the situation. This guy knows the dog is amazingly smart. He might’ve succeeded
in teaching it to read. So we have to figure he’s worked out a means of
communicating with it as well. He knows it’s an experimental animal. He must
know a lot of people are looking for it.”
Cliff said, “He must know about The Outsider, too, because the dog would have
found a way of telling him.”
“Yes. Yet, knowing all of this, he hasn’t chosen to go public. He could’ve sold
the story to the highest bidder. But he didn’t. Or if he’s a crusading type, he
could’ve called in the press and blasted the Pentagon for funding this kind of
research.”
“But he didn’t,” Cliff said, frowning.
“Which means, first and foremost, he’s committed to the dog, committed to
keeping it for his own and to preventing its recapture.”
Nodding, Cliff said, “Which makes sense if what we’ve heard about him is true. I
mean, this guy lost his whole damn family when he was young. Lost his wife after
less than a year. Lost all those buddies in Delta Force. So he became a recluse,
cut himself off from all his friends. Must’ve been lonely as hell. Then along
comes the dog . .
“Exactly,” Lem said. “And for a man with Delta Force training, staying
undercover won’t be difficult. And if we do find him, he’ll know how to fight
for the dog. Jesus, will he know how to fight!”
“We haven’t confirmed the Delta Force rumor yet,” Cliff said hopefully.
“I have,” Lem said, and he described the photograph he had seen in the wrecked
bedroom.
Cliff sighed. “We’re in deep shit now.”
“Up to our necks,” Lem agreed.
11
They had reached San Francisco at six o’clock Thursday morning and, by
six-thirty, had found a suitable motel—a sprawling facility that looked modern
and clean. The place did not accept pets, but it was easy to sneak Einstein into
the room.
Although a small chance existed that an arrest warrant might have been issued
for Travis, he checked into the motel using his ID. He’d no choice because Nora
possessed neither credit cards nor a driver’s license. These days, desk clerks
were willing to -accept cash, but not without ID; the chain’s computer demanded
data on the guests.
He did not, however, give the correct make or license number of his car, for he
had parked out of sight of the office for the very purpose of keeping those
details from the clerk.
They paid for only one room and kept Einstein with them because they were not
going to need privacy for lovemaking. Exhausted, Travis barely managed to kiss
Nora before falling into a deep sleep. He dreamed of things With yellow eyes,
misshapen heads, and crocodile mouths full of sharks’ teeth.
He woke five hours later, at twelve-ten Thursday afternoon.
Nora had gotten up before him, showered, and dressed again in the only Clothes
she had. Her hair was damp and clung alluringly to the nape of her fleck. “The
water’s hot and forceful,” she told him.
‘So am I,” he said, embracing her, kissing her.
‘Then you better cool off,” she said, pulling away from him. “Little ears are
listening.”
‘Einstein? He has big ears.”
In the bathroom, he found Einstein standing on the counter, drinking out of a
sinkful of cold water that Nora had drawn for him.
“You know, fur face, for most dogs, the toilet is a perfectly adequate source of
drinking water.”
Einstein sneezed at him, jumped down from the counter, and padded out of the
bathroom.
Travis had no means of shaving, but he decided a day’s growth of beard would
give him the look he needed for the work he would have to do this evening in the
Tenderloin district.
They left the motel and ate at the first McDonald’s they could find. After
lunch, they drove to a local branch of the Santa Barbara bank where Travis had
his checking account. They used his computer-banking card, his MasterCard, and
two of his Visa cards to make cash withdrawals totaling fourteen hundred
dollars. Next they went to an American Express office, and using one of Travis’s