“Why are you such a pessimist?”

“I’m not a pessimist, I’m a realist, and you’re not an optimist, you’re an obsessive.”

“I think that’s an exaggeration, don’t you, Viv?”

“Nope. I think it’s an astute judgment.”

“Now you’ve got her ganging up on me, Stone.”

“I’m just one person,” Viv pointed out, “I can’t gang up on you.”

“You can, with a little help from Stone.”

“I’m not ganging up on you,” Stone said, “I’m drinking soup, and very good soup it is. My compliments to Eva.”

“I’ll pass that on,” Viv said. “She’ll love it.”

“Now you’re changing the subject to soup,” Dino said.

“We’re trying,” Viv replied. “And we’re not getting much help from you.”

“Why does everybody blame everything on me?”

Viv looked at her watch, then shook a pill into her hand. “Time for another painkiller,” she said.

“I don’t want another one,” Dino said. “They make me drowsy.”

“I know.” She popped the pill into his mouth and forced a glass of water on him.

—

Gene Ryan slept like a child in his new bed.

Al Parisi walked around Gene Ryan’s new apartment, checking it out. “I specially like the crown moldings,” he said. “That’s an elegant touch. Two TVs, too—you don’t have to get out of bed.”

“Thanks, Al.”

“It’s all in very good taste.”

“Well, I didn’t really have much to do with it, except the TVs. Some decorator did it up, along with the two-bedroom across the hall, as model apartments. I made ’em an offer for the place, furnished.”

“Smart move, Gene.”

“You said on the phone you got another job?”

“I have,” Al said. “It came to me when I got a phone call from Sean Finn. He’s one of the guys in the poker game, and he said some of the fellows wanted to talk to me. They want to have lunch tomorrow. Sean’s the one who brought the ringer dealer into the game.”

“And you accepted?”

“Sure, I got nothing to hide.”

“And why did the invitation make you think of a new job?”

“Because the job is Sean Finn’s liquor store, on 17 North.”

“I don’t know, Al, liquor stores can be tough: these days they got cameras and silent alarms, and you never know when some guy’s going to pull a shotgun from under the counter and let fly.”

“This one’s not like that,” Al said confidently.

“Why not?”

“Because I overheard Sean tell another guy right before the next-to-last poker game that he’s considering putting cameras and all the other security stuff in the store, but not until the first of the year, which means it ain’t there now. Something else I know: when I bought a couple of cases of wine there for my housewarming, it was a Friday, like tomorrow, about noon, and while I was there two guys came in carrying bank bags with the week’s receipts from the other two liquor stores Sean owns, and I heard one of ’em say that Sean comes in every Friday at two, to pick up the bags and take the receipts from all three stores to the bank.”

“So the take from all three stores is there between noon and two?”

“Every Friday,” Al confirmed.

“So I’d have to deal with guys from all three stores, plus whoever works the counter in the 17 North store?”

“Nope, you sit outside somewhere, and you’ll see the two guys come in with the bags. When they leave the store, then you hit it. You’ve only got the two countermen to deal with.”

“Oh, I see. Sounds good.”

“Vinny’s up for it, too, but we’re going to have to give him twenty-five percent of this take. I talked him down from a third.”

“Seems reasonable. He didn’t fuck up last time.”

“I told you, Vinny’s a cool kid.”

“Yeah, he is.”

“I want the two of you to get together and talk about what you’re going to wear.”

“What is this, a fashion show?”

“Nah, I just don’t want you to look like the two guys who hit the poker game. And don’t bring that little shotgun of yours—that would be a tip-off, and this time, the police will get called. Drive down to Virginia—there’s gun shops, first exit off I-95—and get yourself a couple of riot guns, like the cops use, with eighteen-inch barrels. Buy ’em at different stores and use a false ID. You’ve got that, haven’t you? I know Vinny does.”

“Yeah, and don’t worry about my shotgun, it’s at the bottom of the river, sinking in the mud. Why not just use handguns?”

“Because shotguns will scare the living shit out of the counter guys. You want to get one of you behind the counter, so you can see if they’ve got any weapons stashed back there.”

“Yeah, okay. What do you figure we’ll pull down?”

“I don’t know, but it’s a week’s take from three liquor stores, and that’s like three weeks’ take from one liquor store, so it’s gotta be substantial.”

“Sounds right.”

“Then you two switch cars and come back here for the divvy. I’ll join you after lunch.”

“Nah, I don’t want to do any business here,” Ryan said. “There’s new people moving into the building every day, and they might think something funny is going on.”

“All right, then we’ll meet at Vinny’s mother’s house. She works at Walmart, on the day shift, so he’ll have the place to himself.”

“Much better.”

“You and Vinny can start the count as soon as you get there. I’ll trust you.”

“Okay, but make sure nobody follows you from lunch.”

“You know me better than that, Gene.”

“Yeah, you’re right, I do.”

“Then you and Vinny drive down to Virginia this afternoon and pick up the hardware. Here’s his number, a throwaway. When you get back, drive by the liquor store on 17 North. You know it?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“Pick a spot to watch from tomorrow. I’ll tell Vinny to steal an old car, and you two can decide where to dump it. Another thing: no phone calls between us, unless something goes wrong. Last time, I got some funny looks when that call came in. Just be there around eleven-thirty, so you know you’ll be there when they arrive. I won’t call you, unless Sean doesn’t show for lunch.”

“Got it.”

Al went home for lunch. “There’s a postcard from Florida for you,” his girlfriend, Gina, said. She was practically living there by now.

Al found it on the hall table. It was a beach scene, and the message said: Hi, I want to invite you down for a few days. Give me a call. It was signed, Charlie, and there was a number on the back. Al knew only one Charlie, the guy who used to work for his dad, with a partner named Frank. They had chewed the fat a few times.

“Are you going to Florida?” Gina asked.

“Maybe.”

“Me too?”

“Maybe. I’ll call the guy later.”

“The beach has always turned me on,” Gina said, kissing him on the ear.

“Well, that’s the best reason I ever heard for going to Florida,” Al said, giving her a kiss. “Give me a couple days to find out what’s going on, okay?”

“Okay,” she said, sounding doubtful.

“Don’t worry, babe, I go to Florida, you go to Florida.”