Read Never Look Down for Free Online Page B

advice, telling the instructor she had cramps and had to leave.
    She had to ask around and finally found Henny Duzan over by the Salmon Fountain talking to two hipster dudes straddling their bicycles. Kelly backed off, waiting until goods and cash were exchanged before approaching Duzan. A short man with a shaved head and little snake eyes, he wore a long coat too heavy for the weather.
    â€œRupert told me you have cell phones.”
    Avoiding eye contact, he said, “I got smartphones. Eighty bucks.”
    â€œI want a burner. No GPS chip.”
    â€œI got a TracFone. Fifty.
    â€œI’ll give you ten.”
    He barked a short, derisive laugh. “Fuck off, kid.”
    â€œFine.” Kelly turned to leave, saying over her shoulder, “See you around.”
    She hadn’t taken more than three steps when Duzan answered. “Twenty.”
    Kelly turned to face him. “Fifteen.”
    Duzan blew a breath and shook his head. “Okay. Fifteen. Sheeze.”
    She found Rupert in Tom McCall Park, near the battleship monument. He was sitting on a bench facing the river, eyes closed, lips moving, the breeze off the water gently stirring his silver hair. She knew better than to disturb him when he was meditating, so she sat down cross-legged on the grass next to him. Workers on their lunch hours were starting to filter into the park, and the walkway along the river was already thrumming with walkers, joggers, and people on non-motorized conveyances of every possible description.
    â€œWhy aren’t you in school, Kelly?” The sun warm on her face, Rupert’s voice brought her out of a drowse that was sliding into deep sleep. She wondered how long she’d been dozing there.
    â€œUm, I wanted to give you the phone. It’s cool. I have an excuse.” She handed him the TracFone and a piece of notepaper folded into quarters. “I wrote down everything I saw. It’s hardly anything, but maybe it’ll help.”
    Rupert opened the folded paper and read the notes she’d written. “You told me the other night that you didn’t think you could recognize this man if you saw him again. Do you still feel that way?”
    Kelly hesitated, pursed her lips, and nodded slowly. “Yeah. He was facing away from me most of the time.”
    â€œOkay. This man wore a jacket, a ball cap, and boots. What kind of boots?”
    Kelly hesitated for a moment. “Uh, you know, cowboy boots, sort of pointy-toed.”
    â€œHow big was he?”
    Kelly shrugged.
    â€œTaller than the woman?”
    She shook her head. “Yeah. Kind of a medium build. It was hard to tell from where I was.”
    â€œWhat else? Did he have a limp? A hump back?”
    Kelly didn’t laugh because Rupert jogged something, a vivid impression. “When he got out of the car, he had this strut, you know? Like he thought he was some kind of macho dude or something.” The memory caused her to shudder visibly. Rupert waited while she recovered. Uh, there’s something else. The woman started to say something just before she got shot, ‘Where’s man,’ or something like that.”
    â€œMan?”
    Kelly shrugged. “That’s all I heard.”
    Rupert nodded. “Good, Kelly. Anything on the cap or the jacket?”
    â€œNo. Nothing I could see.”
    â€œOkay. What about the gun. In his right hand or left?”
    She closed her eyes again. “I didn’t see him shoot her, but when I looked back, he held the gun in his right hand, I’m sure. The gun had a really long barrel. I think he used a silencer, Rupert. The gun shots didn’t sound loud, you know? Just a kind of chuck , chuck .”
    Rupert nodded. “Good, Kel. What about his car?”
    â€œLike I said in the note—big, dark color. I didn’t see the plates. It happened so fast.”
    â€œSquared-off in the back like an SUV?”
    Kelly tapped her forehead with the heel of her