Merrick

Merrick’s mobile shrilled. He answered, listened, his face a mixture of incredulity,

confusion, anger. He asked

‘You sure?’

Then listened, said

‘Thanks for the heads up Loot.’

He clicked off, looked at me with, was it apprehension.

I went

‘What?’

‘The case has been closed….solved,what the fuck ever.’

‘You’re kidding, how?’

‘That was Lieut. Jordan, they went to Tribeca, this morning, found Bob Temple dead,

suicide apparently, with a Heckler and Koch, the gun used on me, he left a note, saying

he was no longer able to live with his actions, they’re waiting on ballistics but the Loot is

pretty sure it will match the slug they dug out of me………….so, case closed. Oh yeah,

they found……….trophies, you know.’

‘Trophies?’

He near shouted

‘’You fucking know, do I have to goddamn spell it out for you, from the children.’

I was afraid that’s what it meant, said

‘It’s a set up.’

‘What?

‘Jesus Merrick, wake up, the flowers to Shona, came from Mr.’s Trent, who works for the

accountant.’

I poured a Guinness, focused

Merrick went to say something, I snapped

‘Shut the fook up, I’m nearly there.’

Ran it all over in my mind, the thought niggling on the edges of my sub consciousness

came crashing clear, I thought, fook, this perp is smart, real smart but…………’

Then something else struck me, why now, why did the guy feel the need to tie up loose

ends, unless he was spooked, unless he’d heard something, fook, fook, fook.’

I asked

‘Did you talk to anyone, say the case was near to closure, anyone at all?’

His face showed the guilt, he looked away, I ventured

‘Let me guess, I’m pretty sure I know, the same guy said to me in the

hospital…………….come to dinner, bring your Indian girlfriend.’

I was cruising, flying, ideas, racing through my mind, I said

‘Remember way back, I said, there were two and one might be a cop? Serg. Boxer said to

me he felt there were two and……one could be a cop………..or………ex-cop,

somebody you’d feel comfortable talking to?’

His body literally sagged in on itself, he sat down, realization crushing him, put his head

in his hands, said

‘Oh VI, Charlie,Jesus wept and I never told him about the credit card or the flowers, or

Mr.’s. Trent. Oh my Lord, Ryan, I’m so sorry.’

I desperately wanted to, as he once explained to me……………..ream him a new one.

But that could come later, right now, we had to snare the slimy clever bastard. I said

‘Get a grip, we can trap him but it means you have to go and meet him, act like you’re

confused, tell him about Mr’s Trent and how you and I are going to see her the next day,

try to figure it out. He’ll have to act, and fast. Clear up the whole mess and we follow

him, take him in the act of trying for Mr.’s Trent.’

I added his own word

‘Capiche?’

He shook his head, said

‘Sit with him have a brew and act like everything is hunky dory, he’ll smell a rat.’

I grabbed him by both his shoulders, said

‘You screwed it up, now you put it right, act…………you cam fookin act, right?’

He nodded miserably.

I let out my breath, said

‘Ok, I’m going to Queens, be in place. When he leaves, give him five minutes, then

follow him. He’ll go to Queens but we don’t want him killing anyone else.’

A thought occurred to him, he said

‘This means….the accountant is the other killer, the serial wanna-be, what about him?’

I asked

‘Ever hear of two birds with one stone?’

His last effort

‘Shouldn’t we hand it all over to NYPD?’

‘Right, and by the time they get their arse in gear, if they buy it, don’t forget, they’ve a

closed case, Charlie will have killed the freak and Mr.’s Trent and high the fookin-tailed

it outa Dodge.’

He smiled.

My patience was ragged to put it mildly and I went

‘What, I say something funny?’

He waved it away, said

‘Just………..you sounded like an American just then.’

I grabbed the Sig from the table, said

‘Tool up yer own self, right?’

He said

‘After I got shot, I got my Dad’s Pump shotgun from the attic.’

I said

‘The Getaway.’

‘What?

‘Steve mc Queen in Sam Peckinpah’s movie, put the Pump into iconic territory.’

He stood, said

‘Jesus, you and the freaking movies.’

Then he had a thought, asked

‘Did Steve Mc Queen survive, in the movie I mean?’

‘Rent it, find out for yourself.’