John D MacDonald Travis McGee 17 The Empty Copper Sea

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.Or maybehe was a retired enlisted man who had been company clerk for too many abusiveofficers.If I were King of the World I would roam my kingdom in rags,incognito, dropping fortunes onto the people who are nice with no specialreason to be nice, and having my troops lop off the heads of the mean, small,embittered little bastards who try to inflate their self-esteem by stomping onyours.I would start the lopping among post-office employees, bank tellers,bus drivers, and pharmacists.I would go on to checkout clerks, bellboys,Page 60ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmlprowl-car cops, telephone operators, and U.S.Embassy clerks.By God, therewould be so many heads rolling here and there, the world would look like aberserk bowling alley.Meyer says this shows a tad of hostility.As Meyer was not yet back, I decided to walk all the way around to the CedarPass Marina and take a look at the Julie and have a couple of words with DeeGee Walloway, resident aboard.It was a fine time of day for walking, andthere was lots to look at around that great curve of Say Street.I whistledone of my tuneless tunes, strode my loose-jointed, ambling, ground-coveringway, squinted when the sun shone between the buildings on the bay shore.Ismiled at a brown cocky city dog and nodded at a fish-house cat nested into awindowsill.Gulls tipped and dipped, yelling derision and dirty gull-words.Steel tools made music when dropped on concrete floors.Cars and trucksbelched blue, gunning at the lights.A paste-white lady with sulfur curls,wearing bullfighter pants and a leopard top, slouched in a doorway and gave mea kissy-looking smile.Spillane had shot her in the stomach a generation ago,and she was still working the streets.I told her it was a lovely evening andkept going.Even the wind-sped half sheet of newsprint that wrapped itselfaround my ankle had some magic meaning, just beyond the edge of comprehension.I picked it off and read that firebombs had crisped four more West Germanchildren, that 30 percent of Florida high-school graduates couldn't makechange, and 50 percent couldn't comprehend a traffic citation.I read thatunemployment was stabilized, UFOs had been seen over Elmira, the latest oilspill was as yet unidentified, and, to make a room look larger, use coolcolors on the walls, such as blues and greens and grays.I wadded it to walnut size and threw it some fifteen feet at a trashcontainer.The swing lid of the trash container was open about an inch and ahalf.If it went in, I would live forever.It didn't even touch the edges as itdisappeared inside.I wished it was all a sound stage, that the orchestra wasout of sight.I wished I was Gene Kelly.I wished I could dance.I went into the marina office.It was shipshape, clean, efficient-looking.Theman in white behind the desk looked like a Lufthansa pilot."Sir?" he saidwith measured smile."My name is McGee.I phoned from Lauderdale earlier in the week about dockspace for a houseboat."He flipped through his cards."Yes.The arrival date was indefinite.I have ithere you will arrive between the twenty-fifth, next Wednesday, and thetwenty-ninth.Let me see.Marjory took the call.I assume she told you it isno problem this time of year.Fifty-three feet.The Busted Flush?""As in poker, not as in plumbing.""Length of stay indefinite?""That's correct.I'll let you people know as soon as I know." I hesitated, anddecided to try it out."Captain Van Harder is bringing her around for me."It did startle him.The eyes of eagles clouded for a moment.The muscles ofthe square jaw worked."I probably should not say anything to you.Van is asgood as there is around here.I don't think he should have lost his license.Did you know he had?""Yes.""This is something a lot of people do not know-if you hire a man to operateyour boat and he doesn't have a license, if there is any trouble, you mighthave difficulty with your insurance company.""I knew him years ago when he fished charter out of Bahia Mar at Lauderdale,before he went into shrimp and had his bad luck.He's bringing it around as afavor to me.No hiring involved and no passengers aboard.So I think it'sokay."He nodded."I would think it's okay too.""What is the status of the Julie?""The legal status? Clouded.The bank has put a lien on her.So she just sits,God knows how long.I know that nobody is going to move her until we get ourPage 61ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.htmldock rental.The mate is living aboard.""Is he there now?"He started to say he didn't know, but a smallish, dark, and pretty woman camein from the room behind the office.He introduced us.She remembered my call.He asked Marjory if she'd seen Walloway leave the marina and she said shethought he was still aboard.I remembered the Julie from having seen her at Pier 66.She looked even betterin the dying day.She sparkled from one end to the other.The brightwork waslike mirrors.Varnish gleamed.Lines were smartly coiled, all the fendersperfectly placed.The boat basin had two main docks at right angles to theshoreline, with finger piers extending out on either side of the main docks.Small stuff was moored at the finger piers between the two docks, where therewas less maneuvering room.The Julie was on the outside of the left-hand dock,moored to one of the middle finger piers, stern toward the dock, starboardagainst the finger pier.A hinged section of rail was turned back amid ships to make space for thelittle boarding ramp.Its wheels moved very slightly as the breeze moved thehull of the vessel.DeeGee Walloway came toward the ramp, stuffing his keys into the pocket of histight whipcord cowboy pants.He wore boots, a silver-gray shirt with lots ofpiping and pearl buttons, a blue neckerchief, and a Saturday-night cowboy hat.He looked like Billy Carter, except he was half again as tall and twice asbroad.I knew at once why that name had rung a small bell in the back of my head.Hestopped and stared at me.He snapped his fingers, rubbed his mouth, shoved hishat back, and said, "McGee!""How you, Deej?""Son of a bitch! Hey, is Van bringing your houseboat around from the otherside?""Word sure gets around [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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