tracks linda

I departed Bianca's place in George's loaner, a wood-panel Studebaker that grumbled and growled and squealed everywhere it went. I stopped at a pay phone, a short distance from the house, and called Linda Randall's number.
The phone rang several times before a quiet, dusky contralto answered, "Beckitts', this is Linda."
"Linda Randall?" I asked.
"Mmmm," she answered. She had a furry, velvety voice, something tactile. "Who's this?"
"My name is Harry Dresden. I was wondering if I could talk to you."
"Harry who?" she asked.
"Dresden. I'm a private investigator."
She laughed, the sound rich enough to roll around naked in. "Investigating my privates, Mr. Dresden? I like you already."
I coughed. "Ah, yes. Ms. Randall - "
"Miss," she said, cutting in. "Miss Randall. I'm not occupied. At the moment."
"Miss Randall," I amended. "I'd like to ask you some questions about Jennifer Stanton, if I could."
Silence on the other end of the line. I could hear some sounds in the background, a radio playing, perhaps, and a recorded voice talking about white zones and red zones and loading and unloading of vehicles.
"Miss Randall?"
"No," she said.
"It won't take long. And I assure you that you aren't the subject of anything I'm doing. If you could just give me a few moments of your time."
"No," she told me. "I'm on duty, and will be the rest of the night. I don't have time for this."
"Jennifer Stanton was a friend of yours. She's been murdered. If there's anything you could tell me that might help - "
She cut me off again. "There isn't," she said. "Good-bye, Mr. Dresden."
The line went dead.
I scowled at the phone, frustrated. That was it, then. I had gone through all the preparation, the face-off with Bianca, and possible future trouble for nothing.
No way, I thought. No way in hell.
Bianca had said that Linda Randall was working as a driver for someone, the Beckitts, I presumed, whoever they were. I'd recognized the voice in the background as a recorded message that played outside the concourses at O'Hare airport. So she was in a car at the airport, maybe waiting to pick up the Beckitts, and definitely not there for long.
With no time to lose, I kicked the wheezing old Studebaker into gear and drove to O'Hare. It was far easier to blow off someone over the phone than it was to do it in person. There were several concourses, but I had to trust to luck - luck to guide me to the right one, and luck to get me there before Miss I-am-not-occupied Randall had the opportunity to pick up her employers and leave. And a little more luck to keep the Studebaker running all the way to O'Hare.
The Studebaker did make it all the way there, and on the second concourse I came across a silver baby limo, idling in a parking zone. The interior was darkened, so I couldn't see inside very well. It was a Friday evening, and the place was busy, business folk in their sober suits returning home from long trips about the country. Cars continually purred in and out of the semicircular drive. A uniformed cop was directing traffic, keeping people from doing brainless things like parking in the middle of one of the traffic lanes in order to load up the car.
I swerved the old Studebaker into a parking place, racing a Volvo for it and winning by dint of driving the older and heavier vehicle and having the more suicidal attitude. I kept an eye on the silver limo as I got out of the car and strode over to a bank of pay phones. I plopped my quarter in, and once more dialed the number provided by Bianca.
The phone rang. In the silver limo, someone stirred.
"Beckitts', this is Linda," she purred.
"Hello, Linda," I said. "This is Harry Dresden again."
I could almost hear her smirk. There was a flicker of light from inside the car, the silhouette of a woman's face, then the orange glow of a cigarette being lit. "I thought I told you I didn't want to talk to you, Mr. Dresden."


Storm Front Chapter 10, Page 116-117