âItâs not the business, itâs thecreativity weâre interested in, and thatâs you . Weâd like to start up our own line of festive and holiday cakesâsome humorous, and all of them whimsical. The sort of thing you, weâve been told, excel at.â
She scooped up the foie gras and put it into a sauté pan with minced onions and butter. âWhat a nice compliment,â she finally managed to say, as she wiped her hands and stirred the mixture.
âMiss Amalfi.â He was sounding exasperated. âYou donât understand. We were hoping youâd consider joining our team as a consultant as we start up this venture.â
He was the one who didnât understand! If the liver cooked much more than a minute it would become rubbery, and her plans to surprise Paavo ruined. âExcuse me, butââ
âYouâve had experience in what the public is looking for along these linesâvery successful experience,â he continued. âWould you be willing to talk to usââ
âMy liver is stiffening! I really must go.â Her head cocked further and further as the phone began to slip. She placed it on the counter, then hurried to remove the liver from the heat and put it into a bowl.
âYour what? Iâm notâ¦anyway, Miss Amalfi, weâd love the opportunity to work with you, and we have an office right in San Franciscoââ
A handful of pistachios went into the Cuisinart and she turned it on High. As she began to sauté the ground meat, the nuts clattered loudly and the blender whirred.
âHello? Miss Amalfi? Whatâs that strange noise? Hello? Hello?â
Â
The Womenâs Facility was an oppressive cement monolith. Max almost felt a pang of pity for Veronicaâshaving spent three years there. Almost. A sour-faced female guard led him through security to the visitorâs area for the cellblock Ronnie had called home.
He sat on a stool facing a thick glass wall with phones on both sides. After some ten minutes, a jailer led a young black-haired woman to a chair opposite his.
âWhoâre you?â the woman asked. Her acne-scarred face was hard and the glare she cast made it even fiercer.
âIâm a friend of Veronicaâs,â he said quietly. âI was supposed to meet her, but she isnât at the hotel.â
The woman eyed him suspiciously. âYou Dennis?â she asked.
Dennis? The past came at him in a rush. He wobbled dangerously on the stool, his head light and dizzy. After Veronica had been sent to prison, heâd gotten the impression that sheâd once had an affair with Dennis, among others. He had no idea, though, that their relationship was at all serious, or that it had continued.
Dennis had been one of his few clients whoâd been kind to him and offered help. Heâd thought it was because Dennis had considered him a friend. Now, he wondered if it wasnât guilt.
âIâm surprised,â he said finally. âI didnât think sheâd tell anyone my name. She must trust you a lot.â
The woman shrugged. âGuess so.â
He tried to look worried. âI waited all day yesterday for her. She was released yesterday, wasnât she?â
âYeah. Lucky bastard. Me, I got four more years here. She told me youâre rich. Can you do something for me? Help me get out?â
âIâll see what I can do. But first, Iâve got to find Veronica.â
âWhy donât you ask her PO?â she said.
âI did. He didnât know where she was either.â
âShe said she was going to San Francisco, man. You should try her there. Isnât that where you live? Maybe sheâs at your place, waiting for you.â
Maybe so, Max thought bitterly. He could imagine her there, with Pagozzi, laughing over what a lovesick fool heâd been. It shouldnât be too hard to find Pagozziâs home, to visit her
A. Meredith Walters
Rebecca Cantrell
Francine Pascal
Sophia Martin
Cate Beatty
Jorge Amado
Rhonda Hopkins
Francis Ray
Lawrence Schiller
Jeff Stone