Drawing Dead (47 page)
Authors: Andrew Vachss
THE CREW
slept in shiftsânever less than two on the monitor at any time.
It was nearing seventy-two hours when Tiger whispered, “Got her!”
Everyone was instantly alert.
“How can you be soâ?”
“Because she's a tiny thing wrapped in a quilted jacket with a hood pulled up. Who else would be
walking
this time of night?”
“You think she walked all the way fromâ?”
“Buddha, my daggers against your .177?”
The pudgy man lapsed into silence, as the walking figure never hesitated, never picked up speedâ¦just proceeded directly to the cracked foundation, where she pulled a thin tube from inside her long jacket.
They all watched as a small woman emerged from the jacket, raised her hands high above her head, the palms touchingâ¦
“I wonder how longâ¦?” Rhino started a sentence that was never finished.
A geyser of fire erupted from underneath the foundation, climbing so high into the dark sky that the camera couldn't follow it.
“Damn!” Cross said, vehemently.
“What?” Tiger asked.
“Theâ¦brand. Their mark. It's burning, now. On fire! Burning like all hellâ¦.”
“Amen,” Ace said, solemnly.
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