Джеймс Паттерсон: Blindside

Janos, who was a year younger than her at thirty-four, knew her too well. He may have been a wild partier, but he did catch on to patterns. He was interested in the bonus Henry had promised them.

Alice was more interested in efficiency. And maybe having a little fun with at least one of the nerds they were supposed to talk to. Maybe it could be this Tommy Payne.

Just thinking about it gave her a tingle of excitement.

CHAPTER 10

ALICE ASSESSED THEapartment building in the West Village. Washington Square was four blocks east. The famed New York University was also just blocks away. It was a nice building. Too nice for a student. Probably too nice for any young person working in Manhattan. That told her Tommy Payne was probably doing things he wasn’t supposed to do with computers.

She couldn’t have cared less. She just wanted this to move along quickly. She knocked gently on the freshly painted door. Everything about the building showed it was well maintained. She wasn’t sure what rents went for in Greenwich Village, but this was a hell of a lot more than she paid for her grandmother’s apartment.

She heard a male voice inside say, “Who is it?”

Alice said, “I have a message for Tommy.” She tried to hide her accent and sound as young as possible.

The door didn’t budge. Janos stood against the wall so if Tommy opened the door he wouldn’t see him.

Tommy called through the door, “A message from who?”

Alice had an inspiration and said, “I’m not sure of her name.” That always worked on men. This time was no different. She heard a chain, and then the door cracked open.

As soon as Tommy Payne saw the pretty blond woman in jeans and a colorful blouse, he opened the door wide.

That’s when Janos stepped close and shoved the young man into the apartment.

Alice stepped inside. The apartment was dark. There was a distinct smell of old marijuana. Two sixty-inch Sony TVs hung side by side on the main wall. An array of computers and monitors sat on a long table on the opposite wall.

To his credit, Tommy didn’t say a word. He lay on the hard-wood floor and looked up at Janos. Normally Alice would chalk that up to sexism, but Janos held the pistol. Anyone would look at the armed person in the room.

Alice tried the nice approach first. She kneeled down next to Tommy and traced her finger along his nose and lips. She smiled and said, “I’m sure you realize that Henry sent us.”

Tommy was silent as he nodded his head. His eyes never left the gun in Janos’s hand.

She slipped the plane ticket from her back pocket and set it on the coffee table. She leaned in close. “That’s an airline ticket to Tallinn, Estonia, by way of Amsterdam. Your flight leaves tomorrow morning. I really think it would be in your best interest to help Henry out.”

Now Tommy cut his eyes to Alice. He said, “I, um, I, I—”

Janos kicked him in the leg. “C’mon, you’re not in a mariachi band.”

“But I, I—”

That was enough for Janos. He shoved the pistol into Tommy’s mouth. Alice could hear it crack a tooth on the way in.

The young computer genius’s eyes opened so wide Alice thought one might pop out onto the floor. A whimper came from deep in his throat.

This could be messy.

Janos said, “I can’t imagine what you do with these giant TVs. If you ever want to watch them again your only answer to us should be yes.”

He slowly slid the pistol out of the young man’s mouth. Before Tommy could answer, Janos jammed the barrel firmly on the young man’s crotch. Janos said, “Maybe I underestimated you. TVs might not be what makes you tick. I saw you looking at Alice’s beautiful breasts. I could teach you a lesson and you’d still be able to do whatever you nerds do on a keyboard.”

Alice gently pushed the pistol away from the young man’s groin. She replaced it with her hand. She wrapped her other arm around Tommy’s shoulders and could feel him shaking.

She said in a soft voice in his ear, “Shhhhh, it’s all right.” Closer to his ear, she whispered, “I think you understand everything now. Isn’t that right?”

Tommy just nodded.

Alice said, “That’s good.” Then she squeezed her hand on Tommy’s scrotum. Pulling his loose Dockers tight as she crushed his testicles.

Tommy squealed. His back arched in agony.

Alice kept the same seductive voice as she whispered in his ear, “That’s to make sure you don’t get any silly ideas. You’ll be on that plane. You’ll do what you’re told. Or a broken TV set will be all you can pray for. Do you understand me?”

Tommy nodded his head vigorously.

She moved her hand before the urine staining his pants touched her. In the rear pocket of his pants she found his thick leather wallet. She playfully pulled it out, then she reached in her own pocket and pulled out a condom in a purple wrapper. Alice slid the condom into the wallet. She gave Tommy Payne a sweet smile and said, “If you’re smart and you go to Estonia for Henry, you might get a chance to use this with me.” She kissed him gently on the ear. Then Alice locked eyes with him to make sure he understood. He was too scared to smile or show any excitement.

Alice handed him the wallet and waited while he slid it back into his pocket. His hands were still shaking badly. He was clearly embarrassed about peeing in his pants. Who wouldn’t be? Then again, who wouldn’t be terrified if someone like Janos had a pistol against their groin?

Alice looked up at Janos and winked. They were a good team. They had made their point.

They might even have some time to sightsee.

CHAPTER 11

I FACED Abrief wave of condemnation from the older kids when I banned TV for the night. Like a mutiny on a really lazy pirate ship. It’s a fact that people occasionally try to murder police officers, a fact that’s often forgotten when people talk about police shootings. It was something I didn’t necessarily want my kids to see tonight.

It was bad enough that I was dreading going to bed. I knew what thoughts would be racing through my head as I lay in the dark and stared at the ceiling. I’d showered for twenty minutes and still felt like I could smell gunpowder. I didn’t need to hear people comment on an incident they knew nothing about.

After the shower, I lay down on my bed in shorts and a T-shirt just to get a few minutes of quiet time. It was less than a few minutes. My youngest, Chrissy, crawled up on my left side, and Juliana, my oldest, flopped onto the bed on my right side. They both had books. Chrissy’s was about kids looking for a treasure. Juliana’s was a chemistry textbook.

Neither of them needed me to read. But they did realize I liked having my kids around. They didn’t have to talk. They didn’t have to work to make me feel better. They just had to be there.

When Maeve and I started adopting children at an alarming rate, I’m not sure I realized they were saving me and not the other way around. I admit, ten adopted kids seems a little over-the-top. But once I lost Brian to the state prison system, I realized ten was just the right number. He was still a hole in my life. One day that would be remedied.

Lying in bed with my two beautiful daughters reinforced my belief about what’s important in life. I was never one of those guys who chased money or promotions at work. I didn’t think it was important that the Giants won every football game. (Although it wouldn’t hurt to win a few more.)

I knew how precious my family was, from the ever-forgiving and patient Mary Catherine to my surly yet supportive grandfather.

I felt myself start to relax with the girls next to me and lost track of time. It seemed like only a few minutes had passed when Mary Catherine walked in and clapped her hands. She said, “Enough of milking your bedtimes. You’ve got school tomorrow. Chop, chop, let’s go.”