Desperate Measures
- Автор: Вудс Стюарт
- Серия: Stone Barrington #47
- Год: 2018
- Язык: английский
- Год: G.P. Putnam's Sons
- ISBN: 978-0-7352-1922-9
- Жанр: Триллеры
Электронная книга - «Desperate Measures». Краткое содержание книги:
“Don’t be surprised if you get a rock through a front window. That will be Donald’s next move.”
“The glass is armored, so it won’t be a problem. Tell me, does Donald own a gun?”
“Several.”
“I was afraid you’d say that. When he sobers up, is he going to come to his senses?”
“I wouldn’t count on it,” she said. “Are you unaccustomed to women with baggage?”
“Most people have baggage of one sort or another, and with women, it usually seems to be a disagreeable and unmanageable male former companion.”
“Unmanageable is a good word to describe Donald,” she said. “God knows, I tried hard enough, and the most it got me was a sock in the kisser.”
“If you have any concerns at all about your safety, I can arrange for someone to watch over you.”
“Like the Gershwin song?”
“Not quite. He’ll be about Donald’s size with a bulge under his arm.”
“I think I’m all right for the moment; I’m sure his attorney has instructed him on behaving during trial.”
“Do you think he’ll go to trial?”
“Maybe, he’s very competitive.”
“If I may ask, what sort of deal did you and Herb offer him on the real estate?”
“Sell it and divide the proceeds.”
“It might help you to avoid trial if you use some of your newfound wealth to just buy his half of the house and the Carlyle apartment. That would put some cash in his pocket almost immediately, which I’m sure he’d like. And there’d be less to argue about in court.”
“I’m sure he’d like that, too,” she said. “It’s a damned good idea. How do we reach agreement on the value of the two properties?”
“Each of you hires your own appraiser, and the two of them pick a third. You take the average of the three appraisals.”
“Brilliant!”
“Herb would have thought of it in the second round of negotiations. Wait and see if he doesn’t bring it up.”
“All right.”
“How did you and Margot get on?”
“Blazingly! I forgot to tell you, she showed me three apartments, and I loved two of them. I’m leaning toward the one on Fifth Avenue in the Sixties.”
“You can’t go wrong there. Put down a deposit, but don’t close until after the divorce is final. Another property in the mix might muddy the waters and slow things down.”
“Where were you when I was making all the big decisions in my life, like whether to marry Donald?”
“Probably about that time I was a police officer.”
“You? A cop?”
“A detective, thank you very much. I was invalided out — a bullet in the knee.”
“Then how did you get to be a lawyer?”
“I had already graduated from NYU Law School when I joined the force, so I just needed to pass the bar exam. I took a two-week cram course and passed, and an old classmate brought me into Woodman & Weld.”
“My goodness.”
“See how much you learn when you just talk to people?”
“You’re absolutely right,” she admitted. “And anyway, you’re fun to talk to.”
“Thank you.”
“I’m sorry about my baggage,” she said.
“Don’t worry about it.”
“I hope he doesn’t make a further nuisance of himself.”
“I hope so, too,” Stone said.
He put her in the Bentley and Fred drove her back to the Carlyle.
20
Stone was seeing Cilla off when he saw Faith walking past and up the front steps next door. He walked through the door to the next house.
“Oh!” she said, stepping back. “You frightened me.”
“Apparently nothing else does,” Stone said. “Forgive me for sounding like a father, but where have you been?”
“I left a few things at the hotel, and since it was such a nice evening, I walked over there to retrieve them.” She held up a shopping bag as if it explained everything.
“Come with me,” he said, holding the door for her. “Let’s have a drink.”
He settled her in the study with a cognac and took a seat. “Have you forgotten that we’re in the middle of a wave of murders with victims who look just like you and who live in, roughly, the same neighborhood as that hotel?”
“Well, it seems to me that we’re not in the middle of this wave, but at the end. Nobody’s been killed for a week.”
“And you took that as a reason to take a stroll in a dangerous place?”
“Pretty much, I guess.”
“Faith, you can’t just do that.”
“I’m a grown woman, I can do whatever I like.”
“Not if you want to continue working for me.”
“Are you threatening to fire me if I don’t do as you say?”
“I’m threatening to fire you if you continue to risk your life by doing foolish things. I’ve no wish to have to ship your body back to your people in Georgia in a box, and I won’t be a party to your murder. Do you understand me?”
She pouted, but said nothing.
“All right, tomorrow morning start looking for another place to live. I’ll give you two weeks to move out, and your salary will continue until then.”
Faith produced the ultimate feminine weapon, for which males have no defense: she began to cry.
“Oh, come on! You said you’re an adult, start behaving like one. This isn’t junior high.”
“I don’t want to lose my job,” she said.
“You’ll lose it instantly if you’re dead. Has anyone told you what these killers do to the women?”
“I read the newspapers,” she said.
“Well, sometimes there are things the police don’t tell the press. Would you like for me to describe, in detail, what they’re leaving out?”
“No!” she said. “Spare me.”
Stone knocked off the rest of his cognac and set down his glass. “Come see me tomorrow morning and tell me what you want to do,” he said. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to bed. Finish your drink here, if you like.” He went upstairs, undressed, brushed his teeth, and got into bed. He was still angry with her, and it took him a while to get to sleep.
The following morning, Stone made a call to Mike Freeman at Strategic Services and placed an order. The order arrived about an hour later and took a seat outside Joan’s office.
Faith knocked and entered his office. “I’ve thought it over,” she said, “and you’re right. It was foolish of me to do that last night, and I don’t want to lose my job, so I’ll follow your orders on this until they catch these people.”
“That’s good,” Stone said. “Now, I have a gift for you.” He buzzed Joan. “Send in the gift.”
A large man in a dark suit with a bulge under his arm walked into the office.
“Faith, this is Jimbo. He is going to be your constant companion whenever you leave the house, unless we’re out of town, and until the killers are caught.”
Faith was speechless. “You got me a minder?”
“That’s a good way to describe Jimbo,” Stone said. “He’s your minder during the day. A woman named Sylvia will be on the night shift.”
“That’s outrageous.”
“You’re not required to continue to work here, but if you decide you want to, then Jimbo is part of the deal. I’ve known him a few years, and he’s a nice guy. You’ll get used to him. You might even begin to appreciate him. Jimbo, will you please see Faith to her office?”
“Certainly, Mr. Barrington,” Jimbo replied. “Faith, right this way, please.”
She stalked out of the room, followed by the faithful Jimbo.
Joan buzzed him. “Dino, on one.”
Stone pressed the button. “Good morning.”
“If you say so,” Dino said grumpily.