73
IN THE kitchen, Molly hung up the phone and turned on the wire. When she went into the living room she had to fake the surprise, because Jesse had just told her he was coming in. But she didn’t have to fake the fear. That was real. He pointed the little silver derringer at her.
“Who are you?” she said.
“I think you know,” he said.
“What do you want?” she said.
“I think you know that, too,” he said.
“You’re the Night Hawk,” she said.
“Yes.”
“What do you want?”
“Remove your clothes,” he said.
His voice sounded to Molly as if it had a small quiver in it.
“Remove my clothes?”
“Now,” he said.
“In front of you?”
“I like to watch,” he said.
“And if I refuse?”
“I’ll shoot you,” he said.
“Don’t do that,” Molly said.
“Then start the striptease,” he said.
“Yes, sir,” Molly said. “Here I go.”
She began slowly to unbutton her shirt.
Come on, Jesse,she thought. If Suit actually sees me in my underwear, I’ll shoot myself . .
. or him.
“What’s so funny,” the Night Hawk said.
“There’s nothing funny,” Molly said.
“You were smiling.”
Molly unbuttoned the last button on her shirt.
“I do that when I’m nervous,” Molly said.
“Take off the shirt,” he said.
Shirt isn’t bad,she thought. Line of duty and all that . But she had taped a gun to the inside of her right thigh. If she dropped her skirt, he’d see it, and then what? If she had to drop the skirt, she’d come up with the gun. And the hell with Jesse and Suit.
She didn’t have to. Looking past Seth Ralston, she saw the knob turn silently on her front door. She began to beg loudly.
“Please,” she said. “Please don’t make me do this. Please.”
It covered any sound of entry, and, she could see, it pleased Ralston.
“Sorry, honey,” Ralston said. “The clothes gotta come off. The quicker they do, the quicker it’s over.”
“Freeze right there,” Jesse said.
Ralston turned his head and saw Jesse, and Suitcase Simpson, each with a gun drawn and aimed, Jesse to his right rear, Suit to his left. He looked back at Molly. She had her gun out from under her skirt.
“It’s a trap,” he said.
“Yes, it is,” Molly said. “Put the gun down.”
Ralston looked back at Jesse. There was a little earpiece in Jesse’s left ear.
“You figured this out,” Ralston said.
“Put the gun on the ground,” Jesse said.
Ralston stared at Jesse and glanced at Suit and looked back at Molly. Nobody moved.
Ralston lowered the gun.
“The end of the Night Hawk,” he said.
“Put the gun on the floor,” Jesse said.
“Jail time.”
“Put it down now,” Jesse said. “I won’t tell you again.”
“We know naught of our coming hither or our going hence,” he said. “Readiness is all.”
He raised the derringer suddenly and leveled it at Molly, and all three cops fired. Ralston went down in a heap and lay still on the floor. The three cops looked down at him. Jesse crouched and felt for a pulse and found none and stood.
“Dead,” Jesse said.
Silently, Suit holstered his weapon and picked up Molly’s shirt from where she had dropped it on the floor. He draped it over her shoulders.
“I wonder which one of us killed him,” Molly said.
“All of us,” Jesse said.
“At his request, I think,” Molly said.
74
JESSE SAT in the warm evening with Sunny Randall on his small balcony. She had a martini.
He had a scotch. It was a clear night. There were stars. And in the bright moonlight they could see the outline of Paradise Neck, with its lighted windows looking a bit starlike as well.
“All three shots were fatal?” Sunny said.
“According to the ME,” Jesse said.
“Shooting team give you an okay?” Sunny said.
“Yep. Healy led the team. Necessary lethal force.”
“Good,” Sunny said. “How do you feel about it?”
“Had to be done,” Jesse said.
“I know,” Sunny said. “But how do you feel about it?”
Jesse sipped his scotch. He smiled at Sunny.
“Had to be done,” he said.
“Oh,” Sunny said. “I see.”
Jesse looked at her for a while.
“You’ve done it,” Jesse said. “How did it make you feel?”
“Had to be done,” Sunny said.
“Exactly,” Jesse said.
“And the others?” Sunny said.
“Molly’s fine,” Jesse said. “I think she thought he deserved to be shot. Suit? I don’t know.
It’s hard to figure sometimes what Suit is thinking.”
“Probably makes it easier that you all killed him,” Sunny said.
“Like a firing squad,” Jesse said.
They sat quietly. No boats moved in the harbor. The gulls were quiet. There was no breeze, just the faintly cool ocean scent that drifted up to them. Jesse got up and made them each another drink. As he finished, the phone rang. He looked at the caller ID.
“I have to take this,” Jesse said. “It won’t be long.”
“I’ll close the French doors,” Sunny said.
“No,” Jesse said. “It’s Jenn. I want you to listen.”
Sunny looked at him but said nothing. Jesse picked up the phone.
“Jesse,” Jenn said. “Oh, thank God you’re there.”
“I’m here,” Jesse said.
“Things are terrible,” Jenn said. “I don’t know what to do. I’ve been fired. They are restructuring the whole show. I don’t know what to do.”
“How about your producer friend,” Jesse said.
“He’s the one that fired me,” Jenn said.
“No business like show business,” Jesse said.
“What am I going to do?” Jenn said.
“Another job?” Jesse said. “Another producer? Whichever comes first.”
“Don’t tease me, Jesse. I’m frantic. I need you. I need to come there and be with you.”
“No,” Jesse said.
“No?”
“No.”
“Jesse, please,” Jenn said. “I need this.”
“No,” Jesse said. “No more.”
“No more?”
“It’s done, Jenn,” Jesse said. “We’re done. I won’t do this anymore.”
“Jesse, do you hate me so much?”
“I don’t hate you, Jenn. I just want you out of my life.”
“Jesse,” Jenn said, “Jesse. I can’t. I don’t . . . I don’t know what to do.”
“Your problem, Jenn.”
“Jesse, please, what happened to make you turn on me like this?”
Jesse took in some air. There was a long, complicated answer to that question, and Jesse thought he knew what it was. He looked at Sunny. Sunny was motionless, watching him.
“Stuff happens,” he said, and gently hung up the phone.
He picked up the drinks and walked to the balcony and handed Sunny hers. She took it and smiled at him.
“You understand what went on there?” Jesse said.
“I believe so,” Sunny said.
“What do you think?”
“I think it bodes well,” Sunny said.
She put one hand up, and gently Jesse high-fived her.