The Bannerman Solution (The Bannerman Series) (85 page)

“My question was how long?”

“From the first day.”

Paul kept staring. “You're a very wise man
,
Anton.
”

Zivic shrugged.

“Very perceptive. Very smart. But happily there's a
little corner left that still has some dumb in it.”

“How so?”

“You just talked yourself into a full-time job.”

Wednesday afternoon. Zurich. Misericordia Hospi
tal.

Elena's eyes were closed. She had a sense that she
was not alone. Another nurse. Another needle. Or
worse, another policeman.

“Please go away,” she said to the figure that filled the
doorway to her room. She said it in German.

“Yeah, well . . .” Lesko got the meaning. “I just wanted to drop this off. I wasn't going to stay or any
thing.”

“Lesko?” She blinked to clear her vision. He was
holding a very large poinsettia plant in both hands.

“I wanted red roses,” he said uncomfortably. He looked around the room for a place to put it. Her bed
side table was too small, the window sill too narrow.
“The guy at the florist said you don't give red roses here
except to
…
” He didn't finish.

Fiancées
. Lovers. Lesko would not have known that.
“Please come in. The plant is lovely.”

Lesko approached the bed. He still had no idea what
to do with the pot. He shifted it under his left arm. The
petals tickled his face.

“I would have come sooner
…
” He stopped. His
face fell at the sight of the cast that covered her left arm
from the shoulder. There was a metal contraption that
looked like a carpentry clamp. At each end was a long
screw that must have been drilled into the bone. Her
right shoulder was heavily padded. Some kind of strap
held both shoulders in an unnaturally backward arch. “I
mean
….
I would have been here waiting. But you
know I had to wait for Susan.”

“I know,” she said gently. “I hear Susan is much
better.”

“Much better. Yeah.”

“There may be hallucinations. Some nightmares.
Some memory loss. But it will soon pass.”

“Yeah,” he nodded. “It's what the doctor said.” He
gestured feebly toward her injuries. “If I knew, last time
I saw you
…
if I could have taken the bullets my
self
…
” again he stopped. Dumb things to say.

“I know. Come sit by me, Lesko. And please put
down that plant.”

“Where?”

“On the floor. They'll bring a stand for it.”

He put it in the corner, dropping to one knee as he
straightened the foil wrapping that he'd crushed. He
was stalling. All the way up he'd thought about what
he'd say. He could remember none of it.

“You probably got friends coming. Relatives. Why
don't I just.
..?''
He
edged toward the door.

“They were here. They've left.”

“Oh.”

“When are you going back home?”

“I think tomorrow.”

“Will you ever come back?”

“What, like to Switzerland? I don't know. I don't
travel that much.”

“Would you consider coming here as my guest? Un
der happier circumstances, it is quite a beautiful coun
try.”

“Well, yeah
…
I mean
…
that would be nice.”

“But would you come?”

“Look, you had a lot of painkillers and things. I want
you to just take it easy and get better.”

Her chest heaved in a sigh. It made her wince. She
looked away. “I see?’

“Wait a minute. You see what?”

“I am foolish to think that you can forget.”

“Bullsh
...
oh, Christ.” Lesko felt his throat get
ting thick and his eyes becoming moist. He turned away
from her. “Excuse me.”

She said nothing.

“I know you saved Susan's life. Except for you,
Bannerman wouldn't have known to check for that . . .
thing. We're square. That wipes it clean.”

“Fair enough,” she whispered.

“I come over here, I'd just embarrass you.”

“Embarrass me?” She looked up.

“You're so pretty and I'm
…
” He was still looking
at the wall. “You ever come to New York, though, there's this place I go. Gallagher's.”

“I know Gallagher's. Fifty-Second Street. Big beef
steaks.”

“No kidding?”

“But I cannot go. I cannot go to the United States.”

“Oh. Yeah.” Federal warrants. “Listen,” he said,
“not that I can promise anything, but what if I could
square that, too?”

“Lesko,” she patted the edge of her bed. “Come sit
with me. Sit here.”

He obeyed, but slowly. She shifted to make room.
Still, he would do little more than lean against it for fear
that he might jar her.

She took his hand. “Such a rough man,” she said.
“Such a tender man. I know that you like me. You say it
in every possible way except,
‘
I like you, Elena.’ ”

Her fingers were cool. The touch made him shiver.
“Look. What I said to you in Davos. The way I
acted
…
”

“I understood. Not at that moment, but later.”

“I'm really sorry.”

They sat for a while, not speaking.

 
“Come to Switzerland, Lesko,” she said at last.
“Leave the ghosts behind.”

“What do you mean? Move here?”

“An indefinite visit, if you prefer.”

It's the painkillers, he thought. This is crazy. She's
rich, she's got so much class, and he's just a nasty ex-cop
who scares most of the people he meets. Katz'll have a
field day with this one. “Listen,” he kept his voice soft, “What I'll do
...
a couple of weeks and I'll call you.
Let's see how you feel then.”

“I suppose that is wise. As long as you promise.”

“We'll talk. See how you're making out. One way or
the other, if you still want, maybe we'll at least have
dinner.”

“Here? In Zurich?”

“We'll see what happens.” Lesko glanced at his
watch, taking care not to dislodge her hand. “Listen
…
you better get some sleep.”

“You'll stay a while? Sit with me?”

“I'll sit with you.”

CHAPTER 27

Westport. Late afternoon, the next day.

Roger Clew pushed through the door of Luxury Travel Limited, glared exasperatedly at Paul, then
scanned the office layout for a place where they could
talk. He saw the conference room, walked to it past
desks and consoles, sat down in it and waited. Paul fol
lowed, closing the door behind him.

“You realize I've been to Europe and back looking
for you? I haven't showered in two days?”

“Ships in the night,” he shrugged. “Where did you put the Leskos?” They had, he knew, come back with
Roger, who smuggled them to Frankfurt and then
aboard an Air Force plane complete with armed airmen
and an Air Force neurologist.

“I just delivered them to Greenfield Hill. The girl's
shaky but okay. Lesko says he going to call some New
York cops he knows to come up and guard her. His
message to you is, ‘Nothing personal, he won't tell them
much, don't try to prevent it.’ ”

Paul felt a headache coming on.