Gold Coast Blues (32 page)

I worried Tanya and guest might settle somewhere else, but she soon returned to the living room and sat in the same chair. A shadow moved across the kitchen entrance attached to the other side of the adjoining dining room. When the kitchen light switched off, a figure moved forward. His posture and gait were unfamiliar. Even when he appeared at the threshold of the living room pulling a metallic briefcase on wheels, it took me a solid ten seconds to recognize Doug Daley without the Blackstone getup.

He dragged a chair in front of Tanya, then spoke while leaning forward with his elbows resting on his knees. Tanya looked relaxed. They conversed for several minutes before Doug smiled broadly, put both hands on the briefcase handle, then struggled to lift it chest high where he held it a few seconds before dropping it back down. I had two simultaneous thoughts: the briefcase held a lot of money and Spike lied about the time of the deal. Tanya jumped up, ran behind Doug, then gave him a heartfelt hug around the neck before literally jumping back into her chair.

What the hell were they hanging around for?
The sound of tires skidding on gravel. A car door slammed and then another one. I stumbled my way back across the mud, reaching the street in time to see Eddie and Spike approaching the walkway to the front door. My initial impulse was to hook my arms around their necks and smash their heads together with all my strength. Instead, I stayed behind, curious to see how they would get into the house, although I assumed I would have to rush them before the door closed. So jaded had I become with this investigation, that I felt no anxiety over reactions to my sudden appearance.

Eddie dropped to one knee. The butt of a gun poked his jacket out. He placed a black cloth on the ground then unrolled a set of lock picks. It took Eddie longer than I expected, but after several attempts, the door opened. Spike walked in first. I readied myself to charge forward, but when Eddie entered, he only nudged the door with his elbow, leaving it ajar. I followed them through the foyer into the unlit dining room, then watched the two enter the living room. I truly had no idea what would happen.

Silence happened.

Standing just outside the living room entrance, I saw Spike and Eddie, side by side, staring at Tanya. She looked more angry than surprised. Doug turned around, abruptly stood, then backed toward the window, dragging the briefcase with him.

The silence continued until Spike said, “Talk, somebody!”

“Get out!” Tanya screamed. “Goddamn you! Get out!”

“Whoa!” Spike said. “That’s no way—”

“Shut the fuck up!” Eddie hissed. Watching Spike deflate and shrink away was worth the price of admission.

“Yeah, Spike,” I said, entering the room. “Shut the fuck up.” I circled around Eddie’s right and positioned myself to face everyone.

“Who is this?” Tanya said.

“You wanna tell her, Eddie?” I said. He didn’t respond and betrayed no discernible emotion. I found this unsettling. “Never mind. Eddie hired me to find you, Tanya.”

Tanya looked back and forth between Eddie and me, then yelled, “I don’t
wanna
be found! Don’t you get it?”

“Why?” Eddie said. “What did I do?”

“Let her go,” Doug said. “With this money, she’s got a chance to start over somewhere.”

Eddie gave Doug one of his psychopathic squint-eyed looks. It took guts for Doug to speak up, even if he didn’t know Eddie had a gun tucked into the small of his back. I watched Eddie’s hands closely. If he made a motion toward his gun, I was ready to draw down on him.

“Tanya,” I said, “Sergeant Blake is on his way to shut your mouth for good. You and Eddie need to get out of town first, then talk about your future.”

Eddie said to Tanya, “You mean you wouldn’t just come with me?”

I said, “Did you hear what I just said?”

“You’re crazy,” Eddie said. “Sergeant Blake’s not a killer.”

Spike jumped in with, “That’s what I told him too!”

“How do you know he’s not a killer?” I said. “You’ve been in the can the last three years.”

“Sergeant Blake was always nice to me,” Tanya said. “And I don’t know so much. Nothin’ so important. And I haven’t been talkin’ to nobody anyway.”

“Maybe you
should
get out of here,” Doug said. “We got your money. I’ll drive you to the train.”

“Shut up!” Eddie said to Doug. I thought his right arm made the slightest move backward. “I got money too,” Eddie said. “With what you got and I got, we can get away somewhere nice.”

Shaking her head sadly, Tanya looked at Eddie and said, “You don’t understand—”

“I don’t care what you did with Cooper or the other guys,” Eddie said. “I don’t even care if you
was
wearin’ a wire—”

“I never wore no goddamn wire!” Tanya said, bolting to her feet. “Did Cooper tell you that? He’s a goddamn liar.”

“I know, I know,” Eddie said. “But that’s what I mean! It don’t matter either way—”

“She’s telling the truth.” The voice resonated over the room. Eddie turned around to face Sergeant Blake standing in the doorway, holding a semiautomatic handgun pointed down at his side. “She wasn’t wearing a wire.”

“Sergeant Blake!” Spike said, suddenly energized. “What’re you doing here? You got your wine, now get the hell back to New Jersey and start breaking thumbs again.”

Sergeant Blake bought the wine?

“Here,” Doug said, rolling the briefcase forward. “Take the money back. Just leave Tanya alone.”

“Come over here by my side, Tanya,” Sergeant Blake said. Something about Eddie’s posture bothered Sergeant Blake. “Don’t be stupid!” Sergeant Blake shouted, instantly covering Eddie in a locked-arm shooting stance, both hands on his gun.

“Easy, everyone!” I said.

“What the fuck?” Spike said, walking up to Sergeant Blake, getting close enough to receive a left jab into his nose. Spike stumbled back several feet before dropping to his knees, moaning with his hands over his face.

“Stay put, Tanya,” I said, then looked at Sergeant Blake. “You prepared to shoot all of us? Because you’re not taking her.” I pulled my jacket back to show my holstered weapon. “Either Eddie or I should get a shot off, don’t you think? And you’re a big fat target.”

“C’mon, Tanya,” Eddie said, holding out his hand. “We’re gonna walk outta here.” Doug rolled the briefcase closer to Tanya, then backed away slowly with his hands up, almost reaching the window. “Mr. Landau,” Eddie said, “promise me you’ll shoot Sergeant Blake if he shoots me. C’mon, Tanya.”

“Eddie—”

“It wasn’t just Cooper!” Tanya yelled, tears spilling out of her eyes. “I was tryin’ to get away from you! Cooper owns your soul! You’ll never get away from him. You’ll always go back, just like you always have!”

Tanya’s words gouged this son of Irvington’s heart. For the first time, I think I truly understood when the light left someone’s eyes.

“Eddie, tell Tanya why Cooper sent me here,” Sergeant Blake said calmly, keeping him sighted down the barrel of his gun. Eddie looked at Sergeant Blake. Even through his leather jacket, I noticed his chest rising and falling. “Go ahead, tell Tanya,” Sergeant Blake added.

Eddie turned to Tanya. “To make sure I did the job.”

I slipped my hand under my jacket, removed my gun, and held it down at my side. Sergeant Blake looked at me, then back to Eddie.

Tanya stared at Eddie, stunned, trembling. “You’re here to kill me? Y—you would really kill me?”

Eddie shook his head. “Cooper thinks you wore a wire—”

“I told you!” Tanya said, her voice wavering. “Cooper’s a goddamn liar. I wasn’t wearin’ no wire.”

“It wasn’t a wire,” Sergeant Blake said. “It was a bug. In her phone. She didn’t know about it.”

“You’re lyin’!” Tanya shouted.

Sergeant Blake removed what looked like a small wallet from his pocket, said, “Heads up, Landau,” then tossed it at my feet.

I picked it up, recognized the ID holder, then saw Sergeant Blake’s photo identified by a different name. The realization was immediate, but cursory. Then came feelings of self-consciousness and abasement for missing what suddenly seemed so obvious. “Sergeant Blake’s an FBI agent,” I announced.

The muffled drone of the helicopter engine only added to the sense of finality permeating the silence. Eddie had known Sergeant Blake only as a cop on Cooper’s payroll. Now, standing in a posh North Shore living room, Eddie digested the irrevocable meaning of the three letters associated with Sergeant Blake’s name.

Sergeant Blake reached behind to take a radio off his belt. “Tanya, get out. Walk out the front door, arms raised.”

“No,” Tanya said, “I’m not ready.”

Sergeant Blake was not pleased with Tanya’s decision. Even from where I stood, I could see his jaw muscles flexing. Then he said, “Spike, get out.” Spike was sitting on the floor, still holding a hand over his nose. Sergeant Blake shouted, “Spike! Walk out the front door with your hands up!” Slowly, Spike got to his feet. He left without a peep.

Sergeant Blake mumbled something into the radio. Then he looked at Doug, who stood farthest back. “You! Out the front door, arms raised.”

Doug started walking. Tanya looked at him. He gave her a thumbs-up. They both smiled. Eddie swiveled his torso between the two several times. The butt of his gun was now clearly visible. When he stood square again, his mouth hung slightly open. A flush covered his neck. I shifted my index finger to the trigger. As Doug passed within several feet of Eddie, Sergeant Blake fired what turned out to be a warning shot. The blast extinguished any sense of myself as a sentient being. I had no memory of dropping to the floor and rolling to the side. When I looked up I saw Eddie’s left arm around Doug’s neck and his right hand holding a gun against Doug’s head.

“Tanya, get back!” I shouted.

She remained standing, staring at Eddie. “Are you crazy?” she screamed. “Let him go!”

Sergeant Blake had backed up into the entryway, using the casing as partial cover. His radio crackled. He answered with some kind of code then said, “Tanya, get out of here! Go!”

“Sergeant Blake!” I shouted. “If Eddie drops the gun and lets him go, you’ll control that itchy trigger finger, right?”

Sergeant Blake didn’t answer. “Eddie,” Tanya said, “what’re you doing? Gonna shoot your way out?”

“Eddie,” Sergeant Blake said. “Here’s the deal. When Tanya goes out that door, she’s in protective custody. You can join her. You’re still a small fish. We want big fish, like Cooper. We can all walk out of here, one big happy family.”

Eddie didn’t have to think about it. “Yeah? And be a rat like you?”

“Goddamn it, Eddie!” Tanya said. “Drop the gun and let Doug go and then we’ll walk out of here.”

“You see how fast Sergeant Blake shot at me?” Eddie said. “He doesn’t want me walkin’ anywhere.”

From my knees, I said, “There are three witnesses, Sergeant Blake. If Eddie drops that gun and you shoot—”

“Tanya!” Sergeant Blake shouted. “Go out the front door now!”

“Listen to me,” Tanya said, making a move toward Eddie.

“Stay there!” Sergeant Blake shouted then stepped back into the room. “Eddie. Tanya never wore a wire, but she took notes and reported back to us. Then she decided she didn’t want to help the government anymore. That’s why we bugged her phone. She thought she could just run away from it all. But it’s never as simple as just running away.”

“You’re a fucking asshole, Blake!” Tanya said.

“She performed a great service for us,” Sergeant Blake said.

“Eddie!” I said. “You called Cooper a scumbag, remember? Think how much fun it will be to help send him to prison!”

“I know about the money you took, Eddie,” Sergeant Blake said. “What was it? Four hundred thousand? I told Cooper about it after you left. I even know you split it up and got it in three hiding places. So if you would rather just walk out of here and hope we can put Cooper away before he finds you, go for it. Just drop the gun, let go of Doug, and beat it.”

I wanted to think Eddie was rationally considering his options. Then he said, “All those years suckin’ Cooper’s dick? Is that what you guys call deep cover? Instead of wearin’ wires, you shove bugs up your asses?”

Apart from Eddie’s giggling, a grim silence settled over the room.

“Tanya, get out!” I said.

“We can try again,” Tanya said, sobbing. “We’ll start over—together. But we gotta go along with what Sergeant Blake says. Then Cooper can’t touch us. And we’ll be together….”

Sergeant Blake crept closer. “
Drop
him,” Sergeant Blake said. “Just
drop
Doug
, drop
Doug.”

“You shouldn’t have said what you did about wanting to get away from me,” Eddie said to Tanya. “You should’ve made somethin’ up until we got out of here. Now I know you don’t want me no more. So quit lyin’. I ain’t that stupid….”

Tanya continued sobbing, ignoring my pleas to get out. Doug stared wild-eyed at Sergeant Blake, now about ten feet away, repeating the same two words,
drop Doug, drop Doug
.

“I was never gonna hurt you, Tanya,” Eddie said. “But why did you have to say you wanted to get away from me? And don’t feel bad, Mr. Landau. You did your best for me and Tanya….”

There was something about the fidgety movements of Eddie’s left arm around Doug’s neck that betrayed him as he spoke. I thought of Amy’s childhood ability to gauge her father’s potential for violence on a given day, and how eventually, just thinking about the man gave her a
knowingness
of what to expect. Maybe it was that same knowingness I felt, or maybe Tanya’s imminent danger would’ve been sensed by anyone immersed in the intensity of the moment. Either way, with the first hint of Doug’s descent, I was off. Three gunshots followed, two quick blasts as I tackled Tanya, then a final bang, all in the span of five seconds. I rolled off Tanya, pointing my gun at Eddie slumped over on his side, staring into the floor, blood trickling out of his mouth. He had never looked so peaceful.

“Drop your gun, Landau,” Sergeant Blake said quietly, staring at Eddie’s bloody corpse, his gun lowered but still gripped with both hands.

“Why don’t you pump another one into him?” I said. “Just to make sure.” I threw my gun across the room.