'Chas, you're thinking about it too much, trying to solve your problem by linear reasoning.'
'Isn't that what I'm supposed to do?'
'Not in matters of faith. That is determined by emotions.
'Are you telling me love is a faith?'
'That's exactly what I'm telling you. You can analyze the beiesus out of any faith, tear it to tatters with logic and reason. But if it's strong enough, it will survive.'
'That's heavy stuff,' I said. 'You want me to act on what I feel and not on what I think? ' She nodded. 'Follow your heart and not your head. Is that banal enough for you?'
'Plenty,' I told her. 'It's what Tommy the Termite does.
He decides to marry the girl, and they live happily ever after.'
'Well?' she said. don't scare easy, but I admit I was getting antsy.
What happened was this, Willie and I had a meet with Jessica at her place, and she told us how she had spotted a black Camry driving past her house. But the guy behind the wheel, who Willie claimed was Teddy O an enforcer from Miami, Jess made as John R.
Thompson, who had conned his. way into her home by posing as a property tax appraiser. , and they got no one by that name working for them. So the bastard diddled me. I should have my brain examined.'
I was spooked by the story, but Willie didn't lose his cool.
'Let's not panic,' he said. 'I'm just guessing that Teddy O. is working for Big Bobby Gurk. But it's possible that he's cooking some caper of his own that's got nothing to do with the ZAP pill.'
'That's crap,' I said, and I told them about Gurk's last visit when he told me he suspected the three of us were planning to dork him.
'Oh, he knows all right,' I said bitterly. 'And I'm betting he and his bloody playmate are plotting something nasty.'
'Shit,' Willie said, which surprised me, because usually he talked like a perfect gentleman.
'Hey,' Jessica said, 'I think right now we could all use a belt.
Chivas for you, Laura, vodka for me, and club soda for you, Willie.
Okay?'
She brought the drinks, and we sat there awhile without speaking. Jess and I were waiting to hear how Brevoort was going to handle these new developments. After all, the whole fucking deal was his idea, and he was supposed to be the ballsy honcho.
'I still think our original scenario is a good one,' he said finally.
'But now we'll have to make a few minor adjustments.
First of all, let's move up the schedule and make our move before Bobby Gurk and Teddy O. can hit on us. Suppose we do it on Wednesday, September second, at noon. All right with you ladies?'
Jessica and I nodded.
'And since they may be tailing jess's car and mine, let's switch to your Taurus, Laura. Okay?'
'Sure,' I said. 'Jess and I can trade cars for the day.'
'We'll still use this for our safe house,' Willie went on, 'because I'm convinced it won't be for more than one day.
Gregory Barrow will hand over the pill after the first phone call, I'm sure of it, he'll be at work in the lab. But now the problem is how do we get Mabel Barrow out of the house on September second? If she's around, it might queer the whole operation.'
'That's easy,' I said. phone Mabel on Wednesday morning and tell her Hashbeam's Boteek got in some new lingerie that's just right for her. She'll come running, I can practically guarantee it.'
'Good,' Willie said. 'Then I think that takes re of everything. Any questions?' ca 'You'll be with me in the Taurus?' Jessica asked him.
'Of course,' he said. 'That part of it will go just like we planned.
We come back here, call the chemist at the lab, and that's it.'
'Willie,' I said, 'are you sure this cockamamy thing is going to work?'
'I'm sure,' he said. 'It'll go like silk, you'll see.' He still had half his club soda left, but Jess treated me and herself to refills.
'Then what?' Jessica asked him. 'Assuming we get the pill, what happens next? Go over it one more time.'
'All right,' he said patiently. 'I take off as planned. I go to another city, probably another state. I get the ZAP pill copied and the business organized. it might take a month or so, but trust me.
I'm not going to shaft you. It's not my style.
And I figure that after a month or so Gurk will lose interest. After all, what can he do? He hasn't got the name of the chemist so he can't glom on to another pill.'
'The asshole can come looking for us,' I reminded, him. 'Jess and I will still be here.'
'That's right,' he agreed, 'but you both knew that when you signed on for this. If he shows up, just tell him that I suddenly disappeared, you don't know where I went, and to the best of your knowledge I never did get the ZAP pill. I honestly don't think he's going to lean on you.'
We didn't say anything. Willie finished his drink and stood up.
'I don't think we should meet again,' he said, until this goes down.
Let's stay in touch by phone. And by Wednesday or the day after this whole thing will be wrapped up, and we'll be on our way to easy street.
After he left, Jessica poured us another drink and we sat staring at each other.
'What do you think?' she asked me.
'I thought I could handle Big Bobby,' I told her. 'But after that last boff I'm not so sure. When Willie takes off, I think Gurk will come looking for us, and he might get physical. Him and that Miami killer.'
'Let me tell you something,' Jess said. 'Something I haven't told Willie the Weasel, and I don't want you mentioning it to him.
After I saw Teddy O. casing my home, and remembering what Brevoort said about him being a hatchet man, I decided to put the house up for sale.
So I've got it listed with a real estate agent. After we get the ZAP pill, I'm leaving with Willie, and I'm never coming back. Wherever we go, I'll hire a lawyer to handle the sale of the house for me. But I'll be long gone with no forwarding address so Big Bobby Gurk and Teddy O. can't feed me to the sharks. Guys like that scare the hell out of me.'
'My God, less,' I said. 'Then what happens to me? You and Willie will leave me to face the music. And like you said, those guys don't play nice when they think they've been dorked.'
She thought a moment. 'Laura, do you own that condo of yours?'
'No, it's leased.'
'Then you can walk away from it. Take my advice and start packing. Do like I am, I'm taking two suitcases of stuff I really want and just leaving the rest of my shit. What the hell, if you can believe Willie, we'll have all the money in the world to buy new things.'
I looked at her. 'You know, Jess, I think you're right.
I'll get ready to split as soon as we have the pill. The three of us will leave together.'
'Also, she added with a twisty grin, 'it won't do any harm to keep an eye on Willie the Weasel, in case he has any cute ideas of screwing us out of our shares.' in,m,i like the way you think,' I told her.
'I'm beginning to have my doubts about that grifter. ever since he found out He's been running scared Teddy O. was on his tail. We'd be schmucks to let him take off by himself with the pill. We'd probably never hear from him again.'
'That's the way I see it,' Jess said, nodding. 'So the two of us will stick to him like a second skin. just to protect our investment, you know.'
'Right on!' I said. 'I'm going home now and start packing. You have any idea where you'd like to go after we dump this burg?'
'I've been thinking about New Orleans, ' she said.
'I've never been there, and I hear it's a wide-open town.'
'Suits me,' I said. 'I'm ready for a change of scene.
