Rescue

good.“
    “Fake ID for you?“
    “Right. Under the name ‘John Francis.’“
    “On the level?“
    “On the level.“
    “It’d look better, I could stick a middle initial in there. Most people got them.“
    “Make it ‘C.’“
    “That’s smart. Lots of people, they don’t realize they’re better off sticking close to their own names, so they don’t get thrown off, somebody calls over to them.“
    “Thanks for reassuring me.“
    Sneezer seemed to draw back. “Only thing is, I don’t give out no free-bies.“
    “Cash.“
    “How much?“
    I said, “You tell me your price, I tell you if I’m willing to pay it.“
    “We talking foreign or domestic here?“
    “Just domestic.“
    “Okay, without a passport, I can run you a set of driver’s license, library, that kinda shit for seven hundred.“
    “Five.“
    “You just said—“
    “Sneezer, I said I’d tell you if I was willing to pay your price, and now I’m telling you I’m not going seven, but I will
    go five.“
    The skeleton finger made another pass at the mask. “Six.“
    “Five.“
    “Five-fifty.“
    “Five.“
    “Geez, and people wonder why independent businessman are going under.“
    “Five, and I want to wait for it.“
    “Wait for it? You got any idea—“
    Sneezer, you have all the blanks back there in the ‘bed-room.’ I go to the Registry of Motor Vehicles, they take ten minutes max, once you get to the head of the line, and they’re government employees. You’re a professional.“
    He thought about something. “How long does the driver’s have to stand up?“
    “No more than a couple of weeks.“
    “That’s good, account of the registry has this new format, holograms like the credit cards, and it’s going to be a bitch to get them—“
    “Sneezer, the old format’s fine.“
    “Okay. I can give you an old-format license, it’ll still have a year, year and a half to go on it.“
    “Fine.“
    “Who’s going to be looking at it?“
    “Just travel people, rent-a-car or hotel.“
    Sneezer darkened a little. “Cops?“
    “Maybe.“
    “In-state?“
    “No.“
    “Where?“
    “Far.“
    “Okay, they oughta think they’re seeing what they’ve always seen, then, and far enough away, not that many of them. Social security?“
    “I won’t be using it.“
    “Okay. I’ll just do one for window dressing, fill up the slots in the wallet there. You want some photos of loved ones, too?“
    “Yeah, if they’re nobody anyone would recognize.“
    “Hell, I’m not gonna give you Madonna or something, just shots from somebody else’s wallet, you can give them any names you want. Talking about it, how’d you like some photo club or other shit like that, really look authentic.“
    “If it all comes under the five.“
    A squint. “I already agreed to that. You planning to get hurt on this thing?“
    “Hopefully not.“
    “Okay. Then I can give you a dummy Blue Cross/Blue Shield, too. Everybody carries one of those, look funny without it. Only thing is, you can’t try to use it, or it’ll bounce like a pogo stick.“
    “You got anything else back there besides the driver’s that can have a photo on it, in case somebody asks for two forms of ID?“
    “How about a check-cashing card from a supermarket?“
    “Nice touch. You can make the photos look different?“
    “Cuddy, I got hats, I got wigs, I even got Groucho glasses and noses. For you, though, we just put a Red Sox cap on with one kind of lighting and take it off, comb your hair down with less lighting, you’ll look years different, that’s what you want.“
    “I want it to look real, not like a package.“
    Sneezer squinted at me again. “Hey, I’m a pro, remember? What’re you trying to do, hurt my feelings here?“

    “Yessir?“
    “I’d like two thousand dollars in travelers checks, please.“ The teller smiled at me through her Plexiglas window. “Do you have an account with us?“
    “No, I don’t.“
    “Then I’m sorry, Mr... ?“
    “Francis, John Francis.“
    “Then I’m sorry, Mr. Francis, but we can’t issue the checks until your own check clears our—“
    “This would be for cash.“
    “Cash?“
    “That’s right.“
    “There’s a service charge of—“
    “‘No problem.“
    She smiled. “Then I guess we have no problem, either. Can I just see two forms of photo ID?“
    Smiling myself, I slid them under the window.

    At a pay phone, I called long-distance directory assistance first, finding out that area code