Gerry said. 'What the fuck he have to send you for? He thinks I can't handle this?'
'He don't want you getting hurt,' Vinnie said. 'He says, Vinnie, go down, stay out of the way. Just keep an eye on things. Make sure nothing goes bad.'
'Hurt? Hurt, I'm fucking thirty-one, Vinnie. I'm a fucking grown man.'
'Joe wanted to be sure,' Vinnie said.
Gerry's voice was shaking. 'Stay the fuck away from me, Vinnie. You and him both, stay the fuck out of my life, you unnerstand? I don't need you. I was handling this, for crissake. I don't need you fucking wet-nursing me. I can handle it. I can handle any fucking thing. Stay the fuck away from me…
His voice broke. He got up suddenly and pushed past Vinnie and went out the front door. Vinnie watched him go. He shook his head slowly. Then he turned and in a gesture that included all three bodyguards he jerked his head at the door. Theywent out after Gerry. Rocco stayed behind the bar. Hawk remained motionless and silent at the back of the room.
Vinnie walked over and sat on a barstool next to me.
'You want some coffee?' he said to me.
'Sure,' I said.
'Hawk?'
'Un huh.'
'Rocco, give us three coffees,' Vinnie said.
Rocco poured and served, bringing a mug back to Hawk, who accepted it silently. When he got through, Vinnie said, 'Leave the pot, Rock, and go on out in the kitchen for a while.'
Rocco put the coffeepot on the bar where Vinnie could reach it and went through the swinging doors. Vinnie leaned his elbows back on the bar.
