know his mind, his habits." Jerry made a fist. "I had him in the sights of my rifle once, and I just couldn't do it. Who knows how many other people would still be alive if I could have squeezed the trigger."
Beth took his hand. "You're not a killer, Jerry"
He looked up, right into her eyes. "Yes, I am. We all are. It just takes more extreme circumstances to bring that out in some of us. I have to kill him."
Beth shook her head. "For a promise to someone who'll never know you kept it?"
"No. Because he'll get me first. Why do you think I have all this security? He's bound to come after me sooner or later."
"Come to Chicago with me," Beth said. "We can start something for us there. If you go against Latham, he'll kill you. I can't believe I didn't figure this before now, anyway. Who else would want Kenneth dead?"
"It's only obvious in retrospect." Jerry dabbed the tears from her eyes. "No matter where I go, he'll find me. If there's one thing St. John is, it's thorough."
"Don't make me beg you, Jerry. If you try this, you'll only get killed."
"I don't think so." He tried to sound cocky. "I've got Veronica to help me now. If I can convince her to help. With Latham's killers breathing down her neck, that shouldn't be too hard."
Beth opened her mouth in disbelief. "She can hardly move, Jerry. There's no way she's up to any kind of fight."
"She's an ace. Aces heal fast," he said. "Trust me."
Latham made most of his personal calls late at night. Jerry was sitting in a building across from St. John's apartment, waiting for some action on the line. A regular phone bug would have been found in a hurry, so Jerry didn't even bother. But Latham had a cordless phone that operated on a specific frequency. It had taken some doing, but he'd found out what it was and how to intercept it. Most of what Jerry had learned came from the late-night listening.
He stifled a yawn. He still wasn't clear how to get Latham, but he knew he wanted Veronica to do the actual killing. That shouldn't be a problem, since Latham had ordered Hannah killed and almost put Veronica away too. The specifics were just not there, though. Probably he was .distracted about Beth. When he wasn't thinking about her, he was congratulating himself for not thinking about her, and then there he went again. Being that happy, even for one day, was a scary thing. All of a sudden, he had a lot to lose.
There was a dial tone. Jerry flipped on the recorder and listened to the numbers being punched in.
Several rings later, a young female answered the phone. "I was wondering when you'd call." The voice belonged to Zelda.
"Yes," Latham said. "I want you to make some arrangements for Friday night. I'll need a companion."
Zelda sighed. "Again? I don't know what you need that for, with me around."
"It wasn't a request, Zelda." Latham was cold, but his voice lacked the total control Jerry was used to hearing. "After letting that woman slip away, you should be eager for a chance to do something right."
"I don't think anyone else would have done a better job than I did." Zelda sounded angry and defensive.
"Blaise would have."
"Fine. I'll get your young blond god, but he won't be David. Even Blaise can't bring him back." Zelda paused. "Anything else?"
"That will be all," Latham said, and hung up.
Jerry stopped the recorder and pounded his fist into his palm. This was the setup he needed. He flipped through his notebook for the name of the escort service Latham had been using. He'd pay them a visit tomorrow as a handsome blond young man. Bight now, though, he needed to check on Veronica.
Beth met him at the door. She waited a moment before saying anything. Her face was tight. She forced a smile. "She's gone."
"What?" Jerry stared hard at her, expecting some kind of lengthy explanation. "So..."
Beth walked over to the couch. "She recovered so quickly. I've never seen anything like it. Look, I'm sorry, but I don't know what I could have done to stop her."
You could have gone to bed with her, he thought, remembering Veronica's current sexual preference and the way she'd looked at Beth. Jerry flopped down on the couch and combed the hair from his eyes. "How did she leave? Did she walk? Catch a cab?"
"A cab." Beth sat