璇玑之心刃·冷血悍将-第139章

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‘They‘re　easy　to　find。　You　just　look　at　the　parking　lot。‘
‘Huh？‘
‘Lincolns　and　Caddys；　honey。　Always　means　good　clothes；‘　Kelly　noted。　‘Never　fails。‘
She　laughed　as　intended。　Kelly　marveled　at　how　much　more　in　control　she　seemed；　though　there　was　still　a　long　ways　to　go。
‘Where　will　we　stay　tonight？‘
‘On　board；‘　Kelly　answered。　‘We‘ll　be　secure　here。‘　Pam　merely　nodded；　but　he　explained　anyway。
‘You　look　different　now；　and　they　don‘t　know　me　from　Adam。　They　don‘t　know　my　car　or　my　boat。　Frank　Allen　doesn‘t　know　your　name　or　even　that　you‘re　a　girl。　That‘s　operational　security。　We　ought　to　be　safe。‘
‘I‘m　sure　you‘re　right；‘　Pam　said；　turning　to　smile　at　him。　The　confidence　in　her　face　warmed　his　blood　and　fed　his　already　capacious　ego。
‘Going　to　rain　tonight；‘　Kelly　noted；　pointing　at　distant　clouds。　‘That‘s　good；　too。　Cuts　down　visibility。　We　used　to　do　a　lot　of　stuff　in　the　rain。　People　just　aren‘t　alert　when　they‘re　wet。‘
‘You　really　know　about　this　stuff；　don‘t　you？‘
A　manly　smile。　‘I　learned　in　a　really　tough　school；　honey。‘
They　made　port　three　hours　later。　Kelly　made　a　great　show　of　being　alert；　checking　out　the　parking　lot；　noting　that　his　Scout　was　in　its　accustomed　place。　He　sent　her　below　while　he　tied　up；　then　left　her　there　while　he　drove　the　car　right　to　the　dock。　Pam；　as　instructed；　walked　straight　from　the　boat　to　the　Scout　without　looking　left　or　right；　and　he　drove　off　the　property　at　once。　It　was　still　early　in　the　day；　and　they　drove　immediately　out　of　the　city；　finding　a　suburban　shopping　center　in　Timonium；　where　Pam　over　a　period　of　two　…　to　Kelly；　interminable　…　hours　selected　three　nice　outfits；　for　which　he　paid　cash。　She　dressed　in　the　one　he　liked　best；　an　understated　skirt　and　blouse　that　went　well　with　his　jacket　and　no　tie。　For　once　Kelly　was　dressing　in　accordance　with　his　own　　worth；　which　was　fortable。
Dinner　was　eaten　in　the　same　area；　an　upscale　restaurant　with　a　dark　corner　booth。　Kelly　didn‘t　say　so；　but　he‘d　needed　a　good　meal；　and　while　Pam　was　okay　with　chicken；　she　still　had　a　lot　to　learn　about　cooking。
‘You　look　pretty　good…relaxed；　I　mean；‘　he　said；　sipping　his　after…dinner　coffee。
‘I　never　thought　I‘d　feel　this　way。　I　mean；　it‘s　only　been　。。。　not　even　three　weeks？‘
"；That‘s　right。‘　Kelly　set　his　coffee　down。　‘Tomorrow　we‘ll　see　Sarah　and　her　friends。　In　a　couple　of　months　everything　will　be　different；　Pam。‘　He　took　her　left　hand；　hoping　that　it　would　someday　bear　a　gold　ring　on　the　third　finger。
‘I　believe　that　now。　I　really　do。‘
‘Good。‘
‘What　do　we　do　now？‘　she　asked。　Dinner　was　over　and　there　were　hours　until　the　clandestine　meeting　with　Lieutenant　Allen。
‘Just　drive　around　some？‘　Kelly　left　cash　on　the　table　and　led　her　out　to　the　car。
It　was　dark　now。　The　sun　was　nearly　set；　and　rain　was　starting　to　fall。　Kelly　headed　south　on　York　Road　towards　the　city；　well　fed　and　relaxed　himself；　feeling　confident　and　ready　for　the　night‘s　travail。　Entering　Towson；　he　saw　the　recently　abandoned　streetcar　tracks　that　announced　his　proximity　to　the　city　and　its　supposed　dangers。　His　senses　perked　up　at　once。　Kelly‘s　eyes　darted　left　and　right；　scanning　the　streets　and　sidewalks；　checking　his　three　rearview　mirrors　every　five　seconds。　On　getting　in　the　car；　he‘d　put　his　。45　Colt　automatic　in　its　accustomed　place；　a　holster　just　under　the　front　seat　that　he　could　reach　faster　than　one　in　his　belt　…　and　besides；　it　was　a　lot　more　fortable　that　way。
‘Pam？‘　he　asked；　watching　traffic；　making　sure　the　doors　were　locked　…　a　safety　provision　that　seemed　outrageously　paranoid　when　he　was　so　alert。
‘Yes？‘
‘How　much　do　you　trust　me？‘
‘I　do　trust　you；　John。‘
‘Where　did　you　…　work；　I　mean？‘
‘What　do　you　mean？‘
‘I　mean；　it‘s　dark　and　rainy；　and　I‘d　like　to　see　what　it‘s　like　down　there。‘　Without　looking；　he　could　feel　her　body　tense。　‘Look；　I‘ll　be　careful。　If　you　see　anything　that　worries　you；　I‘ll　make　tracks　like　you　won‘t　believe。‘
‘I‘m　scared　of　that；‘　Pam　said　immediately；　but　then　she　stopped　herself。　She　was　confident　in　her　man；　wasn‘t　she？　He‘d　done　so　much　for　her。　He‘d　saved　her。　She　had　to　trust　him　…　no；　he　had　to　know　that　she　did。　She　had　to　show　him　that　she　did。　And　so　she　asked：　‘You　promise　you‘ll　be　careful？‘
‘Believe　it；　Pam；‘　he　assured　her。　‘You　see　one　single　thing　that　worries　you　and　we‘re　gone。‘
‘Okay；　then。‘
It　was　amazing；　Kelly　thought；　fifty　minutes　later。　The　things　that　are　there　but　which　you　never　see。　How　many　times　had　he　driven　through　this　part　of　town；　never　stopping；　never　noticing？　And　for　years　his　survival　had　depended　on　his　noting　everything；　every　bent　branch；　every　sudden　birdcall；　every　footprint　in　the　dirt。　But　he‘d　driven　through　this　area　a　hundred　times　and　never　noticed　what　was　happening　because　it　was　a　different　sort　of　jungle　filled　with　very　different　game。　Part　of　him　just　shrugged　and　said。　Well；　what　did　you　expect？　Another　part　noted　that　there　had　always　been　danger　here；　and　he‘d　failed　to　take　note　of　it；　but　the　warning　was　not　as　loud　and　clear　as　it　should　have　been。
The　environment　was　ideal。　Dark；　under　a　cloudy；　moonless　sky。　The　only　illumination　came　from　sparse　streetlights　that　created　lonely　globes　of　light　along　sidewalks　both　deserted　and　active。　Showers　came　and　went；　some　fairly　heavy；　mostly　moderate；　enough　to　keep　heads　down　and　limit　visibility；　enough　to　reduce　a　person‘s　normal　curiosity。　That　suited　Kelly　fine；　since　he　was　circulating　around　and　around　the　blocks；　noting　changes　from　the　second　to　the　third　pass　by　a　particular　spot。　He　noted　that　not　even　all　the　streetlights　were　functioning。　Was　that　just　the　sloth　of　city　workers　or　creative　maintenance　on　the　part　of　the　local　‘businessmen‘？　Perhaps　a　little　of　both；　Kelly　thought。　The　guys　who　changed　the　bulbs　couldn‘t　make　all　that　much；　and　a　twenty…dollar　bill　would　probably　persuade　them　to　be　a　little　slow；　or　maybe　not　screw　the　bulb　in　all　the　way。　In　any　case；　it　set　the　mood。　The　streets　were　dark；　and　the　dark　had　always　been　Kelly‘s　trusted　friend。
The　neighborhoods　were　so。。。　sad；　he　thought。　Shabby　storefronts　of　what　had　been　mom…and…pop　grocery　stores；　probably　run　out　of　business　by　supermarkets　which　had　themselves　been　wrecked　in　the　‘68　rioting；　opening　a　hole　in　the　economic　fabric　of　the　area；　but　one　not　yet　filled。　The　cracked　cement　of　the　sidewalks　was　littered　with　all　manner　of　debris。　Were　there　people　who　lived　here？　Who　were　they？　What　did　they　do？　What　were　their　dreams？　Surely　not　all　could　be　criminals。　Did　they　hide　at　night？　And　if　then；　what　about　the　daylight？　Kelly　had　learned　it　in　Asia：　give　the　enemy　one　part　of　the　day　and　he　would　secure　it　for　himself；　and　then　expand　it；　for　the　day　had　twenty…four　hours；　and　he　would　want　them　all　for　himself　and　his　activities。　No；　you　couldn‘t　give　the　other　side　anything；　not　a　time；　not　a　place；　nothing　that　they　could　reliably　use。　That‘s　how　people　lost　a　war；　and　there　was　a　war　going　on　here。　And　the　winners　were　not　the　forces　of　good。　That　realization　struck　him　hard。　Kelly　had　already　seen　what　he　knew　to　be　a　losing　war。
The　dealers　were　a　diverse　group；　Kelly　saw　as　he　cruised　past　their　sales　area。　Their　posture　told　him　of　their　confidence。　They　owned　the　streets　at　this　hour。　There　might　be　petition　from　one　to　the　other；　a　nasty　Darwinian　process　that　determined　who　owned　what　segment　of　what　sidewalk；　who　had　territorial　rights　in　front　of　this　or　that　broken　window；　but　as　with　all　such　petition；　things　would　soon　attain　some　sort　of　stability；　and　business　would　be　conducted；　because　the　purpose　of　the　petition　was　business；　after　all。
He　turned　right　onto　a　new　street。　The　thought　evoked　a　grunt　and　a　thin；　ironic　smile。　New　street？　No；　these　streets　were　old　ones；　so　old　that　‘good‘　people　had　left　them　years　ago　to　move　out　of　the　city　into　greener　places；　allowing　other　people；　deemed　less　valuable　than　themselves；　to　move　in；　and　then　they　too　had　moved　away；　and　the　cycle　had　continued　for　another　few　generations　until　something　had　gone　very　badly　wrong　to　create　what　he　saw　now　in　this　place。　It　had　taken　an　hour