بخش 03 - فصل 46

46

Morris hustles Tina along the path. At one point a jutting branch rips her filmy blouse and scratches her arm, bringing blood.

‘Don’t make me go so fast, mister! I’ll fall down!’

Morris whacks the back of her head above her ponytail. ‘Save your breath, bitch. Just be grateful I’m not making you run.’

He holds onto her shoulders as they cross the stream, balancing her so she won’t fall in, and when they reach the point where the scrub brush and stunted trees give way to the Rec property, he tells her to stop.

The baseball field is deserted, but a few boys are on the cracked asphalt of the basketball court. They’re stripped to the waist, their shoulders gleaming. The day is really too hot for outside games, which is why Morris supposes there are only a few of them.

He unties Tina’s hands. She gives a little whimper of relief and starts rubbing her wrists, which are crisscrossed with deep red grooves.

‘We’re going to walk along the edge of the trees,’ he tells her. ‘The only time those boys will be able to get a good look at us is when we get near the building and come out of the shade. If they say hello, or if there’s someone you know, just wave and smile and keep walking. Do you understand?’

‘Y-Yes.’

‘If you scream or yell for help, I’ll put a bullet in your head. Do you understand that?’

‘Yes. Did you shoot my mother? You did, didn’t you?’

‘Of course not, just fired one into the ceiling to settle her down. She’s fine and you will be, too, if you do as you’re told. Get moving.’

They walk in the shade, the uncut grass of right field whickering against Morris’s trousers and Tina’s jeans. The boys are totally absorbed in their game and don’t even look around, although if they had, Tina’s bright yellow blouse would have stood out against the green trees like a warning flag.

When they reach the back of the Rec, Morris guides her past his old pal’s Subaru, keeping a close eye on the boys as he does so. Once the brick flank of the building hides the two of them from the basketball court, he ties Tina’s hands behind her again. No sense taking chances with Birch Street so close. Lots of houses on Birch Street.

He sees Tina draw in a deep breath and grabs her shoulder. ‘Don’t yell, girlfriend. Open your mouth and I’ll beat it off you.’

‘Please don’t hurt me,’ Tina whispers. ‘I’ll do whatever you want.’

Morris nods, satisfied. It’s a wise-con response if he ever heard one.

‘See that basement window? The one that’s open? Lie down, turn over on your belly, and drop through.’

Tina squats and peers into the shadows. Then she turns her bloody swollen face up to him. ‘It’s too far! I’ll fall!’

Exasperated, Morris kicks her in the shoulder. She cries out. He bends over and places the muzzle of the automatic against her temple.

‘You said you’d do whatever I wanted, and that’s what I want. Get through that window right now, or I’ll put a bullet in your tiny brat brain.’

Morris wonders if he means it. He decides he does. Little girls also don’t mean shit.

Weeping, Tina squirms through the window. She hesitates, half in and half out, looking at Morris with pleading eyes. He draws his foot back to kick her in the face and help her along. She drops, then yells in spite of Morris’s explicit instructions not to.

‘My ankle! I think I broke my ankle!’

Morris doesn’t give a fuck about her ankle. He takes a quick look around to make sure he’s still unobserved, then slides through the window and into the basement of the Birch Street Rec, landing on the closed carton he used for a step last time. The thief’s sister must have landed on it wrong and tumbled to the floor. Her foot is twisted sideways and already beginning to swell. To Morris Bellamy, that doesn’t mean shit, either.