Fresh Disasters

“Of course.” Willa filled two glasses with ice and made to pour. The moment Daltry was out of sight she checked the many buttons on the phone and found one that read “Log.” She pressed it. “Bernstein, did you hear that conversation?” she whispered.

“Every word.”

“Write down this number.” She read it out to him. “It appears four other times today in his phone log.”

“I’ll check it out.”

She pressed the button again, and the log disappeared, then she poured the drinks.

Daltry came back from the john and picked up his drink. “To an interesting future,” he said. They drank, and he snaked an arm around her waist.

She let him kiss her, helping out a bit. “What time is it?” she asked, when they broke.

“Who cares? The night is young.”

She looked at her watch. “I’m afraid it’s not all that young, and I have an eight o’clock meeting tomorrow morning that I have to do some reading for.” She danced lightly away from his grasp. “Can we continue this another evening soon?”

He grabbed her wrist and not gently. “Now is soon enough for me,” he said. “I’ll send you home with my driver in the morning; you’ll be in plenty of time for your meeting.”

“Not tonight, I’m afraid,” she said, breaking free.

“You’re just a little cock teaser, aren’t you,” he said, advancing toward her.

“No, I’m a big cock teaser, and I’m going home now.”

He reached into a pocket and came out with a small spray canister. “I’ve got something for you,” he said, spraying her in the face.

Her eyes were on fire, and she was having trouble speaking. “My…”

Then he hit her in the midriff hard, with his fist, and she went down. “I knew you’d like it rough,” Daltry was saying, as he knelt beside her, ran his fingers into her cleaveage and yanked half her dress off, baring her breasts.

“My back hurts,” she managed to say.

“Don’t worry, sweetie, I’m going to make it all better,” Daltry said. He had produced a switchblade knife and quickly cut the rest of her dress and underwear off.

She got in one punch, aiming for his nose, but caught him on the cheekbone when he turned his head. “My back hurts, goddammit!” she screamed.

He backhanded her, bouncing her head hard off the wooden floor.

He flipped her over on her belly and got a knee between her legs. “Well, let’s give you something else to think about,” he said. He put the knife against the back of her neck. “And if you move, I’ll cut your fucking head off!”

Willa went limp and began to lose consciousness. She tried to think of something pleasant and failed.

They were on coffee at Elaine’s. Dino’s phone rang. “Bacchetti.”

“Lieutenant, it’s Bernstein. Willa got something, I think: a phone number. Joe Dowdell is ru

“What’s so great about this number, Bernstein? We’re not shopping for real estate.”

“Daltry got a call, and I could hear his half of it. It sounds like he’s got somebody called Jerry stashed in a house up there, and he told him if he left the house, he could end up back in prison.”

“That sounds promising.”

“Wait a minute, Dowdell’s got it. The phone is in Daltry’s name; must be a country house.”

“That’s a start. You got an address?”

“Just a minute. Yeah, here it is.” He read off the address.

Dino jotted it down on the tablecloth. “Okay, I’ll get some people up there to talk to whoever the guy is.”

“Wait a minute, we got a Mayday from Willa!” The co

“Holy shit,” Dino said, “Willa’s in trouble, and I don’t even know if they’re in the building yet.” He snatched Stone’s phone and dialed a number. “I’ve gotta keep my line clear.” He waited impatiently for the number to answer. “This is Bacchetti,” he said finally. “I want you to get hold of the state police at the nearest station to Sneden’s Landing, then meet them at this address and hold whoever is in the house until you hear from me.” He read off the address. “You got that? Also, I want backup at Devlin Daltry’s address in SoHo right now! Officer needs assistance. They may need battering rams!” He hung up.

“I told you she shouldn’t go into that building,” Genevieve said. “He raped me.”

Eliza looked shocked. “You never told me.”

“I never told anybody,” she said.

Dino patted her hand. “I’m sorry, Genevieve. Don’t you worry, I’m going to make him pay for that.”

“Why don’t you call Bernstein back?” Stone said.

“He’ll call me,” Dino said. “He’s got enough on his hands right now without having to take my phone calls. His partner is in trouble; I shouldn’t have let him send her in there,” he said. “This is my fault all the way.”

“It was her call, Dino; she was on the spot, and you have to back her decision. Nothing is your fault.”

“Shit,” Dino said, banging on the table.

55

Bernstein screamed, “Mayday, Mayday,” and pulled out his gun, intending to shoot at the locks. He didn’t know if it would do any good. Then he heard Willa scream.

“My back is killing me, goddammit!”

Joe Dowdell came ru

“Not this door, the garage door!” Bernstein shouted.

Dowdell ran toward the garage door and ran the tip of the crowbar under it until it stopped where the door latched into the pavement. He worked it to no avail, then he stood on the end of the bar and put his whole weight on it. There was a metallic snap, and the door came unanchored from the concrete. All four cops got their fingers under it and managed to raise it about eighteen inches. Then the flying form of Shelly Pointer scooted under the door.

Shelly ran for the elevator. “It’s five floors!” she yelled back. “It’s faster to wait for the elevator.”

Bernstein, who was in the best shape of the four men, ignored her and ran for the stairs.

The elevator seemed to take forever.

“I don’t like the noises I’m hearing,” Pointer said. There were grunting sounds coming from their equipment. “And I don’t hear Willa at all.”

The elevator finally came, and the other three cops boarded it. As they passed the third floor they could hear Bernstein’s feet pounding on the steel stairs. He reached the fourth floor just as they did and was banging on the steel fire door.

Somebody let him in, and the five cops ran through the apartment to the curving staircase and, with Pointer in the lead, ran up the last flight.

As Pointer reached the top of the stairs she could see across the living room to the bar. Willa was on the floor, naked, and Daltry was behind and on top of her, oblivious to the five cops rushing across the room. Pointer got there first, and swung her gun at his head. There was a flash of blood, and Daltry fell sideways, clutching at his scalp and screaming. The four men fell on him.

Pointer shucked off her raincoat, went to Willa and covered her. “Oh, Willa, baby,” she crooned, stroking her hair. “What did that bastard do to you?” She turned back toward the cops. “Don’t kill him, for Christ’s sake! Get on the horn and get an ambulance down here, and tell them to send a fucking doctor, not just an EMT. Willa is unconscious!”

Back at Elaine’s, Dino answered his cell phone again. “What?”

Bernstein was breathing hard. “He’s hurt Willa,” he shouted into the phone. “We got him, but he’s hurt her.”

“Have you called for an ambulance?”

“Yeah, it’s on the way. We’ll probably end up at Bellevue; I’ll call you.”

“I’ll meet you there,” Dino said. He snapped the phone shut and turned to Stone. “You take care of the ladies,” he said. “I’ll call you when I know more.” His cell phone rang again, and he flipped it open. “Bacchetti.” He listened for a moment. “Great! Get him into the city pronto. I’m going to Bellevue, and when I know what’s going on there, I’ll come back to the precinct.” He snapped the phone shut again. “The state cops have arrested one Jerome Daltry at Devlin Daltry’s house in Sneden’s Landing on a parole violation. They’re bringing him down here. I gotta go. I’ll call you later.” Dino ran for his car.