At seven in the morning, right eye tried to open. Dim light crawled in through the greasy curtain. I blew my nose into it, grabbed a cigarette off the nightstand, and lit up. Head was rattling like a 1940s projector, and I was starving — but in this dump, the only bacon and eggs you're getting is if they make it from the bald skunk's privates.
Swollen eye still caught its reflection in the dim bathroom mirror. Not all bad — it'll be fine by evening. Can't say the same about my life. I washed up, rinsed my mouth, and walked out. The skunk behind the counter squeaked something about a good day.
Before heading into the office, I spent a couple of hours checking for tails — cops call it stakeout. Simple stuff, two rules. First: repetition. Same face twice in fifteen minutes — run like hell. Second: weird behavior. They get nervous too, and it shows. But today was quiet. No one breathing down my neck.
Clip was where I left it. Pocketed it and looked around... Like it or not, I had to get out of here. Was it time to pull the splinter out of my ass? I mean the business that'd been feeding me until yesterday. Six years. Six goddamn, motherfucking years. Maybe settle down somewhere quiet, go legit, become that shrink, Charles Wind, find myself a rich broad... I'll think about it later. Speaking of the shrink...
My uncle's license was still hanging on the wall, useless to anyone. His cheap‑ass wife hauled away everything else. Correction — the desk, the phone, and a tiny empty fridge in the corner stayed. I needed to grab the license and the phone. Gotta have a phone in a new place, and ten bucks for a new one? No way. I reached to pull the plug — and the damn thing rang. Nearly jumped out of my skin!
"Hello. Is this Dr. Charles Wind's office?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWrDOolKTZ8
God, that voice... I got hard. And when things start moving south, you don't exactly think straight about who's calling or why. Even if you're not Charles Wind yet — and you're busy robbing his office.
"I'm listening."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2XYWGtYRmK
"My name is Cesara. Cesara Squarcialupi..."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl6bCD2pSEl
Saint Patrick, she's Italian too! My old man offered me a lobotomy as a kid — to cure me of fantasies. Should've said yes.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc6vOPcnkWs
"Nice to meet you."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYyh93zmx5X
"Can I book an appointment?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRZZTFua6Sb
"Who recommended me?" — my brain, or what was left of it, finally kicked in.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiDCMFKuNiB
"Freud."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnoKSyIBw7X
"Freud?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDBhnAHWE1j
"Yes. Sigmund Freud."
"Alright..." — first time I've heard of him. Gotta look into that later. "Miss Squarcialupi, can I call you back? Not a great time. Secretary's on vacation, and a patient just walked in..."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjsvABUEJz8
The only patient in the office was a fat cockroach. He got wasted on roach killer and looked like he was trying to get a beer out of the fridge.
"Of course, I'll leave my number."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9YOAEM6mYy
Ten magic digits scratched onto a scrap of paper — and then silence. Who the hell is Freud? Who cares. My brain had already drained south. Even if Cesara was Jack the Ripper's mother, I'd hand myself over for that voice.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKd4lJQzEtj
I clobbered the cockroach into mush with the phone receiver and walked out.
101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlKbbBGEa0U
I needed cash. Two blocks away there was Worm — a squashed‑looking Mexican who sold baked goods and crack right across from the police station.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqxtfM8quEz
"Hey."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzZjyKZl6X8
"Jesus Christ, you scared the shit out of me!"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGHiHBLYc5u
"If you don't want to lose your lunch," — I nodded toward the alley — "lock the black door."
Russians call back alleys the "black door." Madlen told me that. Her grandfather was Stalin. Or Lenin?.. Can't remember. The one who ran around with his bare ass out and was at war with everyone every second.
Worm nodded. Don't remember who gave him that name — cops, maybe. He really did look like one, if you can picture a Mexican worm with pastries in the window.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwYkFacwC48
"Where'd you come from? Word is Little Pachèrito paid you a visit," Worm lit up nervously. "We already buried you."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRGyK929OEw
I glanced around. The dump was empty, but hanging around wasn't smart:
"Yeah? Then why didn't I get a wreath?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfr7q5MoSsh
"Figured you wouldn't care anyway..."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOuouMYFpVM
"Since when do you think? And who's 'we'?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOcW64ixpMD
Worm tensed up and flicked his butt:101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJc4YUv8JEl
"What do you want?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlCEaK4gkfT
"How much you got in the register?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn6WQKkDyuN
"All mine."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwFnz4kTqiB
"It's a loan."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD0mASNU5in
"You nuts? A loan? To you? I'd rather wipe my ass with it. Mine and Aunt Agatha's."
"If I drop these," — I nodded toward the cop shop — "the photos I didn't send to your wife... You get the picture? Aunt Agatha'll be wiping your ass in the morgue. Open the register, faggot. I take the money for a week, pay it back, and destroy the photos. Or option two: I smash your face against the john and take the cash. And that's not all. A week later, I pay you back and tear up the photos. Which one you want?"
The register clicked and popped open. Two hundred and sixteen dollars. Plus change.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoNLjiTsBo6
"You're a bastard," Worm mumbled. "But you know what?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLIDDANg4JV
"What?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAIWAQUzwax
"You keep your word." — He handed over the cash.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbG8NK6p7yf
"I'm an honorable bastard, like it or not." — I stuffed the bills into my back pocket. "By the way, you ever hear of Freud?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7VRp8xp2Lo
"Who?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFN4srdZ8SE
"Freud."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU7CDFw61Wy
"He's been dead a long time."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVeS5nmt2Nj
There was nothing left to say to him. It was raining outside.
101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF5wUs098sX
Madlen didn't abandon me. She just said on the phone: I left you, but not letting go completely. Let's figure out together why it happened. Think, baby, think. But first, find me some dive of an office. With a couch for clients. I promise I won't drink on it or comfort any depressed widows. She asked for a couple of days.
I spent that time watching Hollywood crap about shrinks. Worm got the point — Freud was dead. The old psycho and his delusional lilies and violets were dead. And he'd set up Signora Squarcialupi. Let's see how the Italian twists out of this booby-trap.
101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKKSXuA5VWW
On the third day, Madlen gave me an address. I drove over, put down a week's deposit, and asked them to vacuum the couch. Then I hooked up the phone and dialed Cesara.
"I'm listening..."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvsMcCwe26e
"This is Char—"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFK0Y2nDz53
"I'm glad you called back, Doctor. When can we meet?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkeNAbPpokU
The voice didn't sound like booking a shrink — at least, that's what I'd seen in the movies.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwegZP3FbLX
"You mean, when can I schedule you?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOwtdAtIauO
"When can we meet?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA9fwQI1fDS
"Would you prefer outside the office?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKhDahDaWhp
"What makes you say that?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbdJQHcocOn
"Your tone, Signora Squarcialupi."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT3vFCSGOj6
"Is it that obvious? Call me Cesara."
"I suppose we could start with who recommended me..." — I tried to sound soft and smooth, like that shrink schmuck who spent the whole movie chasing a dumbbell around.
"My referral — outdated? That important?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1WMUPrNqe3
Shit. One of us is smarter than the other.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡthFlohCpBP
"My license does the talking. Meetings outside the office..."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTbCrTsyVX5
"Dr. Wind, I have some mobility issues."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSpfcPHyqLk
"You know my rate, Signora Squarcial... Cesara?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5r3cjg4pv5
"Try me."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAG387v2qkG
"Hundred fifty an hour, plus travel..." — Bet in a second I'll hear in Italian "Here's your dollar twenty-five 'n go 'n fuck yourself".
"Three hundred. I'll send a limo for you."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQKVsIP2JO4
My palms got slick:101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡajWFmFiAqt
"Who's your driver?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxjEddKvVjN
"My sister."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxI3lFMaf9m
"Ooops..."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjDImceS9tF
"You'll love her. Bright orange limo."
The line clicked, and Ave Maria poured out. I froze. First time I ever heard an angel sing. Outside, the clouds parted, and a thin ray of sun sliced through the sky. I followed it. What the hell?.. From around the corner, a bright orange, forty-foot limo rolled out and flashed its highs. The angel on the line went quiet...
101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc67k9XtLw4
The driver's door opened. Cesara's sister came around the hood and stopped in front of me — flawless features! — and gave me a look. The kind I didn't like one bit.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ72OrzxLm1B
"Good day," she said, tight smile. I swallowed. Flawless features... Guess I already said that... but her front bottom tooth was missing.
"Strange..." I squeezed out.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXVdos81X65
"What?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡipkhe5upqp
"Without that tooth, one lisps."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzg24QWncE1
"Habit." She gave a tight smile. "Get in, Cesara's waiting. No, not here!" — I'd tried to sit next to her. "You'll find the door in the back. Mind your head, Doctor!"
I stretched out on the back seat:101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQNl98eqnXn
"What's your name?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsUFzuSLPz1
"Bathsheba."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaymKogAets
Nice reason for no-lisp — try dragging that name through life.
"Are you Jewish?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCE8aVIZ3pd
"Can't you tell?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnMtctyURz6
"Cesara’s your sister? Blood?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB7tTzBQkZi
"Ask our father."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7MP02C2aBK
"Sure. Soon as I find out since when Jewish girls wear bandanas..."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡshk8L6VGer
"Charles, shut up! You're pressing me. Whiskey's in the bar, on your left." — she sighed. "Though you make about as much of a Charles as a flyswatter makes a Besamim."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdbOrV1WJlp
I filed away the last word. She looked at me like Batman at a pimple on his groin — and rolled up the divider window.
101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpiClRgdAkP
Cesara opened the door. Stunning slacks and a pearl‑button shirt with a standing collar. She smiled.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLV7shF4lr8
"Dr. Wind, glad to meet you!"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZUgm08U1e9
She walked back in with a dancer's grace. I cleared my throat, stepped inside, and looked around. The cheapest thing in that room was probably... I bet — me. All else started at a couple hundred grand, easy.101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMF2QV9eiKp
"Please, have a seat," she gestured to an armchair. "Drink?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB3SJybE2cl
She's my first client. Should I drink or not? Just in case, I will — what if I should? Next to the glass, she laid out six bills with old man Franklin staring up at me:
"Advance. For the first two hours..."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCzcRadCp9m
"Double session?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVwTjy4fgMx
"You mind?"101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbhVwxi3YcX
"Depends on your problem."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXlOaKWMuvm
"My problem is you, Dr. Wind."101Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCNe9g6NpRu
Even the deaf could see that — like my precinct boss used to say. I pocketed the advance and shot her a look.
and then Add to home screen.