One minute passed. Two more. Ben kept the rifle sight on the Hotel’s upper parlor window. The battle sounds on the west side of the island continued for a few moments. Then the guns fell silent. The Palestrina crackled on the beach. More bright cinders rose into the air. Drifted on the wind toward the Barren Creek Hotel.
He glanced at his watch. This was taking much too long. The timing for his entire mission was critical, and was now verging on total failure.
Suddenly Chalk appeared at the window in full view. This was wrong, not how Ben planned. Despite his hot reception on Spring Island just moments ago, now there wasn’t a hint of caution in Chalk’s posture. He stood upright, straight-backed and bold, without cover. He didn’t even reach for the key card dangling there on its chain. Nor did he examine the box Ben had left as bait on the sill. Instead, Chalk gazed calmly out the window holding a cupped hand near his face. Ben looked closer. Chalk was dialing a phone. And smiling.
The eerie peace of the night was shattered by the sound of The Kid’s mobile in Ben’s pocket. The ringtone was the Misfits’ Mommy Can I Go Out and Kill Tonight. Ben pulled out the phone.
The caller ID said Boss.
Ben answered. He held the phone to his ear. Put his eye back to the rifle sight. Aimed the sight back at the hotel window. One look confirmed the impossible. Now Chalk was not alone. He had his arm around somebody’s shoulder.
The voice Ben heard on the phone was that of a dead man. A ghost. All that sifted through to Ben’s pain-racked mind was a boy’s greeting from long ago. He said, “Evening, Pap.”