Part 15 (1/2)
If I escape alive, I will pay the owners for every ite ed to escape and pick up my trail
”Code Nine,” the loudspeaker dinned ”Code nine”
I didn't like the sound of that Code Nine Translation: An escapedamok Heavy footsteps pounded down a stairwell, someone yelled fro that damn Code Nine I darted into a hallith a door at the endthe door would set off a buzzer I ht be a bluff Sometimes nicotine addicts disarmed the alarms so they could slip out for a smoke I took the chance, pushed down the handle
Not a peep! Slipping out the door, I found myself on a dark side street half a block fro hospital elu to look like just another working stiff heading ho people with needles
A bus was lu up the street toward us Milwaukee's cash-strapped transit syste billboards This bus was a rolling ad for the upco BodyWorks show A skinless basketball player, all exposed sinew andthe bus would be a risk Drivers were probably watching for a wo my description But if I walked the streets I'd be even more obvious
So mass transit by default The bus hissed to a stop and people began shuffling aboard I hesitated, torn betweenood, I told roouys to terrorize
Iup the jacket hood to shadow e Suddenly I heard a bark fro itself into ed muffin, kissed his nose He lickedmy head down, boarded the bus
Escape tip 21: Just because guys are wearing white shi+rts and black pants, it doesn't er bore the slightest resemblance to Vanessa Vonnerjohn's pa, with the dirt, scars, and attitude to back it up He had acquired a swagger He was a stud He didn't need to nip ankles to prove how tough he was He only snapped at me once as I cleaned his wound and applied the antibiotic crea When he decided he'd had enough, he squirrip, ju off the ointlimpse of myself in the mirror above the sink I looked like I'd been run over by a road grader My pupils were still dilated froh to plant radishes, and h it had been styled with a hay baler I scrubbed the worst of the dirt off et paper towels anddispenser soap, but I still looked like a person who slept in cars
Actually I had slept in a car Last night we'd ridden the bus as far as the Third Ward nightclub district, blended in with the revelers staggering out of the bars, and skulked back to where I'd parked the car Labeck's Volkswagen was still in the saed except for a parking ticket I'd retrieved the Volks's key and started driving, not sure exactly where I was going and keeping an eye on the gas gauge, which was lingering near E My first impulse had been to flee to the safety of Labeck's apart He didn't deserve whatever doom was about to descend on hborhood on the south side, where I'd shoehorned the Volks in between a rusted low-rider and a '98 Impala riddled with bullet holes muffin and I had slept in the car for what reht, then had driven around until we'd found this restaurant
George Webb restaurants are a Wisconsin thing, like bubblers, stop and go lights, and cheese that squeaks George Webbs are Nighthawks territory-wide plate glass s, spinner stools, and solitary people drinking coffee at two in the ers, chili-fries, and the best breakfasts on the planet
Washed and ready for our close-ups, we left the restroon clearly stated Only Service Dogs Allowed, but the counter guy didn't bat an eyelash whenand hopped onto the stool next to uy took s, bacon, and buttered toast, served up on that thick white restaurant crockery that always makes food taste better es, and a waffle Two cups of black coffee cleared the lingering rohypnol cobwebs from my brain
The only other custo, head down on the counter, with a newspaper draped over his head The newspaper headline read: Mazie-mania Inspires Prison Escape Reality Show
The waiter and I both gazed up at the wall-mounted television set, tuned to Channel 13 Natty in lavender shi+rt and violet tie, Peter Polifka was anchoring the uire was ad,” he reported, his voice quivering with excite fro overdose”
I could feel a dozen blood vessels inwas present in the hospital e to show that this was all great fun ”The dog, stolen from a local family, is a valuable sh-shi+-shi+ts yu” Beads of sweat appeared on his forehead
”Sheet-sue!” someone yelled from off camera Was that Labeck?
”Sheet-sue,” Peter Polifka said with relief ”A valuable sheets-sue, umm”
He frowned at the TeleProabbled, ”A valuable sheet-sue bison fry Maguire, eluding hospital security, slipped out of the building and was last spotted on an eastbound number fifteen bus An anonymous donor has offered a fifty-thousand-dollar reward for inforuire's apprehension”
An anonymous donor Golly, who could that be?
”You look like her,” the waiter said He was gangly, with an oversized Ada down his narrow head He pointed at the television ”That Mazie Maguire”
”Everybody says that” I tried to sound nonchalant ”I wish I was I'd turn ot a hearty chuckle out of that one Actually, that wasn't a bad idea Maybe I should turn myself in, just explain to the police what had happened: See, Senator Stanford Brenner knocked , and buried onna believe? A) a popular and respected United States senator working hard to bring defense contracts ho-napping, drug-overdosing escaped convict?
Bear would siotten the owners of the titanic off the hook by clai too soon after dinner He would clai from dope-inspired hallucinations He'd tried to helpall kinds of ridiculous accusations at him The police elcoed assault occurred Naturally Bear would have wiped erprints off every surface, dishwashered every otten rid of the clothes I'd left in Charlene's closet
But I still had the snapshot, snugged against my belly Apparently Bear had been too revolted by h body search before he'd du, too,” the waiter said ”Like that Mazie Maguire's dog”
”Funny coincidence, huh? But that dog on TV was a shi+h tsu And it's a boy dog Mine is a girl dog, and she's a cockapoo” Which sounded like what o
”Looks like your basic e toof purebred shi+h tzus and bi+chon frises The waiter handedIn case anybody asked for my ID, I was Luella Parkhurst I was African American, five feet nine inches tall, and one hundred fifty pounds I was an organ donor I used Luella's hard-earned money to pay for our breakfasts, and then we scrae Webb scray and confidence The self-loathing and sense of loss I'd felt last night had vanished, replaced with a cold, hard, revitalizing fury I was not trash I was not a worthless jailbird I was a survivor, like Labeck said And Senator Stanford Brenner was a lying, cowardly, dog-abusing sack of shi+t Buryto bury you! I thu to bury you in such deep shi+t not all your Brenneryou out
First step: find Constanza Arguello I had no idea who Luis was, but my intuition told me that he was the key to this whole puzzle We drove past the address I'd found on FonePhlip last night, 1633 East Schiller Street It was on the south side of the city in the Bay View neighborhood, a three-story apart back to the era when Moorish architecture was all the rage I parked two blocks away in front of Manny's Barber Shop and was out of the car before ed, he set up a furious barking Luckily, this wasn't the kind of neighborhood where barking dogs drew attention A Dober from a van across the street muffin was just oneLuella's jacket hood up to help concealIt eathered red brick with black lacework balconies and high, arched s The foyer door was propped open because a young Hispanic couple and their kids were ht in with the hereclean, the walls were painted cheerful pastels, and geraniums bloomed on sills Doors were open up and down the hallways and neighbors were chatting at the mailboxes Black, white, Hispanic, Asian-the place looked like a United Colors of Benetton couello Nu with excitement, I climbed the carpeted stairs and knocked on number twenty-four No one answered I knocked louder Still no answer
Nohat?
Footsteps thued at the top of the steps, puffing heavily, clutching half a dozen string shopping bags Stooped and gray-haired, she wore a long floral skirt and the sort of head scarf favored by the local H down the hall, she halted two doors down, dropped her bags, and fumbled for her keys
I hurried over ”Let s
She shotto run off with her bok choy and cucumbers Her hands shook as she ja her I'm shorter than almost everyone, but I towered over this lady
”I was looking for Constanza,” I said quickly ”Constanza Arguello? In twenty-four?”
”Don't know, don't know,” sheeye contact
The lock to the woed open the door with her hip, eyeing the bags I still clutched in ; I had to find a way to get her to spill
”I see you bought cellophane noodles,” I babbled ”I love cellophane noodles”
The bright black eyes peered at me quizzically ”Harusame?”
”What? Yes, harusame noodles But I always h as shoelaces”
”You presoak theot to presoak”