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I departed Bianca&039;s place in George&039;s loaner, a wood-panel Studebaker that grurowled and squealed everywhere it went I stopped at a pay phone, a short distance from the house, and called Linda Randall&039;s nu several times before a quiet, dusky contralto answered, "Beckitts&039;, this is Linda"

"Linda Randall?" I asked

"M tactile "Who&039;s this?"

"My na if I could talk to you"

"Harry who?" she asked

"Dresden I&039;hed, the sound rich enough to roll around naked in "Investigating my privates, Mr Dresden? I like you already"

I coughed "Ah, yes Ms Randall - "

"Miss," she said, cutting in "Miss Randall I&039;m not occupied At the moment"

"Miss Randall," I amended "I&039;d like to ask you some questions about Jennifer Stanton, if I could"

Silence on the other end of the line I could hear so, perhaps, and a recorded voice talking about white zones and red zones and loading and unloading of vehicles

"Miss Randall?"

"No," she said

"It won&039;t take long And I assure you that you aren&039;t the subject of anything I&039;ive me a few moments of your time"

"No," she told ht I don&039;t have time for this"

"Jennifer Stanton was a friend of yours She&039;s been ht help - "

She cut ain "There isn&039;t," she said "Good-bye, Mr Dresden"

The line went dead

I scowled at the phone, frustrated That was it, then I had gone through all the preparation, the face-off with Bianca, and possible future trouble for nothing

No way, I thought No way in hell

Bianca had said that Linda Randall orking as a driver for someone, the Beckitts, I presunized the voice in the background as a recorded e that played outside the concourses at O&039;Hare airport So she was in a car at the airport,to pick up the Beckitts, and definitely not there for long

With no tiear and drove to O&039;Hare It was far easier to blow off someone over the phone than it was to do it in person There were several concourses, but I had to trust to luck - luck to guide et me there before Miss I-am-not-occupied Randall had the opportunity to pick up her employers and leave And a littleall the way to O&039;Hare

The Studebaker did make it all the way there, and on the second concourse I ca zone The interior was darkened, so I couldn&039;t see inside very well It was a Friday evening, and the place was busy, business folk in their sober suits returning ho trips about the country Cars continually purred in and out of the se traffic, keeping people fro in the middle of one of the traffic lanes in order to load up the car

I swerved the old Studebaker into a parking place, racing a Volvo for it and winning by dint of driving the older and heavier vehicle and having the more suicidal attitude I kept an eye on the silver liot out of the car and strode over to a bank of pay phones I plopped my quarter in, and once more dialed the nu In the silver limo, someone stirred

"Beckitts&039;, this is Linda," she purred

"Hello, Linda," I said "This is Harry Dresden again"

I could alht from inside the car, the silhouette of a wo lit "I thought I told you I didn&039;t want to talk to you, Mr Dresden"

"I like wohed that delicious laugh I could see her headharder to get by the second Good-bye again" She hung up onup the phone, walked over to the limo, and rapped on the

It buzzed down, and a woman in her mid-twenties arched an eyebrow at me She had beautiful eyes the color of rain clouds, a little too much eye shadow, and brilliant scarlet lipstick on her cupid&039;s-bow lips Her hair was a ht braid that made her cheeks look al down close to her eyes in insolent disarray She had a predatory look to her, harsh, sharp She wore a crisp white shirt, grey slacks, and held a lit cigarette in one hand The s to push it away

She looked"Don&039;t tell me Harry Dresden"

"I really need to talk to you, Miss Randall It won&039;t take long"

She glanced at her watch and then at the terot me cornered, don&039;t you? I&039;arette "And I like a man who just won&039;t stop"

I cleared ain The wo about her that revvedabout the way she held her head or shaped her words that bypassed ht to my hormones Best to head directly to the point andmoronic "How did you know Jennifer Stanton?"

She looked up atlashes "Intimately"

Ahem "You, uh Worked for Bianca with her"

Linda blew more smoke "That prissy little bitch Yes, I worked with Jen We were even roommates for a while Shared a bed" She wrapped her lips around the last word, drawing it out with a little trehter

"Did you know Tommy Tomm?" I asked

"Oh, sure Fantastic in bed" She lowered her eyes and shifted on the car&039;s seat, lowering one of her hands out of sight, and ular custoo over to his place, have a little party" She leaned toward s to a woman that would turn her into a real ani and snarling In heat"

She was driving me crazy That voice of hers inspired the kinds of drea Her expression pros that you don&039;t talk about with other people, if I would give her half a chance Your job, Harry Think about your job

Some days I really hate my job

"When was the last ti, and this tiers, one she quickly hid Just not quickly enough She was nervous Nervous enough to be shaking, and now I could see what she was up to She earing the alley-catto distractout

I&039;m not inhuman I can be distracted by a pretty face, or body, like any other youngishthe part But I do not like to be made the fool

So, Miss Sex Goddess What are you hiding?

I cleared my throat, and asked, mildly, "When was the last time you spoke to Jennifer Stanton, Miss Randall?"

She narrowed her eyes at me She wasn&039;t du her, seeing through her pretense The flirting manner vanished "Are you a cop?" she demanded

I shookto find out what happened to her"

"Daarette out onto the concrete and blew out aand see a cop co around, I never saw you before Got it?"

I nodded

"I talked to Jen on Wednesday evening She called ether again" Her lanced about and leaned down closer to her "Did you?"

Her eyes were roving about now, nervous, like a cat who has found herself shut into a small room "No," she said "I had to work I wanted to, but - "

"Did she say anything unusual? Anything that er?"

She shook her head again "No, nothing We hadn&039;t talked much for a while I didn&039;t see her as much after I split from the Velvet Room"

I frowned at her "Do you knohat else she was doing? Anything she otten her hurt?"