The silence rolled in as if from a far place and settled in the room.
Everyone stood still, not knowing what to say. Except me. I knew what I should say, which was nothing. And I kept saying it.
Finally Patty looked at Rich, and he said, "Kid, you got no business coming in here and talking like that. And you wouldn't get away with it if you didn't have this Yahoo with you."
"That may be," Paul said, "but here he is."
The Yahoo smiled charmingly and said nothing. He was musing over the prospect of stung Rich up the chimney flue if the opportunity appeared.
From the sofa where she had settled, Pearl yawned largely. Her jaws opened so wide when she yawned that it ended with a squeak which may have been her jaw hinge. I was never quite sure.
"Paul," Patty said. "Please. Don't do this. I've found someone. Rich cares about me. You don't know what being alone is like."
"The hell I don't," Paul said.
From where I stood I could look into the big round gilded Eagle mirror over the fireplace and see my car parked down the slope of the lawn-to-be.
"What did you mean about safe?" Patty said.
"Are you going to tell her?" Paul said to Rich. "Or am I?"
"I am," Beaumont said. "It's not as bad as it sounds, but I was in business with a guy who turned out to have mob connections, and I took some money he says belongs to him."
"And they want it back," Patty said.
Beaumont nodded.
"Well, just give it to them," Patty said.
Beaumont shook his head.
"Why not?" Patty said. "Tell them you're sorry and give them the money." "And this house?" Beaumont said.
"Yes, certainly, sell it. Tell them you'll make good. You have some money."
"None I haven't stolen," Beaumont said. There was no scornfulness in his voice this time, nor selfregard. It was the voice of someone noticing an ugly thing about himself.
"I don't care. Give it to them. We have each other, we can start over, give them the money back."
Beaumont
was silent. Paul looked at me.
"It's not that simple," I said. "They intend to kill him."
Patty put her hand to her mouth again in the same gesture she'd used when
Beaumont said fuck. Patty's reaction range was limited.
"But if he gives the money back" she said.
Beaumont was looking past her out the sliding doors at the end of the living room, which opened out onto the green and yellow woods. He didn't say anything.
"It's a matter of principle now," I said. "These particular people can't let him get away with it. They have to kill him."
All of us were quiet.
Patty said, "Richard?"
Beaumont nodded.
"He's right," Beaumont said. "It's why we had to come here and hide. It's why I couldn't let you tell anyone at all. Not even your kid."
"Richard," she said, "we better go away then."
"We're all right here," Beaumont said. "No one knows we're here." He looked at us. "Do they?"
"No," I said. "No one followed you?"
"No."
"You're sure?"
"Yes."
"Richard, we can't stay here," Patty said. "They might find you."
"How'd you find us?" Beaumont said.
"A charge purchase from Lenox," I said.
Beaumont looked at Patty. "I told you cash," he said. "No charges."
"What harm? It was for us, like our honeymoon. Just that one time is all,
Richard. I didn't know."
"What harm? For Christ's sake, Patty, they found us." He tossed his chin at
Paul and me. "What if it had been Gerry?"
Who.
Beaumont made a dismissive wave with his hand.
"Is Gerry the one you took the money from?"
"Yeah."
"Richard, let's go somewhere else."
Beaumont started to shake his head and then stopped and turned his gaze slowly toward Patty.
"Why?" he said.
"It's too close. They might find us."
"What's going on, Patty?" Beaumont said. "Why might they find us?"
Patty had both hands pressed against her mouth now. She shook her head soundlessly.
"Ma," Paul said, "if you know something you have to say, this is-" He didn't finish.
Patty kept shaking her head with her hands pressed against her mouth.
"You told somebody," Beaumont said. "Goddamn you, you told somebody."
With her head still down and her hands still pressed, she was able to squeeze out the word "Caitlin."
"Caitlin Martinelli? You told her?"
She nodded and took her hands away. "I was so excited," she said, "about buying our house" She wanted to say more and she couldn't.
"Who told her brother," I said, "who told Joe."
Beaumont nodded and turned and went out of the room. He came back almost at once wearing one of those fleece-lined cattleman's jackets that you can buy in a catalogue and carrying a blue and red Nike gym bag with a shoulder strap.
"I'm out of here," he said. "If you want to come, Patty, come right now. No packing, just come."
As he turned toward her I could see that he had a white-handled automatic stuck in his belt.
Patty looked at Beaumont and then at Paul, and then at her living room with all its fresh-from-theehowroom-floor furniture.
"I" she said and stopped. "I don't"
"Patty, damn you, decide," Beaumont said, moving toward the back door.
In the big mirror over the fireplace I saw a dark blue Buick sedan pull up behind my car on the gravel roadway. Another car, a white Oldsmobile, pulled in right behind it.