The one who performed the skin graft on Linda Davis' face?" He nodded again, smiling. "I was chief nurse in surgery that day," she said. "She was great."
"Thank you. Now, would you like to play Mary Magdalene?"
Suddenly, she wanted to more than anything else in the world.
"Yes."
"I hoped that would be your answer," he said, taking a folded sheet of paper from his inside pocket. "How much did Bonner say he would pay you?"
"Two thousand a week."
He already had the pen in his hand and was writing on the sheet of paper.
"Wait a minute, Mr. Woolf," she said quickly. "I know Bonner only meant it as a gag.
You don't have to pay me that much."
"Perhaps he did. But I don't.
He said two thousand, that's what you'll get." He finished writing and handed the contract to her. "You'd better read that carefully."
She looked down at the printed form. The only thing written on it was her name and the salary figure.
"Do I have to?"
David nodded. "I think you should," he said.
"Contracts are easy to sign but not that easy to get out of."
Jennie sank back into the chair and began to read the contract.
"I notice it's with Cord Explosives."
"That's standard practice with us.
Cord owns the company."
"Oh." She finished reading and reached for a pen. Quickly she signed her name and handed the contract back to him.
"Now what do we do?" she asked, smiling.
He put the contract into his pocket.
"The first thing we do is change your name."
"What's the matter with it?"
"Too many people will recognize it," he said. "It might prove embarrassing later."
Jennie thought for a moment, then laughed.
"I don't give a damn," she said. "Do you?"
David shook his head. "Not if you don't." She laughed again. Let the Johns eat their hearts out over what they were missing.
He looked around the room.
"Do you own or rent this?" he asked.
"Rent."
"Good," he said.
"Close down and go away for a while. Out on the desert.
Palm Springs, maybe.
Don't let anyone know where you are except me."
"O.K.," she said. "What do I do then?"
"You wait," he said.
"You wait until we discover you!"
17.
"Sorry, David," Pierce said, getting to his feet.
He was smiling but his eyes were cold. "I can't help you out."
"Why not?"
"Because I sold the stock a year ago."
"To Sheffield?" David asked.
The agent nodded.
"Why didn't you get in touch with Jonas?"
"Because I didn't want to," Pierce snapped. "He's used me enough.
I was good enough for him during the rough years. To do the dirty work and keep the factory going.
But the minute things were good enough to make the big ones, he brings in Bonner."
"You used him, too. He went into the hole for millions because you wanted a studio to play with.