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But why think about that now? Ray reprimanded himself. Why think about Jeanine—her spending habits, her high-strung hysteria, and her fits of temper when she didn’t get what she wanted? Why think about David’s repeated stabs at rehab? Concentrate on the moment … on your lovely wife.
Ray took his own advice and reserved his remaining attention for Linda. Although his eyes did sweep over the young, grave-faced man in the green jacket, holding a drink, they failed to take him in.
Even if Walter Skinner had noticed the odd man, he wouldn’t give the punk the time of day. At this stage in his life, Walter had no patience for youngsters, no patience for anyone. He had worked in Hollywood for over fifty years, had earned himself a fat bank account and a modicum of recognition and respect. He wanted what he wanted when he wanted it with no questions asked. If you didn’t like it, you could take a long walk to China.
And what Walter wanted now was the young lady sitting across from him. A lovely lass with big, red hair, and long shapely legs that melded into a firm, round ass that sent his juices flowing.
Not here, Walter scolded himself. To calm himself down, he thought about Adelaide.
A good woman, a tolerant woman. Once she had been a beautiful woman, a Vegas dancer right after Bugsy had turned the desert sands into dunes of gold. Walter had chased her, pursued her relentlessly. Finally, she gave in. For her, it had paid off. As a minimally talented show girl, Adelaide had been destined for obscurity. Instead, she became a Hollywood wife. He gave her status, money, and a role she could have for life. If she was willing to indulge him from time to time. Which she did gracefully.
Good old Addie. As steady as the old gray mare.
Walter looked across the table, through the diamond-cut stemware. Good grade Waterford. Estelle had done it up nicely. Elegant without being pompous. And good food. No wonder the place was always jammed.
He’d had doubts about bringing Big Hair here. She had dolled up for the occasion, and much to Walter’s surprise, she had pulled it off without looking cheap.
A gray-haired old lady smiled at him, nodded.
Walter nodded back.
Ah, recognition. It was sweet.
However, it was not quite as sweet as Big Hair’s ass. Walter looked deeply into his table companion’s baby blues, his eyes shifting downward to her superb surgically designed chest. He felt a tug in his pants and that was wonderful. At seventy-eight, no hard-on was ever taken for granted.
Face it, Walter said to himself. At seventy-eight, waking up in the morning was a cause for celebration.
So enamored of his sexual response and his beating heart, Walter didn’t think about the serious young man leaning against the bar, his eyes as chilled as the drink he was nursing.
Carol Anger did glance at the thin young man in the green coat, thinking he looked familiar. She couldn’t quite place him. A face that had changed and had changed again. But she couldn’t dwell on it because she was too busy. Gretchen had called in sick and Carol was running double shift.
On her slate was a nice group of tables. Carol especially liked the party of sweet-sixteeners in the corner. Eight giggly girls trying to pretend they were grown-ups, decked out in sophisticated suits and too much makeup.
Like she had been at sixteen—sans the suits and jewelry of course. She had grown up in a home where money had always been tight. But down deep, all sixteen-year-old girls were the same.
Where had the time gone?
At first, right after her divorce, her life had been a blur of tears. Tears of fury at her ex, tears of gratitude at her parents for their love and understanding.
And their help.
Mom had come through. Always there when Carol needed her. Saying she’d take care of Billy so Carol could go back to nursing school. Carol had insisted on doing her fair share. Hence the job … this job. And it was a doozy.
She had Olaf to thank for that.
She had met him at a bar, had laughed when he had told her his name.
OLAF!
OLAF, THE VIKING MAN!
He had blushed when she laughed. Which of course had made her feel terrible. Olaf had come to America to be a cook. When he told her he worked at Estelle’s, she had nearly fainted.
You’re not a cook, she had chided. You’re a chef!
Within a month, Olaf had convinced Estelle to give Carol a job interview. A week later, she was dressed in a tux and ready to work.
How she loved Olaf, with his half smile, his stoic manner, and his thick upper lip that was often dotted with sweat from the heat of the kitchen. She had often wondered how she could have been so upset over her failed marriage, since from it came all this good fortune.
So occupied by her fate and work, Carol failed to see the thin young man’s mouth turn into a twisted smile, his eyes as blank as snowdrifts.
Ken Wetzel didn’t think twice about him. He was too busy slurping up oysters while giving his wife the bad news. He was trying to be as gentle as possible but it wasn’t coming out right.
It wasn’t that he didn’t love Tess. He guessed he still did. She had been there for him, was still a decent wife, a good mother, and a passable lover. Unfortunately, she just didn’t fit into his world anymore.
Especially since he had been promoted to assistant vice president.
He needed a partner who was more dynamic, not some ordinary woman whose sole occupation was raising children. Granted, the kids were good kids … Tess’s doing. But that wasn’t enough anymore. A woman had to know things—how to dress, how to smile, how to make conversation about the vagaries of the market. A woman like that could help him get ahead. Trouble was, Tess was holding him back.
A great gal, but a high-school dropout. And with the last kid, she had gotten heavy. Those awful tents she wore. Why did the prints always have to be so garish? Why didn’t she realize she would have looked more sophisticated and sleek in a plain black suit?
That was Tess.
Ken sighed inwardly, wishing she’d wipe the tears off her cheeks. Because she was embarrassing him. He closed his eyes for a moment, allowing himself a brief fantasy of Sherrie. Sherrie, with her milky eyes, her sensuous mouth, her wonderful hips, her full breasts, and her MBA from Stanford.
They had met on interoffice E-mail, she being in marketing, he being two floors up in stock research. He joked that it had been love at first byte. The affair was almost immediate, fueled by the thrill of their respective infidelities and what each one could do for the other’s career.
Yes, Ken still loved Tess on some level. And yes, Ken still cared for the kids. But life was about reaching one’s potential. The marriage just wouldn’t work any longer.
Times change, he had told her.
Life changes.
You move on.
With each pronouncement, Tess had shed a new batch of tears.
Still, the drama of the evening did little to quell his appetite. As much as he hated himself, he had to admit that telling Tess it was over was a definite high. The exhilaration of liberation.
Flying high with freedom, Ken paid no attention to the thin young man. Not even when the young man’s face fell flat, turning his physiognomy into something inanimate, his eyes as murky as pond water.
No one even noticed when he reached into the pocket of his green jacket.
Not until he pulled out a gun and the lead began to fly.
But by then, it was too late.
2 (#ud6892401-67f0-55cf-9fce-03a2326414eb)
A microsecond flash of yesteryear as images too frighteningly clear burst from the hidden recesses of Decker’s brain. A familiar scene with familiar sounds and smells. Charlie’s discards. Twisted corpses. Moans of the wounded echoing through a gripping fog of panic. Medics worked frantically, hands and arms bathed in blood and flesh. The metallic odor of spilled blood mixed with the stink of emptied bowels. Surreal. The magnitude of death and destruction. It destroyed faith in a hand clap.
Decker swallowed, trying to lubricate a parched throat. Rationally, he knew Nam was over. So what was this? An instant replay? Except the surroundings were off. Confusion reigned. But only for a moment.
Because there was work to be done.
Instantly, he rolled up his jacket and shirt sleeves, gloved his hands. Saw a woman whose leg had been turned into Swiss cheese by dime-sized bullet holes. Lying in a pool of crimson. Her complexion pasty … clammy. Pushing aside debris with his foot, Decker made room for himself … knelt at her side.
Stop the bleeding, treat ’em for shock, get ’em to a chopper.
Scratch the chopper, make it an ambulance.
“You’re going to be all right,” Decker spoke soothingly as he worked. Perspiration had soaked through his jacket from his armpits. His crotch was as hot and humid as an Orlando summer. Sweat was dripping off his hair, off his face and brow. He turned away from his patient, shook off the water like a drooling mastiff. He said, “Just hang in there.”
Lots of bleeding, some of it arterial. Rhythmic squirts of bright red blood. Decker put pressure on the leaking area as the woman screamed, tears rolling down her cheeks.
He bit his upper lip, nibbling on his ginger mustache, trying to keep his own breathing slow and steady. He examined her torn tissue, working through bits of bone. Femoral artery appeared to be intact … the other major arteries as well. Arteriole bleeding, probably from one of their branches. She didn’t realize it, but she had been a very lucky pup. Much better than her male companion, who’d never again see the light of day.
“I need a blanket, STAT!” Decker shouted.
“We’re out!” someone shouted back.
“Then get me a tablecloth, napkins … something!” Decker screamed back. “I got shock settling in!”
“You and half the room! Get it yourself!”
“For Chrissakes—”
“Here!” A tiny female paramedic with green eyes threw Decker a tablecloth. She was bent over a bearded man, wrapping a bandage around his neck. Instantly, the starched white linen turned tomato-colored. Her eyes glanced at Decker, at his shoulder holster peeking out from under his jacket. “What ambulance company are you from?”
“LAPD. Lieutenant Peter Decker.”
The paramedic raised her brows. “Celia Brown. Need anything, just ask.”
“Thanks.” Spreading out the tablecloth as best he could, Decker raised the woman’s good leg, dabbing her forehead and face as she sobbed and spoke. She told him her name was Tess. She had heard popping noises. Then everyone had started screaming, running for cover. Her leg exploded as she dived under her table.
Taking mental notes.
The victim wore a thick gold chain around her neck; her purse was still at her side. A horrific crime but robbery didn’t appear to be a motive. Or maybe the gunman just didn’t bother with her. She wasn’t decked in diamonds and pearls, not like some of the other patrons. She wore a loud print dress that appeared to be a couple of sizes too big for her body. She asked Decker if her leg was still there. She couldn’t wiggle her toes. All she felt were throbs of agony.
“Your leg is there.” Again Decker checked for bleeding. “You’re doing great.”
“My husband …”
Decker was quiet.
“He’s dead?”
Again there was silence.
“I want to know,” Tess whispered.
Decker took a deep breath. “The dark-haired man wearing a blue serge suit?”
“Yes.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am. He’s gone.”
Tess said nothing, looked away with tears in her eyes.
“Just keep as still as you can.” To the paramedic, Decker said, “Got any spare wound gel, topical, and bandage?”
Celia gave him some equipment. “You need a shot of coagulant?”
“Bleeding’s subsided. Besides, I’d prefer if one of you administered the meds.”
“Fine.” Celia thought a moment, then said, “You’re a lieutenant … as in a cop?”
“Yes.”
“Calling in the big shots for this one.”
Muted by the enormity of destruction, Decker couldn’t make chitchat.
Celia said, “They must be training you guys pretty well in ER services.”
“I was a medic in the army.”
“Ah, now it makes sense. Vietnam?”
“Yes.”
“Betcha had lots of experience.”
Too much, Decker thought. He applied the salves, unfurled a roll of gauze. “She’s going to need a neck brace and a hip and leg splint. Can you finish her up for me when you’re done?”
“No problem. Thanks for helping. We need it.”
They both worked quickly and quietly. When she was done with her man and his bloodied neck, she yelled out. “Gurney and transport.”
Within seconds, she ungloved and regloved. Walked on her knees over to Decker’s patient. “Unbelievable.”
“Truly.”
“I’ll finish her up now.”
“Thanks. Her name is Tess. She’s doing great.”
“Hey, Tess,” the paramedic said. “We’re taking good care of you.”
