Near Miss

Chapter 7

Trench Molder stepped out of the living room in Herb Fisher’s apartment and into the guest room where coats were piled on the bed. He called a number on his burner phone.

“Yes?” Huff said.

“I’m at a party in a building a few blocks from you,” Trench said, giving him the address and location. “Barrington is here with Matilda, and it looks like they’re dug in for a while. I was thinking you might not need to wait a few weeks after all. What say you?”

“I can be there in twenty minutes.”

“The green Bentley with the driver is parked across the street from the front door. You might have to deal with that, too.”

“I can handle it,” Huff said.

“Hurry up, then.” Trench hung up his burner and returned to the party. The room had heated up, and someone had opened a sliding door to the large terrace on the front of the building. Trench took his date’s elbow and steered her outside. “Let’s get some air.”

They walked to the front of the terrace and sat down on a padded bench next to the parapet.

“It’s chilly out here,” she complained.

Trench, annoyed, shucked off his jacket and handed it to her.

She put it on, then pointed at his shoulder holster. “Why are you wearing a gun?”

“Because I don’t like being at the mercy of others,” Trench replied, “and I’d rather defend myself up front than wait for somebody else to make the first move.” He leaned over the parapet and saw the waiting Bentley. “You’d be surprised if all the men at this party removed their jackets.”

“I didn’t know paranoia ran that deep,” she said.

Trench resisted the temptation to slap her across the face. He didn’t need a scene that would cement his location at this hour into other guests’ minds.

They had been sitting there for half an hour before Trench saw Barrington and Matilda make a move inside. Barrington went to the spare bedroom and came back with their coats. Then they said their goodbyes to their hosts and walked to the elevator.

Trench pressed the button for the last number dialed on his throwaway.

“Where are you?”

“Out front.”

“They’ve just left the party and are on the way down.”

“I’m on it.”

Trench looked at his date and saw her reaction to the call, but she said nothing. He stood and rested his elbows on the parapet, looking down at the street. The Bentley was nicely illuminated by a streetlamp. He saw a movement in the doorway of the building across the street. Huff was ready.

“Can we go back inside now?” the girl asked. “I need to stand by the fire and warm my ass.”

“Don’t worry,” Trench said. “I’ll warm it for you in a few minutes.”

She stood up and looked into the street. “What are you looking at?”

“There’s a Bentley down there.”

“Yes, I saw it when we got out of the cab.”

“I’m thinking of ordering one.”

“Based on how it looks from ten stories up?”

Trench tensed. Barrington had just walked out of the building. The driver got out to open the door on the curbside for them.

“Okay,” Trench said, “let’s go back inside and warm your ass.” He took his jacket back and put it on. The police would be here soon, and he didn’t want to have to explain the shoulder holster to them.