“Actually that’s not a bad plan. I’m going to have Richard’s people do the copy. That way there’s nothing to fear about something getting leaked.” I looked over at Walter. “What do you think of the idea?”
“I know when I was arrested I thought I was going to spend a long, long time in prison. I couldn’t believe what they did for me, and you too, Matt. I trust them. I trust you. I think that’s a great idea. You can turn it over to the colonel and you’re covered. All you have to do is make sure neither the colonel nor the flyboy gets his hands on you first. Once the diary is in your lawyer’s hands there’s nothing your two buddies can do.” Walter looked over at Thien and asked, “But why should Matt say anything about me?”
Thien leaned back in her chair. “Neither of you really knows how much the two of them know. She gestured at Walter. “Make sure you cut a deal for both of you. Set it up so both of you are protected. Okay?”
Walter and I sat for a long time just staring out across the valley and the mountains in the distance. I wanted to know where the key went. I wondered if there was a way to give them the diary but hold on to the key until I knew more about what was going on. The more I thought about that idea, the more I realized that was a stupid plan. The last thing I wanted was those two pissed at me. If I was going to make a trade, I needed to make it for everything.
Sitting on the ferry in Scott’s Lincoln I called Silversmith’s office. Once I had Richard on the phone I made an appointment with him. The best he could do was the day after tomorrow at eleven. I wasn’t too happy with the wait, I really wanted to get rid of the stuff. I asked him if there was any way to see me the next day and he gave what I felt was a very evasive answer. “I’m sorry Matt, but I ah… well… tomorrow just isn’t going to work. But you have all of my attention at eleven the day after tomorrow. Gotta go. Bye.” And he hung up. Strange phone call.
But with any luck, my problems with the diary and the key would be over in a couple of days. I could only hope. All I had to do was keep out of sight. I mean that couldn’t be too difficult, could it?
CHAPTER 20
An Explanation
The next morning my cell phone buzzed in my pocket while I was outside with Bean, and when I fished it out I saw the caller was Mouse. I answered, “Good morning. Normally I’d ask what’s up but you’re are a bit too refined for that kind of greeting.” He laughed and I continued, “So, to what do I owe the honor of this phone call?”
“Matt, you always seem to put a smile on my face. Good morning to you. I was wondering if you would attend a little soiree I’m having tomorrow evening?”
“Are you serious? Sir, I would be glad to.”
Mouse’s tone had a touch of humor as he told me, “Matt, if you don’t knock off that sir shit, I’ll retract my invitation. Calling me sir is like installing an elevator in an outhouse!”
“Please don’t do that si... ah… Mouse. You know, that really doesn’t sound right either.”
“Okay Matt, tell you what we’ll do. I give you permission to call me by my first name. Do you happen to know what it is?”
“Yes Steve, I do.”
Silence. Total silence and finally I asked, “Are you still there?”
Mouse started to laugh. Not just a chuckle but a deep rich laugh. After a few moments he finally got control of himself and he asked me, “How the hell did you know that?”
I saw no reason not to tell the truth. “Sakol told me in your office the first time I was there. Am I right??”
“That son of a bitch. We were never going to tell on each other. Okay, let’s fight fire with fire. Do you know what Sakol is? I mean do you know if that is a nickname or if it’s his first or his last name?”
“No idea,” I replied.
“Sakol is his first name and his last is Hasaphongse. Oh, and make sure he knows I was the one who told you.” His laughter was infectious.
“Really?”
“Really and I believe that not even Jeff knows that.” I found myself laughing and getting in the spirit.
“Okay, ah, Steve, when and where is your soiree?”
“Do you know the Columbia Tower building?” DUH? Only the tallest building in Seattle.
“Yes si… ah Steve.”
He laughed again and told me to be at the elevators at seven PM sharp and to bring a date. I was tempted to say something about how the last time I was there I had a limo pick me up and deliver me, but I thought better of it. Just as we were hanging up, I heard him calling, “Matt! Matt, are you still there?”
“Yes sir!” It just slipped out.
“Matt, if you want, and you think you can handle it, you may bring both of your ladies.” And as he hung up the phone, I could hear him laughing.
By now Bean was pawing at my shoe to go in and have breakfast, and I wanted a cup of coffee. When I was finished feeding Bean and had poured myself a cup, I wandered up to the front of my apartment and curled up in my favorite chair. Now I was stuck with the decision of whom I wanted to take. The truth be known I wanted to take both of them. But I knew better than that. I called Sharon first and got her voicemail. I left her a message and by the time I had gone to the bathroom, my phone rang. It was Sharon.
“Hi kid.”
“Hi babe. I see you called and I missed you. What’s up?”
“Mouse just called me and asked me to a party tomorrow evening and I wanted to see if you were interested.”
“Oh shit! I have duty tomorrow evening. I’m sorry. That’s a party I would love to attend. Make sure you invite me to the next one. Okay?”
“It’s a deal. I’m sorry.”
I dialed Gladys. Since I knew she liked to work days I wasn’t too surprised when she didn’t answer the phone. I left her a message to call me. Since I didn’t want to accidentally run into McNaulty and Mr. Pillsbury, I needed something low profile to do. It had been a long time since I’d worked on any of my car projects, so I headed out for my man cave. Normally I leave my car in the alley but this time I thought it was best if I used the dilapidated old car elevator that services the back of my building.
Art, the old fellow who helps me, was overjoyed to see me. He showed me some of the new pieces he had for our MGBs and we got busy. Over the years I’ve bought so many Bs I’m not even sure how many I have. Some were complete and some were rusted relics. My goal was to restore as many as I could. So far I have three of them in perfect condition. I knew I would never see all of the money I had invested in them; it was a labor of love. They were a direct link with my boyhood.
My parents had a summer home on one of the islands in the San Juan group and one winter I found—yes found—out in the woods an old MG that somebody had abandoned. The plate that had the VIN on it was removed and I always thought somebody had stolen a good MGB and swapped the good tag with the bad tag on the stolen vehicle. Whatever the case, I now had a free MGB. While it was true that the motor and the VIN plate were missing, all of the rest of the car was there.
With a friend I was able to get the car to a garage, and then I started searching wrecking lots and the newspapers for an MGB that still had a good motor. One glorious day a dealership down south called and said that the previous night one of their salesmen had totaled his dealer car. As far as they could tell, the motor was in perfect shape. With great haste I drove down to look at the wreck. The motor did look like it was undamaged and even better, one of the seats was in pristine condition. I made a deal with the insurance company and now I owned two MGBs. I won’t bore you with all the messy details of the marriage of the two vehicles, but after a couple of months of true sweat and tears, I turned the key and the motor started.
For the next couple of summers and winter weekends, the car was the scourge of the south end of the island. Both of the state troopers knew the car wasn’t registered and I didn’t have a driver’s license but they never stopped me or questioned
me. In return, I didn’t speed, and I was a careful and most courteous driver. Those two summers with that old car captured my heart. I was now a convertible person for life.
The winter of my first year off at college somebody broke into the garage on the island where it was stored and stole it. Whoever took it blew the motor up and wrapped it around a telephone pole. There was a large amount of blood on the seats but the hospital on the island never reported seeing anybody with injuries that would correspond with the totaled car. To this day I have a special place in my heart for that old car. No heater, a radio that only played one station, one seat held together with tape and it burned oil like I owned Chevron. But it was still my favorite car of all time.
After a wonderful day of working with Art, I stopped by Gladys’ apartment and found her home. She must have looked through the peephole in her door because when she opened it, all she had on was a towel wrapped around her body. I took her in my arms and as we kissed, the towel fell away and I ended up kissing a warm, damp sexy woman. When we broke off, she took me by the hand and led me to her bedroom. “You’re wearing too much, take something off.” She demanded. Of course, I obeyed.
Later as we lay on her bed, I told her about my phone call and the invitation from Mouse. When I asked her if she wanted to go her eyes got big and she nodded her head like a little kid. I told her I was going to wear a suit and if my old tux still fit, I might even consider wearing that. I knew I had lost her as she lay in my arms mentally going through her wardrobe. Finally, I kissed her and told her anything she wore would be just fine.
Bean crawled up on the bed and was standing on me looking down into my face. It was her signal that she wanted to go outside. I had no choice so I got up and took her for a walk. When I returned I told Gladys when I was going to pick her up the next evening, and headed home.
When I got home, the light on the answering machine was blinking. It was Mouse. “Matt. Change in plans. A limo will pick you up at six-thirty and then go pick up Gladys. The driver will call you when he’s out front. See you tomorrow.” I wondered, how he knew I was going to bring Gladys? That cat surprises me at every turn.
~ ~ ~ ~
Dusk was gathering and I was trying to encourage Bean to do her things so we could go in. I had my small, but nourishing, Scotch in my hand. The evening was cold, but it had the nice crisp smell of leaves and autumn. For some reason I’m built backwards. For me, September to late-November is like my summer. It’s my time to get things done. I’ve never felt comfortable with the calendar. Have you ever wondered how it all started? Who decided that tomorrow is going to be a Tuesday on the third of some month? I guess we have to have order and all, but who picked the person who made the order? I know, put down the Scotch, you’ve had too much. But it was just me watching Bean do her thing and my brain running.
Finally, she finished and headed back down the walkway, never looking back as she expected me to follow her. After all, she who must be obeyed had spoken. After I gave Bean her treat, I walked through the kitchen and noticed it was time to grab my jacket and expect a phone call.
At six-thirty the house phone rang, announcing my ride. I had dug out the old tux and it still fit. As I glanced in the mirror next to the elevator door, I was pleased with what I saw. The hair had more silver than I would have liked, and my moustache had more salt and pepper in it, but my brown eyes were clear and the lines around my eyes were from smiling in my life, not from frowning. All in all, I thought I cleaned up pretty well.
Of course, Gladys was a knockout. Her dress was elegant but sexy. There was a nice show of cleavage and when she walked, there was a flash of leg from the deep slit. She really looked great!
“Why do you think Mouse invited you tonight?” she asked once we were in the car. “I mean, this is a first. For either of us.”
The question brought me up short. Why did he invite me? We don’t travel in the same circles. I may clean up well, but basically I’m still the kind of guy who wants to lick the dessert plate if the dessert is really good. I know everybody wants to do it. It’s just that some do what they want and others do what people expect of them.
I don’t try and hurt people, but I do want to live my own way. The best part is mostly I get to do as I please and for that I am most grateful. Out of six plus billion people in the world, out of over six billion possible existences I could have experienced, I got this one. Sorry, but screw your lotteries, I have food, a place to put my head, good people for friends. In the lottery of life, I hit the jackpot! I ain’t dodging bullets. I’m not wondering when there will be a knock on my front door in the night. Life is good and I want the universe to know it.
I answered Gladys’ question, “I really don’t know. I hadn’t thought about it. But now that you say something, yeah. We do travel in different circles. Why invite me to something tonight?”
I never figured out an answer because we had pulled up to the entrance of the Columbia Tower and the doorman was ready for us. We were escorted to the elevator and once we were inside, our escort reached in and pushed the up button. The door closed and we were whisked up to the top floor. As we rose into the air, I wondered why it was necessary for the doorman to push the up button for us since there were only two buttons on the panel, one for up and one for down. The mind boggles.
When we arrived, we were greeted by a comely young lady who was carrying a tray with crystal flutes of champagne. We plucked two of them away and then clinked glasses. Before we had finished our first sip, as if by magic, Richard Silversmith was standing in front of us. I didn’t expect to see him this evening. He had said nothing about tonight when we last spoke. My antenna was quivering. Richard made a real show of looking Gladys over and then took her right hand and kissed the back of it. “You look marvelous!”
“And me?” I asked.
“Well, you don’t look so bad yourself.”
“Don’t think you’re going to kiss the back of my hand!” I exclaimed. As Richard chatted with Gladys, I looked him over. He was dressed in what was obviously a tailor-made tux. He looked great and I was jealous.
A few moments later Sandy Silversmith joined us. Her dress was a deep green thing that looked Asian and I have no idea what it was called. With her trim figure, she was stunning. Richard turned to her and asked her if she knew Gladys. After the introductions Silversmith said, “I know you know Matt.”
We both laughed and she asked me how Sharon was. I told her she was fine, and that she wanted to come tonight as well but she was on duty at the hospital. I thought that should keep her wondering what my relationship was with the two women. I told her how amazing she looked and she thanked me. I really wanted to ask her what her outfit was called, but at the last second sanity kicked in and I kept my mouth shut. Shucky darn, I’m learning in my old age.
The two of them stayed by the elevators and greeted people as they stepped into the lobby and Gladys and I wandered off. So far no Mouse and I was trying to figure out where he fit into all of this. It was at his invitation we were there. He was nowhere to be seen.
Eventually we were escorted to the next room by one of the waitstaff and as we entered, I was stunned at the vast array of who’s who in Seattle as well as Olympia. The mayor was chatting with the governor and his wife. The top two executives of the major television stations were discussing something while their wives had their own conversation. One of the executives of a major software company was with the chief of police and two members of the city council. I saw several people I knew from the papers and television. Off in one corner I saw David Wheeler and when he saw me he came barreling across the floor to where Gladys and I were standing. He held out his arms to her with a huge grin on his face. “Gladys,” he gushed.
I was a bit taken aback by his greeting. Gladys slipped her arms around Wheel’s stout figure and smiled up at him. “Hello David. Nice to see you again.”
I asked, “You two know e
ach other?” And after I asked my question I realized how stupid it sounded considering the way they had just embraced.
“Hell bells, Matt, if it wasn’t for this lovely lady, my marina would have gone out of business a long time ago. She’s my best customer.” They both laughed.
Looking at me, Gladys explained, “David has some very good sources for parts for my old Chris Craft. I would never have been able to restore the boat to the condition it’s in right now had it not been for this sweet dear man.” I swear I saw Wheel turn pink.
“You know,” I explained to Gladys, “You’re the only person I know who’s allowed to call him David. Everybody who know this galoof call him ‘Wheel.’” Wheel grinned at me.
“This is a special lady. As long as she keeps spending money at my store she can call me anything she wants.”
At that point a woman who was almost as tall as me stepped up and put her hand on Wheel’s arm. “You left me all alone. I got lonely.” Looking at the way the woman was dressed and the little girl sound of her voice, I thought that Wheel had probably rented the lady for the evening. And as I had that thought, I felt bad. That was really uncalled for and I watched the two of them wander off.
Gladys hugged my arm as she explained, “That man knows more about old wooden boats and where to find the parts I need. I don’t know what I would have done without him.” To me, Wheel was just a poker player I saw every other month. Now I was seeing him in a totally different light. Funny how you think you know somebody only to find out they are so much more than you ever dreamed.
I spotted Krista Sellers with a very handsome gent I assumed was her police friend from Ross Island. When she saw me she waved and promptly came over and kissed my cheek. I introduced her to Gladys and then Krista was off to greet somebody else. I saw Jeff and Sakol standing against a wall with Jeff’s wife and someone I assumed was Sakol’s wife. When Jeff saw me waved me over. “What’s this all about?” he asked me.
Code Name: Crescent: A Matt Preston Novel Page 23
