Page 43 of The Love Scam
“Nobody thinks twice about corkscrews here,idiota.”
“O-kay,I get it.”
Delaney had been listening to the entire exchange, head down, and at last she looked up. “Okay, that’s pretty good. But next time you have to shake a grab, tell them you volunteer at Sorella Teresa’s. Tell them they’re always looking for volunteers and they can give you a safe place to sleep for a couple of days. A cop might let you go—depends on the cop. But a well-meaning tourist will almost certainly let you go.”
“Perché dire che?”
“Because it could be the truth. My friends and I are making it come true. A real shelter, but one that isn’t constrained by tiresome bureaucracy, one that doesn’t have to account for every penny and isn’t—never mind. If you go to this place now, they’ll give you a safe place to sleep. And they’ll keep the lectures to a minimum. Number’s on the back of my card, okay?”
She stood, and tried to let the kid go, but Rake saw that the kid was now holdingherhand. She gave him the rest of the euro bill and the card. “Buona fortuna.”
“Grazie.”
“That card works for your friends, too, and your sister. Anytime. I know summer’s coming, but it’s still pretty chilly at night. I’m not disrespecting your sister,” she added as the boy opened his mouth. “I’m sure she’s working very hard for you, like you are for her. But you’ve got other safe options for sleeping. And living. You—you do. They’re out there, you can find them. It doesn’t have to be one or the other.” Rake didn’t translate; the kid seemed to know exactly what she was saying.
“Tutto okay,I get it. It’s fine, I’m okay!” That last was shouted, and Rake realized the kid had spotted someone at the mouth of the alley. He turned to look and saw another dark-haired street kid, only this one looked familiar.
“Hey, I think I know that guy.”
“Ciao du Nuovo!” Lillith called, waving. “Grazie per il telefono!”
Rake snapped his fingers. “Got it! That’s the boy Lillith talked into letting me borrow his phone a thousand years ago.” At Delaney’s snort, he added, “What? It’s been a busy week.” Meanwhile, the kid Delaney had reeled in like a trout had joined his friend and they both took off for parts unknown, doubtless to clip wallets elsewhere.
“Well, that was interesting.”
Delaney snickered. “Don’t worry, I would have protected you from his corkscrew.”
“Jesus! You knew he had his hand on that thing the whole time?”
“Sure.” This in a tone of “Of course the ground gets wet when it rains.”
“Because that’s what you do. Protect.”
Another snort. “Don’t romanticize it.”
I had an eventful childhood.
Yeah,Rake thought, and not for the first time.I’ll bet you did.
“Hey, can I have one of those?” He’d known about her belly purse, of course, but his mother hadn’t raised thieves, just snoops. He’d left the thing alone, and not just because of the color. But now he knew she kept cash, credit cards,andbusiness cards in it. “D’you mind?”
“My card?” she said, surprised. Her fingers dipped into the awful pink pouch and she pulled one out for him. “What in the world do you want that for?”
“I like them,” he said simply. “If I had cards, they’d be just like this. Well, maybe with bloodred lettering.”
“When I grow up, I’m using a hologram for a business card,” Lillith predicted. “Everyone will!”
“Makes sense.” He tucked her card away. Twenty-two letters. Charity. I. C. Delaney. And he still hadn’t asked her about the results of the DNA test. And she still hadn’t volunteered them. He knew why he was waiting, but why was she?
And, hours later, when he couldn’t sleep after the frightening texts from his brother, Rake was able to put a name to the expression on her face when she snatched the would-be nimble-fingered felon.
Nostalgia.
Twenty-five
“So you buy boatloads of chocolate and stuff and deliver Easter baskets, and don’t run marathons, but do take in strays—children and stranded millionaires at least—anything else?”
“No.”
