I HAD A DRINK with Gary Eisenhower at the bar in a new steakhouse called Mooo, up near the State House.
“I got this one,” he said when I sat down beside him. “I guess I owe you that much.”
“Probably more than that,” I said.
“You think?”
He had a Maker’s Mark on the rocks. I ordered beer.
“I took Jackson and his people off your back,” I said.
“Pretty clever how you did that,” Gary said. “You know some scary dudes.”
“I do,” I said.
“You’re pretty scary yourself,” Gary said.
With his forefinger he stirred the ice in his bourbon.
“I know,” I said.
“How come you fought Boo?” Gary said.
“Junior would have killed him,” I said.
“The huge black dude is named Junior?” Gary said.
“Yep.”
“Man,” Gary said. “I’d hate to see Senior.”
I nodded.
“Why do you care if Junior kills Boo?” Gary said.
“No need for it,” I said.
“Boo’s not much,” Gary said. “Except mean.”
“I know.”
“Why would he go with the biggest guy in the room?”
“It’s all he’s got,” I said. “He’s a tough guy. He doesn’t have that, he has nothing. He isn’t anybody.”
“And you took that away from him,” Gary said.
“I did,” I said. “But he’s alive. And in a few days he’ll beat up some car salesman who’s fallen behind on the vig, and his sense of self will be restored.”
“That easy?” Gary said.
“Boo’s not very smart,” I said.
“I’ll say.”
Gary ordered another bourbon. I ordered another beer.
“Zel was, like, looking out for him,” Gary said.
“Yeah.”
“I don’t know this game like you do,” Gary said. “But I saw Zel move a little away from Boo when the trouble started, and focus in on the skinny black kid.”
“Ty-Bop,” I said.
“And I figure if things went bad for Boo,” Gary said, “Zel would start shooting.”
“Unless Ty-Bop beat him,” I said.
“Either way,” Gary said. “We weren’t far from a shoot-out right there.”
“True.”
“In which several people might have got killed,” he said.
“True.”
“Including Beth,” he said.
“Including Beth.”
“You thinking about that,” Gary said, “when you stepped up?”
“Sure,” I said.
“Christ,” Gary said. “A fucking hero.”
“But you knew that anyway,” I said.
Gary laughed and sipped some bourbon.
“So,” I said. “I think you owe me more than two beers.”
“How many?” Gary said.
“I think you need to stop blackmailing these women,” I said.
“Ones that hired you?”
“Yep.”
“You get some kind of bonus?” he said.
“Nope.”
“You got a bonus, maybe we could split it.”
“Stop blackmailing these women,” I said.
“What if I fuck them for free?” Gary said.
“That’s between you and them,” I said. “But no blackmail.”
“And I pick up this tab?” Gary said.
“Nope,” I said. “I’ll get the tab.
Gary grinned and put out his hand.
“Deal,” he said.
And we shook on it.