Bonner kept bringing his knee up with crushing assaults into the Italian’s testicles. The repeated hammering began to have an effect. De Spadante’s grip lessened. Minutely so, but nevertheless he was weakening. Bonner exploded with his last—he believed it was his last—surge of strength.
The sound of the forty-four was thunderous. It echoed throughout the quiet, white stillness, and within seconds Trevayne came out on the terrace, pistol raised, ready to fire.
Paul Bonner, covered with blood, weaved as he stood up. Mario de Spadante lay in the snow, curled up, his hands clutched over his huge stomach.
Paul’s senses were numbed. The images in front of his eyes blurred; his hearing was sporadic—words audible and then indistinguishable. He felt hands over his body. Flesh, his flesh, was being touched. But gently.
And then he heard Trevayne speak. Or, to be more accurate, he was able to make out the words of a single sentence.
«We’ll need a tourniquet.»
The blackness enveloped Bonner. He knew he was falling. He wondered what a man like Trevayne knew about tourniquets.
31
Paul Bonner felt the moisture on his neck before he opened his eyes. And then he heard a man’s voice quietly making pronouncements. He wanted to stretch, but when he tried, there was a terrible pain in his right arm.
The people came into focus first, then the room. It was a hospital room.
There was a doctor—he had to be a doctor, he was in a white cloth jacket—at his side. Andy and Phyllis were at the foot of the bed.
«Welcome, Major,» said the doctor. «You’ve had quite an evening.»
«I’m in Darien?»
«Yes,» answered Trevayne.
«How do you feel, Paul?» Phyllis’ eyes couldn’t hide the anxiety she felt at the sight of Bonner’s dressed wounds.
«Stiff, I guess.»
«You’re liable to have a few scars on your neck,» said the doctor. «He missed your face, fortunately.»
«Is he dead? De Spadante?» Paul found it difficult to speak. Not painful, just exhausting.
«They’re operating now. In Greenwich. They give him sixty-forty—against him,» replied the doctor.
«We brought you up here. This is John Sprague, Paul. Our doctor.» Trevayne gestured with his head in Sprague’s direction.
«Thank you, doctor.»
«Oh, I didn’t do a hell of a lot. A few stitches. Luckily our benefactor here had you squeezed up in a couple of places. And Lillian held your neck in iced compresses for damn near forty-five minutes.»
«You give her a raise, Andy.» Bonner smiled weakly.
«She’s got it,» answered Phyllis.
«How long will I be wrapped up like this? When can I get out of here?»
«A few days, perhaps a week. It depends on you. Those stitches have got to set. The right forearm and both sides of your neck are cut up pretty badly.»
«Those are controllable areas, doctor.» Bonner looked up at Sprague. «An air-flow brace and a simple gauze casing on my arm would work fine.»
«Are you telling me?» Sprague smiled.
«I’m consulting… I really have to get out of here. No offense, please.»
«Now, just a minute.» Phyllis walked around the bed to Paul’s right side. «As far as I’m concerned, you saved Andy’s life. That makes you special material, Major Bonner. I won’t have you abused. By you or anyone else.»
«That’s sweet, honey, but he also saved—»
«This is getting saccharine,» interrupted Trevayne. «You need rest, Paul. We’ll talk in the morning. I’ll be over early.»
«No. Not in the morning. Now.» Bonner looked at Andy, his eyes imploring but stern. «A few minutes, please.»
«What do you say, John?» Trevayne returned Bonner’s look while asking the question.
Sprague watched the interplay between the two men. «A few minutes means just that. More than two, less than five. I assume you want to be alone; I’ll take Phyllis back to her room.» He looked at Trevayne’s wife. «Did your considerate husband think to bring you some Scotch, or should we stop off at my office?»
«I brought it,» Phyllis answered as she bent over Paul and kissed him on the cheek. «Thank you more than I can ever say. You’re a very brave man … and very dear. And we apologize.»
John Sprague held the door for Phyllis. As she walked into the hospital corridor, Sprague turned and spoke to Bonner. «You happen to be right, doctor. The neck and the forearm are mobility control areas. The medical concern, however, is that the control be exercised by the patient.»
The door closed, and the two men were alone.
«I didn’t think anything like this would happen,» said Bonner.
«If I’d thought it was ever remotely possible, I would have stopped you; I would have phoned the police. A man was killed, Paul.»
«I killed him. They had guns out for you.»
«Then why did you lie to me?»
«Would you have believed me?»
«I’m not sure. All the more reason to call the police. I never thought they’d go this far. It’s unbelievable.»
«‘They’ means us, doesn’t it?»
«Obviously not you. You might have lost your life; you nearly did… Genessee Industries.»
«You’re wrong. That’s what I wanted to prove. I wanted to bring that fat bastard to you so you’d know the truth.» Bonner was finding it difficult to sustain his speech. «Make him tell you the truth. He’s not Genessee; he’s not with us.»
«You can’t believe that, Paul. Not after tonight.»
«Yes, I can. Just like the information you paid for in San Francisco. You bought it from a certifiable psychopath. ‘L.R.’ I know. I paid him, too. Three hundred dollars… Funny, isn’t it?»
Trevayne couldn’t help but smile. «Actually, it is… You have been busy. And resourceful. But for accuracy’s sake, it wasn’t information, per se. It was confirmation. We had the figures.»
«On Armbruster?»
«Yes.»
«He’s a good man. He thinks like you do.»
«He’s a very good man. And a sad one. There are a lot of sad men. That’s the tragedy of this whole thing.»
«In Houston? Pasadena? Tacoma? Or should I say, Seattle?»
«Yes. And right down the line in Greenwich. On an operating table. Only I don’t think of him as sad, just filthy. He tried to kill you, Paul. He is part of it.»
Bonner looked away from Trevayne. For the first time since the beginning of their numerous serious and semi-serious arguments, Andy saw doubt on Paul’s face. «You can’t be sure of that.»
«Yes, I can. He was in San Francisco when we were. He roughed up a congressman from California several weeks ago in Maryland. The Congressman made the mistake of mentioning Genessee when he was drunk… He’s part of it.»
Bonner was exhausted and began breathing through his mouth. He knew the few minutes were up. He couldn’t sustain much more. He could only make one last attempt to convince Trevayne. «Back off, Andy. You’re going to raise a lot more problems than you’ll solve. We’ll get rid of the scum. You’ll magnify things out of proportion.»
«I’ve heard that before; I won’t buy it, Paul.»
«Principles … Those goddamn principles your bank account bought for you?»
«Something like that, I guess. I said it at the beginning; I’ve nothing to gain or lose. I’ve repeated it several times since … for anyone who wants to listen.»