Pale Gray for Guilt Read Online Free PDF Page B

late. Maybe you could have figured out some kind of a salvage operation. Your kind of salvage. Squeeze them like they've squoze me." He gave me a strange, puzzled, thoughtful look. "You know, I keep thinking about how I might kill somebody. Hazzard, Santo, LaFrance. Somebody. Anybody. I never thought that way in my life before. I'm not like that."
    He grimaced, whirled, kicked the big metal trash basket full of used paper towels. "Aaaah… Tush!" he yelled, and went blundering out.
    I collected Puss and Barni. It was after six thirty when we got back to the Busted Flush. Mick had gotten his phone call, made his deal, and set up a Monday morning flight to Spain via New York. And so, though my mood was somewhat soured, there was song and sport, sunburn and music, beach time and nap time, old and new jokes, girls in the galley, new tapes on the music machine, lipstick and sand and the sometime kiss, and the long heavy look through curl of lashes.
    Meyer trooped in and out from time to time with little groups of Meyer's Irregulars and Partisans. We had a slight overflow from the permanent floating houseparty aboard the Alabama Tiger's big cruiser.
    Though it looked as it always looks-so informal you don't know who is tied up with whom-there is a protocol. There is a very real in-group unwritten list of things you do and things you don't do, things you say and things you don't say. And if you are the kind of person who can't case the scene and know by instinct what the rules have to be, then the blinds are closed, shades drawn, and the freeze is on. But sometimes, as in the case, of one midday visitor on Sunday, someone is so obtuse the action has to be a little more direct.
    This one was named Buster or Buddy or Sonny, one of those names, a big loud thirtyish jollyboy type, office-soft overconfident, far from home on a business trip and out beagling for a broad, confident that he was twice the man any of these beach-bum types could be, ready for a nice little roll and scuffle that he could describe to the other JC's back in God's Country, and hide from li'1 0l' Pegg,y staying back home there with the kids.
    So he came up onto the sun deck and sprawled out next to Barni and told her she was cute as any bug in the wide world, and if she would just let him spread a little more of this here suntan juice on that cute little ol' back and this here cute little ol' tummy, why she'd be making him the happiest paper salesman in the southeast territory.
    She sat up and frowned into his dumb, happy, smirking face, and as Mick started to get up to heave Buster-Buddy-Sonny over the rail she waved him back.
    "Music down and out," she said. Puss went to the speakers and turned the volume off.
    In the silence Barni said, with a brutal clarity, "Puss? Marilee? Come here, dears. Come take a look at this one."
    They came and sat close to her on her sun pad, all of them staring at Buster-Buddy-Sonny. "The type I was telling you about," Barni said. "One of the charmers that make life hell for a stewardess."
    "Now, don't you badmouth me, you purty thing," he said, grinning.
    Puss said, scowling, "I see. Of course. All that fatty look around the middle. And that big voice and those dim, nasty little eyes."
    "You funning me, you gals?" he asked, his smile fading a little.
    Marilee tilted her head. "Mmmm. The kind you don't dare turn your back on when you're on duty. A real snatch-ass Charlie."
    "They have this crazy dream, I guess," Barni said, "about how you're going to fall for all that meaty charm and go back to their hotel or motel and climb right into the sack. Can you imagine?"
    Puss shuddered delicately. "My God, darlings, suppose we were call girls or something and we had to sleep with one of those."
    "Eek!" said Marilee.
    Buster-Buddy-Sonny stood up and the three lovelies looked blandly up at him.
    "Coffee, tea or milk?" asked Barni.
    "You lousy little bitch!" said he.
    Puss laughed. "See? Just like you said, dear. Typical reaction. Look at how