Read Online The Filthy Few: A Steve Nastos Mystery by Richard Cain - Free Book Online Page B

anyways? I thought you’d be back sooner.”
    â€œI was meeting with my friend. Ann, I told you, he’s going to help us find out who shot Rob. Are you sure you really want to do this, with everything that’s going on?”
    She raised a defiant chin and proudly charged for the door. “I won’t be too late.”
    â€œIf you need some money I’d rather loan it to you than for you to do anything dangerous.”
    Falconer found the mirror on the wall by the front door and checked her hair, sweeping it back from her face and smiling to herself. Her demeanour changed for Karen. “I don’t need you telling me what to do.”
    And that sentence was the one that sent Karen over the edge. They both knew that the one thing Falconer needed most was a handler or Falconer wouldn’t be freeloading with her.
No rent, unrestricted food; she could at least clean the place up a little.
    â€œAnn, I know what you’re doing. I’m not stupid. You’re raising money for drugs. If you want some cash for a bag of weed I’ll give it to you — if it helps you relax. I just don’t want you hooking for hard drugs. It’s too dangerous with everything that’s going on. There are men looking for you —”
    â€œMy name is Martina Svobadova.” Falconer left the mirror and stormed over to the door. She slipped on her white shoes, two-inch clunky heels with silver buckles, and gripped the door handle. “You’d rather I stay here? So you can put on your video and ask me a hundred more questions? How’s your little book coming along? You’re going to make millions and millions from my life story and you don’t want the golden goose out of your sight? I can write my own life story. I don’t need you.”
    â€œYou don’t need me? Take a look around, Ann — sorry,
Martina
. You came here looking for help and I brought you into my home. All I ask is that you don’t do anything to make things more dangerous than they already are!”
    Falconer wrenched the door handle and pulled it open. “All you care about is you.” She slammed the door behind her.
    Karen couldn’t tell if the thumping she heard was the sound of Falconer stomping down the hallway or the blood pounding in her head.
Damn, her cellphone
. She went into Ann’s room and searched for the phone. The room was a mess, a collection of empty Coke cans on the dresser. Clothes, clean and dirty, on the floor. She found the phone charger plugged into the wall on the floor but there was no sign of the phone and she didn’t know the number to call it. She thought back to Nastos telling her to get rid of it, that it could be traced.
At least she’s not here, and when she comes back, it’s going down the garbage hatch.
    She went to the kitchen, tugged open the fridge door and gripped a Mike’s Hard Lemonade, then a second and carried them out to the balcony. She sat in her wicker chair, kicked her shoes off and rested her aching legs on the cool railing before twisting open one bottle and taking a long slug. She leaned back and used the other cool bottle to ice her head.
    It barely took five minutes to get the two drinks down. She tried to tell herself that it was because they were invigorating with a witty, crisp flavour and not because Falconer was driving her to alcoholism. Karen gathered her two empties and put them in the cupboard under the kitchen sink. She opened the fridge and took an inventory of food. She had a steak marinating for the barbecue that was still mostly frozen. “Looks like today is the cheat day this week.” She resigned herself to having to order pizza and finish off the last of the lemonade coolers.
    The cellphone needed a charge so she plugged it in and left it on the microwave and went to her bedroom to get the home phone. Right away she noticed that her bed was a mess. She always made it in the morning. And even though