“Either that,” I said, “or you weren’t ready for me.”

“Ain’t that the truth, pal. Ain’t it the truth. But you ought to be crazy by now. How long has it been like this? No booze, no friends, no women, just cooped up here.”

“I get out once a day.”

“Sure, You go swimming over at the Y at Lake Geneva. Some fun.”

“Be grateful. If I didn’t go swimming every day, you wouldn’t ever have got in here to look around.”

“Yeah, and fuck of a lot of good it did us.”

“You’re still alive.”

“For how long?”

“That’s up to you.”

“Is it? I’d like to think so, but you seem to have a gun in your hand, and my boy Beatty seems to be shot to shit in the other room.”

“But you aren’t.”

“Yeah, well, not yet, but maybe pretty soon, huh?”

“Maybe.”

“So it boils down to this, Quarry, right? I got something you want

… a name. And you got something I want… my life. So. Can we work a trade?”

“Why not?”

“Why not, he asks. You’re holding ‘why not’ in your fuckin’ hand, and you know it. I can give you the name you want, but there’s no guarantee you’ll give me my life, if I do. Not that I don’t trust you, but there just isn’t any guarantee.”

“There’s no guarantee you’ll give me the right name, either, so we just have to trust each other, I guess.”

“You could look at it that way. I don’t. I think we got what you call your typical Mexican standoff here, and seems to me we ought to look for some alternate route around this, what you call, impasse we’re at.”

“I’m listening.”

“I’m glad… ’cause I just happen to have an alternate route in mind.”

“I’m still listening.”

“I’m still glad. I’m glad we’re getting along so good, too, ’cause my alternate route is this: throw in together.”

“And do what?”

“Hey, you’re supposed to be listening. Just keep listening, and when you hear what I got to say, you’ll understand what I mean. And, Quarry, I’m going to prove to you just how sincere I really am, man. I’m going to give you your fuckin’ name. That’s the main thing you’re after, right? I’ll give you the fucker, no strings attached, and then I’ll explain how we’re going to throw in together and make us a pile. Interested?”