Previously in The Maltese Sparrow…
Taken to the boss, our hero is shocked to find out that the apparent threat is coming from a US Senator… who happens to be Ms. Bouvier’s father! We also decided that this in no way reflects some sort’ve issues that the author may or may not be having with his father. No sir.
And now, The Maltese Sparrow: Part 5 – Jason Lives!…
I was still in some shock when we found ourselves ensconced in comfortable leather chairs in front of the big oak desk that dominated Senator Bouvier’s office. I tried to keep my face neutral and could see I was having some success as out of the corner of my eye I noticed Penny trying to read my expression.
The Senator leaned back in his chair and puffed on a cigar and appeared to be summing me up with his eyes. Not one to let a silence linger, I spoke up, “Pretty fancy digs, here, Senator. You don’t mind enjoying yourself on the people’s dime, do you?”
“No, not at all,” he replied.
OK, usually they argued more with my witty barbs. This Senator Bouvier was a cool customer, and the silence fell on us once more. After another moment, I stood up and paced around the room looking at the trinkets adorning the walls. I stopped at a particularly impressive bluefish mounted on a well-polished board. “Very impressive, where did you catch him?”
“I didn’t,” he said coolly, “I hit him with my car. Mr. Marlowe, why don’t we come to the point? What, precisely, is your relationship with my daughter?”
I wasn’t sure what to make of this situation yet, nor was I sure who I could trust anymore. I decided to play it coy – “Frankly, Senator, I’m not sure that’s any of your business.”
“Then let me be equally frank, Mr. Marlowe. You have involved yourself in my business, and your presence, like another Meatloaf comeback tour, is most unwelcome.”
“Maybe so, Senator, but the more I find out, the more interested I become. Why, precisely, would a father want to kill his daughter?”
The Senator regarded me for a moment and then said, “Well, maybe she’s the Antichrist? And you have to kill her to save the world because that’s what the priest said to do.”
“Are you saying that Penny is the Antichrist?”
“No, but you asked a general question and “The Omen” was on TV last night.”
“Fair enough. But she’s not the Antichrist, right?”
Penny gasped incredulously, “Sam!”
“Sorry sweetheart, but I’ve been down this road before. So, to be more specific, Senator, why are you trying to kill your daughter?”
“I’m not, Mr. Marlowe. She is simply a confused young woman who thinks that by stealing the statue she’s protecting her father. I simply want it back to keep her from being hurt.”
I walked over to stand behind Penny’s chair. “Well, isn’t that sweet. Seems like you could just- DIE HORNED BEAST! BACK TO THE HELL FROM WHENCE YOU CAME!!” With that I snatched a crucifix out of my jacket and held it in front of Penny’s face. She looked at me in bewilderment. Satisified, I returned the cross to my pocket. “Sorry, just checking. Anyway, I was going say, seems like you could just explain that to her and ask her for it back.”
Penny jumped up, tears welling in her eyes and her fists clenched. If her head started spinning around she was gonna get a cross through her heart, but instead she shouted furiously, “I don’t have the damn thing! Why won’t anyone believe me?!”
The Senator didn’t react to the outburst. Calmly he said, “You don’t have it now, but you did when we left Cleveland. Even if it’s not in your posession, you know where it is.”
I had had enough of this. “Well, Ms. Bouvier, Senator, this sounds more like a family squabble than a case. If neither of you need my services, then I had best be going.”
I stood up and took my hat from the table by the door. The Senator rose and shook my hand. “I’m sorry for the unorthodox way in which you were brought here. I didn’t want my Penny getting herself in too much trouble and I needed to get her off the streets quickly.”
I explained there was nothing to be concerned about. “I know how a dame can be.” I looked back at Penny who was sobbing gently with her back to me. “Sorry, Ms. Bouvier, but you’re too much trouble for ten bucks an hour.” With that, I left.
The warm, humid air hit me like a wet blanket as I stepped out onto the street. I loosened my tie and tried to get the image of Penny Bouvier out of my head. The problems of some rich girl and her father were nothing to do with me. And getting involved in the affairs of a US Senator was more trouble than it was worth.
I held up my hand for a cab. Lost in thought, I hopped in to the first car that pulled up to the curb. “Well hello, Sam, nice to see you.”
I looked up into the steel blue eyes of Detective Lester Patterson. I had inadvertently stepped right into the back seat of a police car. Patterson went on, “It’s not often so easy to pick up a suspect, is it?”
“What the hell do you want?”
“Oh, nothing Sam. Just wondering how you happened to come across the stone sparrow we found in your office this afternoon, that’s all.”
Well. Crap.
To Be Continued…