Seems to be a lot of that going around, I said.

They nodded and left after a few more minutes. I grabbed a beer and settled in for a quiet night. I was coming out of the shower the next morning and they were already spreading drop cloths getting ready to paint.

As I left, one of them called, Thanks for your help on where these colors go.

Glad I could be of service, I said and headed out the door.

Chapter Thirty-Nine.

I had just parked in front of my office building when a large black pickup truck came out of nowhere and pulled in directly behind me. Fat Freddy climbed out and walked toward the door of my car. He had on a flowered Hawaiian print shirt featuring a sky blue background with large red flowers. As he walked, he gobbled one of the half dozen or so cookies he held in his hand. If I had to guess Id say they were chocolate chip. His nose was still black-and-blue although the swelling looked to be all but gone. I locked the door then lowered the window slightly as he approached.

Hey, hows it going, man?

Fine, Freddy just fine. What can I do for you?

I was hoping you might be able to help me out, give me some advice.

I can give you some advice, but I cant promise it will be any good.

Maybe hop in my truck and we can talk.

Your truck? You know I got a call from the police regarding your truck and the little batting lesson you gave your friend Dallas the other night. They wondered if I knew anything. I think they got a report from one of the neighbors.

Whatd you tell them?

Its never been very difficult for me to play dumb, Freddy, but maybe next time, promise youll just leave me completely out of it.

Come on back and check this ride out, its really cool.

Thanks, but no thanks, Freddy. Ive got one of those busy days ahead of me and Id better get cracking.

Come on back, he said. He gave a quick glance up and down the street then lifted the Hawaiian print shirt and rested his hand on a rather large pistol wedged against his ma.s.sive stomach.

You present a persuasive argument. I smiled and climbed out from behind the wheel.

I knew youd see things my way, Dev, but just for the sake of pleasant conversation maybe turn around and let me check you, make sure youre not carrying.

I can tell you, Im not, I said and smiled my most charming smile.

Turn around anyway and lets be sure, he said then started to pat me down. His third or fourth pat found the .38 in my front pocket. He pulled it out and looked from me to the gun then back to me.

Dev, you werent lying to me, were you?

Gee. I guess I just forgot that one.

Are there any others?

No.

Promise?

Yeah, thats it.

Tell you what, you drive, and Ill ride. That way I can talk and you can listen.

How could I refuse?

Actually, you really cant, Freddy said then he handed me the set of keys hed torn from Dalla.s.s pocket the other night.

I climbed up into the drivers seat. Freddy stretched out in the pa.s.senger seat and faced me with a pistol resting on his lap.

Where to? I said as I pulled away from the curb.

Were gonna watch Bulldog while he makes his collections this morning.

Bulldog? Im not so sure thats a good idea, Freddy.

Oh yeah, and why is that?

There was an incident yesterday morning.

Yesterday morning?

Yeah, about four in the morning. Bulldog and two guys I recognized as bouncers at Nastys paid me a visit. Only it didnt work out like theyd planned, I said then proceeded to fill in some of the details. I didnt mention the money or mailing one of the bands to Tubby Gustafson.

That dude you shot is one mean hombre, Freddy said.

Well, hes gonna have some time rolling around in a wheel chair to think about improving his att.i.tude.

Take a left at the light down here and head over to the East side. That means Bulldog is down to just one guy helping him, Les Hudson, Lester the Molester.

Never heard of him.

Hes another one of those guys that sucked up to Bulldog, one of the a.s.sholes that beat the s.h.i.t out of me. He had a thing for all the girls at Nastys and just about all of them wanted nothing to do with him.

Hes that bad?

Freddy shot me a look. Didnt you hear? Dude, they call the guy Lester the Molester. The only one whod have anything to do with him was that old b.i.t.c.h, Cougar, but she was on the weird side anyway, fried when she wasnt just drunk or high.

I nodded, and didnt see any benefit to mentioning the fact I knew her well before she was Cougar.

Take a left here down Payne Ave., Freddy said then glanced at the clock on the dash. Bulldog should be hitting a couple of those fingernail joints right about now. See that Super America up there on the right, about three doors past that just pull in anywhere and we can wait.

I pa.s.sed the Super America then pulled into the first spot I saw. We were just a few doors away from the nail place. A couple of minutes after I parked two Asian women walked past and entered, I guessed they worked there. About ten minutes after that a long, green Jaguar pulled into a parking place a couple of car lengths ahead of us. The engine remained running as Bulldog stepped out on the pa.s.senger side. He briefly glanced up and down the street then walked into the nail place. The moment Bulldog stepped inside Freddy was out of the pickup and waddled quickly toward the Jaguar.

He pulled the gun out of his belt just as he opened the pa.s.senger door. The Jaguar tipped heavily to the right as he slid in.

I was thinking about just driving away when he was back out of the Jaguar, it looked like he stopped to pick something up then ran back to the pickup. I had the engine started by the time he opened the door and I was pulling away from the curb just as Bulldog stepped out of the shop and we raced past. Freddy gave a little wave, but I wasnt sure Bulldog saw him then he tossed what looked like a brown paper lunch bag on the seat between us.

What the h.e.l.l are you doing, are you crazy? s.h.i.t, theyll be right on our a.s.s, I said and checked the side view mirror to see if the Jaguar was after us yet.

Quit worrying, I slit their tire on the way back, they aint going anywhere, he said and laughed.

But they saw you, I mean that Lester guy he knows its you. h.e.l.l tell Bulldog and Im not sure I really needed this, Freddy. I got enough problems with Bulldog already. I told you they said they were looking for you the other night.

He opened the brown paper bag. It looked like one of the lunch bags I used to take to school as a kid. He pulled out a stack of bills and started counting, after a bit he said, Eleven hundred bucks, Dev.

I dont want anything to do with that s.h.i.t. Its not worth it. Bulldog and Tubby are going to hunt you down, Freddy. Thats barely enough for a one way ticket out of town and if I were you Id be heading out in the next few minutes.

Thats where youre wrong, Dev. Im not gonna keep this money. Im gonna turn it over to its rightful owner.

Thats really n.o.ble, Freddy, but just a little misguided. Great to give it back to those hardworking folks, but Bulldog will just be back next week for more, and then the week after that. Only next time he wont be so easy to rip off. Oh, and just in case youre not aware, hes gonna come looking for you and he wont be very happy.

Im counting on that, Dev. Believe me. As for giving it back to those folks, what the h.e.l.l are you talking about?

You said you were going to turn it over to its rightful owner.

Yeah, Tubby.

Tubby?

Get this, I have it on pretty good authority Tubby doesnt have a clue about Bulldogs little protection racket. He is gonna freak, man. Take a right here at this next corner.

Where are we going?

Nastys, Tubby has a lunch meeting with Jackie Van Dorn every Thursday.

Chapter Forty.

No offense, but Nastys is the last place Im going to, I said then made the right hand turn and checked the mirror just to make sure no one was following.

Oh, come on, Dev, wheres your sense of adventure. No guts, no glory, man.

Im on borrowed time as far as taking risks, Freddy and I certainly dont feel the need to cut to my final chapter by getting involved with Jackie Van Dorn, or worse Tubby Gustafson.

Dev, Im bringing over eleven hundred bucks to Tubby as proof Bulldog is ripping him off. Whats the problem?

The problem is you cant trust any of them. Tubbys liable to take the money and turn you over to Bulldog just for something to watch. You cant get on his good side, because the man doesnt have one.

Okay, suit yourself. Im giving you the perfect opportunity to get in on the glory, but if you dont want any, who am I to tell you that youre an absolute dumb s.h.i.t.

Just leave me out of it.

Consider it done, Dev. Oh, turn in here and you can drop me off at the dumpsters in back.

G.o.d, I dont want to even be here.

Will you relax, what can happen?

I pulled into Nastys parking lot then drove around the building to the back and dropped Freddy off next to the dumpsters. They didnt smell any better than the last time I was back here. I watched him press the buzzer then look up into the security camera and talk, although I couldnt hear what was being said. A moment later he opened the door and stepped inside. That was good enough for me and I started to back out just as some sort of car painted flat black backed into the lane and parked there, effectively blocking me in.

I gave a couple of polite beeps on the horn, suggesting the guy take his head out of his a.s.s. That got him to step out of his car, come around to the side of his car closest to me then just lean back against the pa.s.senger door, fold his arms and look bored.

I beeped again and he just shook his head and remained looking awfully bored.

I was effectively trapped. I climbed out of the truck and walked toward the guy. He nodded at me as I approached.

You got me blocked in and I was just leaving.

Not really, he said. Yeah, I got you blocked in, but apparently theyd like you to hang around for a few minutes. Might as well climb back into your truck and just wait. How you liking that ride anyway? I think Dallas has one just like that.

He didnt seem to be kidding and I sure as h.e.l.l wasnt going to tell him. Its okay, nice ride, bit of a gas-hog though.

He nodded then sort of looked bored and gazed across the parking lot toward the street. I climbed back in the truck. Fat Freddy came out about fifteen minutes later. As he climbed in the cab I noticed a reddish ring covering his upper lip, a wine stain.

Everything okay? I asked.

Piece of cake, man. You should have come with.

I had my own meeting, I said and jerked a thumb out the back window to where the flat black car had been parked just a moment ago. Fat Freddy turned and looked out the back window then looked at me like I was nuts.

There was some guy back there blocking me in. Said he got word I was supposed to wait, I dont know where he went.

Well, hes not blocking you now so lets get going.

I backed out from the dumpsters, then made my way out of Nastys lot as quickly as possible. Did you get to see him, Tubby?

Yeah, nice guy. Id seen him before, but never got to really talk to the man. He was nice, thanked me for the nine-hundred bucks and said hed have a little talk with Bulldog.

Wait a minute, nine hundred bucks? I thought you counted out over eleven hundred thirty minutes ago.

Dev, its how the big guys do it. Everyone takes a percentage. Let me tell you something, you know what those guys were doing before I went up to Van Dorns office? Ill tell you, they were counting cash. They hid the stuff before I came in, but I saw the band that had wrapped it up, five grand worth. Can you believe it? Five grand theyre counting out over lunch, thats how the big guys do it, Dev. What? You never watched the Sopranos?

This isnt some stupid a.s.s TV show, Freddy. G.o.d, five grand? Was it a paper band and five grand was written in pencil with a date and maybe some initials?

Howd you know that?