Page 12 of Near Miss

“But it’s so much fun,” Stone said, “and it helps with the headache. You got any aspirin on you?”

“Oh, shut up. I liked you better unconscious. Here’s the nurse.”

“Mr. Barrington?”

“Yes, but you can call me Stone.”

“What do you need?”

“Something for my headache and my sore neck.”

She produced a syringe and injected the contents into his IV bag, near the bottom. “You’ll feel better in a few seconds.”

She was right. He was flooded with warmth, and the pain flew away. “Okay, Dino, what the fuck happened?”

“Somebody used a blackjack on you, and he was an expert.”

“Anybody we know?”

“Remember Huff?”

“Oh, yeah. Where is he?”

“Last time I saw him, he was lying dead on Park Avenue.”

“How’d he get that way?”

“Fred put a bullet into his chest—dead center, one shot.”

“And where is Fred?”

“Downstairs with the Bentley. I cleaned up after him, and he hasn’t been and won’t be charged with anything. You’ll have to give him another gun, though. His old one is in police custody.”

“How many times did he have to shoot Huff before it worked?”

“It worked the first time. Huff is now a part of your storied history.”

“Matilda, are you all right?”

“That’s the right question,” she said. “I am.”

“I’m glad to hear it. Did Huff hit you with a blackjack?”

“No, I was too busy dealing with the unconscious man in my lap.”

“How long have I been out?”

“About three hours,” a male voice said, stepping up from behind the group. “I’m Dr. Herbert. How do you feel?”

“Just fine, and I will be so until you run out of morphine.”

“You’ve got yourself a concussion,” Dr. Herbert said. “And you’re going to have to stay in bed another day, until we decide you’re not going to die. Leave the morphine to me.”

“Okay,” Dino said. “I guess I can cancel the appointment with the undertaker. He’s going to be terribly disappointed. He wanted to give you an inspector’s funeral.”

“Tell him I’m not very disappointed. Next time, maybe. Can somebody crank this bed up to a sitting position, so I’ll feel less like a fresh corpse?”

Somebody found a button and held it down until Stone was satisfied with his position.

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