Pay Dirt by Garry Disher Read Free Book Online Page B

didnt help. Eddie Loman
was as capable of selling him out as one of Leahs anonymous sources, but at
least he knew Loman, knew where and how to find him. And Loman knew
Wyattknew that if he crossed Wyatt he could expect a bullet that had no second
thoughts attached to it.

    Leah was dialling. An extension
telephone sat on a coffee table in the corner of her dining room and it tinkled
fussily as she dialled. Wyatt countednine digits, long distance. He heard her
say, Its me, Leah, and then her voice went muffled. He didnt try to listen
in on the extension. The best he could do for the next two weeks was keep his
back covered.

    He started to think about the truck.
It was a good idea. It had the kind of neatness he admired. The problem was,
how would they transport the van on the back of a truck without being noticed?
The answer came to him and it was as neat and simple as Leahs initial idea. Brava
Construction. Brava Constructions distinctive vehicles, pale blue with a
snorting black bull on each door, had been churning up the mid-north roads for
so long now they were part of the landscape.

    Leah came back into the dining room.
She was wearing black tonight and looked good in it. Black fifties skirt,
black tights, embroidered Cambodian waistcoat over a black T-shirt. Her
expression was light and cocky. She knew she was in now she knew she would be
there on the day. He realised that he liked her. He wanted her. This was his
last drinking session until after the job, so it was partly the alcohol, but
only a small part. Well?

    Its all arranged. I was given a
name. We go to see him tomorrow. Hell be expecting us.

    Tell me about him.

    According to my contact the guy were
going to see knows heavy vehicles. Hes also pulled semitrailer hijacks in the
past, hes a good mechanic and hes reliable.

    Wyatt pushed his chair away from the
table and began to stand. Dont, Leah said. The voice was low, almost a
growl. Wyatt sat again.

    She came around the table and stood
looking down at him. She knocked her knee against his. Then she straddled him
and when he put his hands under her skirt she arched her back. Five years ago
shed liked to do that. Shed been in the game then. He knew about it. It hadnt
bothered him. It hadnt been an issue. He wasnt curious about who she was when
she was with her clients, or why she did it, or what those other men were like.
It was business, thats all. Somehow shed known he wasnt the type to get
bothered about what she did. And she was too smart and careful to catch
anything.

    Wyatt? she said.

    Im here.

    Do you still go away every year?

    If its been a good year. Just
lately, the pickings have been poor.

    But not with this job. You could be
in Tahiti this time next month.

    She was asking to go away with him.
He didnt know about that. He stroked her with his fingers and her back arched.

    * * * *

    THIRTEEN

    The
next morning when the commuter traffic had eased they took the winding freeway
through the hills and down into the city. Leahs driving was smooth and fast,
no messy braking or swerving. Once they were out of the hills, Wyatt watched
the traffic, the everyday commerce of the suburban streets. He did it
automatically. It was as though these banks, payroll deliveries, office safes
and jewellers existed only for him.

    At Victoria Park racecourse he was
reminded of a job he had on hold, to snatch the gate receipts at a big sporting
event someday, some place where the security had been allowed to get slack.
Leah skirted the vast parklands of the city. Boys were jogging around the
playing fields of Prince Alfred College. Schools like this were never called by
their full names. They were always Princes, Kings, SCEGGS, PLC, and it was
always assumed that you understood the reference.

    Wyatts self-possession and control,
his height and grace, had fooled people in the past. They mistook it for
arrogance and good breeding. Hed once been asked, Were you at Scotch? These
schools, the people who sent their kids