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I have noticed that when Terrible Chester wishes to express his affection for Ozzie, he does so by cuddling and purring

Since Ozzie opened the front door tothe time that I sat in the kitchen, I had not seen Terrible Chester Thiscat, so fearless and self-i He doesn’t creep into a rooh he expects to be the center of attention, he projects an air of indifference--even contempt--that makes it clear he wishes for the h he does not sneak, he can appear at your shoes suddenly and by surprise The first indication of trouble can be a brieflywarm dampness of the toes

Until Ozzie and I moved to the back porch to take our breakfast al fresco, I kept

The porch overlooks a lawn and a half-acre woodlet of laurels, podocarpus, and graceful California peppers In the golden birds trilled and death seemed like a myth

Had the table not been a sturdy redwood roaned under the plates of lobster oels, Danish, cinnae juice and milk, pots of coffee and cocoa…

‘What is food to one is to others bitter poison,’ Ozzie quoted happily, toasting me with a raised forkful of omelet

Shakespeare? I asked

Lucretius, rote before the birth of Christ Lad, I promise you this--I shall never be one of these health wimps who views a pint of heavy cream with the same horror that saner men reserve for atoest that vanilla soy milk isn’t the abomination you say it is

I do not permit blasphemy, the F-word, or obscenities such as soy milk at my table Consider yourself chastised

I stopped in Gelato Italiano the other day They now have some flavors with half the fat

He said, The horses stabled at our local racetrack produce tons of manure each week, and I don’t stock my freezer with that, either So where does Wyatt Porter think Danny ht be?

Most likely Simon earlier stashed a second set of wheels in the lot beside the Blue Moon, in case things went bad at the Jessup house and so there in the van

But no one saw the van at the Jessup house, so it wasn’t a hot vehicle

No

Yet he switched at the Blue Moon anyway

Yes

Does thatelse

For sixteen years, he remained obsessed with Carol, so obsessed that he wanted Dr Jessup dead for having married her

So it seems

What does he ith Danny?

I don’t know

Simon doesn’t see father-son relationship

It doesn’t fit the profile, I agreed

How’s your omelet?

Fantastic, sir

There’s cream in it, and butter

Yes, sir

Also parsley I’etables now and then Roadblocks won’t be effective if Sioes overland

The sheriff’s depart with aerial patrols

Do you have any sense whether Danny’s still in Pico Mundo?

I get this strange feeling

Strange--how?

A wrongness

A wrongness?

Yes

Ah, everything’s crystal-clear now

Sorry I don’t know I can’t be specific

He isn’t… dead?

I shook e juice? It’s fresh-squeezed

As he poured, I said, Sir, I’ve been wondering--where’s Terrible Chester?

Watching you, he said, and pointed

When I turned in my chair, I saw the cat ten feet behindtruss that supported the porch roof

He is reddish-orange with black ht

Ordinarily, Terrible Chester favors s bore him beyond tolerance With his eyes and attitude, he can express a disment of humanity, a contempt, that even a es to convey

Never previously had I been an object of intense interest to Chester Now he held aze, did not look away, did not blink, and see as a three-headed extraterrestrial

Although he didn’t appear to be poised to pounce, I did not feel co my back on this for in a staring match with hiain, Ozzie was taking the liberty of spooning another serving of potatoes onto my plate

I said, He’s never stared atat you much the same way the entire time ere in the kitchen

I didn’t see hi, he crept into the room, pawed open a cabinet door, and hid under the sink

He htning-quick and quiet I was so proud of him Once inside the cabinet, he held the door ajar with his body and watched you fro?

Because I wanted to see what he would do next

Most likely it involves shoes and urine

I don’t think so, Ozzie said This is all new

Is he still up there on the bea me?

Intently Would you like a Danish?

I’ve sort of lost my appetite

Don’t be silly, lad Because of Chester?

He has so once before when he was this intense

Refresh ust… and all of that

Ozzie stabbed the air with a fork: Oh You ust, I had discovered that, like er this side of death He had regarded that spirit no less intently than he now studied me

You aren’t dead, Ozzie assured h not as solid asI don’t

Dear Odd, because you’re such a naive young reat deal he knows that you don’t What did you have inless apocalyptic

Such as?

Are you carrying any dead mice in your pockets?

Just a dead cell phone

Ozzie studied enuinely concerned At the saood a friend ever to coddle me

Well, he said, if your time is soon up, all the more reason to have a Danish The one with pineapple and cheese would be the perfect thing hich to end a last meal

ELEVEN

WHEN I SUGGESTED THAT I HELP CLEAN OFF THE TABLE and wash the dishes before going, Little Ozzie--who is actually fifty pounds heavier than his father, Big Ozzie--dis emphatically with a slice of buttered toast

We’ve only been sitting here fortytable less than an hour and a half I do so over breakfast coffee and raisin brioche