jg.thepartner-第34部分

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threw　it　in　with　the　rest。　I　backed　off　thirty　feet　or　so；　and　lit　a　cigarette　I　had　in　my　pocket。　I　threw　it；　backed　up　even　farther；　and　ducked　behind　a　tree。　It　landed　on　the　Blazer；　then　the　gas　exploded。　Sounded　like　a　bomb。　In　an　instant　it　was　roaring　from　all　the　windows。　I　climbed　up　the　steepest　side　of　the　ravine　and　found　a　vantage　point　probably　a　hundred　feet　away。　I　wanted　to　watch　without　getting　caught。　The　fire　was　howling；　I　had　no　idea　it　would　make　so　much　noise。　Some　brush　started　to　burn；　and　I　thought　maybe　I　had　started　a　forest　fire。　Luckily　it　had　rained　on　Friday；　a　hard　rain　that　soaked　the　trees　and　ground　cover。〃　He　took　a　drink　of　his　soda。　〃I　just　realized　I　forgot　to　ask　you　about　your　family。　I'm　sorry；　Karl。　How's　Iris？〃
　〃Iris　is　fine。　We　can　talk　about　the　family　later。　Right　now；　I'd　like　to　hear　the　story。〃
　〃Sure。　Where　was　I？　I'm　so　scatterbrained。　It's　all　those　drugs。〃
　〃Watching　the　car　burn。〃
　〃Right。　So　the　fire　gets　really　hot；　then　the　gas　tank　explodes　and　it's　another　bomb。　I　thought　for　a　second　I　might　get　scorched。　Debris　flies　through　the　air；　and　rattles　through　the　trees　as　it　falls。　Finally；　I　hear　something　from　the　highway。　Voices。　People　yelling。　I　can't　see　anybody；　but　there's　a　motion。　A　long　time　passes　and　the　fire　spreads　around　the　car。　It's　ing　at　me　now；　so　I　leave。　I　can　hear　a　siren　ing。　I'm　trying　to　find　a　creek　I'd　e　across　the　day　before　a　hundred　yards　or　so　through　the　woods。　I'm　going　to　follow　it。　And　I'm　looking　for　my　dirt　bike。〃
　Karl　hung　on　every　word；　absorbed　every　scene；　made　every　step　along　the　way　with　Patrick。　This　escape　route　had　been　the　subject　of　many　fierce　debates　in　the　months　after　the　disappearance；　and　no　one　had　a　clue。　〃A　dirt　bike？〃
　〃Yeah。　An　old　one。　I　bought　it　for　five　hundred　dollars　cash　from　a　used　car　dealer　in　Hattiesburg　several　months　earlier。　I　played　with　it　some　in　the　woods。　Nobody　knew　I　had　it。〃
　〃No　title　or　registration？〃
　〃Of　course　not。　I　gotta　tell　you；　Karl；　as　I　ran　through　the　woods；　looking　for　the　creek；　still　scared　but　in　one　piece；　and　I　heard　the　fire　and　voices　fade　behind　me　and　the　siren　getting　louder；　I　knew　I　was　running　to　freedom。　Patrick　was　dead；　and　he　took　with　him　a　bad　life。　He　would　get　honored　and　buried　properly；　and　everyone　would　say　good…bye。　And　before　long　people　would　start　to　forget　about　him。　But　me；　I　was　running　wildly　to　a　new　life。　It　was　exhilarat…ing。〃
　What　about　the　poor　guy　burning　in　the　car；　Patrick？　While　you　were　running　joyously　through　the　woods　someone　else　was　dying　in　your　place。　Karl　almost　asked。　Patrick　seemed　oblivious　to　the　fact　that　he　had　mitted　murder。
　〃Then　suddenly；　I'm　lost。　The　woods　are　dense；　and　somehow　I　stumble　the　wrong　way。　I　get　a　small　flashlight；　and　I　figure　it's　safe　to　use　it。　I　roam　and　backtrack　until　I　can　no　longer　hear　the　siren。　At　one　point；　I　sit　down　on　a　stump　and　make　myself　get　a　grip。　I'm　in　a　panic。　Wouldn't　this　be　great？　Survive　the　wreck　only　to　die　of　starvation　and　exposure。　I　start　walking　again；　get　lucky　and　find　the　creek。　Before　long；　I　find　the　dirt　bike。　I　push　it　a　hundred　yards；　up　the　side　of　a　hill；　to　an　old　logging　trail；　and　of　course　by　now　my　two…hundred…and…thirty…pound　lumbering　fat　ass　is　practically　dead。　There's　not　a　house　within　two　miles；　so　I　start　the　bike　and　follow　the　logging　trail。　I've　ridden　the　area　several　times　on　the　bike；　so　I　know　it　well。　I　find　a　gravel　road；　and　see　the　first　house。　I've　got　the　bike　jerry…rigged　with　aluminum　tubes　that　act　to　muffle　the　engine；　so　I'm　not　making　much　noise。　Before　long；　I'm　on　a　paved　road　in　Stone　County。　I　stay　away　from　the　main　highway；　and　stick　to　the　back　roads。　A　couple　of　hours　later；　I　make　it　back　to　the　cabin。〃
　〃Why　did　you　go　back　to　the　cabin？〃
　〃I　had　to　regroup。〃
　〃Weren't　you　afraid　of　being　seen　by　Pepper？〃
　Patrick　didn't　flinch　at　the　question。　Karl　had　timed　it　perfectly；　and　he　watched　for　a　reaction。　None。　Patrick　studied　his　feet　for　a　few　seconds；　then　said；　〃Pepper　was　gone。〃
　Twenty…four
　TNDERHILL　WAS　BACK。　Fresh　from　eight　hours　of　watching　videos　and　reviewing　notes　in　another　room。　He　walked　in；　gave　a　generic　hello　in　the　general　direction　of　Stephano　arid　his　lawyer；　then　got　to　work。　〃If　we　could　pick　up　where　you　left　off　yesterday；　Mr。　Stephano。〃
　〃Where　might　that　be？〃
　〃Your　invasion　of　Brazil。〃
　〃Right。　Well；　let's　see。　It's　a　big　country。　A　hundred　and　sixty　million　people；　more　square　miles　than　the　lower　forty…eight；　and　a　history　of　being　a　marvelous　place　to　hide；　especially　if　you're　on　the　run。　Nazis　favored　it　for　years。　We　put　together　a　dossier　on　Lanigan；　had　it　translated　into　Portuguese。　We　had　a　police　artist　work　with　some　puter　people　to　develop　a　series　of　color…enhanced　renderings　of　what　Lanigan　looked　like　now。　We　spent　hours　with　the　sailboat　charter　captain　in　Orange　Beach；　as　well　as　with　the　bankers　in　Nassau；　and　together　they　helped　us　develop　a　series　of　detailed　sketches　of　Lanigan。　We　even　met　with　the　partners　in　the　firm　and　went　over　the　sketches。　They；　in　turn；　showed　them　to　the　secretaries。　One　of　the　partners；　Mr。　Bogan；　even　took　the　best　rendering　to　the　widow　Lanigan　for　her　opinion。〃
　〃Now　that　you've　caught　him；　were　your　photos　close？〃
　〃Fairly　close。　The　chin　and　the　nose　threw　us　off　a　bit。〃
　〃Please　continue。〃
　〃We　hurried　to　Brazil；　and　found　three　of　the　best　private　investigative　firms　in　the　country。　One　in　Rio；　one　in　Sao　Paulo；　and　one　in　Recife；　in　the　northeast。　We　were　paying　top　dollar；　so　we　hired　the　very　best。　We　put　them　together　as　a　team；　and　gathered　them　in　Sao　Paulo　for　a　week。　We　listened　to　them。　They　developed　the　story　that　Patrick　should　be　an　American　fugitive　wanted　for　the　kidnap　and　murder　of　the　daughter　of　a　wealthy　family；　a　family　now　offering　a　reward　for　information　about　his　whereabouts。　The　murder　of　a　child　was；　of　course；　designed　to　arouse　more　sympathy　than　stealing　money　from　a　bunch　of　lawyers。
　〃We　went　straight　to　the　language　schools；　flashing　pictures　of　Lanigan　and　offering　cash。　The　reputable　schools　slammed　their　doors。　Others　looked　at　the　pictures　but　couldn't　help。　By　this　time；　we　had　a　lot　of　respect　for　Lanigan；　and　we　didn't　think　he'd　run　the　risk　of　studying　in　a　place　where　questions　were　asked　and　records　were　kept。　So　we　targeted　the　private　tutors；　of　which　there　are　only　about　a　million　in　Brazil。　It　was　tedious　work。〃
　〃Did　you　offer　cash　up　front？〃
　〃We　did　what　our　Brazilian　agents　wanted　to　do；　which　was　to　show　the　pictures；　tell　the　story　of　the　murdered　child；　then　wait　for　a　reaction。　If　there　was　a　nibble；　then　we'd　gently　drop　the　hint　about　some　reward　money。〃
　〃Any　nibbles？〃
　〃A　few；　here　and　there。　But　we　never　paid　any　money；　at　least　not　to　language　tutors。〃
　〃To　others？〃
　Stephano　nodded　as　he　glanced　at　a　sheet　of　paper。　〃In　April　of　'94；　we　found　a　plastic　surgeon　in　Rio　who　showed　some　interest　in　Lanigan's　pictures。　He　toyed　with　us　for　a　month；　and　finally　convinced　us　he　had　worked　on　Lanigan。　He　had　some　photos　of　his　own；　before　and　after　shots。　He　played　us　perfectly；　and　we　eventually　agreed　to　pay　him　a　quarter　of　a　million　dollars；　cash；　offshore；　for　his　entire　file。〃
　〃What　was　in　the　file？〃
　〃Just　the　basics。　Clear　frontal　photos　of　our　man　before　and　after　the　surgery。　It　was　really　odd　because　Lanigan　had　insisted　on　no　photos。　He　wanted　no　trail　whatsoever；　just　hard　cash　for　the　alterations。　Wouldn't　give　his　real　name；　said　he　was　a　businessman　from　Canada　who　suddenly　wanted　to　look　younger。　The　surgeon　heard　this　all　the　time；　and　he　knew　the　guy　was　on　the　run。　He　kept　a　hidden　camera　in　his　office；　thus　the　photos。〃
　〃Could　we　see　them？〃
　〃Certainly。〃　The　lawyer　was　aroused　for　the　moment　and　slid　a　manila　envelope　down　the　table　to
　Underbill；　who　opened　it　and　only　glanced　at　the　photos。
　〃How　did　you　find　the　doctor？〃
　〃At　the　same　time　we　were　checking　language　schools　and　tutors；　we　were　also　pursuing　other　professions。　Forgers；　plastic　surgeons；　importers。〃
　〃Importers？〃
　〃Yeah；　there's　a　Portuguese　word　for　these　guys；　but　'importers'　is　a　very　rough　translation。　They're　a　shady　group　of　specialists　who　can　get　you　into　Brazil　and　then　get　you　lost…new　names；　new　papers；　the　best　places　to　live　and　hide。　We　found　them　to　be　impenetrable。　We　had　pretty　much　the　same　bad　luck　with　the　forgers。　They　can't　afford　to　talk　about　their　clients。　It's　very　bad　for　business。〃
　〃But　the　doctors　were　different？〃
　〃Not　really。　They　don't　talk。　But　we　hired　a　plastic　surgeon　as　a　consultant；　and　he　gave　us　the　names　of　some　of　his　sleazier　brethren　who　worked　on　the　nameless。　That's　how　we　found　the　doctor　in　Rio。〃
　〃This　was　over　two　years　after　Lanigan　disappeared。〃
　〃That's　correct。〃
　〃Was　this　the　first　evidence　that　he　was　actually　in　the　country？〃
　〃The　very　first；　yes。〃
　〃What　did　you　do　for　the　first　two　years？〃
　〃Spent　a　lot　of　money。　Knocked　on　a　lot　of　doors。　Chased　a　lot　of　worthless　leads。　As　I　said；　it's　a　big　country。〃
　〃How　many　men　were　working　for　you　in　Brazil？〃
　〃At　one　point；　I　was　paying　sixty　agents。　Thankfully；　they're　not　as　expensive　as　Americans。〃
　IF　THE　JUDGE　wanted　a　pizza；　then　the　Judge　got　a　pizza。　It　was　fetched　from　Hugo's；　an　old　family　bistro　on　Division　Street；　near　the　Point　and　far　away　from　the　fast…food　places　lining　the　beach。　It　was　delivered　by　a　deputy　to　Room　312。　Patrick　smelled　it　as　it　left　the　elevator。　He　stared　at　it　when　Karl　opened　the　box　at　the　foot　of　his　bed。　He　closed　his　eyes　and　sucked　in　the　heavenly　aroma　of　black　olives；　portobello　mushrooms；　Italian　sausage；　green　peppers；　and　six　different　cheeses。　He　had　eaten　a　thousand　pizzas　from　Hugo's；　especially　during　the　last　two　years　of　his　old　life；　and　he　had　been　dreaming　of　this　one　for　a　week　now。　Home　did　have　certain　advantages。
　〃You　look　like　death　warmed　over。　Eat　up；〃　Karl　said。
　Patrick　devoured　his　first　slice　of　pizza　without　a　word；　then　went　for　a　second。
　〃How　did　you　get　so　skinny？〃　Karl　asked；　chomping　away。
　〃Can　we　get　some　beer？〃　Patrick　asked。
　〃No。　Sorry。　You're　in　jail；　remember。〃
　〃Losing　weight　is　between　the　ears。　Make　u