Clemmie by John D. MacDonald

Author:John D. MacDonald [MacDonald, John D.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780709081029
Publisher: Robert Hale Ltd
Published: 1958-01-01T05:00:00+00:00

Al Jardine phoned Craig at five minutes of five.

“How about joining me for a knock at Nick’s after work? When can you make it?”

“Quarter of six okay?”

“We’ll be in the back room in a booth.”

“We?”

“Yes, Brace yourself, wolf. Me and Steve Chews.”

“Oh dear Jesus!”

“Did you think nobody noticed?”

“Al, it wasn’t like …”

“Save it until later, Craig.”

The bar at Nick’s was crowded. The back room was dimly lighted. He had to pause a moment until his eyes adjusted, and then he saw Al and Steve in a corner booth, drinks in front of them. Al hailed him and Craig walked over and sat down. The waiter took his order for a tall Scotch.

Steve was a colorless and apologetic man, and he looked ill at ease, and not at all friendly.

“What’s this all about?” Craig asked.

Al said lazily, “I’ll summarize. At the party Wednesday night you and the Westerling woman were making what my Irene calls a spectacle of yourselves. Her husband was aware of it. She was loading his drinks. That’s why he made the scene. Jealousy. Everybody saw you and Floss go down by the tool shed and come back looking all primed. She left and you left fifteen minutes later. She was out all night. Lollie kept phoning your house. You were out all night too. Yesterday Floss phoned Dave from a hotel. He went down and got her. He checked at the desk and found out she’d checked in at about eleven yesterday morning. He took her home and he and Lollie went to work on her. They broke her down. She says she was so drunk she didn’t know what she was doing. You took her to a motel. She implies it was very close to rape. Then you drove her into town and dropped her off. Dave is torn between murdering you and divorcing her. Lollie is all for divorce. I think we better have the story, Craig.”

Craig put down half his drink. “My God, if there’s any implication of rape, it was the other way around. She told me to leave in fifteen minutes and she’d be waiting down by the playground. She went home and changed and picked up a small suitcase. I didn’t go home with her and force her to change.”

“She covered that,” Steve said awkwardly. “She claims you agreed to drive her into town and leave her at a hotel. She said she was just going to punish Dave for kicking her in front of everybody. But instead you took her to a motel.”

“That’s a damn lie. My God, Al, she drove the car. I was in no shape to drive. She even found the motel.”

“Can you prove she drove?” Al asked.

Craig thought for a moment and said, “No.”

“Did you have relations with her?”

“I guess you could call it that. I’m pretty vague about it. We didn’t wake up until ten. She was scared stiff. She hadn’t intended to fall asleep. Listen, Al. This isn’t a new deal with her. She’s a tramp.

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