?Shut up.?
?How did you snag such an eligible bachelor? Seems like he?d have the ladies all over him. Oh, wait, what was that pretty little thing?s name? Brenda? His receptionist down at the firm, right??
?I hate you.?
?She had her little blond sights set on John, didn?t she? Just disappeared one day. Now, that was a lucky stroke. Lucky for you.?
?I get the point. Hold on.? She put her hand over the phone, turned little irritated circles there in the middle of the kitchen. This wasn?t fair. Not fair, and goddamn inconvenient. She?d landed a handsome, socially acceptable husband, and now she had plans to complete the picture with a baby if she could get John to pony up with the sperm. She didn?t need this shit.
But one thing Dad had taught them. When you?re square, you?re square.
?Then we?d be even,? she said into the phone. ?No more calling me for favors.?
?Cross my heart and hope to die, Middle Sister.?
?Just one question. Why aren?t you doing this yourself??
?I?m injured.?
?What?? Genuine concern. ?Bad??
?Nothing terminal, but it?s got me on the sidelines for a while. And I thought I?d visit Mother.?
?How is she??
?About the same. Last week she thought the gardener was Yassir Arafat.?
?I don?t want to know.?
?Seriously. Thanks for doing this. I?m up against a time thing.?
?So, who is it I?m supposed to make gone??
Nikki gave her the details, thanked her again, and hung up.
Meredith stood, staring at the phone for long seconds. Where to start? It had been a long time. She went upstairs, pulled out the lockbox she kept covered with dirty towels at the bottom of a clothes hamper in the back of the bedroom closet. There was as much chance of John doing a load of laundry as of Burger King building a drive- thru on Pluto, so she figured the box was safe.
She spun the combination and opened the box. A set of military ID she?d been saving just in case. A couple of passports. A 9mm Beretta with an extra magazine and a silencer. A few other things she thought of as keepsakes. Why had she kept these things? She found what she needed, the little black leather book. She flipped through it until she found the number she wanted.
She sat on the bed, dialed. It rang seven times until someone picked up. ?Hello?? A slight Spanish accent.
?It?s me, Ortega.?
?Meredith??
?I need you for a job.?
?I didn?t know you were still on the inside.?
?Yeah. You?re in Oklahoma City, right??
?Yes.?
?I need an advance scout. I?ll let you know the details in the morning.?
?Short notice,? Ortega said. ?I?ll have to use someone local.?
?Is he okay with a little blood??
