“Eleven-fifty,” he said.
She gave him the card. He left with it. “What a turkey,” she said.
“Yeah?”
“Like this.” She leered at Nora’s breasts, wiggling her eyebrows and running her tongue across her lips.
“Ask him for a date. Definitely.”
“Right.”
A moment later, he stepped in front of the car. He jotted down the license plate number and came back to Tyler’s window. She took the plastic clipboard from him, and started to sign the receipt.
“You with those guys?” he asked.
Tyler didn’t answer.
“They’re our Secret Service escort,” Nora said.
“Yeah? Who you trying to shit?”
Tyler plucked her card from its slot.
“You don’t recognize Amy Carter when you see her?”
She ripped off the top copy of the receipt.
“Well, now,” Nora went on. “I guess you wouldn’t. She’s incognito.”
Tyler handed out the clipboard. Bix yanked it from her hand. He crouched and stared in at Nora. “You’re a real laugh.”
Tyler started the engine. She released the emergency brake and shifted to first.
“Wi—”
She popped the clutch. The car lurched forward.
“I didn’t catch that!” Nora yelled, turning in her seat.
“I did,” Tyler said.
“What did he call me?”
“A wise-ass cunt,” Tyler said, and pulled onto the road.
“Did he?”
“Please. Don’t flip him the bird. He knows where we’ll be staying.”
“Ah. Well, all right. Coward.”
“That’s me.”
“Seaside?” repeated the pleasant, bald man behind the registration desk. “Did you come in by way of town?”
“Yes,” Tyler said.
“What there was of it,” Nora added.
The man chuckled. So did Jack Wyatt, who was waiting behind them with Abe.
“Well,” the man said, “you want to head back through what there is of town. Just this side of the monster palace, you’ll see a dirt road on your right.”
“Just this side of Beast House?” Tyler asked.
“Yep. The monster palace. The road’s called Beach Lane. It’ll take you to the beach parking, but you don’t want to go that far. Just about a hundred yards in, you’ll come to Seaside. That’ll be to your right. Doesn’t go to the left.”
“Thank you,” Tyler said.
“Where’s the best place for dinner?” Nora asked.
“You’re there. Right next door. The Carriage House. Of course I’m partial as I run the place. But you can’t do better. Fine steaks and seafood and ambience at moderate prices.” He checked his wristwatch. His arm, unlike his head, was matted with hair. “If you’re after something to cut the thirst, our Happy Hour’s just started. Two drinks for the price of one, and free hors d’oeuvres. Runs till six.”
“Hey, all right!” Nora said. She turned around. “Maybe see you guys there. Say in an hour or so?”
“I’ll be there,” Jack assured her.
Abe nodded. He met Tyler’s eyes. “Are you going off now to look up your friend?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“Good hunting,” he said.
“Thanks.”
He frowned at his shoes, then looked again into her eyes. “That offer for dinner’s still open. Have him join us.”
“Right,” she said. “He and his wife.”
“The eternal pessimist,” Nora said.
“Anyway, good luck.”
“I’ll need it.”
Abe and Jack stayed in the office to check in. Nora followed Tyler outside. “You sure you still want to find Dan?” she asked.
“What does that mean?”
“Looks to me like our friend Abe is more than a little interested in you.”
Tyler trotted down the porch stairs and got into the car. Nora climbed into the passenger side. “He’s gorgeous,” she added.
“I hardly know him.”
“Ah, but admit it, he makes your little heart go pitty-pat.”
“You’re imagining things,” Tyler said, and started the engine. She headed for the courtyard entrance. “You don’t have to come along. If you’d rather stay here and clean up, or…”
“Do I smell?” Nora sniffed her armpits.
“I don’t want to keep you from the Happy Hour.”
“No sweat,” she said. “Hey. Ritzy clientele.”
“Yeah.” Tyler drove slowly past the gray Mercedes, and pulled to a stop in front of the next duplex over. “Really,” she said, “you don’t need to come.”
“You telling me I’m not wanted?”
“No. I just thought you might prefer to stay behind, that’s all. The way you were trying to talk me out of it.”
“I was only pointing out there’s no law you have to go looking for Dan. It’s obvious you’re nervous about it, and it’s also obvious you’ve got eyes for Abe.”
“I don’t have ‘eyes’ for anyone,” she protested.
“Uh-huh. Sure.”
“Come on, let’s get our stuff in the rooms.”
A few minutes later, after throwing her suitcase onto one of the beds, washing up, putting on fresh lipstick and brushing her hair, she stepped to the connecting door. “Ready,” she called.
“Meet you at the car,” Nora answered.
She left her room. Abe’s Mustang was parked in front of a bungalow just across the courtyard.
As she stepped around the front of her Omni, Nora’s door opened. Tyler watched her friend hop down the steps, breasts jiggling inside her T-shirt. For just a moment, she felt threatened and wary.
A faint scent of perfume entered the car with Nora. “Loins all girded?”
“My loins are fine,” Tyler said.
“You okay?”
“Just a little nervous.”
“Let’s went, Queeksdraw.”
Rounding a bend, they left the wooded hills behind. The service station appeared just ahead.
“Pull in,” Nora said. “I want to give Clyde a piece of my mind.”
“Bix.” Tyler glanced to the left, saw the man crouching to check the air in a Honda’s tire, and pressed harder on the accelerator.
“Wonder if he’s related to the asshole we met on the road. You oughta see the welt that sucker raised on me with that aerial.”
“Must have hurt.”
“He’ll think twice before he pulls that kind of shit again.” A few minutes later, Nora said, “Better slow down, here comes the monster palace.”
Tyler glanced ahead at the old house. Its windows, catching the late afternoon sunlight, looked plated with gold.
“This might be it.”
She took her foot off the gas pedal. As the car lost speed, she swept her eyes along the roadside to the right. Just past a five-and-ten was a vacant, wooded lot. The trees stopped at a dirt road. She flicked the arm of her turn signal.
“That’s it,” Nora confirmed. “Beach Lane.”
Tyler eased down on the brake, and swung onto the narrow, rutted road.
“Your Dan believes in roughing it.”
“So it seems.” The area to the right, where his house must be, was thick and shadowy with trees. By comparison, the rolling, weed-choked field to the left looked bare. Off in that direction stood a two-story house of red brick, alone except for a separate garage.
“That’s unusual,” Nora said.
“What?”
“How many actual brick houses do you ever see in California?”
“Maybe it was built by eas—”
“I’ll be damned. Look at that. No windows.”
Tyler looked again. Sure enough, the only visible wall was an unbroken expanse of brick. “Maybe on the other sides…”
“Guess they’re not very view-conscious.”
Tyler laughed.
Nora shook her head and faced the windshield. “Ah, here comes Seaside.”