Julie had been silently crying through all this, but suddenly she said, “I told him just to let her go. She wouldn’t bother us. She was already disgusted with both of us and wanted to be as far away from this as she could get.”
“Shut the fuck up, Julie,” he snarled. “You wanted the money as badly as I did.”
“And you came to me to find Phaedra,” I said. “So you must have had something in mind.”
“I knew you’d protect her,” Julie said simply. “She was like you.”
“I did a crappy job of that,” I said. “I might have done better if I’d known what was going on.”
“You know I couldn’t tell you.”
“So why did she agree to meet you?”
“I was going to take her to you,” Julie said. “But he found out.” She pointed to Townsend.
“Anything that was done to Phaedra, we did together,” he said quietly.
“Not quite,” I said. “You raped her. You also were the one who strangled her, I bet.”
“I had to make a choice,” Townsend said coldly. “Not even Phaedra was worth losing a million dollars and my life. Afterward, I drove her to the desert.”
“And you arranged her in a way that would send a message to me.”
“Oh, don’t think you mattered,” he said. “Your exploits merely inspired me. I immediately called the police. I didn’t want her body exposed to the elements.”
“A compassionate man,” I said.
“I didn’t intend for it to happen,” Julie said. She was different again. She stood up and walked over to Townsend and put her hand on his arm. “But somehow, I know Phaedra understands. She loved me. We loved each other. She wouldn’t want me living the way I did.”
“You see, Mapstone, it all comes down to money and sex. They’re thicker than blood,” Townsend said. “I have money and I have Julie. Whatever happened between us, we always wanted to be richer, and we always fucked each other’s brains out. Nothing and nobody could ultimately come between that. I hope that doesn’t disillusion your bullshit college ardor for her.” He raised the gun. “And I am bored with this conversation.”
“Did your Julie tell you she slept with me for three nights?” I said hastily. Julie stared at me with a glassy look. Townsend’s mouth tightened. “She seemed pretty needy. I didn’t hear her calling out your name, Greg.”
He jerked his arm away violently and pushed her. “You told me you were through sleeping around, Julie. My health is at stake. And our security.”
She looked at him sullenly. “I didn’t.”
“What else does he know? What did you tell him?”
“Nothing.”
He said very quietly, “Lying bitch.” And he shot her, the automatic filling the room with a high-pitched, eardrum-bursting blast.
He immediately pointed the gun at me, before I could draw or go to Julie. She was against the wall, sliding down. Blood trickled out around the solar plexus, darkening the center of her light blue blouse. She was staring at me in surprise, moving her mouth silently.
“Don’t do it, Mapstone,” he yelled. Then: “Tell me what she told you…when she fucked you.”
I just stared at him with a fool’s courage.
He stiffened and then exhaled. “Tell me, and I’ll let you go. I mean, I’ll just tie you up. That way, I can have time to get away. I’ll let you live.”
“That’s probably what you told Phaedra, too,” I said.
“What do you want from me!” he screamed.
“You’re the one with the gun pointed at me,” I said.
He screwed up his face and lowered the gun a bit. “Let me get my money, and I’ll let you live,” he said. “I need a partner. You’re a smart man.”
“And you are a stupid man,” I said. “The money’s gone. We found the storage locker and Phaedra’s car.”
His eyes widened. “What the hell are you saying?” He let his elbow drop.
I drew the Colt.
“No!”
The room exploded and something tore into my left shoulder.
I lined up the sights, squeezed the smooth trigger action of the Python, felt the big gun leap in my hand, squeezed it again, and Townsend was instantly blown backward in a cloud of noise and smoke and blood. He collapsed heavily into a lamp, two large holes in his chest, a look of shock and disbelief in eyes that were already dead. The little automatic clattered harmlessly to the floor.
I holstered the Python and knelt before Julie. She was breathing very shallowly and her eyes followed me. The bluest eyes I ever saw. She had lost a lot of blood. Her skin was an ashen color. I started to rise to call for help, but she put her hands on my arms tightly. Tears were running down her face.
“Oh, David,” she whispered. “I’m a mess.”
My left shoulder was numb. My eardrums were ringing. And I was crying, too. I can’t say exactly why.
She pulled herself into me and I held her. “Cold, it’s so cold,” she said. “David, I’m so cold.”