Page 67 of Paranoia

I took the sheet of paper and thanked Walter.

He said, “I talked to a buddy at the Department of Defense. He’ll run any prints the moment I send them to him electronically. If you find a usable print, theoretically we could have a hit by this evening.”

“You did all that in the time it took me to get downstairs?”

Walter gave me a big smile. “All it cost me was a decent pun.”

I didn’t want to ask him what the pun was, but he had been so helpful, I felt I had to.

He gave me another smile and said, “A young woman fell in love with a tennis player. But love meant nothing to him.” Walter stood there staring at me like I needed to respond.

Somehow I mustered, “Well worth the cost.”

Trilling laughed out loud, then told Walter, “I have one you can use to buy more favors.”

I had to step in at that point. “We need to get going. You guys can exchange your puns and dad jokes later.” I started to cross the street to my car. A garbage truck slowed as it came past me. I waited as a sanitation worker jumped off the back and grabbed one of the public trash cans under the elevated tracks.

Walter stepped in front of us, “This case has me a little shaken. You guys need to be on alert even if you’re just going to look at an empty apartment.”

The garbage truck started to move on. I said to Walter, “I promise we’ll make it back here safely. What could happen between here and Staten Island?”

It didn’t look like that satisfied Walter’s anxiety in any way.

CHAPTER 98

KEVIN DOYLE LARGELY tuned out most of what Joe had to say. He had to, before it made his stomach sour. But now he was listening to the tubby hit man.

“A big Black guy just stopped them in front of the building. He’s giant. I can’t even see Bennett behind him. I can see the young partner. Didn’t you say he was also a potential target?”

Doyle took a quick peek over the edge of the roof. He could see the gigantic man talking with Bennett and his partner, Rob Trilling. Doyle thought about the information sheet he’d read about the partner, a former Army Ranger. He blurted out, “No. Don’t worry about the partner.”

Joe said, “I can maybe put one right through the big guy and still hit Bennett. I can always take a second shot after they are both on the ground.” He moved slightly and readjusted his position.

“Hang on a minute. Bennett’s got to walk to his car. You’ll get your chance. Just be patient.”

Joe growled, “Shit.”

“What is it?”

“A garbage truck just pulled into my line of sight. I can’t see a thing.”

Doyle risked another peek. This whole thing was starting to eat at him. It just didn’t feel right. Bennett was just doing his job. It wasn’t like he was crooked or had done anything terrible, despite what Joe said. Somehow Doyle’s employer had found someone who harbored a grudge against Bennett. That didn’t help the way Doyle felt at the moment.

Joe kept sighting in on the front of the building. “The garbage truck is moving on, but the big guy is still blocking my shot. I’m gonna put one through his neck, which should be just about Bennett’s face.”

Doyle felt like he was going to vomit. He bit his lower lip and glanced over the wall. He wondered whether anyone would notice him if he stood up. If Bennett reacted quickly, he could get out of the way.

Doyle had no idea who the giant man talking to Bennett was. He looked too big to be a detective. It would be too hard to get in and out of cars and chase people if he had to. More likely he was some kind of analyst. Doyle knew that a good intelligence analyst was worth a lot of cops, or soldiers, depending on where you worked.

Then Joe said, “Okay, I’ve got him. As soon as he crosses the street his whole body will be in view under the train tracks.” Then he went silent.

That’s when Doyle realized just how bad this assignmentreally was. He glanced down at his temporary partner. Joe was concentrating and not paying attention to anything except what was in his scope. Probably Bennett’s head.

Doyle felt anxious and jittery. Then he made a split-second decision. One he knew he’d regret later. He nudged Joe with his leg before he could take the shot.

Joe lost his balance and ended up sitting flat on his ass. “What the hell are you doing?”

“This isn’t the place or time.”

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