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Authors: Tom Gabbay
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he does…”
“What was he doing?”
Fabiana looked down at the floor, embarrassed.
“Never mind,” I said, getting the idea. “Let’s skip over that part. What happened next?”
“I go.”
“Did the lady say anything else?”
“No, senhor.”
“Did the man say anything?”
“He tells me to go…‘get lost,’ he say.”
This didn’t seem to be going anywhere, but I thought I might as well get my money’s worth.
“Did the man say anything to the lady?”
She thought about it again. “No…”
That seemed about all there was to tell. Nothing new, but at least I could be slightly more certain that it was Eva who had visited Grimes on the night he died. I was about to dismiss Fabiana when she offered something more.
“I think he is too afraid to say something.”
“Afraid?”
“Yes… assustado. ”
“Why would he be afraid?”
She hesitated. “Because,” she said. “Because the…um…” She formed a V shape out of her thumb and forefinger and pointed it at me.
“Gun?” I said.
“Sim. Pistola. A senhora tem uma pistola.”
“The lady had a pistol?”
“Sim…”
“Are you sure it was the lady and not the man who had a pistol?”
“Yes, I sure. The lady, she point it to the man and so he is afraid. Then he say to me ‘get lost’ and I go.”
She looked up to see if that was going to earn her the hundred. I put it in her hand and sent her on her way, hoping it might mean she wouldn’t have to screw any more creeps like Eddie Grimes for a while, even though I knew it didn’t. I called down and told the concierge to put her in a taxi and to put it on my bill.
I poured myself a nightcap and examined the picture of Eva. It was hard to imagine the pretty young girl in the boat with a gun in her hand. Must’ve been quite a surprise for Eddie Grimes when he looked up to find her standing there holding a pistol in his face.
The gun was an interesting twist, all right, but it didn’t really change anything. A sensible precaution on her part, that’s all. She’d been running since Berlin, keeping a half step ahead of the Nazis, probably traveling under a false name. Naturally she would’ve been alarmed when, almost home free, some jerk showed up out of the blue asking questions about her and trying to arrange a meeting. The fact that she wanted some insurance in hand when she confronted him just showed that she’d developed good survival instincts.
No, the gun didn’t change anything. From the sound of it, she burst into Eddie’s room, and once she’d figured out who he was, she turned around and took off, with Eddie in pursuit. The odds still favored an unlucky accident on a dark road in the middle of the night.
Of course, if you could always count on the odds, it wouldn’t be much of a game, would it?
CHAPTER 6
My eyes shot open, but I didn’t move. I lay there on my pillow, holding my breath, listening closely. Had I been dreaming?
No…There it was again. The soft rattle of somebody trying to jimmy a lock. I slipped out of bed, felt my way past the bedroom door, and stood in the dark living room, half-asleep, wondering who the hell was trying to break into my suite, and why. I didn’t have time to ponder it, though, because the latch gave way and the door eased open, allowing a thin shaft of ghostly light to fall across the floor. I glanced around for a weapon, spotted a bottle of malt whiskey, and reached for it—too quickly, because I misjudged the distance and knocked it over, straight into a set of glass tumblers. It all hit the floor with a resounding crash!
I waited a beat, and so did the intruder. Then the door slammed shut and I could hear footsteps escaping down the hall. I shot across the room, fumbled around in the dark, found the door handle, and was halfway up the corridor before the pain hit. I fell against the wall, saw the trail of blood I’d left behind, and lifted my bare foot to find a cluster of crushed crystal embedded in the heel. I
“What was he doing?”
Fabiana looked down at the floor, embarrassed.
“Never mind,” I said, getting the idea. “Let’s skip over that part. What happened next?”
“I go.”
“Did the lady say anything else?”
“No, senhor.”
“Did the man say anything?”
“He tells me to go…‘get lost,’ he say.”
This didn’t seem to be going anywhere, but I thought I might as well get my money’s worth.
“Did the man say anything to the lady?”
She thought about it again. “No…”
That seemed about all there was to tell. Nothing new, but at least I could be slightly more certain that it was Eva who had visited Grimes on the night he died. I was about to dismiss Fabiana when she offered something more.
“I think he is too afraid to say something.”
“Afraid?”
“Yes… assustado. ”
“Why would he be afraid?”
She hesitated. “Because,” she said. “Because the…um…” She formed a V shape out of her thumb and forefinger and pointed it at me.
“Gun?” I said.
“Sim. Pistola. A senhora tem uma pistola.”
“The lady had a pistol?”
“Sim…”
“Are you sure it was the lady and not the man who had a pistol?”
“Yes, I sure. The lady, she point it to the man and so he is afraid. Then he say to me ‘get lost’ and I go.”
She looked up to see if that was going to earn her the hundred. I put it in her hand and sent her on her way, hoping it might mean she wouldn’t have to screw any more creeps like Eddie Grimes for a while, even though I knew it didn’t. I called down and told the concierge to put her in a taxi and to put it on my bill.
I poured myself a nightcap and examined the picture of Eva. It was hard to imagine the pretty young girl in the boat with a gun in her hand. Must’ve been quite a surprise for Eddie Grimes when he looked up to find her standing there holding a pistol in his face.
The gun was an interesting twist, all right, but it didn’t really change anything. A sensible precaution on her part, that’s all. She’d been running since Berlin, keeping a half step ahead of the Nazis, probably traveling under a false name. Naturally she would’ve been alarmed when, almost home free, some jerk showed up out of the blue asking questions about her and trying to arrange a meeting. The fact that she wanted some insurance in hand when she confronted him just showed that she’d developed good survival instincts.
No, the gun didn’t change anything. From the sound of it, she burst into Eddie’s room, and once she’d figured out who he was, she turned around and took off, with Eddie in pursuit. The odds still favored an unlucky accident on a dark road in the middle of the night.
Of course, if you could always count on the odds, it wouldn’t be much of a game, would it?
CHAPTER 6
My eyes shot open, but I didn’t move. I lay there on my pillow, holding my breath, listening closely. Had I been dreaming?
No…There it was again. The soft rattle of somebody trying to jimmy a lock. I slipped out of bed, felt my way past the bedroom door, and stood in the dark living room, half-asleep, wondering who the hell was trying to break into my suite, and why. I didn’t have time to ponder it, though, because the latch gave way and the door eased open, allowing a thin shaft of ghostly light to fall across the floor. I glanced around for a weapon, spotted a bottle of malt whiskey, and reached for it—too quickly, because I misjudged the distance and knocked it over, straight into a set of glass tumblers. It all hit the floor with a resounding crash!
I waited a beat, and so did the intruder. Then the door slammed shut and I could hear footsteps escaping down the hall. I shot across the room, fumbled around in the dark, found the door handle, and was halfway up the corridor before the pain hit. I fell against the wall, saw the trail of blood I’d left behind, and lifted my bare foot to find a cluster of crushed crystal embedded in the heel. I
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