Fatal Encounters, Chapter 31
by Irv Pliskin
Having decided to go to Reading for the night, he turned around and drove down the divided highway into the center of the city.
Reading had, at one time, been a major manufacturing center with strong emphasis on textiles and needlework. But, over the years the nature of the town has changed and it is known as one of the major discount shopping areas in the Eastern part of the United States. Shoppers descend on the city every day of the year looking for bargains. They come from miles away, so there are superb facilities for those who plan shopping safaris that last several days. Rogers figured it as a good place to be inconspicuous and blend easily into the landscape. Carl counted on this as part of his plan. If he was part of the wallpaper, just one of many in large crowds of shoppers, he would become inconspicuous and was not about to be caught easily.
He chose the Lincoln Plaza Hotel, got a two-room suite and gave his bag to the bellman to bring up stairs for him. He carried the portfolio with the money up himself. He considered leaving it in the trunk of the car, but luxury cars, like his rental are sometimes broken into, and why take the chance with his money? If the money were stolen, he certainly couldn't go to the police and complain, now could he?
Rogers tipped the bellman normally. He would do nothing that would draw attention to him. The satchel with the money was heavy, and he decided to get himself a rollabout piece of luggage, a sturdy piece with a strong lock. Maybe one of those aluminum rollabout carts that would be pretty secure. He decided to check it out in the morning.
The suite was equipped with a safe. He put the money into it, after taking out a few hundred dollars which he considered 'walking around money” Then he thought about the way to spend his evening.
He was getting hungry, but he certainly could not walk into the restaurant dressed as a Chassidic Jew. The dietary laws would prevent that. And he was getting horny, too. He knew that there were no restrictions to fooling around in Orthodox Judaism, but he thought that one of the requirements was that one fools around with one's wife.
Although, a while ago, he had read about a Rabbi, in Cherry Hill, New Jersey of all places, who had been arrested for arranging for his wife's murder so he could fool around with some of the ladies in the congregation.
Dumb bastard. He was in jail now, but he should have talked to someone like me Carl thought: I could give him a few pointers on how to get rid of a wife or any other woman. Oh, well, people never learn.
What they do is go to the amateurs to get a job done. Now me, he smirked, me, I'm the consummate pro. Consummate pro, indeed, if I were so fucking professional I wouldn't be on the lam now. Oh darn. Well, I have to do something about this itch I’m getting. Can I do it as a Jew?
What was it I read? Jews consider making out a mitzvah. Sort of a blessing, I think that means. Well, can I do it as a Jew, go someplace and pass myself off as a horny Jewish traveler? No, of course I can't. I'm intact. They talked about fixing that in the Navy, but never got to it. I can't pass myself as a Jew, or as a Muslim either. I'll have to come up with some other idea. Well, I can have them send supper up to me that should be okay. And then I'll figure out what to do.
He picked up the phone and dialed room service. He ordered a supper of
soup, fried flounder and scrambled eggs. That should be okay, he thought. He topped it all with a few bottles of cold Rolling Rock beer.
He was surprised they even had the Pittsburgh brewed beverage, but he liked it. He never did like the products of the large breweries like Bud or Coors.
He finished his dinner. He decided that for room service food it was pretty good. He stretched, and put the empty tray out the door. He flicked on the TV and got a Philadelphia Station. He listened for a while to the news and was soon bored with the reports of mayhem, murders, police chase and one or two sexual assaults on the campus of University Of Penn.
Then he activated the TV menu for other choices. None of rhe movies appealed to him. He clicked on to the porno offerings, and found a film he decided to watch. He stripped, put on the film and lay on the bed watching it. He was tired, but the action on the screen began to get to him. And although he had often believed that sex was not a solo activity, he let his hand rest on his privates, and ended up giving himself some modest relief as he watched the movie, which, after a while he decided was pretty boring. He fell asleep, thinking that maybe he might find a snuff film interesting, but you couldn't rent them in a hotel.
Carl awakened at 3:45 in the morning, needing to go to the bathroom.
He was cold. He had fallen asleep on top of the bedspread. The lights in the room were still on, and the TV was still running the same porno film. It was apparently on a loop and would continue projecting until he turned the television off.
This time he turned off the lights, got under the bed covers and lay there in the dark thinking about what to do next. There was some risk to him in driving the rental car. The front plate did not match the rear one, and someone could pick up on that.
It was time to ditch the Town Car, he felt, but what should he do for wheels? He wondered if he should buy a car, but if he did, what would he do for plates and registration. He had to think about that, and should he buy a new one or a previously owned one. He lay back, staring at the ceiling and within moments he was sound asleep. He had some fragmented dreams, most of them focusing on the thrill of watching a woman die and the macabre release he got from making love to them as they were cooling.
Carl had not been aware of the weather change that took place during the night. About midnight the clouds rolled in, bringing with them a stinging wind, and then about four am the rains began. Heavy, hard rain, pushed along by gusty winds.
When Carl awakened at 7:30 he could hear the wind whistling outside the hotel. He walked to the window and looked out. The rain was sheeting down, silvery and cold looking from the hotel suite window.
“Oh shit,” Carl said out loud. “I certainly can't go around in my Chassid frock coat in this weather. What the hell shall I do? I don't even have a raincoat or an umbrella.”
He thought about it. There was nothing pushing him out the door. He could stay another day in the hotel, and if he kept a low profile, he would probably be okay and not risk detection. Yet, he felt insecure about the car and the stolen plates, and it was time he changed his wheels, anyhow.
He thought of calling room service for his breakfast, but then decided that if he just went down to the coffee shop, he would be one of a number of guests eating a solitary breakfast, and that would be okay.
He walked into the coffee shop, sat at a table and was overjoyed when a buxom young woman brought a steaming carafe of coffee for him. He thanked her and ordered a hearty breakfast: a bowl of oatmeal without milk, but with a big lump of butter. He added scrambled eggs, soft, and bacon and a toasted bagel. There was a napkin covered basket sitting on the table. He looked under the white napkin and was pleased to see muffins, small danish and the little jelly jars that fine hotels seem to offer to their patrons.
He finished hs breakfast and strolled through the shops that lined the corridor that ran behind he hotel's main lobby. There was a very classy men's store that had just opened for the day. He went in and bought an umbrella and a small roll up plastic raincoat in its own pouch. That would do for the day, he was sure.
Back in the suite, he took the newspaper that had been left outside his door, and opened it to the automobile pages. He looked them over carefully and decided the thing to do was to go to one of the dealers and see what he could find. He needed reliability, and he felt certain that he would do better at a dealer,especially, if he wanted new and even if he ended up with something used, the dealership would be better. He wasn't sure he could get reliable wheels from an iron lot on the corner somewhere.
One of the dealers in town advertised several brands, both foreign and domestic. He featured Mercurys, and Carl had decided that the Grand Marquis might very well be the car best suited to his needs. It was not quite as pretentious as the luxury Town Car he was renting, but it had all the same features and that might fill his needs very well. He left the
rental in the parking lot and had a cab take him to the dealership.
He had no sooner walked through the door, when a middle aged woman, about his age, walked up to him. She was tastefully figured, and dressed in a navy business suit, a tailored white blouse and sensible modestly heeled matching shoes. Her nails were buffed, but only touched with a faint color, and her lipstick and facial cosmetics were perfectly applied.
“Good morning,” she said. “I truly hope you came in here not just to get out of this terrible rain. But, if you need to do that, just sit in our reception area until it lets up. We have coffee and donuts and newspapers and you will be very welcome.”
Carl smiled. “That's a refreshing greeting,” he said. “Usually I expect to be asked, in a simpering mindless voice: “Can I help you?”
The woman grinned at him. “That's an approach, but I learned a long time ago that that is not a good approach for selling cars, or anything else. So i never say that to a potential customer. Are you a potential customer or an escapee from the weather?”
“Customer,” Carl answered.
“Well then,” the woman said, smiling at her own joke, “How may I help you?”
He laughed with her. ”Well,” he said, “are you really able to sell cars? Do you know enough about them? “
“The one thing I have never really learned,” the lady said, “is the best way to deal with that sort of male chauvinistic comment. I would have guessed that you were too smart and too sophisticated to think like that, so you've just surprised me. And sir, that's a real accomplishment.”
“Oops, sorry, I didn't mean to offend.”
“You haven't yet. The answer is yes. Happens that I am the number one sales person in the dealership. I sell twice as many cars as anyone else, and since we get paid on taillights, I earn twice as much as anyone else, including the men. You can work with me, or if you like I'll turn you over to one of the men here.”
Carl thought for a moment and stared at her. She was, he decided very good looking and very self possessed. This was a woman he judged who knew what she was doing and did it very well, indeed.
“No Miss” he hesitated in effect asking her for a name, “you should do fine. We can start and if I think you are trying to hoodwink me, then I'll either leave of ask for a man.”
“Thank you. I'm Judith Wells,” she said, taking a card from her pocket and handing it to him.
“My name is Boberts,” Carl said. “Robin Boberts. May I call you Judy?”
'Most people do,” she said. “Let's go over to my desk and discuss your needs.” They walked to a very simple desk alongside the large show windows and when he sat down and looked around Carl realized that she had probably seen him when he drove up in the cab. He was impressed with her presence of mind and sales approach.
“Would you like something to drink, Mr. Boberts? Coffee or a coke?”
“No. No thank you.”
She smiled. “I try to make guesses about the kind of car a person may be looking for. We have a pretty good selection of both foreign and domestics. Let me see” she looked at him intensely. “If you are looking for a Grand Marquis, Mr. Boberts you've come to the right place. We have a half a dozen in stock, and can get you any one you want in the factory inventory in a day or so.”
Carl was really surprised. “How did you do that? Is that a guess, or did you have some idea of what I wanted, and if so, how?”
“I guess I made good guess, didn't I? Call it an educated guess, Mr. Boberts. I saw you when you came in, and then I listened to you and immediately decided that you were not looking for a kid's sports car.
You might like to have one, and I'd love to sell you one, but you probably need something with a more comfortable ride and less showy. You didn't sound like a flashy car man, and you looked like you're at the point where a big, heavy car is right up your driveway. So, I took a shot.
Am I far off?”
“No, you're right on. What have you got that I might like?”
“Okay,” Judy said, “let’s see what we have that might fit your needs.
As you know they come with all sorts of options and equipment.
Some of it is really extraneous, but some will help a lot no matter where you go.” She opened one of the car locator files that are kept on car salesmen’s desk, and flipped through it. Then she looked up:
“Mr. Boberts, I have a perfect car for you. It’s equipped with both CD and a tape deck as well as a really great radio.”
“What color is it?”
“They call it star night blue. It’s a special tone of blue and very rich looking. Would you like to see it?”
“Is it out on the lot in all this rain?”
“Of course not. It’s right over there, on the other side of the showroom.”
She got up and led him to the far side of the showroom, where a dark blue Mercury stood under a bright overhead flood light. The car gleamed.
The doors were locked, but Judy pushed the buttons on the remote door opener, and they could hear the doors unlock. Carl walked to the car opened the door and looked in. The seats were dark brown leather, and the new car smell was overpowering. He slid behind the wheel and adjusted the seat back and forth using the electric seat adjustments. The car was just what he imagined it to be.
He looked at Judy. “How do you open the trunk?”
“Well, I can do it with the remote, or you can use the big button down on the door.” He looked and saw a large button and pushed it. The trunk snapped open. He walked around to the back of the car, looked in, shook his head and turned to her.
“This is a beauty. Let’s talk.”
Carl had looked at the factory sheet pasted on the window and he had a good idea of what they would like to get for the car. But, he felt that perhaps, if he negotiated a little he could save some money. It wasn’t the money, of course, he just loved the thrill of the negotiation, and he relished the effort it took to make a deal. He felt he was good at it, too.
On the way back to her desk, Judy turned to him and said:
“I’m going to have some coffee. How would you like yours, cream and sugar?”
“No, sweet and low please. Heavy on the cream.”
She came back to her desk a few minutes later carrying a tray with two cups of coffee and a plate with several biscotti.
She served him his cup, with a fancy cloth napkin and sat down in her seat.
“Okay,” she said. “Let’s talk.”
“Well,” he said, “first of all, if I buy that car I want a full tire in the trunk. Those darn donut tires scare me and I just don’t want to have to worry about it.”
“Fine” she said. “We can handle that. And your thought is very sensible. ” She made a note.
Carl looked at her. “How much can I save off the window sticker price?”
“How about 5%? I’m sure I can handle that.”
“Not enough,” he said. “Not enough. Sharpen up your pencil and let’s see what we can do. I think I saw a commercial the other day that offered at least two thousand dollars off on that car. Can you meet that price?”
She wrote something on a pad, and worked with her calculator for a few moments. Then she looked at him and said, “I can save you 15% of the sticker price. That’s the best I can do. And, I’ll throw in a full sized tire as a gift. That’s a Michelin and sells for $l25 at least. How about that?”
She looked at him and waited. He thought, this lady knows a lot about selling. She sure does. She knows that the next person who talks loses, and she gets the deal. She won’t talk, you can bet on it, unless I get up and start to walk away. Well, don’t make her sweat.
“That’s okay.”
“Good, Mr. Bobert. Very good. Now if you give me a deposit check of $l000 I can start getting the car ready. We’ll put through the paperwork and the credit application and you should be able to drive home in just two days.”
“Nope, no good,” he said. “I need the car cleaned up and processed today. I want to drive it tonight, since i have places to go. What if I give you this as a deposit so you can start getting the car ready, and the rest when I come to get it this afternoon” He reached into his pocket and took out an envelope and placed it on the desk. She picked it up, looked in and rifled the bills inside the envelope.
“How much is here?”
“Five thousand in fifties.” She didn't count the money, she just looked at him.
“And you get the rest in cash when I pick up the car this afternoon. Is that possible?”
“Yes, I think so. Although before we change title, we like to have the money in our hands. If we don’t, it can complicate life somewhat. But, yes, it should be possible. Let me go talk to my boss.”
She took the envelope of money with her. He was sure she would count it before she came back. He would certainly do so if she turned the deal down and returned the money. She didn’t. In ten minutes she returned with a receipt for the money, and said that it was a done deal.
She offered her hand and he shook it. He had noticed that she wore no wedding band, “Judy, if that car is ready to go, and full of gas when I come back for it, and if you are free, I’ll buy you the best dinner in town for a sort of bonus. Would you like that?”
She looked doubtful. “Hey,” he said, “I’m perfectly harmless.”
“If you give me all that cash, will you have enough left over to buy a dinner anywhere but Mickey D’ees?”
“Yeah, I’ll be able to. Thinking of it, if I had only enough left for McDs I’d want to eat it with you. How about it? Is it a deal?”
“I don’t know, let me think about it, Mr. Boberts. Let me think about it. I don’t usually go out with customers. It is not a very good idea, basically because most of them are married and think they can have a little fun on the side. Is that the case with you? Are you married?”
“No, I’m not. I’ve never been. Confirmed bachelor.”
“I’ll tell you what,” she said. “Call in and check on the car status about 4:30 and talk to me then and I’ll let you know. Okay?”
“That will have to do, I guess. Please call me Robin, that’s my name.”
Having finished the car buying business, Carl asked for a ride back to his hotel and Judy had a van drive him back.
He had things to do, he knew. Especially if he was to have dinner with Judy in a fancy restaurant. He had no clothes appropriate for that sort of occasion. Neither of his costumes would fit that bill. He was in one of the world’s largest discount and factory outlet centers, but that wouldn’t help him. He might easily find what he needed, a good looking blazer and gray flannel slacks in one of the men‘s outlet stores, but the alterations would constitute a problem. He needed to have some one who would sell, and alter quickly. That was probably not a discount store.
Back at the hotel, Carl went to the concierge--he was a very fruity male, wearing a double breasted blazer jacket, with a flashing purple handkerchief in the upper pocket and a shirt and tie to match.
Carl explained his problem. He needed business clothing and he needed it so he could wear it that evening for an important meeting that had just developed.
The concierge thought for a moment, licked his lips and then said: “In my opinion, you’ll do best at a regular type store. Like the one we have here in the hotel. There are several others in town, but this one is as accommodating as you will find. Try it, sir. If that doesn’t work, come back to me and I’ll give you some other suggestions.”
Carl thanked him, asked about fine restaurants, made a mental note of the one he wanted to go to, and walked to the men’s store. He was surprised and pleased to find a hopsacking, all wool blazer in the relaxed, three button look he liked. The Brooks Brothers look. Once he had assembled all of his needs, jacket, slacks, shirt, tie, expensive Allan Edmunds dress shoes he said to the clerk that he needed all of it ready to wear that afternoon, by four o’clock. The clerk stammered for a second and then looked at the purchase which was well over one thousand dollars, and said “certainly sir, it will be ready.
Carl said “thanks,” shook hands with the clerk and slipped him a fifty dollar bill to assure that everything would go smoothly. He paid cash, using money from his wallet.
He went back to his room to think about the upcoming ‘date’.
Judy was not a woman for him to victimize, he thought. Too smart, too independent and too old. He liked his ‘conquests’ to be younger, somewhere under thirty. This woman was a ripe forty or so, but she appeared nubile and if she was willing and he could prevail, it was worth all of the trouble and the cost. Time would tell.
But, before he did anything else, he had to return the Town Car to the rental company. He did not need it to encumber his life. He slipped on the raincoat, took his room and car keys, and got ready to leave. But first, he checked the safe to make sure it was securely locked: he didn’t need any problems in that area. It was.
He went out into the rain where the car stood in the center of the hotel parking lot. He saw no protected spots, nothing under a roof of any sort, but there was a large tree, with spreading branches on the edge of the lot, and he thought it might be less wet over there. He got into the car, fired it up and drove to that location. He backed under the tree, opened the trunk as if he working in it. He took a screw driver out of the trunk, where he had stashed it when he stole the plate, and spent just a few minutes in the driving rain taking the plate off the car. He slipped the screw driver and the license plate into the pocket of the rain coat, slammed the trunk and got back into the car.
There was a car rental counter there and he was certain he could turn the Lincoln in there. He drove back as close as he could to the hotel and pulled into the special parking slots provided for the car rental customers. Carl checked to make sure there was nothing in the car that pointed to him, took the paperwork out of the glove box where he had stored it, checked the final mileage on the car, locked it and strode quickly through the pelting rain back to the hotel. He went back upstairs to his room, cleaned up and went down to the rental counter. He returned the car with no problem. The credit card bill would be sent to one of his special paying lawyers and it would be taken care of promptly.
Carl left a wake-up call for 4:15 PM, and lay down to take a nap.
The wake up call was right on time, he got up, went to the bathroom and then picked up the phone and consulting his bill of sale, called the car dealer. He got Judy on the phone and she told him his car would be ready in an hour. He could pick it up then. They arranged a van pick up for him, and he then said to her,
“Well, how about the dinner we talked about?”
“Having dinner with you, Robin, actually violates one of my very strict dictums: I don’t fraternize with my customers. But, in this case, since you are just passing through, I’ll violate my own rules. After you pick up your car, and sign the paper and pay the balance we can go to dinner.”
“Great,” he said. “I’ll see you at about 5:30. I’m really looking forward to it, thanks.”
He shaved, showered and dressed in his new clothing which had been delivered at 4:30 o'clock as he had arranged. He had bought a small soft sided attaché case. He opened the safe and put the money for the vehicle in the case, making sure the money was in wrapped bundles of $l000. When he had the right amount for the balance on the car, he put another bundle in his pocket; he would have enough for any contingency. He put the balance in the safe, made sure that it was securely locked and waited for the call from the desk to tell him that his ride was available. The van came, and he was at the auto showroom slightly after 5:30 PM.
The van pulled into the repair center entrance, so he could get into the showroom without going into the still heavy rain. Judy met him at the door to the showroom.
She took a look at him, resplendent in his rep tie and button-down shirt, nicely tailored jacket and gray slacks.
“Wow, what a transformation,” she said. “We can go anywhere with you dressed like that.”
“Not anywhere,” he said. “We’re going to the place that every one I ask tells me is the best place in town, Stokesay Castle restaurant. Am I right?”
“Oh yes, I guess you are. The people who own it are customers and friends of mine. I’ll call and make a reservation.”
“I’ve already taken care of that,” Carl said.
“You really do plan, don’t your Robin. Very good, indeed.”
