فصل 23 - بخش 11

23

They were most of the way down the path when a horn began to beep in short blasts. Holly stopped, biting at lips which had already taken a lot of abuse.

‘Relax,’ Ralph said. ‘I think that’s Yune.’

The path was wider now, and less steep, so they were able to move faster. When they came around the storage shed, they saw it was indeed Yune, sitting half in and half out of Hoskins’s pickup, beeping the horn with his right hand. His swollen and bloody left arm lay in his lap like a log.

‘You can quit that now,’ Ralph said. ‘Mother and Father are here. How are you?’

‘My arm hurts like blue fuck, but otherwise I’m okay. Did you get him? El Cuco?’

‘We got him,’ Ralph said. ‘Holly got him. He wasn’t human, but he died, just the same. His days of killing children are over.’

‘Holly got him?’ He looked at her. ‘How?’

‘We can talk about that later,’ she said. ‘Right now I’m more concerned about you. Have you passed out? Are you lightheaded?’

‘I got a little dizzy walking over here. Seemed to take forever, and I had to rest a couple of times. I was hoping I’d meet you coming out. Praying, more like it. Then I saw this truck. Must belong to the shooter. John P. Hoskins, according to the registration. Is he who I think he is?’

Ralph nodded. ‘Of the Flint City police. And it’s was. He’s dead, too. I shot him.’

Yune’s eyes widened. ‘What the hell was he doing here?’

‘The outsider sent him. How he managed that I have no idea.’

‘I thought he might have left the keys, but no joy on that. And nothing for pain relief in the glove compartment, either. Just the registration, his insurance card, and a bunch of crap.’

‘I’ve got the keys,’ Ralph said. ‘They were in his pocket.’

‘And I’ve got something for pain,’ Holly said. She reached into one of the voluminous side pockets of her beat-up suit coat and brought out a large brown prescription bottle. It was unlabeled.

‘What else have you got in there?’ Ralph asked. ‘A camp stove? Coffee pot? Shortwave radio?’

‘Work on that sense of humor, Ralph.’

‘That’s not me being funny, that’s true admiration.’

‘I concur most heartily,’ Yune said.

She opened her traveling pharmacy, dumped an assortment of pills into her palm, and put the bottle carefully down on the truck’s dashboard. ‘These are Zoloft … Paxil … Valium, which I rarely take anymore … and these.’ She carefully slid the rest of the pills back into the bottle, saving out two orange ones. ‘Motrin. I take it for tension headaches. Also for TMJ pain, although that’s better since I started using a night guard. I have the hybrid model. It’s expensive but it’s the best one on the …’ She saw them looking at her. ‘What?’

Yune said, ‘Just more admiration, querida. I love a woman who comes prepared for all eventualities.’ He took the pills, swallowed them dry, and closed his eyes. ‘Thank you. So much. May your night guard never fail you.’

She looked at him doubtfully as she stored the bottle back in her pocket. ‘I have two more when you need them. Have you heard any fire sirens?’

‘No,’ Yune said. ‘I’m starting to think they’re not coming.’

‘They will,’ Ralph said, ‘but you won’t be here when they arrive. You need to go to the hospital. Plainville’s a little closer than Tippit, plus the Bolton place is on the way. You’ll need to stop there. Holly, will you be okay driving if I stay here?’

‘Yes, but why …’ Then she hit her forehead lightly with the palm of her hand. ‘Mr Gold and Mr Pelley.’

‘Yes. I have no intention of leaving them where they fell.’

‘Messing up a crime scene is generally frowned on,’ Yune said. ‘As I think you know.’

‘I do, but won’t allow two good men to cook in the hot sun and next to a burning vehicle. Do you have a problem with that?’

Yune shook his head. Droplets of sweat shone in the bristles of his Marine-style haircut. ‘Por supuesto no.’

‘I’ll drive us around to the parking lot, and then Holly can take over. Are you getting any relief from that Motrin, amigo?’

‘I am, actually. It ain’t great, but it’s better.’

‘Good. Because before we get rolling, we have to talk.’

‘About?’

‘About how we’re going to explain this,’ Holly said.