Stay with no-more-assholes.'
She nodded, still clenched inside her folded arms, still avoiding the tenth-story window. I unmade the bed, dragged the mattress onto the floor, folded the spread over to serve as padding on the box spring, found an extra blanket in the closet, put a pillow on the mattress, and left a pillow on the box spring.
'Your choice,' I said.
'I can't just lie down and go to sleep,' she said.
'You can do whatever you like,' I said.
'All I want to know is when you do lie down, where you wish to lie.'
'I don't have any pajamas.'
'Me either,' I said.
She still stood, hugging herself, looking like she didn't know what to do. I looked at the box spring. It was probably less comfortable than the mattress.
'The bathroom's there. Use anything you find in there. I got a*: big day tomorrow, wrestling with Marty and such, and I need my rest.'
I took off my shoes and put them side by side on the closet shelf, a habit ingrained in me by Pearl the Wonder Dog, who saw them as chew toys. I took off my pants, and hung them neatly on a hanger in the closet. I put the gun on the bed table beside me and, ever the gracious host, jumped on the box spring and went to sleep in my shorts. I don't know what Bibi did before retiring.
CHAPTER 50
The morning was a little more intimate than either of us would have wished, but we got through it and by nine o'clock were downstairs breakfasting with Hawk and Bob the waiter. Hawk of course showed no surprise when Bibi and I sat down with him. And when I explained the situation he seemed pleased.
'You check on Anthony?' I said to Hawk.
'Yeah, my friend say he's here. Room fourteen-fifteen.
Comped.'
'How nice for him,' I said.
Bob the waiter came by and poured me some decaf.
'Hey, Boston,' he said.
'Come back to visit your money?'
We ordered breakfast and lingered over it while we pondered the situation. Actually Hawk and I did most of the pondering. And Bibi drank a lot of tea. But, by ten of eleven, we had pondered up a course of action. Hawk left before we did. I signed the check, left a big tip for Bob because he remembered me, went back up to my room with Bibi, and called Bernard J. Fortunate as soon as I got there.
'I need to talk with Marty Anaheim,' I said.
'So why you calling me?'
'Because you know where he is,' I said.
'What makes you think so?'
'Cut the crap, Bernie. You double-dipped. You sold her to me, then you sold her to Marty. He's in town I want to see him. You know where he is.'
'Gotta make a living,' Bernie said.
'Whaddya want to see him about.'
'Save a lot of trouble, you tell me where he is,' I said.
'Save a lot of trouble for you,' Bernie said.
'Whaddya want?'
'I got his wife, and Anthony Meeker with me, we need to make a deal.'
'Say I tell him that and he wants to see you, where you want to do it.'
'Vacant lot,' I said, 'off the Strip, halfway between The Mirage and the MGM Grand, back of a boarded-up Greek restaurant, you know it?'
'Where they found the dead broad?' Bernie said.
'Yeah.'
'What if he don't like that spot?'
'Then the hell with him,' I said.
'I'll get back to you.'
'You know where I am?'
'Yeah, sure, you're at The Mirage. What am I, stupid?'
'And Marty's probably at the Grand,' I said.
