Dead Money by Dan Gilvezan

Author:Dan Gilvezan [Gilvezan, Dan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: amazon.com
Published: 2018-03-15T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 24

“Hey Irma, play ‘The Beer Barrel Polka!’”

Right on cue, Irma, the Magic Castle’s invisible ghost pianist, broke into a spirited rendition of the World War II era standard. The birdcage next to Irma’s piano bench was fast filling with ones, fives, and even twenty dollar bills. Tips for the Castle’s phantom house musician.

It was 7:30PM that night and the three of us were seated at one of the small cocktail tables across the room from Irma’s stage. Fran was sipping an apple martini. Max had his traditional Glenlivet with a single ice cube. I was drinking tonic water. I had just finished telling them about the break-in and Mrs. Morrison’s death. All around us the laughter and lighthearted babble stood in stark contrast with the somber mood at our table.

“My God,” Fran said. “That poor woman. And her son, how he must be feeling.”

“Yeah, it’s pretty awful.”

“Such a violent act,” Max observed. “So cruel. And so unnecessary.”

Max was dressed in a scotch plaid jacket with satin lapels, frilled shirt, black crossover tie and tuxedo pants. I noticed there was a button missing on the sleeve of his jacket. Fran had on her favorite LBD with a single strand of freshwater pearls and a pair of cork heel pumps. She looked so good I almost forgot my troubles. Almost.

“What did the cops have to say about it?” Fran asked.

“There wasn’t much they could say. They’re treating it as a home invasion robbery gone bad.”

“Is that what you think?”

“I don’t know what to think, Fran.”

“What about Ben? What does he think?”

“Ben doesn’t know what to think, either. Nobody does.”

No way was I going to relay Ben’s warning to either Fran or Max. Not until things were clearer in my mind. Why create needless anxiety on the part of my friends and loved ones when I didn’t have to?

“So, what are you going to do now?” Fran wanted to know.

“What do you mean what am I going to do now?”

“About the case, you dope. This obviously has to do with the case you’re working. That crazy ghost case.”

“Not necessarily, Fran. It could have been just a random breakin.”

“Oh, come on, Lomax, be serious. Do you really believe that? Or is that just what you want to believe?”

Good question. Was I purposely clouding the issue in order to avoid accepting responsibility for what had happened? Or what might happen in the future to the people I cared about?

“Look Fran, I’m a detective, okay? I deal in facts. And I just don’t have enough at this point to make an informed decision.”

“You don’t?”

“No, I don’t.”

Fran turned to Max. “Max, help me out here, will you?” she said. “It seems that we’re lacking in facts.”

Max, who had been mostly silent up until now, suddenly perked up.

“It might be of some help if we were to deconstruct the thing,” he said. “Take it point by point. Perhaps that might help clarify things.”

Et tu, Max?

“I really don’t think that’s a good idea, Max,” I began.

“I think it’s an excellent idea,” Fran said, interrupting me.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.