Aces and Knaves

away without looking back.
    I walked back into the castle to speak to Luz. I hadn't talked to her since before the trip. Jacie intercepted me in the living room, which looks out onto the street.
    "Arrow really likes you," she said, and I knew she'd been watching us. "It's too bad you are...the way you are. You would make a nice couple."
    Was Jacie trying to protect her turf by matching up Arrow? Or was she being sincere. I wasn't sure, but Jacie had changed. For one thing, she had never been so cordial to me before.
    I decided to go to Emerge that afternoon. It wasn't Tuesday, my usual day, but I had missed Tuesday. And they could use the help any day and every day. Besides, I wanted to see Esther. Maybe seeing her would help me clear my head.

    Chapter 26 HOMEBOYS
    The building with the Tartan Enterprises logo on it was up the hill from Market Street. I wondered whether Tartan owned the building or was just the major lessee. If James considered San Francisco real estate to be a good investment, I knew he'd be in it. Tartan occupied the highest floors of the building, a dubious perk in a city that had been ravaged by strong earthquakes as recently as 1989.
    The first thing I discovered upon exiting the elevator was that Tartan actually had some female employees, including the efficient receptionist who greeted me. In addition to assisting walk-in visitors, she answered telephone calls and pounded on a computer keyboard at something approaching the speed of light.
    When I told her I had an appointment with Mr. Buchanan she called his suite and then directed me to a private elevator, not available to ordinary mortals. It whisked me to the top floor of the building, where I was greeted by Stan.
    "It's great to see you, Karl," he said, shaking my hand. "Did you have a good flight up?"
    He was dressed in a dark suit, similar to what James' assistants wore at the casino, and I was glad I had worn my one and only suit for the occasion.
    I resisted the impulse to voice one of several retorts that came to me and merely said, "Marvelous flight. You're looking very professional today."
    Stan led the way into by far the largest office I have ever seen. It was in the northeast corner of the building and the two outside walls were solid glass. The view encompassed both the Golden Gate Bridge and the Oakland Bay Bridge, as well as part of the San Francisco skyline and many other points of interest.
    James was sitting at a gargantuan desk, talking on the telephone. He wore a sport shirt, unbuttoned down to his chest hair. Executive privilege.
    He hung up the phone, trekked around the desk and shook my hand, saying, "Karl! You're looking good for a Monday morning. Thank you, Stan. I'll call you if I need you."
    Thus summarily dismissed, Stan exited the office, but not before stealing a backward glance at us. I suspect he wanted to be in on the kill.
    "You haven't seen our quarters here, have you?" James asked, and then before I could reply he started taking me around his office, pointing out the view in each direction, of which he seemed to be inordinately proud. When he finished he said, "Not bad for a boy who grew up in Wick, eh?" and looked at me for my reaction.
    I said, "Aren't you afraid of going through the window?"
    Not only was the glass floor-to-ceiling, but it actually slanted outward at the top.
    James took a few steps back from the wall and ran limping at it, while I held my breath. He crashed into the window and I fully expected to see him disappear in a shower of broken glass and fall to the street below. However, he bounced back, grinning.
    "Satisfied?"
    "Don't try this at home."
    "Actually, it's more dangerous to get out of your bathtub at home."
    James waved me to a chair facing the glass wall and sat in a chair at a 45-degree angle to it. One of his male assistants brought us drinks without being asked, the clear drink that I had seen James with before and an iced tea for me. I must be in the database now.
    When we were settled, James said, "First, tell me about your trip to the UK."
    Taken aback by his brazenness, I was stuck for an answer. I half-stuttered, "You probably know more about it than I do."
    James laughed, almost choking on his drink. He said, "You've got to warn me when you're going to tell a joke. Look, Karl, I didn't get where I am today by beating around the beaver. Did Michael tell you he was working with me?"
    "No, but I figured it out. And I assume you had something to do with the hoodlum in