Robert Parker - Split Image

"Were you daunted by the fact there were two?"

"Maybe," Jesse said. "Never did anything but the standard one-on-one that I can recall."

"Maybe you were daunted by the fact that they might be murderers."

"That's daunting," Jesse said. "It's also daunting, if I ever got them into court, to explain to their defense attorney that yes, I did have sex with them both."

"The old cluster-fuck defense," Sunny said.

"That one," Jesse said.

"How did they take it?" Sunny said.

"The rejection?" Jesse said. "They just stared at me and didn't say a word."

"And you left," Sunny said.

"Yep."

"Probably hadn't heard 'no' before," Sunny said.

"A lot less than they've heard 'yes,' I'd guess," Jesse said.

"So, what'd you learn in this exercise?" Sunny said.

"You don't have to have sex with anyone who wants it?"

"Girls know that from puberty," Sunny said. "What'd you learn that might help you with the case. I assume that's why you got yourself into that situation."

"Clearly they were banging Petey," Jesse said. "Clearly they were not banging Knocko."

"Molly was right," Sunny said.

"Apparently," Jesse said. "And I would guess they're both banging Reggie."

"Infidelity and murder are not incompatible," Sunny said.

"Wow," Jesse said. "I wish I'd said that."

"Hell," Sunny said. "You wish you could."

They both laughed. The waitress brought them each another drink.

"Spike sent these over," she said.

"Tell him thank you," Jesse said.

"Want to hear about the menu?" the waitress said.

"Not yet. I'm right at a crucial point in the seduction," Jesse said.

"Oh," the waitress said. "You want some oysters."

"I'll let you know," Jesse said.

The waitress smiled and went away.

"One scenario," Jesse said. "His wife's bopping Petey. Knocko finds out. Kills Petey out of jealousy. Then finds out she's been bopping Reggie. Makes a run at Reggie and isn't good enough."

"What about Ray Mulligan?" Sunny said.

"Yeah," Jesse said. "That bothers me, too."

"It's sort of funny he gets rid of his boyhood friend and bodyguard and gets murdered right after," Sunny said.

"It is," Jesse said. "Maybe the girls helped get rid of him."

"Why?"

"Maybe they wanted Knocko dead," Jesse said. "Maybe they liked Petey."

"So, who you think pulled the trigger?" Sunny said.

"Reggie?" Jesse said. "Or had Bob do it?"

"Revenge for Petey?" Sunny said.

"Maybe," Jesse said. "Maybe the Bang Bang Twins got him to do it."

"And what have you got to take to the DA?" Sunny said.

"Not much," Jesse said.

" 'Not much' is a wild exaggeration," Sunny said. "You have nothing."

"Well," Jesse said. "Yes."

Sunny finished her first glass of wine and put it aside. She moved the glass that Spike had sent in front of her. Jesse was already on the second beer.

"Be nice if you could find Ray Mulligan," Sunny said.

"Yes," Jesse said. "If I can."

"You're the chief of police," Sunny said.

"Oh, right," Jesse said. "Of course I can find him."

The waitress returned.

"You ready to order?" she said.

Jesse looked at Sunny. Sunny nodded.

"Yes," Jesse said. "We can order."

"You want those oysters?" the waitress said.

"Bring him a dozen," Sunny said.

The waitress smiled and shot at Jesse with her forefinger.

I'VE BEEN THINKING?" said.

Dr. Silverman nodded and cocked her head slightly, ready to listen.

"We talked a while ago about being incomplete," Sunny said.

"We talked of how you felt incomplete," Dr. Silverman said.

Sunny nodded.

"Anyway," she said, "I was thinking of my mother and sister."

Dr. Silverman gave a small encouraging nod.

"Your sister is older?" she said.

"Yes, and she's a mess, like my mother," Sunny said. "You know what they're like, I've told you about them."

"Might be useful to talk about them again."

"You've forgotten?" Sunny said.

"I do forget things," Dr. Silverman said. "But in this instance it's more of a therapeutic tool. If you reexamine the same thing in a different context, new things sometimes appear."

"My mother knows very little, and fears many things. But she pretends to know a lot and fear nothing."

"That must be difficult for her," Dr. Silverman said.

"It makes her hysterical much of the time," Sunny said. "Although of course she would deny it."

Dr. Silverman nodded.

"And my sister is much like her. She doesn't know much, either, but she substitutes beliefs. She believes in having gone to a good school. She believes in being with a man who's gone to a good school… and has prestige… and money."

"And that has not worked out for her."

"No, she's gone through husbands and boyfriends and careers without any success in any of them."

"So what she believes hasn't worked for her," Dr. Silverman said.

"God, no," Sunny said. "She doesn't believe in anything real. But her failures have simply made her more entrenched in her silliness. Both of them are, like my father says, often wrong but never uncertain."

"Is she hysterical much of the time as well?"

"Absolutely."

"Would she admit it?" Dr. Silverman said.

"Absolutely not," Sunny said.

They sat quietly. Dr. Silverman was as pulled together as always: dark skirt, white shirt, very little jewelry, conservative heels. Probably part of the work wardrobe. Don't distract the patient. Her makeup was subtle and quiet. Her nails were manicured and polished.

"They're emotionally disheveled," Sunny said.

Dr. Silverman nodded.

"And they were my role models growing up," Sunny said.

"So you assumed that all women were emotionally disheveled?"

"I didn't want to be like them," Sunny said.

"Who did you want to be like?"

"My father. I don't mean I wanted to be a man. I mean I didn't want to be disheveled."

Dr. Silverman nodded.

"What part did your father play in all this?" she said.

"He took care of them," Sunny said. "Still does. Maybe he enables them, I don't know."

"Why do you suppose he takes care of them?" Dr. Silverman said.

"He's stuck," Sunny said. "He loves them."

"And he loves you," Dr. Silverman said.

"Yes, but he doesn't take care of me."

"Tell me again why your marriage broke up," Dr. Silverman said.

"I guess we were just too different. I mean, my father's a cop. His father's a crook."

"So what drew you to him?"

"He was so complete, and he loved me," she said.

"But Richie wasn't in the family business, you told me."

"No," Sunny said. "I believe that he wasn't."

"So why did you break up?"

Sunny sat silently, looking at Dr. Silverman. The question was simple enough. Why did we break up? The silence lengthened. Dr. Silverman didn't seem uncomfortable. She simply sat back in her chair and waited. She trusts me to get this on my own.

"Jesus Christ," Sunny said.

Dr. Silverman cocked her head and looked attentive.

"It's because he's complete," Sunny said. "Because he's like my father, and it made me feel like my mother and sister."

Dr. Silverman smiled. Good girl, Sunny said to herself.

"His virtue is his vice," Dr. Silverman said.

ON THE PHONE Liquori said, "I got your message. I guess Ray Mulligan slipped through a crack for a while."

"You know where he is?" Jesse said.

"Not quite," Liquori said. "But I got his parole officer."

"Who might know where he is," Jesse said.

"He's supposed to," Liquori said. "Name's Mark Bloom."

Liquori gave Bloom's phone number to Jesse. Jesse wrote it down.

"You talk to him?" Jesse said.

"Nope, thought you oughta talk to him. It's your case."