"Exactly," Hawk said.
"Shooting it out with twenty guys may not be the best way to get that information."
"Specially if only one guy's got the information and you kill him."
"A definite possibility."
"Or we might both get shot to pieces and then the thing wouldn't ever get solved," Hawk said.
"Unlikely," I Said. "But not impossible."
We both looked at the gleam of the white cinder block buildings through the lacy distraction of the trees. The high locust whine was so much a part of the woods that it had become nearly inaudible. The bittersweet smell of the
woods was stronger as the sun had gotten higher. "I think guile is still our best option," I said. "So what the guileful thing to do?" Hawk said.
"6o back home, maybe have a couple beers, and think about it," I said.
"Works for me," Hawk said.
from the highway when we both stopped short at the same time.
"You smell it?" I said.
"Cigarette," Hawk said.
I nodded. Hawk took his elephant gun from the shoulder holster and stuck it into his belt at the small of his back. He shucked off the shoulder rig and dropped it and moed off to the right. I went left. We emerged onto the highw bracketing the car, Hawk ten yards beyond it, me ten yards this side. There were four of them leaning on the car. They had on uniforms and carried side arms. An unmarked blue Jeep was parked behind Hawk's Jag. I sauntered toward them with a big friendly smile.
"Hi," I said. "You waiting for me?"
One of them turned toward me. He was still wearing'his horn-rimmed glasses and it still made him look smart. Of course, appearances can be deceiving.
"This your carT' he said. After he said it, he stared at me
and I could see recognition begin to form behind his lenses. "Actually it belongs to my Negro friend," I said.
They had not planned on being approached by two people
274 rt'- 8'. r
at the same time from opposite directions. They should have divided the chore. Two look at me. Two look at Hawk. But they hadn't decided in advance, and therefore didn't know, which two should look at whom. Training is good, but sometimes innovation is better.
"I know you," Horn-Rims said.
"And a better man for it," I said.
Hawk and I kept coming. Horn Rims put a hand on the radio at his belt and turned his head and spoke something into the microphone clipped to his epaulets. Then he unsnapped the flap of his holster.
"Stop right where you are," he said.
"Here.9'' I said.
For a moment all four of them were looking at me. When two of them looked back at Hawk, he had put the car between him and them and was resting the big.44 on the roof with the hammer back.
One of them said, "Jesus Christ," and all four looked for a moment at Hawk. When two of them looked back at me I had the Browning out and cocked and pointed.
"You guys got to be better organized," I said. "Move away from the car."
Horn Rims glanced toward the driveway. He was expecting reinforcements. I stepped closer and hit him with a left hook that staggered him into the road. Then I got in the car and fumbled the keys down from the sun visor. Hawk remained with his gun on the security guards.
"You're a dead man;' Horn Rims screamed at me. "Wherever you run, whatever you do, even if you kill some of us, we'll run you both to ground and kill you."
From up the long driveway I could hear the sound of cars coming. More than one. I started the Jaguar.
I heard Hawk say, "Watch this."
vtJ/, MIr., 275
There were two big booms from the.44 and in the
mirror I could see the Jeep settle forward on its deflating front tires. I heard Hawk say, "All of you on the ground, facedown." Then Hawk was in the front seat. I stomped on the accel-
and the Jag lunged forward spinning up gravel from road shoulder. We lurched up onto the road surface and
away. I could smell the tires scorching and there was some small-arms fire, but nothing hit us. Hawk slammed the door shut as the car stabilized and smoothed out.
:.i "We going to have to do something about these guys," said.
I was driving as fast as the Buxton Road would let me back toward Beecham. Hawk had the cylinder of his.44 open and was feeding in two fresh rounds that looked about the size of sufface-to-ai missiles.
I'll bet they're back them saying the same thing," I said.
274 P'". r at the same time from opposite directions. They should have divided the chore. TWo look at me. Two look at Hawk. But they hadn't decided in advance, and therefore didn't know, which two should look at whom. Training is good, but sometimes innovation is better. "I know you," Horn Rims said. "And a better man for it," I said. Hawk and I kept coming. Horn Rims put a hand on the radio at his belt and turned his head and spoke something into the microphone clipped to his epaulets. Then he unsnapped the flap of his holster. "Stop right where you are," he said. "Here?" I said..For a moment all four of them were looking at me. When two of them looked back at Hawk, he had put the car between him and them and was resting the big.44 on the roof with the hammer back. One of them said, "Jesus Christ;' and all four looked for a moment at Hawk. When two of them looked back at me I had the Browning out and cocked and pointed. "You guys got to be better organized;' I said. "Move away from the car." Horn Rims glanced toward the driveway. He was expecting reinforcements. I stepped closer and hit him with a left hook that staggered him into the road. Then I got in the car and fumbled the keys down from the sun visor. Hawk remained with his gun on the security guards. "You're a dead man," Horn Rims screamed at me. "Wherever you run, whatever you do, even if you kill some of us, we'll run you both to ground and kill you." From up the long driveway I could bear the sound of cars coming. More than one. I started the Jaguar. I heard Hawk say, "Watch this."
/'v t 275
There were two big booms from the.44 and in the rearview mirror I could see the Jeep settle forward on its rapidly deflating front tires.
I heard Hawk say, "All of you on the ground, facedown." Then Hawk was in the front seat. I stomped on the accelerator and the Jag lunged forward spinning up gravel from e road shoulder. We lurched up onto the road surface and Screeched away. I could smell the tires scorching and there was some small-arms fire, but nothing hit us. Hawk slammed the door shut as the car stabilized and smoothed out.
"We going to have to do something about these guys," Hawk said.
. I was driving as fast as the Buxton Road would let me back toward Beecham. Hawk had the cylinder of his.44 open and was feeding in two fresh rounds that looked about the size of surface-to-air missiles.
"I'll bet they're back there saying the same thing," I said.
ured out exactly what Hawk and I were going to do about Last Stand Systems, Inc., I wanted the time I spent with Susan to be covert.. I was in a profession where getting threatened was part otthe deal. So was Hawk. But Susan was not. So I left Hawk to look out for himself for a long weekend and took Susan for a few days to Lee Farrell's empty condominium at Sanibel Island on:Florida's west coast. It was late June, and as out of seasons you could get. But I was pretty sure no one would shoot at us while we were down there. It was all fight on the plane, and in the car rental office, and the car we rented was air-conditioned. The walk from the car to the elevator and the ride up in the elevator was not airconditioned, and we were near collapse by the time I got Farrell's door unlocked. The condo was roasting. R had been closed since Farrell's last vacation. I staggered to the thermostat and turned the air-conditioning on high. In a few minutes the crisis had passed and we were breathing normally again. "I don't want to disappoint you," I said to Susan after she had unpacked and hung up all her clothes and joined me at the
27S rt'. Prr
little bar in the living room for a cl. "Bm Fell made me pro.se there would no heterosexual cali in here." "Is s your way of telling me you wt me o dress up in a man's suit again?" Sus said. "e sa
ys it's in e bylaws of the condo assiation--heterosexuality is prohibited?' "Oh y' Susan sd. "Finely a re vacation." "Gee," I sd. "Usually when someone tells you that you can't do sometng, you want to do it iediately." Sus sipd on the Bellini I had made her and looked at me and frowned thoughtfully. "You ow' she sd, "you're right. at is how I. e hell with the coo assiafion. t's fuck:' "That's the Susan I ow," I smd. "Did you say someing about a m's suit?" "Just a little humor," she said. "How about may just the shM and a fie," I said. "Stop it;' Susan said and got up and wked towed e oom. I followed. "How about just e tie?" I sd. Susan unzipd her shos. "How about less talk d more action' she said.
Later at night we had dinner at e Sanil Ste House. The dining rm was smalld pleast with glass at e f end ing out over so greene. We had minis. They were excellente ordered steak. For Susan to order ste was areach of self-discipline compable to masturbating in pdblic. Sads ved first. They were excellent. The steaks ved sholy thereafter. Sus recovered herself sufficiently to cut her ste into halves and put one half aside. "I guess we showed em," Sus sd as she chewed on a
small piece of steak. "Sex, martinis, and steak. How much more carnality is possible." I took a bite of my steak. It was excellent. "That can be our project while we're here," I said. "See how much carnality is possible." "Would you care to tell me exactly why we are here?" "Haven't been away in a while," I said. "Lee offered." "Lee's a cop," Susan said. "He doesn't spend all winter here either. Why now at the end of June?" "Sure it's out of season," I said. "But everything's air-conditioned." "I'm not complaining about the heat," Susan said. "And so far I'm having a lovely time. But I think that there's something lurking behind the arras." "A rat, maybe?" "Or Polonius," Susan sail. "Shakespeare aside, I know you nearly as well as you know me. What's up?" I finished my martini, and in a burst of unbridled carnality, Susan finished hers. The waitress noticed out. situation and came over. We ordered red wine. She went togget it. And brought it back and left. "You remember Beecham,.Maine?" I said. She shook her head. I told her, all of it. She listened as I talked as she always did, with full attention, her eyes fixed on me. I could feel the charge in her. I could feel the energy between, us. It made talking to her a lush experience. ' "And you obviously believe them," Susa said when I fiisbed. Iat they'll try for Hawk and me? You remember Clusewiz on war?" "I should;' Susan said, 'by now. You keep qofing him." "And what is the quote?"
280 POT if. Parr "Something like 'you must prepare for the enemy's capability, rather than his intentions.'" "Yes." "So you have to assume they might try." "If I assume they might try and I'm wrong, I'm inconvenienced. If I assume they won't try and I'm wrong, I'm dead." "Which is why you brought me here. Because if we were - to spend time together you wanted it where I wouldn't be in danger by proximity." "Yep. I figure they follow us down here in late June and their bullets will melt." "And you still don't know their connection with Amir?" "Only that they sent a plane for him. And warned us away from him." "It's the first time in this case that you've run into people who seem like they could have killed Prentice Lamont," she said. "Yeah, I noticed that too. Don't know if they did, but at least we can assume they would." Susan had another bite of steak. I sipped some red wine. I had finished my steak and was keeping track of what happened to the half of her steak that she had put aside. It was still aside. I remained hopeful. "So what are you going to do?" "Keep pushing," I said. "Something will pop out." 'Ie police can't help you?" Susan said. I shrugged. "We sy they threatened us, they say they didn't, what are the co) going to do?" '.ou. w. ouldn't go to the police anyway," Susan said. "And.certainly Hawk would not." I didn't say anything. Susan put her knife and fork down,
k ,. 281
and folded her hands under her chin and gazed at me in silence.
"Don't let them kill you;' Susan said.
"I won't," I said.
She thought for a minute, looking at me, and then said,
"No, you won't, will you."
"No:'
We sat and our eyes held like that for a long minute. Finally I said, "You going to eat the rest of that steakT" She kept staring at me and then began to smile and her eyes filled up, and then she began to laugh and the tears spilled onto her cheeks.
She managed to say, "No."
"Good," I said.
I forked the steak onto my plate and sliced off a bite. "Do you have a plan for tomorrowT' Susan said.
She had herself back under control but her face was still flushed the way it gets when she cries, or laughs, or both, and there was still some wetness on her completely sensational cheekbones.
"I thought we could sleep late, have a leisurely breakfast, once again defy the condo association for much of the afternoon, have a swim and go for dinner at a place called the Twilight Cafe. I hear they have a steak with black beans that you won't be able to finish..."
She was laughing again. There was a slivered edge of fear behind the laugh, but it was real laughter. '
"As I think about it," she said, "I don't think anything can 11 you."
' "Nothing has," I said.
Hawk in a tank top is a fairly scary sight, and a.number of the other patrons glanced at us covertly from time to time. Hawk knew this. He never missed anything going on around him, and while, as usual, he paid no attention to anyone, I think it amused him. Now and then he would do something showy like handstand push-ups, to impresathe rubes.
"While you been vacationing," Hawk said, "I been
detecting." "Good," I said. "You can use the practice."
"Every Friday Amir go up to Bangor. Every Sunday he come back. So I figure I better see what he doing up there,
and I drive up to Bangor International Airport..." "International?" I said.
"Sure;' Hawk said. "You think they hay shakers up
there?".
"Well;' I said. "Yes."
Hawk shook his head. He was doing some dips as he talked, and'if there was any effort involved it didn't show in his voice.
"Anyway, I'm there on a Friday afternoon sitting in my car, and about five o'clock here come Amir out of the terminal with his little overnight case. Black Lincoln stretch limo
284 P¢r' 8:'. Pargr '
waiting. Driver gets out, opens the door. Amir hands him the overnight case, driver puts it on the front seat, Amir hops in the back. You want to guess the license number on the limo?"
"Don't remember but I'll bett's in my notes." "Same one," Hawk said. "You follow them?" I said. "Yep."
"To Beecham."
"Yep."
"Last Stand Systems, Inc."
"Yep."
"Stayed the weekend and came home Sunday night." "Yep."
"You got any theories on what he's doing up there?" I said. "Visiting."
"You got any thoughts on what he does while he visits?" Hawk was doing pull-ups. He did five more after I asked the question, then let himself down slowly and dropped to the floor.
"We know Amir is queer."
"Nice rhyme," I said.
"And we know he, ah, hyperactive."
"Nice phrase;' I said. "You think he's got a boyfriend in Last Stand Systems, Inc.?"
"Somebody send the company plane down for him." "You think it's Milo Quant?" "There a Mrs. Quant?" Hawk said. I didn't say anything for a minute.
"You think there's hanky-panky between Milo and Amir?"
"Amir was a white woman, what would you think?" Hawk said.
'qhat there was hanky-panky between Milo and Amir."
Hawk smiled.
"That what I'd think," he said.
"So," I said. "We don't want to be homophobic about this." "So hanky-panky it is," Hawk said.
"On the other hand," I said, "you've read the literature. For the leader of this movement to be having an affair with a gay black militant is not just miscegenation, for crissake, it's treason."
"You right," Hawk said. "Couldn't happen. Be like J.
Edgar Hoover running around in a dress."
"Exactly," I said. "Impossible."
I
did some curls. Hawk worked on his triceps a little. I did some dips. Hawk worked on his lats. Henry strolled past us and explained to someone that the leg extension machine gave you a better workout if you put some weight on it. He showed them how to set the weight, then he walked back past Hawk and me without looking at us.
After a while Hawk said, "I feelin' short on electrolytes." "Me too," I said. "Luckily Henry keeps some in his office."
We went back into Henry's office that looked ou over the harbor and got some beer out of the refrigerator.
"Milo is speaking out in Fitchburg," I said. "I thought I'd
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