The Search for the Dice Man Read Online Free PDF Page B

Rider Athletic Club, pointing out with a subtle shudder that most of the people who belonged to it were athletes.
    I had always assumed that I would have to spend time doing what I didn’t really like doing in order to become rich and successful so I could then do what I
did
like doing. Instead, I was finding that success consisted of doing a lot of additional things I didn’t like doing.
    As I turned at the top of the stairs to head down the upper hall I suddenly said: ‘What am I doing here, Hawkins?’
    ‘Preparing for lunch, sir,’ Hawkins replied without breaking stride.
    ‘Ah, right.’
    When Honoria arrived at my room to bring me down to meet the guests I embraced her with a pleased smile. Seeing her dressed with stunning casualness in a pool-blue jumpsuit that showed off her figure, I realized that I’d never caught her off guard: she was always groomed, coiffed, made-up and ready. As I held her my heart didn’t leap, but my male vanity felt its usual surge ofsatisfaction: what a priceless acquisition! And mine! Or soon to be so. I gave her an extra squeeze.
    ‘Is that Jap still on the make for you?’ I asked after we’d exchanged a light kiss and were headed down the stairs.
    ‘Oh, yes, last night he came on to me like an eager college sophomore,’ she said gaily, linking her arm in mine. ‘But today I think he’s shifted his interest to Kim.’
    ‘Kim?’
    ‘Yes, you know, that kook cousin of mine whose escapades I’ve told you about.’
    ‘Oh, her,’ I said, looking to see if the Japanese were down in the hallway. ‘I thought she moved to the west coast or something.’
    ‘She did. She went there to see some famous guru.’
    I vaguely remembered Honoria’s telling me about some black sheep of the family who was shamefully interested in things like the I Ching, tarot, nature hikes and nuclear disarmament, and even more shamefully unable to hold a job or accumulate money.
    ‘Oh, yeah,’ I said as we headed through the hall towards the patio where some sort of meal was being served.
    ‘But now she’s back,’ Honoria went on. ‘Much to Daddy’s disgust. And when she’s not chatting with sexless spirits on some astral plane she’s often enticing sexually charged bodies on this earthly plane. I think she’s already got Akito salivating and – ah, speak of the devil.’
    As we moved out on to the patio Mr Battle was standing near a large round table, and past him three figures were making their way up the lawn towards us. As I casualty tried to brush down my hair in preparation for meeting them I was puzzled to see Mr Battle frowning at the approaching people as if in disapproval. As we came up beside him he turned to me and whispered fiercely: ‘Be brilliant.’ And added strangely, ‘And ignore the girl.’
    The girl. Walking with a jaunty bounce between the two neatly-dressed Japanese bankers and clutching them both firmly by the arms was a lovely young woman whosestriking photograph I realized I had noticed once in one of the Battle albums. Dressed with heretical informality in sneakers, jeans and a sweatshirt, she was laughing easily at what the taller and more impressive of the two men had been saying. She had a glowing vitality that immediately made her seem out of place, impolite even, her vibrancy almost resembling that of a woman in heat.
    Although the two Japanese were dressed identically in business suits, they were otherwise opposites, the one being tall and broad-shouldered with a thick head of wavy black hair, and the other short, plumpish, grey-haired and bespectacled. When the three grinning newcomers came to a halt near the table, Mr Battle bounded forward with a sudden warm smile.
    ‘Ah, Mr Akito and Mr Namamuri,’ he boomed. ‘I hope you’ve had a pleasant outing.’
    As he introduced the two men Kim looked at me with such mischievous boldness I worried my trousers were unbuttoned. I nevertheless put on a superficial smile and bowed to Akito’s bow and pumped