“It’s a tough break junior,” Velasco said happily, “but you gotta face it.”
“Forget about her, Celso,” I advised.
“Have you forgotten yours?” he asked as he closed the log. “I’m going after her.”
“There’s a ship sailing for Puerto Zapato day after tomorrow,” Velasco said. “Why don’t you go down to the steamship offices and get a ticket?”
“I’ll do that,” Celso said as he handed the log back to Velasco. “I guess tomorrow is the last day we’ll be working together, Manny,” he said to me. “Jesus won’t be happy to be losing me so soon, but that can’t be helped. Goodbye, Velasco.”
When Celso had gone Velasco slapped his knee and cackled gleefully. “Finally got rid of that sonofabitch!” He said. “Wish I’d known I had what’d make him go all this time, though.”
“I think he’s pretty broken up,” I said.
“Oh, who cares!” Velasco said. “He’s goin’, that’s the important thing.”
“Well,” I said, “I’ll see you around.” I let myself out and kicked around town for a while.
Celso was right about Jesus not being happy. When I went in to work the next day he took me into his office.
“I almost wish you hadn’t told him about his wife,” he said. “The kind of turnover I’ve been having lately has been murder.” He sighed. “Oh, well. Can’t be helped. I’d like you to take over the opening spot, Manny,” he went on, “if you’ll do it. It’ll mean getting up at an ungodly hour, but there’s a raise in it for you.”
“Sounds good to me,” I said.
“Not right away, though,” Jesus said. “I’d prefer to do the open myself for a while, rather than do the close again any time soon.” He shook his head. “Just when I was getting caught up on the books, too.”
“Can I help?” I asked.
“Got a head for figures?”
“Depends on the girl,” I said.
Jesus opened his jaw and then quickly closed it. “OK, Manuel,” he finally said, “shoo!”
That afternoon Toto Santos actually said hello to me without any prompting. And soon after that, Celso left. He didn’t say much more than ‘bye’ except to thank me for my help and that he’d never forget what I’d done for him. That night Carla showed up about half an hour before close and we chatted while I did what needed to be done. I walked her over to her job, then blew 20 bucks on a couple of races. I went over to the Blue Casket for an hour or so. Olivia didn’t recite anything that night. I was obviously getting into a rut, but a little idea was starting to form in the back of my mind.
The Lost Souls’ Alliance Takes Root
Glottis returned after a few days, having had a great time. He brought me a list of phone numbers from his various stops and said that Lola said “Hi.” He didn’t see anything of Domino or his agents, but he did hear from a few people that he wasn’t the first to ask about Meche. I was going to give my contacts a few days before phoning them. Glottis went back to doing odd jobs for Velasco and tinkering with the Bone Wagon.
A couple of days after Glottis got back there was a message at my hotel that Lola had phoned while I was at work. After we exchanged pleasantries she said, “I got some bad news for you, Manny.”
“Uh-oh,” I said. “What is it?”
“Yesterday some guy in a DOD car drove up asking about Mercedes Colomar. I didn’t tell him nothin’, but Eddie told him about you and Glottis. The guy paid Eddie to let him know if she turned up.”
I didn’t like the sound of that. “How much money?” I asked.
“It was a big wad, Manny. Big bills, too. And he had a lot left over.”
“So Domino’s goons are going up and down the line bribing people,” I said with a heavy sigh. “Great.”
“What’s really goin’ on here, Manny?” Lola asked.
“I wish I knew, baby. But I need to find Meche first. I let her down once already.”
“You’ll find her,” Lola said, “but I gotta go. If I hear anything, I’ll let you know.”
“Thanks, Lola,” I said. “I hope there are more people like you out there than are like Eddie.”
“Me, too,” she said. “Bye.”
Well, that was pretty lousy news, but I wasn’t sure just how bad it was. On the one hand, Domino must be getting desperate if he was paying people for information they might give him someday. He wasn’t having any better luck finding Meche than I was but, on the other hand, he had the edge. There was no way I could match his tactic, even if my long ‘slump’ hadn’t just about tapped me out. I was willing to bet that wad of dough didn’t come out of Domino’s pocket, though. Whoever was behind him must be providing it, and that was a significant piece of news.
I went back to my room. It was time to make a report.
Salvador,
I sent Glottis out to make another search for Meche. He went back to El Marrow by the way we came to reconnect with the people we encountered before, and he came back by a different route to make new contacts. No one admits to having seen Meche, but several say that they’ve talked to others who are asking about her and I’ve just been told that Domino or his agents are paying some people large bribes to let them know if they see her. This lets us know a few things.
First, Domino knows he has competition. If people are telling me others are looking for Meche, we can be sure they’re doing the same for Domino.
Second, whoever is behind all this must have access to DOD funds. One of my contacts described the bribes as large wads of large bills. I suppose the bribes could be coming from the sales of stolen Double-N tickets; but I bet these guys would embezzle, if they could, rather than dip into their own kitty.
Third, Domino’s search is being conducted like a legitimate DOD operation, the same contact having described a car with DOD markings. Domino’s position must be very secure if he can divert agents for this. I wonder if Meche’s gotten wind of this somehow and is lying low.
As for recruiting LSA agents in Rubacava… I’ve got a few ideas but I’m going to watch and wait before making any moves. For right now, me and Glottis are going to have to carry the ball by ourselves.
I got a reply from Salvador a few days later.
Manuel,
I am sorry to hear that you have not heard from your Meche. You must be patient, and let your heart remain open. If it is meant to be, you will some day be reunited.
After having studied your latest report carefully I must congratulate you. Your idea of using your driver to conduct your search is inspired. Not only is he impervious to anything our enemies could inflict upon you, he also is known to Miss Colomar.
Eva and I agree it is probable that our enemies are able to divert DOD funds for their operations. This insight gives us a possible means of identifying the persons we seek. We have expanded our search of the DOD network to include financial transactions. Since we need only look for tampering within the last few weeks to locate the source of these bribes, the task may be relatively simple, although Eva remains convinced that seeking discrepancies between work orders and client records will produce more certain results. Naturally, however, we continue to work on all fronts.
It is unfortunate that we cannot match the tactics of our enemies, but the LSA lacks their financial resources.
Remain cautious in seeking out new agents. We trust your judgment, but keep in mind what you have learned, for our enemies may have subverted potential recruits. Look for genuine revolutionary instincts.