‘Hell, no! I assumed you’d be dead long before me. I just put NTSB in DC.’
Tom caught Pete LaBello’s amazed look and shook his head. ‘Shit, Halo,’ he said, struggling to keep his voice even. ‘Loyalty beyond the grave. That’s above and beyond the call of friendship.’
‘Yeah,’ said Halo.
Pete picked up the bolt with a questioning look at Halo, who nodded his permission.
‘Be careful, Pete,’ said Tom.
‘I will.’ Pete tapped the file on his thigh and headed for the door. ‘I have a flight to catch. I’ll call you from LA, Tom, and you can fill me in on any other details you think I should know about.’ He stared at Tom meaningfully, then shook Halo’s hand. ‘Good to meet you, Mr Jackson.’
‘Same here,’ said Halo. ‘I hope you and Ann have a happy retirement. Sounds like you deserve it.’
‘Jesus!’ Tom said irritably. ‘How long have you guys known each other?’
‘It’s called conversation,’ said Pete. ‘Regular people do it.’
Tom was momentarily silenced, then waved a dismissive hand. ‘Ah, fuck regular people.’
Pete flapped his arms in an all-purpose gesture of hopelessness.
At the door he stopped. ‘By the way, Kitty said your termination paperwork got lost in the mail, and it would be a whole lot easier for her if you just withdrew your resignation.’
Tom’s overstretched heart thudded so loudly, he thought Pete must be able to hear it clear across the room. ‘Seriously?’
‘Yeah.’
Tom’s throat was tight and aching. ‘Thanks, Pete.’
*
When a nurse came back to check his blood pressure and lung function, Tom bullied Halo into going to find out how and where Lucia was. He came back with the sobering news that she was in a hyperbaric chamber on the first floor.
Tom waited until the nurse had finished and left the room. ‘Is she okay?’
‘I don’t know. I didn’t ask anyone.’
‘Is her mother with her?’
‘I just looked through the glass in the door. There’s a nurse and a woman in white gloves.’
‘That’s her. She was in here when I woke up this morning. Hit me in the mouth.’
‘Good for her.’ Then Halo looked at Tom properly. ‘You’re kidding?’
‘Nope. Said if I ever went near her daughter again she’d kill me.’
Tom’s tone was obviously seeking support and Halo knew he should be condemning an assault on a defenceless man in his sickbed but, really, he couldn’t blame the woman. If he’d had a daughter, and she’d shown any interest in Tom Patrick, he’d probably have done the same thing. He skirted that truth and headed for safer waters. ‘Did you meet Lucia in South Africa?’
‘Not the same girl.’
‘You got two women to sleep with you?’
‘Fuck off.’
Halo grinned. ‘What happened to the other one?’
‘She gave me the file. And the plane ticket.’
‘Man, you must be really bad in bed.’
Tom shrugged. ‘Maybe she didn’t realize that was the plane.’
‘Maybe,’ said Halo, kindly, although he looked doubtful.
Tom swung his legs off the bed and tugged the open-assed hospital gown over his head.
‘Where are you going?’ said Halo.
‘To see Lucia.’
‘What about Mrs Muhammad Ali?’
‘You’re coming with me. If she sees I have a black friend maybe she’ll like me better.’
‘I’m not your friend. I’m just some guy who calls you up and hassles you to work for free, remember?’
‘Well, she doesn’t need to know that, does she?’ Tom picked up his ID, then swayed and had to put a hand on the bed to stop himself falling, his legs weak and rubbery.
