Gin Palace 01 - The Poisoned Rose

tearing out of the kitchen. By the way she moved, I half expected someone to be right behind her.
    She was crying. She ran into my arms, almost knocking me down. I’d never seen anyone so scared in my life. Her hands were trembling but the rest of young body was rigid.
    “What?” I demanded. “What’s wrong?”
    Her hair and clothes were soaked from the rain. Even though she was in my arms she seemed uncertain where to go or what to do with herself. The urge to run, flee, something, anything, was like a current rushing though her.
    I asked her again what was wrong. There was rain on her face. I hadn’t seen her this shaken up since that night behind the library. But this seemed somehow even worse.
    “Tina, what’s going on?” I said again.
    Her breathing was uneven. Had she been running?
    “What, Tina? What? “
    Her voice was jittery. She didn’t seem to know whether to cry or not.
    “I was walking over here from Lizzie’s house. I wanted to talk to you. Someone started following me.”
    “Who?”
    “A man.”
    “What man?”
    “I’m not sure,” she said. “I’m not sure.”
    “It was probably some guy coming to the Hansom House, that’ all.”
    “It wasn’t like that.”
    “Did he say anything to you?”
    “It was him,” she said, her voice sharp, almost hostile.
    “It was who?”
    “It was him. I know it was.” Her eyes locked onto mine. She was shaking with terrible force.
    “It was who, Tina?”
    “He was right behind me. I started to run, and then he was gone. But when I got here, he was right outside. He was right here, standing across the street. He must have gone back and got his car and beat me here—”
    “How long ago was this?”
    “A few minutes.” She looked at me. She was starting to cry. “It was him, Mac.”
    “It was who, Tina?”
    “It was him .” She snapped, impatient with my slowness. “The man who hurt Augie. It was him, he was right outside. I know it was him. I remember his picture in the paper. It’s the same ugly face. It’s the same man.”
    I rushed to my front windows and looked down through the branches to Elm Street. My car was parked directly across from the Hansom House, and standing beside it, on the curb, was a man.
    The street lamp nearest to him was out. I saw what I thought was broken glass scattered around its base. But I could see well enough with what little light there was. I could see what I needed to see.
    He was wearing a raincoat, his hands deep in the pockets. He was looking up at me. I saw the same ugly, battered face I’d seen in Augie’s hall, the same buzz haircut, the same bull of a man who had nearly driven me through a wall. It was Searls.
    In one horrible moment things started to make sense.
    I tore from the window without thinking and bolted out my door and down stairs. I moved faster than I had ever moved before. But by the time I reached the curb Searls wasn’t anywhere to be seen. I was standing alone on the quiet, unlit street.
    Back upstairs I called Eddie and told him to come pick Tina up and to take her to her father. Then I called Augie and told him what I had seen and that he should take Tina and get out of town.
    “I’m not going anywhere,” he said. “Tell Eddie to take Tina back to Lizzie’s house. Tell him to make sure he’s not being followed. I’m not leaving my home.”
    “This Searls guy’s a professional, Augie.”
    “So am I.”
    “What is he doing out of jail?”
    “I think maybe that’s something we should try to find out. I’ll make a few phone calls.”
    “I don’t want to leave you alone, Aug.”
    “Don’t worry about me. What are you going to do?”
    “I don’t know.” I paused, looked at Tina, then said, “Something.”
    “Call as soon as you know anything.”
    “I will. Take care of yourself.”
    “You, too.”
    I hung up and watched for Eddie from one of my living room windows. Tina and I said nothing to each other as we waited. When Eddie’s cab pulled up, I walked Tina downstairs. The bar was closed. I put her into Eddie’s cab and told him where to take her. There wasn’t time to explain anything, and Eddie knew better than to ask. After they drove off I went back upstairs. I called Frank’s pager and punched in my number. I waited for him to call back. But my phone never rang.
    Finally, around five, in that darkest hour of the night, I realized there was only one place I could go.

Chapter Nine

    It was less than a hunch. It was raw instinct. And it was