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“What did you say?” she asked, leaning closer. “I couldn’t hear you.”
“Tell Je
“Tell Je
“Take good care of Kiddo.”
“Of Kiddo. What do you mean? I didn’t buy that horse.”
Terry Buckwalter shook her head. “No,” she managed. “Mr. Brady did.”
The E.M.T.’s showed up and took charge then. Joa
As Joa
“No, ma’am,” Ernie said. “I’m fine. Not hurt in the least.” He saw Joa
TWENTY-ONE
Terry Buckwalter died of her injuries before she ever made it to Cochise County Hospital in Douglas. It took Joa
Showered and shampooed and wearing fresh clothes, she picked him up at the Grand Hotel just after eight-thirty.
“Our reservation is for nine,” he told her. “Everybody said that the best place around is the Rob Roy. That’s where we’re going.”
“Suits me,” she said. “Now that I think about it, I’m close to starving.”
They drove in silence for several minutes, long enough for her to maneuver the Eagle out of town and onto the high-way. She was driving her personal car. The Blazer, with its shattered windows, glass-shredded upholstery and headliner, was currently out of commission.
“How was your day?” she asked.
“Je
“Good,” Joa
“And how’s Je
The words rushed out then, tumbling over themselves in Joa
“I’m sorry,” she said at last, when she finished. “I shouldn’t be ru
“Why wouldn’t you?” Butch said. “You’re a truthful person. You tend to believe what other people tell you. That’s a fault in all the liars of this world, not a fault in you.”
“Still, you’re probably bored to tears.”
“Not at all,” he replied. “I’m trying to add it all up. It turns out that Joa
Joa
“No,” Butch Dixon said quietly. “Not ordinary in any tense of the word. I think you’re downright enchanting.” Embarrassed, Joa
Even at nine o’clock, the place was still hopping. Joa
“Does the pro out here know what happened to his star golfer?” Butch asked.
Joa
They ordered wine-a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon. “What are you going to do about the horse?” Butch asked.
Joa
“But don’t you resent that? Your father-in-law interfering like that-giving Je
Joa
The barmaid brought the wine and was just in the process of removing the cork when Joa
“Excuse me for a minute,” Joa
When Eleanor stepped out of the stall in the bathroom a minutes later, she was astonished to find her daughter using there, leaning against one of the washbasins. “Why, Joa
“Waiting for you,” Joa
Eleanor was clearly flustered. “I’m sorry, Joa
“Mother,” Joa
“Don’t worry?” Eleanor echoed. “But I should have. It’s-”
“What you do or don’t do isn’t any of my business,” Joa
“But-”
“No buts, Mother,” Joa
“Is it a he?” Eleanor asked.
Joa
George Winfield and Eleanor stayed long enough to be introduced, but they left when the hostess arrived to tell Joa
“Have George and your mother been an item for long?” Butch asked.
“I’m only her daughter,” Joa
They had an enjoyable di
When the phone woke her the next morning, she groaned as she picked it up. “What now?”
“Is it true?” Angie Kellogg asked.
“Is what true?”
“What I read in the paper. I stopped off for breakfast and picked up a newspaper while I was at it.”
“I’m not sure what’s in the paper,” Joa
“About the guy with the parrots,” Angie said. “I think Hacker is his name. Age twenty-seven. Is he for real?”
“As far as I know, yes.”
“But I’ve never seen parrots in the wild, only in cages.”
“From what I hear, that seems to be the parrots’ problem, too.
“Could I go see them? The parrots, I mean.”
Angie Kellogg’s enthusiasm made Joa
“But how do I find him?”