Cost of Life by Joshua Corin Read Free Book Online Page B

it’s what people do,” he replied, and let out a long, hangdog sigh. “Why are you here, Xana? You were never the nostalgic type.”
    “No, but I also never missed a day of work in my life. Not by choice. And I know how hectic national holidays can be. And I know about what happened on I Seventy-Five a little while ago.”
    He didn’t even blink. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
    “I’m saying I’m back, Angelo. I’m saying tell Jim to put me to work.”
    “You’re not talking to Jim. You’re talking to me.”
    “And aren’t we having a fun chat? Look, hey, I get it. You don’t trust me. That’s fine. Get someone to give me a tube to blow into. You can all watch. But I’m ready to get to work.”
    Angelo glanced down at the papers.
    “A dead cop…a pilot on the run…a foreign national under arrest, possibly Middle Eastern, at the world’s busiest airport on the Fourth of July…” Xana said. “Don’t tell me the whole office isn’t going nuts over this…and sure, it’s probably nothing…but when you’re not sure who you’re playing against, wouldn’t you feel better with an ace in your hand?”
    Angelo muttered, “And you’re the ace…”
    “I mean, who else you got who can speak a couple dozen languages and can rattle off on the culture and history of every nationality now residing in the ashes of the mighty Mongol Empire thanks to dear old Dad. Angelo, you and I might have our differences, but we’ve always recognized each other’s worth.”
    “ ‘Each other’s worth.’ Spare me. You’re convinced these past seven months without you, we’ve had our thumbs up our asses and couldn’t even make a cup of coffee let alone do our jobs.”
    “No…of course not…but—”
    “You want to know how we’ve managed to survive without you. Lady, these have been the best seven months of our lives. Sure, we all feel bad for what you went through, but at least we didn’t have to go through it
with
you anymore.”
    Xana let his words linger for a bit before replying:
    “I want to speak with Jim. Now.”
    “Jim’s busy.”
    “Then I’ll wait.”
    “Yeah, that’s not going to happen.” Angelo shook his head in bemusement. “You want to know why it is you got Del and me instead of anyone else?”
    Xana didn’t say anything.
    “Well?” he prodded her.
    “Oh. I thought that was a rhetorical question.”
    “It wasn’t.”
    “All right. I think the welcome wagon was you and Del because you drew the short straws. You’ve been that perfectly clear. I’m not liked. Fine. But you all need to put aside your personal feelings and get your eye back on the ball.”
    “If talent were enough, Pete Rose would be in the Hall of Fame, but what can I tell you, right?”
    Xana pounded a fist against the glass. “Jim promised me—he
promised
me my job would be here when I got out!”
    “One: Take your hand away from the partition.”
    She complied and rested her hand on the ledge, where it refused to uncoil.
    “Thank you. Two: That wasn’t Jim’s call to make.”
    “What’s that supposed to mean?”
    Angelo’s eyes drooped with sympathy. “Think about it from a publicity point of view, Xana. An FBI agent
drove
into a
house.
”
    “It’s not like anyone was home at the time…”
    “The police arrive at the scene and this very same FBI agent is recorded as having the blood alcohol level of a distillery. Then she, drunk out of her mind, gets into a fight with the police—”
    “At least I wasn’t carrying my weapon…”
    “Xana, you were an embarrassment to yourself and you were an embarrassment to the Bureau. Jim fought for you. He really did. But I doubt even J. Edgar Hoover could have saved your job.”
    “So, what, I’m a scapegoat?”
    “Now, how can you be a scapegoat if you’re actually guilty?”
    Xana wiped the back of her hand across her eyes. Since when had she started tearing up? No. She had to remain strong. That was the only way she could win,