‘No,’ she said. ‘Paul will have those watched closely now.’
‘He can’t watch every hospital in Houston.’
‘Sure he can,’ Eve said. Gooch returned to the kitchen, without Charlie, still holding his gun. ‘He tracked you two to the Pie Shack.’
‘Or he tracked you,’ Gooch said.
‘Not hardly,’ she said. ‘Nicky and his driver wouldn’t have let me reach you if they were tailing me. They would have taken me at first sight. I’m surprised they didn’t grab me in the lot… I must’ve come in on the other side of them circling around the diner.’
‘Bucks must’ve ordered us followed,’ Whit said.
‘No,’ Gooch said, ‘I would have spotted the tail.’
There was a silence in the room, except for the distant sound of a television sparking to life in the living room. ‘Or not,’ Eve said. ‘Are you infallible?’
‘Practically,’ he said in a cool voice.
‘Practically isn’t going to be good enough. Paul and Bucks can hire as much muscle as they want to get me. They simply have to offer a cut of the five million and I’ve got an instant megabounty on my head.’ She shook her head at Gooch. ‘I hope you have an army to back you up, Gooch. Paul will hunt you down like a dog for killing Nicky.’
‘You’re welcome,’ Gooch said. ‘I hope I get to save your sorry ass again tomorrow.’
‘Stop.’ Whit sat down, closed his eyes. ‘Is Charlie upset?’ he asked Gooch.
‘No. I gave him three dollars. Retainer. All three of us are his clients as of this moment. Commit all the crimes you want.’
‘Clients?’ Eve asked.
‘He’s a top defense lawyer, Eve,’ Gooch said.
She stood. ‘No. Nobody else knows anything about me, all right? I don’t want a lawyer.’
‘Sit down, please,’ Whit said and after a moment she did. ‘Gooch, what did you tell him?’
‘That there are bad guys after Eve, but for him not to worry. He’s cool,’ Gooch said.
‘He’s going to kick us out.’
‘I said, he’s cool. Come here a second, Whit.’
Whit followed Gooch into Charlie’s den. In the corner was a gun vault, with an array of rifles, pistols, and knives. Several weapons were shining with fresh polish, others looked antique and unusable. Charlie glanced at Whit and Gooch. He had been looking out the back window, not watching the TV.
‘Good God,’ Whit said.
The people I used to defend were scum,’ Charlie said. ‘This was my security blanket if they got mad at me.’
‘Charlie, I’m sorry. We don’t want to drag you into trouble,’ Whit said.
‘Whatever Gooch needs,’ Charlie said, ‘Gooch gets.’
‘I once did a big favor for Charlie. Private business,’ Gooch said.
Whit started to ask and Charlie shook his head. ‘Go to your mother, Whit. We’ll talk when you’re done.’
Gooch followed Whit back to the kitchen. Whit wadded up his bloodied shirt. Eve watched him. ‘Sorry about your shirt,’ she said.
‘It’s okay.’
Now she stood, came to his chair, knelt by him. ‘Your eye, it needs ice. And you’re cut-’
Gooch, with a slight smile, aimed his gun at Eve. She didn’t move, didn’t blink. ‘Very touching, Florence Nightingale.’
‘Gooch,’ Whit said. ‘Stop.’
‘Tell all, Eve,’ Gooch said. ‘How will they come after us? Why are they shooting at you, if you’re so high and mighty in the organization? What’s this about five million you owe them?’
‘Gooch, put that down!’ Whit said.
‘Honey, you don’t scare me,’ Eve said. ‘If you were going to shoot me, you could have shot me back at the diner.’ She closed her hands around Whit’s knees.
‘Listen closely,’ Gooch said. ‘I’m not your son. I’m not emotionally shredded about you the way Whit is.’
‘Psychoanalysis from you? That’s like a surgical lecture from Jack the Ripper,’ Whit said. ‘You are way out of line, Leonard. Sit your ass down over there and take that gun off her.’
‘Whit,’ Gooch said softly. ‘You don’t see what I see.’
‘I see you putting down that gun and sitting your butt down. Now.’
Gooch lowered the gun.
Eve watched him. ‘I like you, Gooch. You don’t mess around, do you?’
‘No, I don’t.’
‘I’d like a glass of water, Whit,’ Eve said. ‘It’s a long story.’
‘Story, then drink,’ Gooch said.
‘She bled, Gooch, she’s thirsty.’ Whit went to the counter, filled a glass with ice and water, set it down in front of her.
‘You forgot the lemon slice,’ Gooch said. ‘And the lace doily.’
‘Turn it down, please,’ Whit said, thinking, You killed a man, Gooch, and you don’t seem remotely bothered by it The depth to which he still did not know or understand his best friend gave him a tremble along his ribs.
‘I see we’ve already picked teams,’ Gooch said.
‘You’re not helping,’ Whit said.
‘Helping. Who saved your ass tonight and who put it in danger? Do I need to draw flash cards for you?’
‘Thank you,’ Whit said.
‘Thank you, Gooch,’ Eve said. ‘Not so much for me. For Whit.’
‘Sell it to Hallmark,’ Gooch said.
‘I’ll answer your questions,’ Eve said. ‘Since you’ve asked so nicely. And because you can take Whit and get out of this mess, right now.’ She took a long sip of cold water. She told the story in its entirety: from Paul’s determination to cut a big deal to keep his throne and make the Bellinis more powerful, her assignment to get five million in clean cash to pay off Kiko, Frank’s skimming and Paul’s warning to her, the stranger’s unexpected arrival at the exchange site, Eve fleeing then returning and finding the men dead and the five million in cash gone, and Bucks’ subsequent chase of her.
‘He was your PI, wasn’t he, honey? I’m so sorry. So, so sorry.’
At the mention of Harry’s death, Whit put his face in his hands. The kitchen was quiet. From the den came the hushed voices of the TV, Charlie flipping through the local stations to see if there were any reports about the Pie Shack shooting. Lazy rain pittered against the darkened windows.
‘I shouldn’t have had Harry try to contact you,’ Whit said. ‘Holy God, what have I done?’ He thought of Claudia, back in Port Leo, her friend now dead, trying to imagine a way to tell her, wanting to tell her before anyone else did but not knowing how he would explain it.
This isn’t your fault, Whit,’ Eve said. ‘It was the wrong place at the wrong time. Harry must have followed me there.’ She reached out, touched his leg. Gooch made a snorting sound. Whit put his hands down.
‘You say Bucks killed Harry and Doyle. And has the money,’ Whit said.
‘Yes,’ Eve said. ‘Bucks either wants it for himself or wants Paul to fail so he can take over.’
‘So what happens to the deal now?’ Whit said.
‘It doesn’t happen,’ Eve said. ‘Without that money.’
Whit refilled his mother’s glass with ice cubes and water, set it down in front of her. ‘Before we were attacked, you told me you wouldn’t go to the police. Now innocent people are dead. We have to call the police. Or have Charlie call them.’
‘Nicky killed the waitress, Gooch killed Nicky. Isn’t that justice?’ Eve said. ‘Of course, Gooch here might not want to deal with courts.’ Her voice almost sounded hopeful.
‘Not a worry,’ Whit said. ‘It was self-defense.’
‘Not how the court of Paul Bellini will view it,’ she said. ‘You kill one of his guys, you die. There’s no plea bargaining.’
‘So I kill Paul Bellini if I have to,’ Gooch said.
