Stalker. Faye Kellerman

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      “Es true,” Luis shouted. “She kill me. I no move ’cause she kill me. She es crazy woman!”

      Cindy spoke calmly. “Do you have a gun, Estella?”

      “She have a big gun!” Luis answered. “She es crazy woman! Loca en la cabeza!”

      Luis wasn’t helping his case. Cindy said, “Come on out, Estella. We’ll talk about it.”

      “I no talk no more times,” Estella answered. “He talk. All he essays es lies!”

      What next, Decker? Say something! Again, Cindy depressed the button. “Hey, where’d you get that little red dress, Estella? Over at Pay-off? I saw one just like it in the store window. I thought it was real cute. You’ve got good taste.”

      A moment. Then Estella said, “You buy it?”

      “Nah, I didn’t buy it.”

      “Why you no buy it?”

      “I’m a redhead,” Cindy said. “You gotta have dark hair for that number. You have dark hair, Estella?”

      “I have dark hair,” Estella answered. A pause. “Some peoples es in my house!”

      “No, I’m outside,” Cindy said.

      “No, I hear peoples in my house!”

      “Nah, we’re all outside!” Quickly, Cindy said, “You know, Estella, there are lots of people looking at your terrific clothes. You’ve got great taste. You ever think of doing a yard sale? You could make some real money.”

      “The clozzes is sheeet!”

      “No, they’re not shit. I’m telling you, you have good taste.” Cindy resisted the temptation to look at her watch. She knew she hadn’t been talking for more than a minute, though it felt like hours. “I like that slinky little purple dress. You must look dynamite in it.”

      “Porple no good for redheads,” Estella answered.

      “Yeah, you’re right about that,” Cindy said. “I also like the green satin blouse. Green’s good for redheads.”

      “You like it, you take it. I no need no clozzes after I kill him.”

      Cindy said, “I’m telling you, Estella, you could make some real money with these clothes.”

      A long pause. Then Estella said, “How much you thin’?”

      “Hundred bucks—”

      “I no care! He gives all de money to de puta!”

      “I don’ have puta!” Luis screamed. “She es crazy!”

      The woman’s voice was laced with frenzy. “I no crazy!”

      Cindy butted in. “Estella, come out here and we’ll talk about it.” From the corner of her eye, she saw Sarge leading the kids into one of the cruisers. Thank goodness for that! But her job was far from finished. “I’ll help you pick up the clothes—”

      “You arress her!” Luis shouted. “You put her crazy ass in jail!”

      Cindy said, “Luis, shut the hell up!”

      “I shut him up for you—”

      “No, no, no, Estella. Come on out. We’ll talk—”

      “I no move, Missy Redhead. I move, he take de gun. He estrong man. I no move. I no go no place. He move, and I shoot hole in his cojones.”

      “I no move, I no move,” Luis said. “Estella, mi amor. Te quiero mucho. Tu sabes que tu estás mi corazón!”

      Estella was quiet and that was scary. Sarge suddenly materialized at Cindy’s side. “Tell her we’ll send a couple of men into the house. Tell her they’ll handcuff him. That way, he can’t hurt her if she moves. He can’t take the gun away. And we’ll be there to protect her.”

      Cindy nodded, and told the woman the plan. Estella was less than convinced of its workability. “I no wan no menses in de house. De menses no listen to de womans never! I hate de menses!”

      “How about if I come in?” Cindy blurted out.

      “What?” Sarge whispered. “Retract that immediately!”

      Cindy took her finger off the button. “Why?”

      “Because she’s a loose cannon, Decker. Take it back or I’ll charge you with insubordination.”

      Cindy knew he wouldn’t do it. Her father wielded far too much power. She said, “I guess I misunderstood you, sir. You said you were sending officers into the house. I’m an officer, so I didn’t understand the problem. As a matter of fact, I still don’t.”

      It wasn’t exactly what Tropper had said. Sarge had talked about sending men inside. Still, Sarge was stuck. She could claim discrimination. He swore under his breath.

      “You come in, Missy Redhead?” Estella was asking.

      Cindy looked at Tropper. “What do I say, sir?”

      Tropper’s jaw was working a mile a minute. “Tell her you’ll come in with several other officers—”

      “How about with just my partner—”

      “Decker, you want more of us than them. That way, Luis Ojeda doesn’t even think about an overtake. Now shut up and do what I tell you to do!”

      His point was a good one. Depressing the button, Cindy said, “Yeah, I’ll come in, Estella. But I’m bringing a couple of buddies with me. Just in case Luis tries something funny.”

      “I no try nothin’,” Luis protested. “She kill me.”

      Cindy said, “Is that okay with you, Estella?”

      An elongated moment of silence. Then Estella said, “You come in and put de hancuff on? You arress him?”

      “I’ll put the handcuffs on him, Estella. You got my word on that.”

      “Hokay,” the woman answered. “You can come in, Missy Redhead.”

       3

      She felt Trapper’s breath on her neck, his presence so palpable it was as if he was giving her little shoves. Flanking him were Graham Beaudry and Rob Brown. Plenty of backup, but she was still point person—the first one out as well as the most vulnerable. They had decided that Estella must see her first. It showed that the police could be trusted. In the СКАЧАТЬ