Papa Jack Chapter 41

Arms outstretched, Martha turns around slowly in Loftviews's event space, drinking in the atmosphere. "The sunlight shining through the windows is energizing, although that would change in the evening."

"It wouldn't change as much as you think," Ms. Nekras says. "A great deal of city light comes in." She points at a line of tall windows. "On clear nights, you can even view the moon through those. And as you can see, the seating isn't jammed together. Even New Yorkers are more comfortable with a little personal space."

Richard quirks an eyebrow. "As long as they're comfortable enough to open their checkbooks."

"How do you handle audio-visual equipment?" Martha inquires. "We will need a screen easily visible even from the back row. And some of the speakers will prefer to stroll with a lavalier microphone rather than being tied to a stationary one at a podium. There will be some dramatic readings and presentations that will require appropriate microphones as well."

"Some of the writers may have PowerPoint presentations concerning their works. They'll need appropriate hookups for those," Richard adds.

"We can accommodate all of that," Ms. Nekras assures them. "Would you be wanting a bar – open or cash?"

"Definitely cash," Martha declares. "Can't have the writers drinking up all the proceeds."

"Or the actors either," Richard says, a tease lightening his tone. "And if our guests are drinking, they'll especially need restrooms. How many are there, and where are they located?"

"You probably noticed both men's and women's facilities near the elevator," Nekras replies. "The women's room has ten stalls, the men's room four, plus urinals." She points toward the far end of the room. "Those doors open on another hallway with another set of restrooms with the same number of fixtures. There's also a water fountain. There are smaller restrooms, with two stalls for the women and a stall and a urinal for the men, off the lobby. All the restrooms have handicapped accessible stalls."

"How many people can the elevators transport at one time?" Richard inquires. "And where are the stairs for the stouthearted, and in case of a power failure?"

"There are stairs off the back hall and also off the lobby," Nekras informs him. "The exit signs have backup battery power as does the lighting on the stairs. In an emergency, attendees can exit safely. Since Loftview was adapted from industrial space so recently, we were able to readily integrate the most up-to-date safety and accessibility into the construction."

"Good to know," Richard says. "We've already discussed rental fees. How much of a deposit do you require to hold the space, and when would you need it?"

"We require a deposit of half the fee to hold the space. There's no deadline, but," Nekras cautions, "requests are coming in very fast. To avoid losing out, I would strongly suggest getting your check to me as soon as possible."

Richard nods his understanding. "Of course, Ms. Rodgers and I will have to discuss it, but I should have an answer for you very shortly."

"The sooner, the better," Nekras reiterates. "I'll walk you out."

"I noticed a little café down the block," Richard says when he and Martha reach the sidewalk outside the Loftview building. "Want to talk over coffee?"

"I rarely turn down a man's invitation to coffee," Martha replies, "but we don't have that much to discuss. Loftview is marvelous."

"I agree," Richard says, "But I can still use a cup of coffee, ooh, and maybe a doughnut if they have any. Hanging around cops, the urge rubs off."

Martha chuckles. "I'm sure it does. I did some ride-alongs once when I had to play a cop. By the end of a few days, I felt like slapping the cuffs on someone. Let's see if the café has a cruller or two."

Martha takes a sip of her coffee, adds a packet of sweetener, then takes another sip. "So, Richard, how did a writer in your genre learn to ask about bathrooms and elevators?"

"A writer in my genre does a lot of tours, often reading to large groups of people squeezed into inadequate spaces like bookstores. Complaints, sometimes quite desperate ones, about bathrooms come up pretty frequently. I also appear at cons and conferences. Too often, the elevators are insufficient to get attendees from one session to another on time. Lines regularly form outside of restrooms, particularly ladies' rooms. I've observed some very uncomfortable and unhappy people. We don't want our supporters to be either."

"No, we don't," Martha agrees. "Were you satisfied with what Ms. Nekras said?"

"It sounded good, but Loftview has floorplans online. I'm going to make sure they match what she told us. If so, would you be all right with me cutting a check today?"

"Absolutely!" Martha proclaims. "Loftview is like an answer to a prayer."

Richard takes a swallow from his coffee cup. "I hope so."

Kate studies the building housing the offices of Freedom Schools. She's seen no sign of Coonan trying to leave. He could, however, have gone out a back door. The light in the window that corresponds with his office is still on, but that doesn't mean anything. The lights in many offices stay on whether they're occupied or not.

As interesting to Kate as whether Coonan managed to slip away is whether anyone has come to see him. So far, the only people arriving have been delivering pizza – until now. A slim, nervous-appearing Asian man looks around several times before entering the building. He's carrying a bag, but not the kind used to hold food orders. So, who is he going to see?

Before going up to question Coonan, Kate and Castle checked the directory. The other tenants are a secretarial service, a janitorial service, and a couple of accounting firms. Kate supposes that if the new arrival is being audited, he might be nervous about visiting an accountant. But why would he be furtive about it? She takes a picture of him and continues to observe the building until an unmarked car drives up and double parks behind her. Her radio announces that the surveillance team has arrived and is waiting for her to pull out so it can have her spot. She picks up the device to give her response. "Roger that. Pulling out now."

Entering the bullpen at the 12th Precinct, Kate approaches Ryan's newly assigned desk. She holds up her phone so that he can see the photo on the screen. "Hey, have you ever seen this guy?'

A grin breaks out on the slim detective's face. "You're kidding, right?"

Kate shakes her head in confusion. "No, I just took the picture while I was staking out probable Bracken henchman Dick Coonan. Who is he?"

"That's Johnny Vong. He does those late-night ads for tapes about getting rich in real estate. You know, " Ryan imitates an Asian accent, "'I came over in the bottom of a boat. Now I own a boat!' Haven't you ever seen them?"

"No. Sometimes, I stay up to watch a classic movie like Casablanca, but I've never seen this guy. What do you know about him?"

"I know that my Uncle Sean ordered a set of tapes, and when my Aunt Maeve found out he wanted to gamble their savings on real estate, she refused to cook anything for him again unless he threw away the tapes and stopped his nonsense. Vong stays legal because he never actually promises that anyone will make money from his system. He just brags about how well he's doing."

Kate presses her fingertips against her bottom lip. "Sounds like just the kind of guy Dick Coonan would love."

"But if Vong's really that smart and Bracken's involved," Ryan says, "he won't love Dick Coonan."

"Still, I'm going to have the surveillance team follow him," Kate decides. "He may give me just the dirt I need to bring Coonan in."