Sin In Their Blood | Page 8

I tick, Matt, I got to have a
real man."
"You shouldn't have any trouble finding one."
"I thought I had you." Flo sighed. "I don't know, Matt, we should have
married and settled down, and by this time I'd be fat and sloppy and
with a house full of kids. Now I'm all mixed up. I have money--Harry's
good that way, likes to see me dress flashy, the jewels, this car--but it
all doesn't add up to anything. Things seem empty. All I think of is how
good we had it. Maybe not much real dough, but we were made for
each other."
I don't know if it was smelling her, or hearing her talk and
remembering--or what, but I was beginning to run a little temperature.
Which was funny, because Flo and I were never romantic, merely good
between the sheets.
The idea of kissing her, being with her, made me cold with fear and I
said, "Cut the chatter, baby. That's over, forget us."
"Just like that, two lousy words, forget us, and you think I can get you
out of my system? It ain't like that, Matt. We could start over again, I'll
give up the car and ice, or if you want, I'll stay with Harry, take his
dough and see you till you get started and ready to..."
"You've become quite a gal."
"You're the one to decide what I'll do," she said, drawing up in front of
this old run-down brick building that was the High Street precinct,
parking beside the NO-PARKING sign. "Merely said that, Matt, to
show you how much I need you. I'm desperate for a guy like you.

Know how hard up I am? Even let that bedbug, Thatcher, have a piece
now and then--for comic relief. Ought to see him, he's something,
strictly a weirdie."
"I bet. Aren't you playing close to home? If Harry found...?"
"Who the hell do you think makes me go with that nitwit!" Flo said
savagely.
That figured, I didn't think the tin badge would be quite enough to hold
the creep. I got out of the car. "Sorry, Flo, but I have my own troubles."
She said, "Matt, look at me, I've been feeling... dirty... for months. Just
seeing you makes me feel all fresh, and wanting you so damn much I
have a pain in my guts."
"Take some Turns," I said like a dope and she began to cry. I reached in
and squeezed her hand. "Didn't mean the corny crack, Flo. You're as
pretty as ever and all that but... I can't explain it, baby, but it's over for
us. Has to be that way. I don't want to hurt you but that's..."
She bent down and kissed my hand and I yanked it away, said,
"Goodbye, Flo."
"No, we'll talk some more about this. Matt, there isn't any other chick?"
"Nothing like that, it's merely that..."
"Then we'll talk more about us."
"Maybe." I waved and walked into the station, looking at the lipstick
and spit on the back of my hand, wondering what it would show under
a microscope. The desk sergeant was a cop I didn't know and I asked.
"Captain Max Daniels in?"
"Who's calling?"
"Matt Ranzino."

He glanced at me with mild interest and picked up the phone. I asked,
"Where's the can?"
He pointed toward a door I should have seen and I went in and washed
off her spit, carefully washed my face and hands with strong soap. I
was taking out one of my pills when I heard Max's hoarse, "Where is
he?" and then he came barging into the John, slapped me twice on the
back with his right--knocking the pill out of my hand--and threw a left
at my shoulder. I stepped inside the punch and pushed him away, said,
"Still carrying your left too low."
We shook hands like mad and Max said, "You old miserable unbathed
bastard, it's great to see you!"
He'd changed a little--his hair was graying along the edges and his face
was fatter. But his clothes were still crumpled, he still didn't know how
to shave--there were little patches of stubble on his face--and of course
there was a big dent where I'd broken his nose.
He gave me the old double slap on the back again, asked, "What we
standing here for? Come into my office--not that it looks any better
than this craphouse."
Max's office was a plain room with a battered and butt-burned desk,
two chairs--one of them with a broken back--and on his desk were
framed snapshots of his fat wife and the two little girls. On one of the
green walls there was a small picture of Max in a fighting pose, cut out
of the papers when he'd won