L.A. Dead

Chapter 32

Stone reached into his coat pocket, took out the pistol, and placed it on the bedside table. It was a little.32 automatic, not a service weapon, but the kind of small gun a cop might keep in an ankle holster, as a backup.

He undressed, got into bed, and tried to watch the late news, but finally turned it off. He was still loggy from the sleep upset of taking the redeye, and the conversation at dinner had depressed him.

He drifted off immediately and then was in a deep sleep. He dreamed, and something was out of place in his dream-a high-pitched squeal, as if from a great distance. Then the squeal stopped.

Stone sat straight up in bed, wide awake. The squeal was the sound the security system made to warn that it was about to go off; it stopped only when the proper four-digit code was entered, and it had stopped. Then he remembered that Dolce knew the code.

He got out of bed as silently as he could and rearranged the pillows under the duvet, to give the impression he was still in bed, then he picked up Dino's pistol, tiptoed to his dressing room, and stood just inside the door. There was enough light coming through the windows to let him see the bed.

He heard the light footsteps on the stairs, which were now bare of the carpet runner. They approached slowly, quietly, until they reached the bedroom, where they stopped. She was letting her eyes become accustomed to the nearly dark room. Then she began to move forward again, and she came into Stone's view.

She was wearing a black raincoat with the hood up, so her face was still in darkness, and Stone thought she looked like the angel of death; she carried a short, thick club in her right hand. She reached the bed and stopped, then, holding the club at her side, she reached out with her left hand and began to pull back the covers.

"Freeze!" Stone said. "There's a gun pointed at your head."

She turned slowly to face him, but the shadow of the hood still obscured her face.

"Drop what's in your hand," he said.

She released the club, and it fell to the bare wood floor with a soft thud.

"Now, reach behind you and turn on the lamp, and keep your hands where I can see them."

She turned away and switched on the lamp, then turned back toward him, brushing off the hood. Instead of the black, Sicilian coif Stone had expected, honey-colored hair fell around her shoulders.

"Why are you pointing a gun at me, Stone?" she asked.

Stone's mouth fell open. "Arrington! What the hell are you doing here?"

"Could you point the gun somewhere else before we continue this conversation?"

Stone put the pistol on the dressing room chest of drawers and turned back to her.

She looked down, amused. "You're still pointing something at me," she said, unbuckling her belt and shucking off the raincoat. She was wearing black slacks and a soft, gray cashmere sweater. At her feet, on the floor, was the folding umbrella she had dropped.

Stone grabbed a cotton robe from the dressing room and slipped into it.

"Aw," she said, disappointed, "I liked you as you were. Don't I get a kiss?"

Stone crossed the room and gave her a small kiss, then held her at arm's length. "I'll ask you again: What the hell are you doing here?"

"Aren't you glad to see me?"

"Of course not! You've jumped bail, for God's sake, don't you understand that? The judge confined you to your house!"

"Don't worry, he'll never miss me."

"Arrington, let me explain this to you. As of this moment, you've forfeited two million dollars in bail."

"It's worth it to see you," she said. "I missed you."

"You could be arrested at any moment, and if you are, you won't get bail again; you'll have to stay in jail until the trial."

"Nobody's going to arrest me," she said. "Nobody knows I'm out of the house, except Manolo and Isabel, and certainly nobody knows I'm in New York. Manolo has instructions to tell anyone who calls that I'm not feeling well, and to take a message. I can return any calls from here."

Stone sat down on the edge of the bed and put his face in his hands. "I'm an officer of the court," he moaned. "I'm supposed to call the police or arrest you myself."

"Oooooo, arrest me," she purred.

Stone heard the sound of a zipper and looked up. She was stepping out of her slacks, and she had already shucked off the sweater, leaving only her panties.

She looked around, hands on her hips. "Now where are those pesky handcuffs? You must have some around here somewhere, being an ex-cop, and all."

Stone put his face back in his hands, and a moment later he felt her slip into the bed. Her fingernails moved down his back, and he started to get up, but she grabbed the belt of his robe and pulled him back onto the bed.

"I know Marc Blumberg said we couldn't be alone together in my house, but now we're alone together in your house, aren't we? So we're playing by the rules." She reached around him and tugged the belt loose, then pulled the robe off his shoulders. She dug her fingers into his hair, pulled him back onto the bed, and tan a fingernail along his penis, which responded with a jerk. "I knew you'd be glad to see me!" she said, then she pulled his face to hers and kissed him softly.

"This wasn't supposed to happen," Stone said, when he could free his lips for a moment.

She pulled his body toward hers. "Well, if I'm going to be arrested and carted off to jail, it seems only fair that I should have a last meal." She bent over him and kissed the tip of his penis. "I believe I'm entitled to have anything I want to eat, isn't that the tradition?" Then she began to concentrate on her repast.

Stone stood it for as long as he could, which was a little while, then he pulled her up beside him. She curled a leg over his body, opening herself to him. He slid inside her and, lying face to face, they began to make love, slowly.

"It's been way, way too long," Arrington said, moving with him and kissing his face.

"You're right," Stone breathed, admitting it as much to himself as to her.

"Tell me you've missed me."

"I've missed you."

"Tell me you've missed this."

"I can't tell you how much I've missed this," he moaned. "There are no words."

"Then show me," she said.

And he did.