thirty-three

Winstons Wong leaned back in his chair. Smiled at the open file in front of him. Karachi was dead. Lucas was dead. Hendrix was dead. These were all things that were good. Looked down at the briefcase by his leg. Fucking stupid thing, but it served its purpose. Really needed a fucking cigarette. Glanced around the detective bullpen. Only Fat Charlie and that fucker Tommy Toner were in. Fuckin’ Tommy. Would never live down that toner cartridge episode. Asshole.

Tommy Toner got up from his desk. Came over. Had a file in his hand. Case file. “Hey, Wong. Got a sec?”

A sigh that would fill a football stadium. “Sure,” Wong said. “What’s up, man?”

Tommy Toner opened up the file in front of him. “It’s this drug dealer guy. Shot in some bathroom stall in some shithole bar in The Loin.”

A shrug. “Heard about it. A drug thing. And?”

“Right,” Toner said. “Except … there was a witness that didn’t run out. Some drunk bastard off in the corner saw a guy dressed all in black like Johnny Cash run out of the bar right after the shooting. I think there’s something there.”

And there was a God after all … . Wong smiled. “All in black? Any leads?”

“No. Nothing yet. Checking on all street demons that run that part of the city. But … well, it’s a big fucking city and I have a lot on my desk.”

Wong shrugged. “You check on the dealer’s known customers right?”

A nod. Toner laughed softly. “I guess that guy … .What was his name? Mallen? He’ll need a new dealer.”

“That was Mallen’s dealer? Really?”

“Was. Yes.”

“Have you talked to that fuck? He sure seemed to throw it all away. Maybe he’s the guy in all black?”

Toner considered this. “Could be. He lives nearby.”

“Lived. Lived nearby.”

“Lived?”

Wong leaned forward. Pulled out the file he’d rigged and brought with him. Always thrilled to do it right under their fucking stupid noses. Handed the file to Toner. “I’d heard that Kane gave him some floating home bullshit pile to live on.”

“Kane, huh?” Another laugh. More like a snicker as he glanced through the file.

“No, not like that,” Wong said innocently. “Well, not that I’d know, you know?”

Tommy Toner considered all this as he handed back the file. “Thanks. I’ll remember you in my will.”

“The fuck you will, asshole.”

Toner laughed as he walked off back to his desk. Wong smiled as he watched Toner waddle off. Now Wong had everything he needed to rewrite the files. Everything to prove that Mallen had killed Karachi and Lucas. Everything was written out so clearly. So nice and neat. Mallen wouldn’t have a leg to stand on. He knew that Mallen had been there at Karachi’s. Just knew it. Who else could’ve gotten the drop on that piece of shit Karachi? Whatever he thought of Mallen, and it wasn’t a lot, he knew the guy was good. Even coming back from the dead like he’d done. Wong had to admit a certain amount of admiration. Fucker had escaped from him. Had forced the hand of a lot of powerful people to leave him and his family alone. Shit … if he hadn’t fucked Mallen’s wife so hard, he would’ve thought the entire enterprise to be a complete loss.

The remaining evidence papers were inserted into the file. Perfect copies of the originals, but with certain important parts changed. Wong closed the file and leaned back in his chair. Smiled again. Time for a cigarette.

Mallen was toast.

–––––

Mallen and Gato drove through the city, heading down to Gato’s place to crash for a few hours when Mallen’s phone went off. Jesus, he thought, he was really beginning to hate cell phones. Checked the number. Chris. He almost didn’t answer it, but it was Chris, and so he had to. Might be something up with Anna. Couldn’t take the chance. “Hey,” he said into the phone.

To his surprise it was Daniel. Mallen instantly resented the manipulation. Daniel had known it was the only way to get him to answer. “Hey, fucker … ” he started but Daniel cut him off.

“It’s not like that, Mallen. It’s not. If you want to think that, you’ll be making a huge fucking mistake.”

“Nice,” Mallen chuckled. The guy had some balls, after all. “You got my attention. What’s up?”

“Chris. She’s … ” lowered his voice here, “she’s feeling really bad. Really bad. Because of you.”

“Me?” He had to play innocent. “What do you mean?”

Now it was Daniel’s turn to chuckle quietly. “You know why. She’s worrying herself sick. Seeing you face to face is what she wants, but she feels she can’t ask you.”

Mallen had to admit … that sounded like Chris. Shit … Everything else would have to wait. “I’ll be over. But she’ll know you had a part in it. You ready for that? She’s an Aries, you know?”

“I’m ready. She needs to talk to you. And what she needs is the most important thing to me.”

Really? Jesus, but that guy sounded sincere. And he both hated that and had to respect it at the same time. Couldn’t tell at that moment which was stronger, the hate or the respect. “Okay. There’s a lot coming together fast, but if she needs me I’m there.”

A silence. “Thanks. She really wants … needs to see you.”

“Okay. And I appreciate how hard this call must’ve been, man.”

Another short silence, then, “Thanks, Mallen.”

–––––

Anna answered the door when he rand the bell. Practically leapt into his arms. “Daddy! You’re early!”

“Early? Early for what, A?”

“Our visit time Saturday. You’re taking me to see where you live.”

“That’s right. I am. But I’m here to see your mother. I won’t miss this Saturday, trust me. Not for all the world.” Hugged her tight. Very tight. He’d expected never to hug her again, or maybe not until she was an adult and wanted to find out things on her own.

Daniel came down the stairs. Held out his hand as he approached. “Thank you for coming to fast.”

“Don’t have to thank me. They’re my family, even if things change, right?” Smiled as he said it. And he meant it.

“Chris is upstairs,” he added in a quiet voice.

“Thanks for calling,” Mallen said to him. He told Anna, “I’ll see you later, A. Be ready for me, okay?”

“Well, of course,” came the reply. Enough exasperation there to fill a football stadium.

Mallen went upstairs to what had been their bedroom, a long time ago. It’d been so long since he’d been upstairs, it now seemed more a stage set than the bedroom where they’d talked quietly about their hopes and dreams for the future. Had made love over and over again. He knocked, but to his surprise the answer came from the room across the hall, the room they’d always wanted to do something with, but never had. The room they’d ended up using pretty much like a storage unit. As far as he knew, it was still filled with things that belonged to his father. He went across the hall. She’d turned it into a sort of crafts room. Sewing machine. Lots of fabric. A large, open table. Buckets of beads and things like that.

He smiled at it all. “You’re finally getting your art on, yeah?”

She sat at her sewing machine. Looked over her shoulder at him, not surprised at all. Wore her glasses low on her nose. Regarded him over the frames. “This is what getting older holds for us? Glasses and sewing?”

“Could be worse, right?”

“Right.” She left the bits of cloth she was working on and rolled her chair around to face him. He knew that move. She had something to say. And she had to say it. There was no alternative. He leaned against the wall.

“How far we’ve come, yeah, Chris?”

“Far. Far is right, Mark.” She reached for a strip of linen. Played with it for a moment, looping it through and through her fingers before she said, “I was angry at Dan when I guessed what he’d done. He never admitted it, but didn’t deny it either. I know his heart is in the right place, and that’s a lot.” Tossed the material onto the table. “I wanted to call you, but couldn’t.”

“Why?”

She smiled slightly as she told him, “It wouldn’t have changed your … trajectory. It never did before, so why now?”

Silence filled the room. He glanced around. All his father’s things were stacked in the corner. Carefully, not carelessly. Thought at that moment that maybe he should just go ahead and take all those boxes out to the beach, dig a pit, and burn it all. That would be what his father would’ve wanted. Ol’ Monster was never a man to look back, only forward.

Mallen turned his gaze from the boxes, not liking the emotions they invoked. Looked instead at all the projects Chris had begun. There were a lot of them. A lot. Can you sew your way through what she’d been through, he wondered? He wasn’t sure, but he sure as shit knew she was going to try.

“Mark,” she said, her voice very quiet, “you need to be here for your daughter. You can’t do that if you’re in prison, or dead.”

“I know that. And don’t blame Daniel for dropping the bomb. He really didn’t mean to.”

“I realize that. But still … .”

“Chris … I have to finish this up. I’m at a place where I can finish this up.” He pushed off the wall and paced up and down the room. Gave off an animal intensity as he went. If Wong had appeared at that instant, he would’ve shot the fucker in the groin and watched him bleed out.

She got up and came over to him. Put her hand on his shoulder, like she’d always done when he was wound up, or ready to blow apart the world. All it took was her hand on his shoulder and he was back on the ground. She only did it when she was either very serious or worried. “Mark Mallen,” she told him, “I need you to not go off the rails over this. Yes, I … I was raped. And you know who did it. And just like I know you, you know me. I’ll make it through this. I have Anna … and well, Daniel.”

Took him a moment to find his voice. “You love him?”

“I’m not sure, Mark. But he’s safe. He’s not a cop, not a recovering junkie. He’s safe.”

He got that. How could he not get it? “Look, I need to finish this, Chris. There’s some network out there selling children who have been abducted from their mothers. I need to finish the guys behind it. Wong is a part of that network.” Looked at her, and before he knew what he was doing, he put her face in his hands and kissed her. He hadn’t kissed her in more than five years. Her lips were warm, but dry. But they were hers. She was surprised, and pushed away from him, laughing softly.

“I gotta do what I gotta do, Chris. I’m sorry.” He went to the doorway. Stopped and looked back over the room. Smiled. “Keep up the art.”

–––––

He didn’t say goodbye to Anna. She was in her room. Daniel was down by the front door. All they did was shake hands as Mallen left. But then he stopped and came back. Looked the man right in the eyes. Said, “We need to be clear on something, okay?”

Daniel held Mallen’s gaze as he said, “Okay.”

“I’m entrusting my child into your care. You fuck up? I’ll hear about it. If I’m dead and you fuck up after I’m gone? My buddies will hear of it. Don’t. Fuck. Up. Okay?”

The man tried to make it strong, but it was all too far out of his world. He must’ve thought he was dealing with someone who should be in prison. Maybe he was right. Anyway, he nodded. Held out his hand again. Mallen shook it, then quickly went through the door. When he got to the bottom of the stairs, he looked back. Just one last time.