Put The Sepia On

by Feldman, Nick

  I nod. “Hello.” He looks past me and grins at Robert, who whimpers.

  “Who shot you up?” I ask. He chuckles to himself, amused.

  “She did, of course. No one else on that side is clever enough to get the drop on me.”

  “She’s here? In the fight?” I ask before I remember not to ask. Lime nods.

  “Yes, she is. Actually, I ran into her at your office. She shot me because she thought I’d killed you, if you can believe it.” He sighs heavily, and falls back into a crouch, using his cane to maintain his balance. He’s breathing heavy, but he’ll live. I lower my weapon. “Last I saw her, she was picking off my men from a rooftop about ten blocks south. But they had her mostly surrounded…” His tone changes, and he sounds genuinely disappointed when he says, “I don’t think she’s going to make it.” He shakes his head, slow, and takes a deep breath.

  “So you’re leaving?” he asks me after a long silence.

  “That’s the plan.”

  He takes another deep breath. “Pity. I could have used a good friend… when this is over. Or an enemy… anyone worth thinking at, I suppose.” He stands, weary, and prepares to return to his war. “But with you gone, and her dead, or soon to be…I suppose it’ll be a lonely victory. Adieu, old friend,” and with that he nods, and starts to walk away.

  “Adieu,” I say under my breath. I take a long second to think about what he’s said, then turn to the idiots I’m supposed to be looking out for, “Let’s go!”

  An hour later we’re out of the danger zone, on the cusp of the city. Everyone’s tired. Everyone’s hungry. Everyone needs to shut the hell up. I pull Coral aside. She’s tougher than the rest of them, so maybe there was a little wolf a ways back… maybe on her grandmother’s side. There’s blood on her cheek, but I don’t think it’s hers.

  “Alright. Listen. You keep heading West, from here, and you’ll be safe.”

  “You’re not coming?” she asks, and I almost hear her heart break. But the death in the background is just a little too loud.

  “No. Not yet.”

  “But… we’re safe now.”

  “Yeah. You are. And you’re welcome.” I tip my hat to her and I turn to go.

  “Are you… are you going back for Her? For whoever Lime was talking about?” It’s a stupid question.

  “No.” It’s a lying answer, but she needs to hear it. “Back there, there’s blood and misery. When the dust settles, a lot of people are gonna be looking for their loved ones, or for safe places to go, or… well, let’s just say it’s gonna be a good time to be a detective.”

  “So go back tomorrow,” she says, meekly.

  “Nah. Still a whole lot of fighting to be done, today. I oughtta be there.”

  “Why?” She asks, angry now.

  “Because the Corporation are evil jackals, and the Dogs are mostly monsters. Today’s the one day of my life I get to take ‘em both on. And I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” I walk.

  “The pain you’ve gotten used to will keep you from regret…” I hear her mumble through her tears. She’ll be ok. They’ll be ok. Maybe. At any rate, they’re free, and that oughtta count for something.

  So I pick my way back over the wreckage, heading into a warzone where I’ll almost certainly end up dead. And I’m losing an awful lot of blood from where one of those stray drill bits caught me in my side. But I’m thinking of my pal Lime, and that if I wanna take him on tomorrow, I better make sure he lives through today.

  And, of course, I’m thinking of her, on that rooftop, waiting for me. If we both live through today, the smart money says she’ll be the death of me. And if not her, then Lime. Yeah, man, the future’s gonna be a dangerous place to live.

  Maybe I’m crazy, but that sounds like a Helluva lot more fun than wandering the desert with Coral and her idiot brother. Let them start a new world without me. I’m gonna go be a detective.

  Acknowledgments:

  * The chapter titles are lines from, respectively and in order, “Dead Reckoning,” “The Third Man,” “The Maltese Falcon,” “The Blue Dahlia,” “Gilda,” and “The Lady From Shanghai.” All six of those films are well worth your time.

  *Lime is, of course, named after Harry Lime of “The Third Man.” Rita is, naturally, named for the inimitable Rita Hayworth. Coral is named, somewhat less obviously, after Lizabeth Scott’s character in “Dead Reckoning.”

  *The basic story, and the world, are the creations of Wesley Slover and The Portait Now. Used with permission.