"We nearly met last night, only something came between us. I suppose you were the guy who rescued him?"
"I had that pleasure. By the way, it's a little surprising to see you. We really expected that the police would detain you much longer than this. How were you able to get away so soon?"
"I told them I had an appointment with the hairdresser for a new permanent, so of course they had to let me go. You'd understand."
The scrawny warrior stepped back from his search with malevolence in the thin gash of his mouth.
"So this is the guy, is it?" he said.
"This is the guy, Cokey," Varetti agreed.
"The guy who gave me this crack on the head."
"Yes, Cokey."
"Lemme have him, Ricco. All to myself."
"Not yet, Cokey."