evening, before he went to bed.” And it seems the cops thought there was something funny about it, all of it, especially the little old lady, and the funny hours she kept, and the funny coincidence they couldn’t find any little old lady. “But she was ready for them, Ed. Do you know what she told them?”
“Something good, I bet.”
“That she didn’t believe it either.”
“Well, say, that is good.”
“That it seemed so fishy, and that was what made her so depressed. She was certain the story about the little old lady was just an excuse of Sperry’s to get out.”
“Funny she reminded him though, Keyes.”
“That was to check on him.”
“That he was in the bar?”
“On a drinking deck, not a jumping deck.”
“Why did she practically beg him to go topside?”
“To vex him.”
“Well say, Keyes, that’s very good.”
“If he got sore enough he’d stay in the bar.”
“She told all this to the cops?”
“She’s a thoroughbred, Ed.”
“Just how do you figure she’s bred so high?”
“She’s covering scandal.”
“Sperry’s?”
“With—whoever.”
“Oh, say it, I don’t mind.”
“His former wife, would be my guess.”
“If so, why did she remind him?”
“Well, you can hardly blame her, another way you look at it, if she knew he did have a date with Mrs. Delavan, for not wanting a stood-up lady to come roaring down to the bar and letting the whole world in on it. If he had a date he had one, and there was nothing she could do about it. But at least she could make sure that the date was where it was supposed to be and not all over the hotel. She could localize it, as they say in medicine, and pretend she didn’t care.”
“So she called him?”
“Ed, she could hardly anticipate that—”
“Jane would up with his heels and heave him out the window?”
“Whatever she did.”
“You ever pushed somebody out of a window?”
“No.”
“O.K., try.”
I stood up in front of the window and kept egging him on to try and push me out. He kept saying I was leaving out the big element that had to be considered, which was surprise, and I kept saying if anybody could get me out, with the sill across my waist, and the sash across my eyes, they were probably a wrestler but not likely a slim, small girl that didn’t weigh but 105 pounds. After a while he got sore, and I piled in: “O.K. then, Keyes. You’ve let a woman take you like Grant took Richmond, but now you get it.”
I told him about the dog, and all the things Jane and I had figured out, and he had been pink from the winter nip when he came in there, but now he got white, gray, and green. There’s a couch in there in the office where I sometimes have a nap, and he went over and lay down. “You think this is something I just dreamed up? You think—?”
But he waved his hand for me to shut up and I did. For a long time he lay there, as sick a thing in the way of a man as I ever hope to look at. Once he opened his eyes and said: “Did Mrs. Delavan tell this to the cops? I mean, about the dog?”
“She answered their questions. They didn’t ask her about any dog and she didn’t tell them. She stuck to what she knew. The dog, if you want to make something of it, that’s in the realm of conjecture.”
“Then that’s all right.”
It was along toward sundown of a winter Saturday when he finally stood up and went over to the window and stood staring out at the city. He looked like an old man. “Ed, I’m powerful hard hit.”
“I’m sorry, Keyes.”
“It goes together like a clock. Clears it all up.”
“Not quite all. That maid—”
“Simple.”
“Not to me. She didn’t even like Mrs. Sperry. She—”
“The maid was not in on it.”
“Even you thought she lied.”
“Did you ever see the play Macbeth?”
“In college we played Macbeth. I was Banquo.”
“Fine, then you’ll understand what I see in this. In Macbeth, a man suspects that another man suspects him. Macbeth has an
“Something good, I bet.”
“That she didn’t believe it either.”
“Well, say, that is good.”
“That it seemed so fishy, and that was what made her so depressed. She was certain the story about the little old lady was just an excuse of Sperry’s to get out.”
“Funny she reminded him though, Keyes.”
“That was to check on him.”
“That he was in the bar?”
“On a drinking deck, not a jumping deck.”
“Why did she practically beg him to go topside?”
“To vex him.”
“Well say, Keyes, that’s very good.”
“If he got sore enough he’d stay in the bar.”
“She told all this to the cops?”
“She’s a thoroughbred, Ed.”
“Just how do you figure she’s bred so high?”
“She’s covering scandal.”
“Sperry’s?”
“With—whoever.”
“Oh, say it, I don’t mind.”
“His former wife, would be my guess.”
“If so, why did she remind him?”
“Well, you can hardly blame her, another way you look at it, if she knew he did have a date with Mrs. Delavan, for not wanting a stood-up lady to come roaring down to the bar and letting the whole world in on it. If he had a date he had one, and there was nothing she could do about it. But at least she could make sure that the date was where it was supposed to be and not all over the hotel. She could localize it, as they say in medicine, and pretend she didn’t care.”
“So she called him?”
“Ed, she could hardly anticipate that—”
“Jane would up with his heels and heave him out the window?”
“Whatever she did.”
“You ever pushed somebody out of a window?”
“No.”
“O.K., try.”
I stood up in front of the window and kept egging him on to try and push me out. He kept saying I was leaving out the big element that had to be considered, which was surprise, and I kept saying if anybody could get me out, with the sill across my waist, and the sash across my eyes, they were probably a wrestler but not likely a slim, small girl that didn’t weigh but 105 pounds. After a while he got sore, and I piled in: “O.K. then, Keyes. You’ve let a woman take you like Grant took Richmond, but now you get it.”
I told him about the dog, and all the things Jane and I had figured out, and he had been pink from the winter nip when he came in there, but now he got white, gray, and green. There’s a couch in there in the office where I sometimes have a nap, and he went over and lay down. “You think this is something I just dreamed up? You think—?”
But he waved his hand for me to shut up and I did. For a long time he lay there, as sick a thing in the way of a man as I ever hope to look at. Once he opened his eyes and said: “Did Mrs. Delavan tell this to the cops? I mean, about the dog?”
“She answered their questions. They didn’t ask her about any dog and she didn’t tell them. She stuck to what she knew. The dog, if you want to make something of it, that’s in the realm of conjecture.”
“Then that’s all right.”
It was along toward sundown of a winter Saturday when he finally stood up and went over to the window and stood staring out at the city. He looked like an old man. “Ed, I’m powerful hard hit.”
“I’m sorry, Keyes.”
“It goes together like a clock. Clears it all up.”
“Not quite all. That maid—”
“Simple.”
“Not to me. She didn’t even like Mrs. Sperry. She—”
“The maid was not in on it.”
“Even you thought she lied.”
“Did you ever see the play Macbeth?”
“In college we played Macbeth. I was Banquo.”
“Fine, then you’ll understand what I see in this. In Macbeth, a man suspects that another man suspects him. Macbeth has an
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