The winter of Frankie Machine

18

Yeah, well, wanting to kill that cocksucker and actuallykilling that cocksucker are two very different things, Frank thinks.

Hopefully.

The more serious issue is who would send John Heaney to set me up, and why?

Frank makes himself concentrate on more immediate concerns.

Like the fact that Joey Fiella and Rocco Meli are trying to chase him down.

Or not, as the case may be. Joey and Rocco are definitely chasing him, but the last thing they probably want is actually tocatch him. If they catch him, they’ll have to do something about it, which is probably get themselves killed, and they know it.

Still and all, Frank thinks, I can’t just let them follow me forever. A bright yellow Hummer stands out like a bright yellow Hummer, and if these bozos have any brains-and he concedes them a certain feral cunning-they’ll know he’d have left a work car somewhere near Mouse Junior’s girlfriend’s place.

So what he needs is a little space.

He puts his foot down on the pedal and guns it, racing toward the 101. It’s a lot faster than he usually likes to go, especially in an awkward car he’s not used to driving.

But he needs to create a little space.

He stomps on the gas.