Carnal Curiosity (25 page)

“He noticed?”

“He certainly did, and I don’t want to have to look him in the eye until he has his plate back.”

She knelt, unscrewed and exchanged the plates, and tightened the screws. “There,” she said.

He put away the screwdriver, and they started back toward the shop.

“What did you mean?” he asked.

“About what?”

“You asked if we really needed to call the cops.”

“Did I?”

“You did. Let me tell you something here, because we can’t talk about it at home.”

“Why not?”

“I think the whole fucking building is wired for sound. I think they can hear a pin drop in the shop or in the apartment.”

“You’re paranoid. They wouldn’t waste that much effort on a couple of burglars—or rather, one burglar and one antiques reseller.”

“Is that your job description?”

“Yes, and it’s way down the totem pole for the art squad at the NYPD.”

“Maybe so, but this job that Jerry wants us for is way up at the top. They were cagey when they brought it up, but I could tell they had the hots for it, and I don’t see how in the hell we could help pull it off, collect a hundred grand each, and get away with it.”

“You always lacked imagination, Bill.”

“Okay, enlighten me.”

“I won’t be able to figure that out until we know the job and all the details.”

“Remember, Nita, we don’t get the first half of the money until five days after the job. If we pull it and don’t warn the cops ahead of time, we’d get up again, and the DA would start piling on the charges.”

“What if we don’t come home after the job? What if we nest somewhere else, get a hotel room, maybe, and wait for the delivery of the money?”

“You’re not thinking clearly,” he said. “They’ve got a hundred grand of our money right now.”

“And you think they’ll give it back to us if we tip them off about the job?”

“Beth says that if they drop the charges, as promised, they’ll have to give us the money back. They get our stock, but not the money. It’s a legal thing.”

“I don’t see them giving it back to us.”

“Well, it’s a dead certainty that they won’t give it back if we don’t tip them off, go through with the robbery, and then disappear. Then all we’ll have is our two hundred grand from the job, and what if they fuck us? Or just shoot us in the head?”

“You have a point, kind of.”

“You need to rein in your imagination and play the odds on
this thing. We’ll have a much better outcome if we hold up our end of the deal.”

“Maybe.”

“Even if we got our two hundred grand from the job—”

“I wasn’t thinking about the two hundred grand. I was thinking about all of it.”

“
All of it?
You mean the jewelry?”

“That’s what I mean.”

“Then we’d have the cops
and
the big guy looking for us, and we don’t have a fence who could handle that much.”

“I know about a fence in Tijuana,” she said.

“Nita, this isn’t a caper movie. We’re not going to end up in Mexico with fifty million dollars in big-time jewelry. You’re thinking about that Steve McQueen thing, aren’t you? What was it?”

“The Getaway,”
she said. “I think we could pull it off.”

“What’s really scary about this conversation is that you actually have the balls to try it.”

“That’s right, and you don’t.”

“That’s why I have a deal with the cops,” he said. “Because I’m cautious and careful, and I go for the sure thing instead of the long odds.”

They were back at the shop now, and he let them in the front door. She started to speak, but he held a finger to his lips, and she shut up.

He knew he hadn’t heard the last of this, though.

56

C
rane Hart poured the coffee and called out to Don, “Breakfast is ready!”

He came into the kitchen, tucking his shirt in and with wet hair. He said nothing, which was unusual for him.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” Dugan replied. “Something, though.”

“Oh, come on, Don, what’s set you off? I mean, I know you think you have this sixth sense, but…”

“My ‘sixth sense,’ as you call it, has worked pretty well for us, hasn’t it?”

“Come on, what set you off?”

“I don’t like it that you’re being sent to Atlanta right before the job, that’s what. I want you to talk to Freeman and get out of it.”

“I’m way ahead of you,” she said. “I tried that yesterday, and he gave me perfectly good reasons for sending me to Atlanta.”

“What reasons?”

“He said that my job as a planner is over, and now operations will take charge, and they won’t want me in the way. I asked him repeatedly to let me be there, and he wouldn’t.”

“The job is set for Thursday. Why would he send you to Atlanta on Tuesday?”

“Because that’s when they need me in Atlanta, I guess.”

“You guess? Why do you believe that?”

“Why would Mike lie to me? I’ve got him in the palm of my hand, believe me.”

“You mean, you’ve got his dick in the palm of your hand.”

“Same thing.” She smiled.

“Call in sick on Tuesday,” Dugan said.

“For what purpose? You don’t need me here to do the job, do you?”

“If something goes wrong, we may have to run.”

“I can run from Atlanta, can’t I?”

“I guess.”

“Don, I’m getting the distinct feeling that you don’t trust me, that you think I’m somehow in cahoots with Mike to blow up this thing.”

“It crossed my mind,” he said.

She grabbed the plate of scrambled eggs and bacon from in front of him, took it to the sink, and washed it down the garbage disposal. “Have breakfast somewhere else,” she said.

“Oh, come on, you know I’d trust you with my life.”

“Then start doing it, or just pack up and get out.”

He stood up and drew her to him.

“What’s that I feel down there?” she asked, pushing her belly into his crotch.

“You know what it is,” he said.

“Let’s go take a look at it,” she replied, taking him by the hand and leading him toward the bedroom.

—

J
acob Sutton was at his desk when he got a call from his booth, downstairs at the diamond center. “Yes?”

“There’s a gentleman named Mario Carnavale down here who says he wants to see you.”

“The cop from the jewelry squad?”

“That’s the one.”

“Tell him I’ll be right down.”

Sutton slipped into his jacket and straightened his tie. This was not unusual; a lot of cops came to him to buy. He walked down the stairs and across the open floor, nodding to friends at other booths. Carnavale was standing next to his counter, looking at things on display. “Mario, how are you?” he asked, shaking the man’s hand warmly.

“Hiya, Jake,” the cop replied. “I came to see you last week, but they said you were out of town.”

“Yes, my wife and I went to Israel for a week. We have a condo on the beach at Haifa.”

“And you got some sun, too.”

“A little. Now, what can I do for you today?”

“I’m going to ask my girl to marry me, and I want a ring for her. I’m going to need the best possible price. I haven’t got all that much saved up.”

“I’ll tell you what, Mario, you tell me what you want to spend, and I’ll get you the best possible ring for that price.”

“I was thinking about three thousand.”

“And what sort of size?”

“Maybe five carats?”

“Mario, I’m going to be honest with you, that’s an unrealistic size of stone for that kind of money. For something that size, something nice, it’s going to run you six to eight thousand, best price.”

Carnavale gulped. “Suppose I can come up with five thousand?”

Sutton thought about it. It would be good business to please this policeman. After all, you never knew when you might need the friendship of someone in law enforcement. “I’ll tell you what,” he said, “I’ve bought some rings from an estate. They should be here Friday, Monday at the latest. There just might be something suitable in that lot, and I don’t have to worry about paying wholesale market prices for a loose stone.”

“That sounds good,” Carnavale said.

“Come back and see me this time Monday, and I’ll have something nice for you, I promise.”

“Okay, Jake, I’ll do that. And thanks!” The cop left.

Sutton went back upstairs to his desk. He’d send the cop away happy.

Mario Carnavale was happier than Sutton knew. He got into his waiting car and called Jim Connor, who was the lead on this case. “I saw Jake Sutton,” he said, “and he told me he has some new stuff coming in from an estate purchase, and he’d have something for me on Monday.”

“Well, that dovetails nicely, doesn’t it?” Connor replied.

57

D
on Dugan was in his office when a call came in from his contact at the Creighton Arms hotel, a desk clerk.

“Something’s going on,” the woman said.

“Tell me, Kristie,” Dugan said. This was the woman who had given him the first alert on the jewelry show, and he was intensely interested to hear what she had to say.

“I overheard a conversation between two assistant managers a couple of minutes ago. I went into the reservations file for the show, and all the overnight rooms have been rebooked for Tuesday night, instead of Wednesday.”

“What about checkouts?” Don asked.

“Most of the Thursday departures are now checking out on Wednesday afternoon.”

“Do me a favor, will you? Check catering to see if they’ve moved their lunch and bar setup.”

“I’ll call you right back.”

Don hung up. His mind was reeling; he was already making a mental checklist of what had to be done. A few minutes later Kristie returned his call.

“Yes,” she said, “catering has now scheduled for Wednesday, instead of Thursday.”

“Change my bookings to Tuesday night,” he said.

“Certainly,” she replied.

“I owe you, baby. You get a bonus.”

“I can live with that. You want me to drop off new cards?”

“Sure, and we’ll have a drink.”

“I’ll look forward to it.”

Dugan hung up and started making calls.

—

T
he Bacchettis, Mike Freeman, and Stone sat down for dinner Monday evening at Patroon; Ann Keaton had called and said she’d be late.

“A toast,” Stone said. Everybody raised a glass. “To gangbusting,” he said.

Everybody laughed and drank.

“There isn’t as much gangbusting as there used to be,” Dino said. “La Cosa Nostra isn’t much of a problem today. Even the meaning of ‘gang’ has changed. This one is going to be satisfying.”

“Not to mention the publicity,” Stone said. “You’re going to be the department’s new hero, and when the time comes—”

Dino held up a hand. “Stop right there,” he said. “I don’t want to hear any more of that.”

“Superstitious?” Stone asked.

“Cautious,” Dino replied.

“You don’t mind if we talk among ourselves about this, do you?” Stone asked him, impishly.

“I certainly do,” Dino said. “Shut up about it, all of you!”

“I guess I’d better change the subject, then. Mike, you all ready for the jewelry show?”

“I’ve been all over the thing half a dozen times, using my finest-toothed comb, and I think we’re ready for anything.”

“Oh, yes,” Dino said. “Good news on the Jake Sutton front. We dangled a little bait, and he says he’s got a new shipment coming in the next few days, ready to sell.”

“Any nerves about this, Mike?”

“Just the usual ones.”

“Dino, are Bill Murphy and Anita Mays behaving themselves?”

“Yep. They’ve signed on for the job and are waiting for the call.”

“Will you know when the call comes?”

“We’d damned well better know,” Dino said. “I’m not going to be caught on the wrong foot when this goes down.”

Stone looked across the dining room and saw Ann coming. “Okay, now we can switch the conversation to politics,” he said.

Stone got up and greeted Ann with a kiss, and she joined the table. A waiter swiftly brought her a martini.

“Tell us the news from the political front,” Stone said.

“The good news is that we’re seeing some cracks in the California delegation,” she said. “It looks as though at least a few are rethinking their vote for Stanton on the first ballot. This is good, because we didn’t think we’d get any California votes until the second ballot.”

“That’s wonderful,” Stone said. “I haven’t mentioned this until
now, but you’re going to have some company at the convention. Strategic Services’ L.A. operation is handling security at the Coliseum and at The Arrington. I’m going out so that I can see Peter, and Dino and Viv want to see Ben, so we’ll all be there.”

“I don’t suppose I have to ask where you’ll be staying,” Ann said.

“We’ll be at The Arrington, of course. I have a four-bedroom house on the grounds, and Peter and Ben have bought houses of their own in Brentwood, so I’ll have room for everybody. Will you join us?”

“That’s a lovely invitation,” Ann said, “but the Lees will be at The Arrington, too, in the presidential cottage, and they’ve hinted that they’d like me to stay with them. But we’ll see. Can I let you know a little later?”

“Certainly,” Stone said. “If you stay with the Lees, then I’ll have to have them over for dinner, just so I can see you.”

“Well, I am going to be pretty busy,” Ann said. “Surprising how much time it takes to count votes, especially when the tally is always changing.”

Stone sipped his Knob Creek and looked around the table at his friends, feeling lucky to have them all, and all at the table. They would make L.A. and the convention more fun, too. All, he reflected, was right with the world.

—

C
rane Hart got home from the office early, and surprised Don Dugan with a woman in the living room. There were half-finished drinks on the coffee table, and there was the smell of sex in the air. There was a thong on the floor, and the woman tried to push it under the sofa.