“The champ wants to be your friend. The champ can show you things. He can take you places you've never been.”
I was torn between wanting Ranger to show up and save me, and not wanting Ranger to see Ramirez at all. I suspected Ranger's solution to my stalking problem might be death. There was a good possibility that Ranger killed people on a regular basis. Only bad guys, of course, so who was I to criticize? Still, I didn't want him killing someone on my behalf. Not even if it was Ramirez. Although, if Ramirez died in his sleep or was accidentally run over by a truck, it wouldn't bother me too much.
“I'm not going anywhere with you, ever,” I said. “And if you continue to harass me I'll take steps to make sure it stops.”
“It's your destiny to go with the champ,” Ramirez said. “You can't escape it. Your friend Lula went with me. Ask her how she liked it, Stephanie. Ask Lula what it's like to be with the champ.”
I got a mental picture of Lula left naked and bloodied on my fire escape. Good thing I'd already thrown up because if there was anything in my stomach I'd be ralphing now.
I strode off, walking away from him. You don't debate with a madman. He pitty-?patted after me for half a block, and then he laughed softly and called good-?bye, and he was gone, jogging off toward Hamilton.
Ranger didn't reach me until I was at my parking lot. His skin was slick with sweat, and his breathing was labored. He'd been running hard, and he looked like he'd enjoyed it.
“Are you okay?” he asked. “Your face is white. I thought you'd have recovered by now.”
“Think you're right about ham,” I said.
“You want to try this again tomorrow?”
“I don't think I'm cut out to be this healthy.”
“You still looking for work?”
I mentally cracked my knuckles. I needed money, but Ranger's jobs weren't turning out so good. “What is it this time?”
Ranger unlocked his car, reached inside, and retrieved a large yellow envelope. “I have a high-?bond FTA floating around Trenton. I have someone watching his girlfriend's house and someone watching his apartment. The guy's mother lives in the Burg. I don't think it's worthwhile to put someone on the mother's house twenty-?four hours, but you know a lot of people in the Burg, and I thought you might be able to find an informant.” He handed the envelope over. “The guy's name is Alphonse Ruzick.”
I knew the Ruzicks. They lived on the other side of the Burg, two doors down from Carmine's Bakery, across from the Catholic school. Sandy Polan lived on that block. I'd gone to school with Sandy. She was married to Robert Scarfo now, so I guess she was Sandy Scarfo, but I still thought of her as being Sandy Polan. She had three kids, and the last one looked a lot more like the next-?door neighbor than like Robert Scarfo. I peeked inside the envelope. Photo of Alphonse Ruzick, apprehension authorization, bond agreement, and personal information sheet.
“Okay,” I said. “I'll see if I can find someone to rat on Alphonse.”
I pushed through the glass door to the lobby and did a fast sweep to make sure Ramirez wasn't lying in wait for me. I took the stairs and felt safe when I stepped onto my floor. There was the smell of bacon cooking behind Mrs. Karwatt's door. And the television was blaring in Mr. Wolesky's apartment. A normal morning. Business as usual. Aside from the fact that I'd barfed and been scared half to death by a psychopathic maniac.
I opened my door and found Bunchy on the couch, reading the paper.
“You've got to stop breaking into my apartment,” I said. “It's rude.”
“I feel conspicuous sitting out in the hall. I figure it doesn't look good for you to have men loitering. What'll people think?”
“Then loiter in your car, in the lot.”
“I was cold.”
Someone knocked on my door. I went to the door and peeked out. It was my neighbor from across the hall, Mr. Wolesky.
“Did you take my paper again?” he asked.
I got the paper from Bunchy and returned it to Mr. Wolesky.
“Out,” I told Bunchy. “Good-?bye.”
“What are you doing today? Just so I know.”
“I'm going to the office, and then I'm putting some posters up at the Grand Union.”
“The office, huh? Maybe I'll pass on the office. But you can tell Lula there's gonna be payback for making me lose you the other day.”
“You should be happy she didn't use her stun gun.”