The Night Crew

Schoenberg Hall was a low white building on the south side of a grassy sunken square called Dickson Plaza. A

'That'd keep you sharp,' Harper said, dropping down beside her.

'I don't need sharp.' She looked at her watch. 'Should be ending.'

Ten minutes went by. Then the door opened, and a woman walked out. A minute later, a couple. Another minute, and a stream of people pushed out of the building, chatting and laughing as they headed down the walk.

'Lot of people. Must've been pretty good,' A

'No Clark?'

'If it's really his student, they're probably hanging around until everyone leaves, talking about it.'

'Is that fun? A good time?'

She let the question hang for a second, then said, 'Mostly. It can be pretty terrible. But even when it's terrible, it's kind of fun. You know, people mess up. If they're your friends, you pretend it was nothing. If they're your enemies, you tell everybody that you feel sorry for them, and you still think it's possible that they can recover. Stab them in the back.'

'Did you ever mess up?'

'Sure. Everyone does. But if you do it with confidence, keep on counting, you can get away with it. You can get away with a lot, when you're playing alone or with a good group. That's part of the fun, too. A secret that nobody knows except the players.'

'Never played music,' Harper said. 'Can't even whistle.'

'Everybody can whistle,' A

'Nope. Can't do that. I can make a noise, but.' She touched his sleeve: 'There he is. That's Clark.'

Clark was walking with a woman who was carrying a cello case, and A

'What?' Harper asked. He was whispering, though Clark and the woman were seventy-five yards away.

'Cello players are supposed to be, you know, sexy. All those hours with a big vibrating instrument between their knees.'

'Hmm.'

'Yeah, it's gotta be bullshit.'

'Why?'

'I don't know.'

The other couple walked past, still seventy-five or eighty yards away, and Harper said, 'Walk behind mehe'll recognize your walk if he sees you.' A

'Okay.'

They followed Clark and the woman around the end of the building, and A

'You sure?'

'There's nothing else over there, unless they're walking somewhere. I can't see them walking far with that cello.'

'Run and get the car,' Harper said, tossing her the keys. 'I'll meet you outside the structure. And runand keep the goddamn gun handy.'

A

She ran up the stairs to the second level, where they'd parked. Stopped and listened. Heard a car somewhere in the structure. She ran toward the car, popping the car door with the automatic key.

As she came up to the car door, she was seized with the fantasy that somebody was looming behind her: she saw nothing at all, but she climbed frantically into the car and hit the electric lock button. The locks snapped down, and she twisted, looking out the windows. nothing. Nobody. Her heart was beating so hard she thought she could hear it, but a minute later, she paid the parking fee and was on her way, no other cars in sight.

Harper was waiting at the other structure. He flagged her down, and she stopped and crawled into the passenger seat as he got in on the driver's side.

'What?' she asked.

'Woman's got a Dodge van. They talked for a couple of more minutes, then he headed up to the next floor. The van just got out a minute ago.'

She didn't want to ask, but did anyway: 'Did he kiss her goodnight?'

'No.' Harper didn't smile at the question, just shook his head. 'Christ, you're hung up on this guy. And I shoulda said yes.'

'I don't know what I am; I think I might be goofy,' A

'You remember?'

'Yeah, because. it's about what I'd have expected.'

As she said it, a dark-blue Volvo wagon nosed out of the structure, then turned left and drove past them.

'Here we go.'

Clark led them down to Wilshire, and then to Santa Monica, right on Santa Monica toward the Pacific…

'He lives the other way,' Harper said.

'Mmm.'

Clark was in a hurry, slicing in and out of traffic. Harper let him get several cars ahead.

'If he sees us ru

They stayed with him all the way into Santa Monica, into another parking structure. Harper got in line behind him for a parking ticket, as A

Harper took two more turns, then pulled in.

'Stay behind me again, until we know where he is,' Harper said.

'How far are we?'

'Other side of the structure, half a floor lower,' Harper said. 'He may already be going down the stairs.'

They ran to the stairs, and Harper eased the door open. They heard a door bang, and Harper said, 'Shit, we'll have to take a chance. Come on.'

'No. I'll wait hereyou call me.'

Harper nodded and ran down the stairs, opened the door, then called up, 'He's out here, hurry.'

A

'He's a hundred feet up there,' Harper said. A

Harper said, 'Come on. We've got to stay close or we'll lose him.'

'Oh, Jesus, Jake.' She clutched at his arm. 'God, he can't see me.'

'If he does, you're with me, on a date,' Harper said. 'One of those things.'

'Aw.'

But she went down past the rows of shops to an escalator, and watched as Clark headed down.

'Go slow,' A

'Stand behind me,' Harper said. 'He's headed for the food court.'

A

'Where'd he go?' Jake asked quietly.

A

Harper led her to one side: 'He was right here. look for the jacket.'

No jacket.

'Christ.' Harper turned around. 'Where in the hell did he go?'

They couldn't find him. He had absolutely vanished.

Finally, A

Harper nodded: 'All right.' And, 'Do you think he spotted us?'

'I don't think so. He seemed to be in a big hurry.'

'So where the hell did he go? Into one of the concession stands?'

'I don't know. I just hope he wasn't watching usI hope he didn't see us. I knew we shouldn't have done this.'

Harper stopped her: 'A