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.He nodded. I hear you, Dino.We got to Monroe Street and circled the lot of Serrano s tiny apartment building.The carwasn t hard to spot.It was cherry red, sitting low on the ground and gleaming in the parking lotlights.I heard Seth moan quietly, and I turned to stare at him. Fuck, Dino, I know, all right? He held up his hands like an exasperated teenager. I swear,if it doesn t start right off I ll give you the sign and we ll tow it.I nodded and moved the truck to where I d be able to back straight in if we needed.Wedecided since this was the last one, and because it was so flashy, we d park it behind Ed s for thenight and throw a cover over it.I wasn t comfortable with leaving it at Ernie s, because when thisguy found it missing, he would certainly come looking for it.Seth got out of the truck and shut the door quietly, taking the slim-jim, a screwdriver, andhis pocket knife with him.I watched him crouch low and trot over to the car.He checked theVIN number against the paperwork, and went to work on the lock.Less than two minutes later,he climbed in the car, half the battle won.30 Like Coffee and DoughnutsI had the truck idling and gave it a soft rev so if I had to move fast, it wouldn t stall out.Ikept my eyes glued to the back window of the  Vette, where I could just make out Seth movingaround inside.I waited a few more minutes and checked my watch.Nothing happened. Come on, I muttered through clenched teeth.I was about to make my move when the car finally roared to life.It was loud as hell.If wehadn t been noticed before, we certainly would be now.Seth clearly understood the same thing,because he didn t bother backing out slow and quiet, he just whipped it out of the parking spaceand wheeled smoothly around to the parking lot entrance.I turned and stepped on the clutch to pull out after him, when a blurred figure exploded outthe door of the apartment building and streaked past me.It was a young guy, mid-twenties or so,with short blond hair and a button-down shirt only half on, flapping around him as he ran.I guessedthis was Darryl Serrano.He hollered after the Corvette, using quite a lot of colorful words, but hishands were empty, which was a relief.If he had a gun on him, he d have pulled it by now.What he did next surprised me more than a gun would have.He was really moving and startedto chase down the car.I pulled out on the street in time to see him catch Seth at the intersectionwhen Seth slowed to make the turn.Darryl launched himself into the air and landed on the hood of the  Vette in a flying tackle,screaming and pounding on the glass.Seth snapped the front of the car toward the curb and stompedon the breaks, rolling the guy off onto the grass, then streaked away with a squeal of tires.I imaginedhe enjoyed the hell out of that, and I didn t expect him to sleep for two days.With Seth out of danger, and long gone, I drove along slowly as if I was a mere passerby.Ikept an eye on Serrano while he picked himself up and limped back toward the apartment building,swearing and waving his arms.He picked up a beer can and hurled it at the block of mailboxeson the lawn.Once he was inside, there wasn t any reason for me to hang around, so I stepped on the gasand drove back to the garage.I wasn t the least bit surprised I was the first one to get there, andI already had the car cover out and ready when Seth finally pulled in, some kind of heavy bassbeat making the windows throb.He didn t get out of the car right away, and I could see him inside thrashing around to themusic, so I supposed we were going to wait out the end of the song.I leaned against the door frameand folded my arms over my chest, grateful I was on this side of the glass.When the song ended, he drove the car around back where we d decided to stash it.I followedhim and met him climbing out of it. Fuck, Dino, is that a sweet ride, Seth said.He grabbed an edge of the cover and helpedme drape it over the car.He was practically bouncing. Are you absolutely sure we have to giveit back?Elle Parker 31 Ah, that would be a definite yes, I said, grinning. We have to give it back.Trust me whenI tell you you re going to like the Chevelle a whole lot better.Personally, I think it completelyoutclasses this thing even with a fried engine. Yeah? No question.We got the Corvette stowed away, and Seth was still crashing around as if he had downed acan full of sugar.I was extremely grateful I d pulled rank on that one. Driving that car really got you wired, didn t it? I asked, watching him shadowbox aFirestone Tire sign and then kick it right over. Are you kidding? I ve had a boner for half an hour.I m completely jazzed right now.I had to ask.Since it was only one thirty and the paperwork could wait until morning, I said,  Well, you regonna have to handle the hard-on yourself, but I d be happy to take you down to the Oar Houseand buy you a few beers to settle you down.He gave me an absolutely predatory smile.It made me a little weak in the knees, and I wasprepared for one of his offhanded come-ons, but instead he just said,  You re on, and joggedhalfway down the sidewalk before coming back to walk with me.Chapter 6I woke up the next morning feeling moderately hung over, and pissed when I realized I dleft Matilda at the garage and was going to have to walk to Seth s in that state.My new place wasonly eight blocks or so from him, but there s no amount of walking I want to do on a bright andsunny morning with a hangover.Turns out, it had taken quite a lot of beer to calm Seth down, and not only had we closedout the Oar House, but we d walked over to the Backroom Bar which tends to do a lively afterhours business.Seth and the bartender dug out a pile of bartending guides she d printed off theinternet, and amused themselves by making every drink that had a dirty name.I wasn t allowed toleave until I d thoroughly discussed the merits of Sex on the Beach versus a Screaming O.Since Ichose to be a good sport about the whole thing, they rewarded me with an amaretto Sweet Pussy,which was actually pretty good.My cellphone was on the nightstand next to me, so I grabbed it, figuring I could call Sethand make him bring the car to me, but it went straight to voicemail.Irritating little shit.I crawled out of bed and into the shower where I washed off the bar smell and cigarettesmoke.Then I went to the kitchen and brewed coffee while I dug out the biggest mug I could find.If I had to take the walk of shame, I was doing it armed with caffeine.Unfortunately, I ran out three-quarters of the way there, and there s no decent coffee to behad in that part of town, so my mood hadn t lifted any by the time I climbed the wooden stepsand beat on Seth s door.He wasn t answering that, either [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]