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She told him, and, twenty minutes later, he was at the motel, knocking on the door, glancing over his shoulder and hoping that Albright didn't have a bead on the back of his head.
Crystal looked a fright. Her face was splotchy and bloated from hard crying. She was also a mess emotionally. Sitting beside her on the bed, Dodge held her until she stopped shaking. Brushing the hair off her damp cheeks, he urged her to tell him everything.
"I can't help you if I don't know what's going on." The first thing he wanted to know was if he had to worry about Albright crashing in on them again, wielding his switchblade and making good his promise to slit Dodge's throat. "Does he know you've left him?"
"I'm sure he does by now," she said, hiccuping. "He went out and said he'd be gone for a few hours, but I didn't trust him not to come right back. Not after the other night when he tricked me. As soon as he left, I called a taxi. I packed only what I could carry, and all the time I was waiting for the taxi, I was frightened he'd come back and catch me before I could get away."
"You didn't leave a note or anything telling him where you were going?"
"No! I've left for good, and I'm not going back. Oh, Marvin, if he catches me, he'll kill me."
"No he won't, because I won't let him."
She clutched him tighter and said she didn't know what she would do without his friendship and protection. Out of gratitude, she kissed him on the lips.
"Listen, Crystal," he said, setting her away from him. "Do you have any other reason to be scared of Franklin?"
She blinked the gummy eyelashes. "Like what?"
He cautioned himself not to blow it, to go easy. "Like ... I don't know. Do you think he's planning another crime?"
She averted her eyes. "Maybe. He's up to something."
"Jesus."
"He's been on the phone a lot. With the cousin in Mexico. Remember I told you about him?"
Heart racing, Dodge nodded.
"I think they're planning something." Here her eyes began to leak again. "And if they go through with it, I'm afraid the cops will think I'm an accomplice." She sniffled and wiped her nose with the back of her hand. "My parents tried to warn me. Why didn't I listen?"
"Maybe you ought to talk to the police."
She raised her head and looked at him with alarm.
"Yeah," he said, pressing her hands between his. "If you tip them to what Franklin's planning, then they'll know you're not in on it. See?"
He kept at her for half an hour, trying to worm out of her the nature of the criminal plot, but she wouldn't say anything specific, nothing useful that he could convey to the task force. Her eyes continued to produce fresh tears, and she bewailed the day she'd ever become involved with Franklin Albright. Why hadn't she been fortunate enough to meet Marvin first? Her parents would have approved of him. If only she'd met him before becoming involved with Albright, she wouldn't be living in fear of the police, in fear of reprisal from a jealous, violent ex-convict.
"Oh, God, my life is in such a mess! You're the only thing in it that's good, Marvin. You're the only person I can trust."
The second time she kissed him, it wasn't out of gratitude, and Dodge knew enough about women and kisses to recognize the difference. She pushed her tongue into his mouth, and, when she fell back onto the bed, he let himself be pulled down with her.
As she nuzzled his neck, he said, "Franklin is all talk and bluster, Crystal."
"You're so sweet to me." She took his hand and placed it between her thighs.
"Albright will land in prison again as soon as he's caught, and then we can be together without any fear of him. The sooner the better. You should help the police catch him in the act of committing a crime."
She arched up, into his palm. "I want to be with you."
"Then let's go to the police together. I'll be right there with you."
She demurred. "I'll think about it."
"I think we should go right now. Before Franklin has a chance to do whatever he's planning."
"Maybe tomorrow." She unzipped his pants.
