Fly Me to the Morgue

Philip Arnold slowly got to his feet, but I was watching him closely, as was Jerry. If he charged, Jerry would be ready, but instead he stood there, brushing the dirt off his butt, seeming to gain control of himself.

‘This ain’t over,’ he said, maybe to all of us, but definitely to his sister. He pointed a thick finger at her. ‘My lawyer says you can’t make this sale without my signature.’

‘Then you better have your lawyer talk to my lawyer, Philip,’ Adrienne said. ‘I think you’ll find I can.’

‘You can bring in all the bully boys you want,’ he said, ‘it ain’t gonna make a difference.’

‘You can’t stand that you’re not the biggest, strongest man in the room, can you?’ she asked, mocking him.

‘We’ll see who the bully boy is, Adrienne,’ Philip said. Unconsciously he was rubbing the wrist that Jerry had grabbed. ‘We’ll see.’

Adrienne looked at Jerry and said, ‘Thank you. I’ve never seen anyone overpower my brother like that before.’ Then she looked at me. ‘And thank you for stepping between us.’

‘Didn’t do much good,’ I said. ‘He swatted me aside like a fly.’

‘It doesn’t matter,’ she said. ‘He might have hit me if you hadn’t given Jerry time to step between us.’

‘Shall we go inside and talk. I have lemonade, or something stronger.’

‘Come on, Jerry,’ Bing said. ‘Let’s walk this big boy back into the barn.’

I saw how Jerry had been able to get to us so quickly when he vaulted back over the fence to grab the reins from Bing.

‘Just come up to the house when you’ve secured the horse,’ Adrienne called out to them. To me she said, ‘Shall we walk inside?’

As we walked back she asked, ‘My brother didn’t hurt you, did he?’

‘Only my pride,’ I said. ‘I’ve never really thought of myself as a little guy.’

When she looked at me our eyes were about even, but I consoled myself with the fact that she was wearing cowboy boots.

‘Do you have any more relatives we have to worry about?’ I asked.

‘Actually, I have quite a large family,’ she said, ‘but Philip is the only one to worry about. I have a younger brother and sister, but they’re not the least bit interested in horses.’

‘Oh.’ She surprised me with a slight blush. I had thought she was being playful, but apparently she actually didn’t know what I’d meant.

‘Well, she’s younger than I am and, yes, quite pretty,’ she said. ‘But she’s not here today.’

We reached the house and entered through the unlocked front door. I hadn’t heard a vehicle leave, and half expected to find big Philip somewhere inside, but it seemed empty.

‘I’ll go and get it,’ she said. ‘Make yourself comfortable.’

I walked around the big living room, which was dominated by a baby grand piano that was covered with framed photos. I walked over to take a look. Most of them seemed to be of a man I assumed was Chris Arnold, standing surrounded by horses. I didn’t see any photos of Adrienne until I got to the fireplace mantle.

‘Oh no,’ she said, as she came in carrying a tray, ‘not the family photos.’

‘I’m afraid not,’ she said. ‘This is actually my brother Chris’s house. That is, it was. We haven’t read his will yet, so I don’t know what will happen to it.’

‘Well,’ she said, setting the tray down on the coffee table, ‘I know my brother Philip wants the place. But I think he’s going to be disappointed.’

‘Either that, or equal parts to the four of us, but I don’t think he’d want to do that to the rest of. Make us partners with Philip, I mean.’

‘Philip seemed to think he had an interest in the horse,’ I said. ‘What’s the horse’s name, by the way. Bing didn’t mention it.’

‘My brother didn’t usually name the horses,’ she said. ‘He left that to the people who bought them.’

‘No,’ she said, ‘he likes – liked – to breed them, but he didn’t have the actual racing gene in him.’

‘Is that why Philip would want to keep the horse?’ I asked. ‘To race him?’

‘I really think the reason Philip doesn’t want the horse sold is that I do.’

‘Oh, yes,’ she said. ‘Do you have any brothers or sisters?’

‘My mother died recently,’ I said. ‘My father and I don’t talk. My family still lives in Brooklyn.’

‘Brooklyn,’ she said. ‘That’s it. I’ve been trying to pinpoint your accent.’

‘Is it bad?’ I put my hand over my mouth, as if she had told me I had bad breath.

‘No, it’s hardly noticeable, except sometimes you drop your ‘g’s’, and pronounce a word or two in an . . . odd way.’

‘Here,’ she said. ‘Nevada. My parents are dead. Have been for a long time. I actually raised my younger brother and sister. I’m glad my parents didn’t live to see what an ass Philip has become.’

‘There’s a bathroom right through there, if you want to wash up,’ she said, pointing.

‘Thank you,’ Bing said. He and Jerry went through. Adrienne poured two lemonades and handed me one, then poured two more and left them on the tray for Jerry and Bing.

‘So,’ she said, ‘you work in a Vegas casino. Must be a lot of women in your life.’