“Yes,” Dalmas said.
Carver left.
FOUR
“That’s a special kind of relationship you two have,” Diane said. “Can’t tell if you guys are friends or enemies.”
“Carver is a piece of slime, but he seems to be genuinely interested in justice most of the time. It’s one of the reasons I keep him alive.”
Diane raised an eyebrow. “Are you kidding me?”
“I don’t kid while I’m on a mission. Pack your stuff, we’re heading out of here.”
“Heading out of here? Why? I just got here.”
“Carver provided this place. He seems to have trouble keeping the safe houses safe. I’m taking you somewhere else.”
“Carver said he didn’t tell anyone about this place.”
“That might be right. Carver might also be not as good as he thinks. He might have been followed. I trust my own skills better. Pack your stuff. We move out in ten minutes.”
Diane sighed. “I’d just started unpacking.”
“Nine minutes and fifty seconds…”
FIVE
Dalmas and Diane left the motel. Dalmas was carrying her duffel bag. He was a gentleman as well as an officer.
When they got outside Dalmas heard a car speeding towards them. He pushed Diane out of the way, covering her with his body.
The car stopped. A window opened and a shotgun appeared through the passenger window.
Dalmas stepped over to the window with two big strides and grabbed the barrel. He pushed, the gun’s stock connected against the chin of the man holding it. He grunted.
Dalmas took the shotgun from the man and pointed it inside the car. The man who’d been holding it was a bald guy wearing shades and a tattoo of a panther on his neck, along with a look of surprise. A shotgun blast blew his brains all over the car’s upholstery and the driver who was pulling out a pistol.
Dalmas jumped on top of the car’s hood. He put the shotgun against the roof and fired it three times.
He got off the hood again and checked inside the car. The driver was as dead as the shooter had been.
“Oh god, oh god…” Diane stammered, tears in her eyes.
“Get in my car,” Dalmas said and opened the door of his SUV. “We need to be gone before any cops show up.”
SIX
Dalmas called Donna on his cellphone in his car to tell her he’d be out of town a few days on business. Donna knew he sometimes had to do things she didn’t want to know the details of and accepted.
“That your wife?” Diane asked. She was sitting next to Dalmas, wearing sunglasses and a hat.
“Yes.”
“She knows about what you do for Carver?”
“Not the details.”
“Doesn’t she ever ask for them?”
“She trusts me.”
“Right. So where are you taking us?”
“Different motel. San Teresa. Far enough from Bay City and not too far a drive.”
“Nice motel?”
“Private.”
“How do you know that one?”
“Not of your concern.” Dalmas felt no reason to tell her he’d visited it with an old girlfriend before he was with Donna. Her name was Patricia. She’d been black and their parents hadn’t agreed on their relationship. Dalmas’ dad had been an asshole bigot. He liked Donna’s dad a lot better. He’d spent a few nights of passion in that hotel, putting all the money he earned into it. Patricia broke off their relationship after a few weeks. Couldn’t keep up with it like that. Dalmas wasn’t sure but thought she was married to a black man now.
“You don’t talk much do you?” Diane asked.
“I don’t like talking about myself. I’m not that interesting. I am wondering why you took up with an asshole criminal like Monaghan.”
Diane shrugged. “Why did your wife fall for you? I’m guessing it’s not your sense of humor or your slick lines. It’s because you’re a big, strong dangerous-looking guy.”
“I’m not sure about that. Yes, she is attracted to me psychically. I think she knows she can trust me. She knows I’m a dedicated father. And I take out the trash without any arguments.”
“Sometimes I’m not sure you’re joking, you know that? Anyway, that’s the reason I wanted Monaghan, I guess. He was hot, dangerous. Good-looking too. And rich. For a simple little high school dropout from a lousy part of Bay City that’s as much as I can hope for.”
“And now he’s trying to kill you.”
“Yeah…”
“Why do you want to testify against him?”
“He’s sleeping around on me. A lot.”
“And that’s not acceptable? Nice to hear you’ve still got some positive opinions about yourself.”
She laughed. “God, you’re a sarcastic sonofabitch, aren’t you? I can’t believe how coldblooded you killed those guys in front of the motel.”
“Sometimes killing is necessary to complete an objective. My objective is to keep you alive. Killing them seemed inevitable.”
Diane shook her head. “Wow, you out-macho the macho. But I guess you had the right idea when you decided to get us away from that motel.”
“Yes. In some way the location had been compromised again. Carver is being very sloppy.”
SEVEN
After having signed in as Mr and Mrs John Smith, Dalmas and Diane walked into their motel room. It hadn’t improved much since Dalmas had last been there. For a moment he allowed himself to reminisce about his time with Patricia. She hadn’t been his first love, but she had been his first sex partner.
He couldn’t help notice Diane’s well rounded ass as she bent forward to open her luggage. Being with a woman that good-looking in a motel he had his first night of lust in did rekindle some feelings. Things between him and Donna probably had gotten a bit less passionate. And with a little baby now part of their family their nights were fuller with milk bottles than sex.
Diane turned around. “Are you checking out my ass?”
“Don’t flatter yourself.”
She laughed. “Right.”
He never blushed. He felt like it however. He decided to get down to business before his mind wandered again.
He closed the curtains on the windows. He took one of the chairs in the room and put it against the doorjamb.
He took a.45 from his waistband, which had been hidden by his grey jacket and put it down on the dresser table. He took it apart and put it together again. He checked the slide. Checked the magazine.
Diane put her clothes in the closet while he was busy with his gun. When she was finished she came over to stand next to him. He’d just started taking the gun apart a second time.
“You’re pretty good at that.”
“A clean gun is as working gun. A working gun is the difference between life and death.”
“I can imagine. Does that relax you? Taking that thing apart?”
Dalmas shrugged. “It passes the time in a useful way.”
“Wouldn’t you rather sit on the bed with me and watch TV?”
“I don’t really like watching TV. Not without Donna or the kids.”
“Don’t you have some favorite shows?”
“Family Guy can be funny. I watch the news. Donna likes a lot of the reality shows. I watch them with her to spend the time with her. I don’t really enjoy them, though.”
Diane put her lips close to Dalmas’ ear. “I’m sure there’s some porn we can watch. Or are you afraid that might get you some nasty ideas?”
Dalmas stood. “I’m not sure but you seem to have the wrong idea about me. You seem to think I’m interested in getting into a psychical relationship with you while we’re here. You are wrong about that. I love my wife and would never cheat on her.”
Diane ran her hands down her body, emphasizing her curves. “You can’t deny the attraction you feel to this.”
“Doesn’t matter what I feel. Fact is I’ll keep you alive, that’s it. If you keep on with these comments I’m going to hand you over to Monaghan.”