Out of Sight

The glove box had to be unlocked. It would be his only chance of getting away from these people.

He'd wait… No, he'd better go right now. There was the bell, a bout over with and Maurice was getting up, heading for the stage.

Gle

All White Boy said was, "What're you telling us for? You want somebody to hold your pecker?"

Gle

As he walked away the moron said, "Hey, Gle

Gle

Two young men in red-and-gold Kronk jackets were working security in the outer lobby. Karen came along in her navy cashmere coat, a navy wool cloche covering her hair, jeans and hiking boots, and the security guys smiled and asked how she was doing. She said fine. They asked to look in her bag. She showed her ID and star and said, "This is all you need to know, right?"

They said hey and seemed pleased to see her, gri

The bartender asked what she'd like and Karen said, "Just a minute."

The smaller of the two guys at the table was getting up, the other one laughing. The smaller one turned, not laughing-it was Gle

Karen walked up to the front passenger side of the car. She saw his shape in the dark: Gle

"Gle

He said, "Jesus. I don't believe it."

Pitiful. She almost felt sorry for him.

"I'm ruining your life," Karen said, "aren't I?"

He raised empty hands.

"I don't have the keys."

"I see that."

"I mean I'm not stealing the fucking car."

"You're not?"

"I already stole it. Last week or whenever it was, in West Palm. I can't be stealing it again, can I? I can't even get my tools out of the fucking trunk."

"Let me see if I understand," Karen said.

"You want to take off, get away from those guys. Is that it?"

"You see me in there?"

"And one of them has the keys."

He said, "Yeah," nodding, and said, "Listen, I have to take a leak pretty bad."

"The two guys you were with-that one, that isn't Maurice Miller, is it?

I've seen Snoopy's mug shot and it didn't look like him."

"How could you know about him?"

The poor guy, bewildered; desperate, too, looking toward the theater.

Karen glanced that way. All they could see from here, over the tops of cars, was the marquee and the name STATE in lights. Karen said,

"Another one of those days, huh, nothing seems to go right? Gle

"For the car, for aiding and abetting a prison escape, and conspiring to do whatever you came here for. Tell me, Gle

He said, "Jesus," shaking his head.

"Like the one last night," Karen said.

"You were there, weren't you?"

"I'm not saying another fucking word, and I mean it. Jesus Christ, I don't even know what you're talking about."

"Put your hands on the top of the steering wheel."

"What for?"

"So I can cuff you."

"You serious? Listen, these guys, they're go

"They scare you?"

"They scare the shit out of me, and I'm not afraid to admit it."

"Was Foley with you?"

"When?"

"Last night. About what time was it you hit the dope house?"

"I said I'm not talking to you. I'm not involved in whatever they're doing, the same as I didn't help Foley escape. You said so yourself."

"Yeah, well, I was wrong about that. Where do you suppose Foley is right now?"

"How do I know."

"You're telling me you haven't seen him?"

"What I'm telling you is I have to piss. I mean it, bad."

"What time was it you hit the dope house?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Gle

"Like what?"

"I'll let you take a leak."

"That's some deal."

"Anywhere you want."

He hesitated.

"You mean it?"

"Anywhere," Karen said.

"Gle

He hesitated again.

"It was early in the evening. I don't know, about seven."

Karen got a cigarette from her bag and lit it with hotel matches. She took a deep drag and blew the smoke out in a slow stream. At seven, and for at least the next couple of hours, Foley was with her at the hotel.

"Can I go piss? Please?"

The way Karen worked it, she let him urinate against the side of the car, the window down, while he told about Richard Ripley, the Wall Street crook, where they were going to pick him up and take him out to his home in Bloomfield Hills, late tomorrow afternoon. Karen nodded as she listened. She had heard of Ripley and knew he'd served time at Lompoc. She wanted to know exactly where he lived and then asked:

"What about Foley?"

"He's supposed to go with them," Gle

"But I don't know, he didn't show up tonight."

"You know where he's staying?"

"No idea."

"Where do you meet tomorrow?"

"Listen, I'm fucking freezing out here."

"Where're you meeting?"

"They haven't decided." He straightened to look toward the theater, then hunched over to look in the window again.