The Easy Way Out

23

Karas stood in the office doorway, arms crossed over his barrel chest. Lou sat behind his desk doing a terrible job of disguising his anxiety. "I don't memorize addresses," he said. "Faces and tits I remember." He got out of his chair.

Sit down," Pat growled.

"I got a business to run out there."

Pat raised his voice. "Sit your ass down." 

"Relax." Lou returned to his desk. "Address book's in the top drawer there. She lives with that pretty boy."

Pat removed a spiral-bound tablet, flipping through a few pages then stopped. "Rachel Ferris."

Lou nodded. "Rachel Ferris. That's what you were looking for, right? Always happy to help you guys out."

"I'll start engraving your medallion first thing in the morning," Karas said. "With the red ribbon, it'll go real nice with that shirt."

Pat glowered. "You got her name, phone number, and address and that's it? Where's this chick from?"

Lou shrugged. "She's a wet dream in that uniform and she can mix a cocktail or two. I'm supposed to ask her blood type?"

Pat grumbled, ripping the page out of Lou's notebook.

"Hey, don't--" Lou caught himself but it was too late.

Pat turned his head sharply, his brow creased, his jaw jutted. He grabbed a fistful of Lou's shirt then launched him head-first into the corner of his desk with such force, the desk briefly left the floor. Lou lay motionless, uttering a quiet moan.

"You got a real irritating way about you," Pat said, stepping over the prone man on his way out of the office.

########

Accompanied by Gizmo, a lanky man lugging a prybar, Alex and Uncle Geo marched down the hallway of Blake's apartment building, checking apartment numbers.

"Twenty-six." Alex pointed at the number. He threw his shoulder into the door. Again, harder.

CRACK! The door surrendered.

A neighbor poked his head out into the hallway.

"Mind your business," Geo growled. The guy ducked back into his apartment like a prairie dog into its tunnel.

Alex bulldozed inside Blake's apartment and flicked the wall switch. Gizmo searched the adjoining rooms while Geo sorted through a stack of opened mail.

"Here she is. Rachel Ferris," Geo grumbled. "These kids are up to their asses in money problems."

Gizmo entered with Blake's laptop under his arm. "Check out the search history," he said, scrubbing his hand through his bristly crew cut.

On the laptop screen was a row of listings: HOW TO HACK A GARAGE DOOR.

"This goddamn internet!" The old man thundered. He noticed a framed photo on the end table, a beach scene featuring Rachel in a bikini, her dark hair obscuring her face. Wearing a euphoric love-drunk grin, Blake's arm wrapped her trim waist.

Alex leaned in over Geo's shoulder. "That right there is why they invented the bikini."

Gizmo extended his hand. "Gimme that laptop. I'll find 'em."

Alex sneered, passing off the laptop. "You're gonna find 'em with that computer? Yeah, right."

"Sounds like something my yia-yia would say."

"Kiss my ass."

########

Down the street from the old brick home, a skinny teenage kid with a mop of hair got out of the dark car. One of the passengers flicked a cigarette at him. Blake and Rachel felt relief at hearing youthful laughter and an exchange of expletives as the vehicle drove away. The adolescent voices bounced around the street with faint echoes like kids on an auditorium stage playing to an empty house.