Page 17 of A River Red With Blood
“I wasn’t sure,” said Louis.
In truth, he trusted only three men in the world.Two of those were in Maine, and the third was himself.As for Kade, Louis had been only a fleeting figure in his life, and while they had parted on good terms, people changed, particularly when money was involved, with the degree of change being proportionate to the amount of money on offer.
“I owe you a lot,” said Kade.
“You don’t,” said Louis.“And even if that was true, not everyone pays their debts.”
“After all this time, I still don’t fully understand why you took me in—and the rest that you and Angel did, all that came after.”
Funds: sufficient for Kade to hold his head up in company, but not enough to cloud it; a private education; guidance, when asked for or required; and discipline, when necessary.But Kade saw Louis just once or twice a year, if that, and Angel more seldom still.After a while, Kade did not see them at all, but it did not mean that he forgot.
Meanwhile, Louis might have dismissed the intervention as a whim, or if this were a Hollywood movie, he could have said that in Kade he saw a reflection of himself as a boy, for they had orphandom in common.But while there was truth to both statements, neither would have been sufficient to explain Louis’s motivation.
It was Parker.He crossed my path and I was altered—or awakened.Had he not, I would, without hesitation or regret, have left Kade to the dubious care of the state or the brutality of the streets.And I would have been less than I am now.
Kade adjusted his tie and said: “This place is very subdued without music.”
“What was playing wasn’t to your liking.”
“It didn’t mean I wanted to join a silent order.”
Louis gestured to the bartender.Curiously, she had continued to keep Amir under her gun.Amir concluded that she might like making people nervous and unhappy, especially him.But at Louis’s signal she lowered the sawed-off and stored it under the bar.The older, dark-haired woman joined her, Amir’s pistol tucked in her belt.Louis touched his right ear, followed by a circular movement with his right index finger, directed roughly at the speakers on the wall.The older bartender’s fingers moved rapidly in response.
“Do you want the same?”said the blonde, translating the sign language.
“Softer, please,” Louis replied.He faced the bartender as he spoke, so she could read his lips, and seconds later classical music began to play: Bach, one of the Cello Suites.
“How can she hear music if she’s deaf?”Kade inquired.
“She can’t, not unless it’s got a lot of bass.But she can read a Spotify playlist.”
“Who are those women?Because if they’re really bartenders, I’ve misjudged the challenges of the trade.”
“Friends,” said Louis.“More or less.”
He swirled his wine, drained the glass, and raised it for a refill.
“Was there a plan B?”Kade asked.
“You’re looking at it.Plan A was to kill you before you even got here, all ‘up close and personal,’ as you put it, but I was minded to give you the benefit of the doubt.I’m glad you didn’t disappoint me, beyond the ease of rendering you harmless.”
“How long have you known?”
“About the paper?A week.”
“And how long have you had me under surveillance?”
“A week.”
“I didn’t spot it.”
“That’s the point.”
“Damn,” said Kade.“I got to ask you for some phone numbers when we’re done, because you got more contacts than Bausch and Lomb.I may need to start a new address book.”
“You’ve been playing a different game for a while,” said Louis.“Speaking of which, how was Ukraine?”
Louis’s research had traced Kade most recently to the war in Europe.
