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There was dense silence for a moment. "I don't know what to say, Steph." Rune was nervous and she did busywork, straightening up clothes. "I got you involved in this whole thing. I almost got you killed. And it was so stupid-we were ru
"A what?" Stephanie gave a laugh.
"That guy in the subway, the one you hit-I thought he was working for them. But it turned out he was a U.S. marshal. Isn't that radical? Just like the Texas Rangers."
She told Stephanie about Haarte and Emily.
"I heard something about it on the news, in the hospital," Stephanie said. "A shooting at this town house. I never guessed you were involved."
Rune's eyes were excited again. "Oh, oh, and talk about adventures… They want me to be the star witness."
"Isn't that scary?"
"Sure. But I don't care. I want that bitch to go away for a long time. They killed Mr. Kelly. And they tried to kill me-and you too."
"Well, I'm pretty sure there'll be plenty of cops to look out for you."
Rune wandered to the bookcase, replaced some of the books she'd packed to take home. "I called the video store. They told me you quit."
"That Tony," Stephanie said, "what an asshole. I couldn't deal with him-not the way he treated you."
Rune gri
"What?"
Rune told her about the minister. "Little Red Hen, remember? You believed in me. If there really is any money, you'll get some of it."
Stephanie laughed. "You think there is?"
"I'm not sure. But you know me."
"Optimist," Stephanie supplied.
"You got it. I-"
Plop.
Rune cocked her head. She heard the sound again. A drip. Soft. Plop.
She glanced at where it was coming from-Sandra's side of the apartment.
"You don't really have to give me anything, Rune." "I know I don't have to. But I want to."
Plop, plop.
Damn! Sandra'd spilled her nail polish. There was a big red stain on the floor.
"Jesus, Sandra!"
Rune turned the corner and stopped. There was her roommate in her thick white bra and black panty hose, eyes staring at the apex of the glass ceiling. She lay on her futon. The bullet hole in her chest was a tiny dark dot. The stain wasn't nail polish. It was the blood that was trickling down her arm and onto the floor.
Stephanie stood up and pointed the gun at Rune. She said, "Come on back over here, love. Let's have a little talk."
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
"You're Haarte's partner," Rune whispered.
She nodded. "My name's Lucy Zane," the woman said coldly. "Haarte and I worked together for three years. He was the best partner I ever had. And he's dead. Thanks to you."
"Then who's Emily?"
"Just backup. We use her sometimes for jobs on the East Coast."
Rune, sitting down on the cushions, shaking her head. Everything floating in front of her-a big soup. Richard, the money, Pretty Boy, Emily, and Haarte. Robert Kelly. She felt the slamming of her heart in her chest as the hopelessness arose again. And she lowered her face into her hands. Whispering: "Oh, no, oh, no."
She was too numb for tears. Not even looking up, she said, "But your job at the video store? How'd you get the job?"
"How do you think? I fucked Tony."
"I hope it was disgusting," Rune spat out. "Was. But it didn't last long. A minute or two." "But you were my friend… You helped me get the clothes… Why? Why'd you do that?"
"1 got close to you so we could set you up. Haarte and 1 killed two U.S. marshals in St. Louis. That put a lot of heat on us. And we fucked up the Spinello hit in the Village. So we needed a fall guy. Well, fall girl. You got elected. Almost worked too."
"Too bad the cab had good brakes," Rune said coldly. "We're lucky sometimes. Even people like me." Rune shook with anger and fear. Stephanie continued. "1 heard from Emily. The judge denied her bail request. But she said to say hello. She hopes you and I'd have a nice visit. And I think we will. Now, there's one thing I've got to know. Did you tell the cops or marshals anything about me?"
A click and a grind sounded behind them. Rune's eyes flashed for a second.
Richard.
Stephanie glanced at the sound, then turned back to Rune.
"Tell me," she said. "And I'll let you go." "Bullshit." Rune scrabbled away into the cushions as if they'd protect her from the black gun.
"I'll let you go," the woman said. "I promise."
"I'm the only witness. How can you let me go? You have to kill me." She looked at the clouds outside the loft, the dragons, the giants, the trolls, marching past, miles high, not caring a bit for what was going on down on earth.
The grinding started again. The elevator was coming up.
"You must've told them about me after the accident. Did the marshal I hit in the subway think I was part of Did you tell them my name?"
"It's not real."
"No, but I've used it before. I can be traced through it.
Chains, clinking chains. And the grind of metal on metal. Another loud click, a scrape.
"Who's coming to visit, Rune?"
"I don't know."
Stephanie glanced at the stairway. Then back at Rune. She said, "So, what do you have in your hand."
Rune couldn't believe that the woman had seen her. Oh, she was good. She was very good.
"Show me," Stephanie persisted.
Rune hesitated, then held up her hand and slowly opened the bandaged fingers. "The piece of stone. From the Union Bank Building. My souvenir. The one I picked up when you were with me that day down in Wall Street."
"Now, what were you going to do with it?"
"Throw it at you," Rune responded. "Smash your goddamn face."
"Why don't you just toss it over there." Lucy Zane held the silenced gun very steadily on Rune's chest.
Rune pitched the stone away.
Just as Richard climbed the stairs and said, "Hi."
He froze, seeing the gun in Stephanie's hand. "What is this?"
Stephanie waved him in. "Okay. Just stand there." She backed up so that she could keep them both covered. She held the gun out straight. It was small and its black metal gleamed in the sunlight. The short cylinder of the silencer was dark too.
Her voice now had an edge to it. "I don't have much time. Who'd you tell about me, Rune? And what did you tell them? I want to know. And I mean now."
"Let him go."
Richard said, "What the hell is this? Are you two joking?"
Stephanie's left hand went out toward him. Palm up. The nails were done in careful purple-pink. "Shut up, asshole. Just shut up." To Rune: "What did you tell them?"
"God," Richard whispered, looking at Rune. Rune sank back into the cushions, put her hands over her eyes, sobbing. "No, no… I don't give a shit about you or Emily or anybody. I won't testify. I'll tell them it wasn't Emily or you. Mr. Kelly's dead! Spinello's dead! Just leave us alone."
Stephanie said patiently, "Maybe I'll consider that. You have to understand, Rune. I like you. I really do. You're… charming. And I was really touched you were going to give me some of that ridiculous money. That almost choked me up. But you have to tell me. This's just business."
"All right… I didn't tell anybody anything about you."
"I don't believe you."
"It's true! All I did was write about you in my diary. I mentioned you and Emily." She sat back, hand in her lap, small, defeated. "I thought you were my friend. I described you and wrote how nice you were to help me buy some clothes."
If this choked her up too, Stephanie's expression didn't show it.
"Where is it?" the woman asked. "The diary. Let me have it and I'll let you go. Both of you."
"Promise?"
"I promise."
Rune debated then walked to her suitcase, rummaged through it. "I can't find it." She looked up, frowning. "I thought I packed it." She opened her leopard-skin bag, looked through that too. "I don't know. I… oh, there it is. On the bookcase. The second shelf."