Weecho: First Shots

Chapter 11 - Scrubs Like Us

“Most of the reason they’re coming is you. I wanted to make sure you’d be back from Lynch’s.” 

Weecho on his cell, telling Juna he was bringing some people by, said they were on their way in the Police Commissioner’s car. 

“Police Commissioner?” 

“Deputy Commissioner, actually. Him and the publisher of Cover.” 

Juna might have thought he was joking except she’d seen the email the publisher had sent back that morning. They must have hit it off if Weecho was still with him. 

But there was publisher and there was Deputy Police Commissioner, two different birds. She tensed at first, and then realized a commissioner wasn’t going to have an agenda that included some hick chick skipping on an assault charge from down in Louisiana. 

“We’re bringing something to eat,” Weecho said, “I’ll see you in a little.” 

He clicked off, turned around in the front seat to tell Burke and Alexey sitting in the back that Juna would be there, Burke asking the detective driving if he knew where “there” was. The detective saying it was right across from where the old Fulton Fish Market used to be.    

They turned onto a street in the East Village, the driver swinging around a bus, taking a left at the next light, pulling over and double-parking in front of a pizza place. When he got out to go inside Burke called to his back, “You better make it three.” 

“Plain?” 

“Whatever. Anything but anchovies.” 

Twenty minutes later on Weecho’s street by the river, the detective driver waited in the car with a couple of slices for himself while Weecho took Burke and Alexey and the rest of the pizzas up in the freight elevator. 

Cat Wanda was there to greet them. Right away Burke sneezed. 

Weecho tried to shoo her away but he had the pizza boxes to deal with, and Wanda wasn’t about to miss out on the fun when she saw the effect she had. 

Weecho could see Alexey out of the corner of his eye taking in the old beams, the old brick walls and view of the bridge when they walked across the loft. Keeping cool but had to be wondering how this kid pulled this off.     

Juna was at the workbench, doing stuff on the computer, had her own password now that Weecho had set up last night. He put down the pizzas and made the introductions. Juna knew one thing Weecho was going for, that they’d talked about on their way to the subway that morning: He wanted to get them some kind of a budget, from Alexey or whoever, get them some cash flow. So she shook hands with the two men, giving them what charm she had, like they were welcome guests in her home – which it seemed it was getting to be.    

Weecho dragged over some old folding chairs he’d found in another part of the building. “Everything go okay today?” he asked her.  

“I’m the official guardian of the bitch,” Juna said. “Her new name is Precious.” 

Weecho explaining to Burke and Alexey that Precious was Lynch’s guard dog and was chained right outside his office. “About ten feet from his desk and the laptop.” 

That opened the way for the men to explain why they had come to see Juna. Weecho got out some plates and started serving the pizza. 

Burke did most of the talking, letting out information little by little, watching Juna’s reactions. The man had made an artform of sizing people up, was going to have to make a decision right here whether or not he could trust her.