The Interview (32 page)

She pulled a cigarette out. Stuck it in my mouth and lit it. I
inhaled and exhaled a cloud of smoke. As the smoke moved towards the
table it suddenly rushed up and out of the roof.

“Cool, huh? I didn’t want you smelling up the place.”

“Very cool. Now talk.”

Kim made coffee. I smoked and watched the fan do its work. It was
pretty slick, I had to admit.

Ashley said, “What do you want to know?”

“Are you two a couple?”

“Yes.”

“How long?”

“Ten years.”

I looked at Kim. “Everything you told me that night was a lie?”

“I’m a millionaire.”

“Of course you are. Who was the guy at Rudy’s?”

“A bad man.”

I looked at Ashley. She nodded.

“You guys met in college. You were the financial planner Kim
met at UCLA.”

“Correct.”

“Are your parents dead?” I asked Kim.

“Might as well be.”

Good enough. “The whole jogging thing was a setup?”

“Yes. We saw you that night last year when you dismantled that
kid on crack in the bar. We were impressed.”

“So you jogged with me?”

Ashley answered. “We needed to research you. It took some time.
Kim was just keeping an eye on you.”

“Tristan?”

“He’s Tristan. He helped.”

“Alex?”

“Same. She helped.”

“Manipulate me.”

Ashley smiled. “We presented choices to you. You made the
choices.”

“Like?”

“What do you think?”

I thought about it. “The guy in Tacqueria.”

“Yes. He works for Tristan. You hurt him bad, by the way.”

“Sucks for him. Terrance Ills and The Triple Six?”

“Yes, but that was Tristan’s thing. Not ours.”

“What else? I can’t think of anything else.”

“Mr. Bat, as you call him.”

“No way!” That was a surprise.

“Yes way. The Romanoviches were his, but I saw an opportunity.
I gave him the outline of our plan. He helped.”

“What’s his deal? Is he really a killer?”

“Yes. A very good one from what I hear.”

“What about the girl up north? Was she a plant?”

Ashley and Kim looked at each other, then back at me. “Don’t
know about that.”

Huh?

“Bradford? Was she yours?”

“No. She almost screwed it up though. We still can’t
figure why she didn’t arrest you that night.”

“She has brain damage.” I thought back over the week.
Who else? What else?

“How’d you know about Casey’s husband?”

“It was a guess. We told Mr. Bat he could use it as leverage if
you didn’t play nice.”

“What else am I missing?”

“Kristin Turin.”

“Shut up. That was bullshit?”

“No. We just pushed you in that direction. We dropped a
certified letter in the mail and waited to see what happened. You
didn’t disappoint.”

“You’re lying.”

“No, I’m not. You have to remember that we didn’t
get to finish. That lady shooting you kind of forced our hand. We
weren’t done with the interview.”

“What interview?”

“I have an offer for you, Kelly. Look around you. This place is
yours for a year. Regardless of what you decide. Beyond that though,
I would very much like it if you came to work for me.”

“You called me ‘boss’ in the hospital. Sounds like
you’re the boss.”

“But you will be the boss as far as everyone else is
concerned.”

“What does the job consist of?”

“Exactly the same stuff you did all week. You’ll know
what and why you’re doing it, however. You won’t be in
the dark.”

“I guess you’ve talked to Annette about all of this.”

“Some of it. Not all of it. She’s in agreement with our
assessment.”

I nodded. Stubbed my cigarette out. “OK. I got a year to think
it over, right?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll get back to you. I want you two to leave now.”

To their credit, they did just that. No apologies for any of it. They
left. I smoked. I walked around my new home. Watched a movie. Took a
shower.

A buzzer sounded a few hours later. I had no idea what time it was. I
didn’t know what the buzzer was either. It sounded again. I
climbed down the steps. There was a standard-sized door set between
the two roll-ups. I opened it. Smiled.

“Hey, Officer Bradford.”

She hoisted two six-packs of Mike’s Hard Lemonade for me to
see. “I heard you don’t drink beer.”

“Not if I can help it.”

“Do these work?”

“Definitely.”

“Can I come in?”

“Definitely.”

You're reading this, so a “Thank You!” is in order. My
hope is that Kelly carried you away for a time, and that you will
want to come along for the ride as he begins his new career. There
are hints in this book of what is to come for Kelly and the gang.
Some obvious, while others are only vague hints of what awaits him as
he begins his new life. It's going to be a lot of fun, I know that.

Writing can be difficult at times. Actually, most times. Reading
shouldn't be. This book has undergone several edits over its life,
but it wasn't until Jasmin Arabit came into Kelly's world that I
understood and appreciated the value of having a partner in this
business of writing. She is insightful, wicked smart, and possesses a
far greater grasp of punctuation and the English language than I. Is
this book perfect? Probably not, but any failings that you find are
mine. Ms. Arabit saved Kelly from drowning in a sea of typos,
incorrect punctuation, and various other inconsistencies that appear
in a manuscript as it is being written. To put it simply, SHE ROCKS!

Heather UpChurch is another partner in this book. She designed the
cover and taught me more than a few things about graphic design.
Heather could have done it all by herself, but I couldn't have done
it without her.

Word of mouth and reviews breathe life into a novel. If you liked
this book, or even if you didn't, consider leaving a review on
Amazon
,
Goodreads
,
or wherever you feel most comfortable. The “like” button
is a simple and quick way to help ensure the healthy life of a book.
Or, you can always drop me a note, question, or comment at
eric
@
eweule
.
com
.

Finally, I would never have made it this far without the support and
love of Noah and Austin. They are more than my sons; they are my
best-friends. I am blessed to have four wonderful parents: Lynn,
Bruce, Colleen, and Ben. And a special thanks to those who have
taught me about love, fear, happiness, sadness, and everything else
that Kelly can't feel, but does in his own special way.

Eric Weule

March 1, 2013

Eric Weule lives, works, and plays in Southern California. His books
include
White
Spiral
,
The
Thoughtful
Spot
,
The
Interview
,
and
Annika
.
He is
currently working on his next novel.