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“Napoleon brandy One hundred years old You’ll hate it!”

He poured “If you make a face, I’ll kill you”

“What about the bodies?” I asked

“There was only one dead to start Sloane Arbuthnot was smashed, Christ, to a pulp, but still alive I did what I could, got hi rooms; and left Arbuthnot died later Both Doc Phillips and Groc worked to save hiency hospital Ironic, yes? Two days later, I directed the funeral Again, superb!”

“And Emily Sloane? Hollyhock House?”

“The last I saw of her, she was being led off across that empty lot full of wild flowers, to that private sanitarium Dead next day That’s all I knoasas it burned, or be traffic er to the San Francisco earthquake Those are my credits Nohy, why do you ask?”

I took a deep breath, glugged down some Napoleon brandy, felt my eyes faucet with hot water, and said: “Arbuthnot is back”

Fritz sat straight up and shouted, “Are you mad!?”

“Or his i “Groc did it For a lark, he said Or for money Made a papier-mâché and wax dummy Set it up to scare Manny and the others, maybe with the same facts you know but have never said”

Fritz Wong arose to stalk in a circle, clubbing the carpet with his boots Then he stood rocking back and forth, shaking his great head, in front of Maggie

“Did you know about this!?”

“Junior, here, said so—”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because, Fritz,” Maggie reasoned, “when you’re directing you never want to hear any news, bad or good, from anyone!”

“So that’s what’s been going on?” said Fritz “Doc Phillips drunk at lunch three days running Manny Leiber’s voice sounding like a slow LP played double speed Christ, I thought it was ht, which always upsets him! No! Holy Jesus, God, oh dammit to hell, that bastard Groc” He stopped to fix onare executed!” he cried “But before you die, tell us more!”