“Worst fears realized,” Stone said.
Her face fell. “They’re in Las Vegas together?”
Stone nodded. “Teich says they’ve reconciled.”
“She can’t do that!” Joan cried. “We need that fee!”
“Bernie is smarter than I thought,” Stone said. “He did the arithmetic and made a decision. Now let’s see if he’s smart enough to dump the girlfriend and get rid of the penthouse.”
“If he doesn’t, Mrs. Finger will be back,” Joan said.
“Get me Bob Cantor.”
Joan left, then buzzed him a moment later.
Stone picked up the phone. “Bob?”
“One and the same.”
“Bernie Finger has pulled his fat out of the fire, at least temporarily.”
“How so?”
“He’s reconciled with his wife.”
“Oh, shit, and after all my hard work.”
“Bob, I want to know if he really gets rid of the girlfriend and the apartment. Give it a day or two, then nose around and see what you can find out.”
“You want more intimate snapshots?”
“First, find out if they’re still sharing the penthouse, then we’ll see how to proceed.”
“Will do,” Cantor said and hung up.
At dinner at Elaine’s, Dino was outraged. “He went back to his wife? The son of a bitch should be taken out and shot!”
Elaine piped up. “Yeah, that’s a terrible thing to do, isn’t it? Go back to the woman who loves him?”
“But the other one loves him, too,” Dino pointed out, “or at least his money.”
“Hey, hey,” Stone said. “Don’t get upset; this can’t last. Bernie will be back with his masseuse before we know it, and when he goes, I’ll pounce.”
“Jesus, what a way to make a living,” Elaine said. She got up and left the table.
“The lady came to me!” Stone called after her.
37
Stone had just gotten in from Elaine’s when the phone rang. He picked it up. “Hello?”
“It’s Cantor.”
“Hi, Bob. You got something on Bernie Finger already?”
“It’s not that. I’m at Herbie’s place. You need to come out here right now.”
“What’s up?”