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special.
I went down to see Agent Greg Simpson on the switchboard.
 I need an agent to come to the ballgame with us this afternoon;
both Daniel and Desdemona will be there.
 Hell I could do with a break like that myself. Do you mind if I
come along?
 No problem Greg, happy to have you.
I left him organizing a replacement agent to take over the
switchboard.
I went up to my own room and found that Wilkinson had
everything of mine cleaned, polished or pressed and put away more
neatly than my mother ever did. I changed into fresh comfortable
clothing and then telephoned Janine Drew.
 Hi Jan, it s Frederick Huntsman. How are things?
 Freddie! Where have you been? I ve called just about every day
but the Mayor s switchboard said that you were away on business.
 If you call crawling through a forest in mud and being washed
over a waterfall, business then that s where I ve been. Do you feel
like going out sometime?
 Sure! I m free tonight. What do you have in mind?
 A nice quiet dinner in a very good restaurant; any suggestions?
 I ve never been to the Excelsior but I hear it is the best in town.
I don t know about reservations though; it s usually booked up I m
told.
 I ll see whether the mayor can help with that. I pick you up at
seven thirty.
 Call me back if you get a reservation, dressing for the Excelsior
isn t like going for a hamburger you know. You might have to wear
a dinner suit.
I went to speak to the mayor.
 The Excelsior? Yes, certainly, I know the owner. I ll arrange it
for you. He said graciously.
He called me up in my room a few minutes later.
 A table for two at the Excelsior at eight o clock this evening; the
reservation is made, my boy. The bill has been taken care of, it s all
on me, enjoy yourself.
I thanked him for his generosity. He was exactly like this with his
children. He gave them anything they wanted except his personal
time and attention.
I remarked on the matter to Wilkinson.
 Ah, yes sir. He would do that. You see, sir, he is the owner of the
Excelsior.
 Oh damned it! I hope he doesn t think that I conned him into
this. I said.
 No sir, he wouldn t. It is not open knowledge that he owns
it. He keeps a private dining room there and uses it to entertain
business acquaintances. He says that the Excelsior pays for itself and
covers his business entertaining costs.
I called Janine and confirmed that we would be dining at the
Excelsior.
 Wow! That s what I call having pull. Janine said admiringly.
 My friends say that waiting time for a reservation at Excelsior can
run to months.
I went upstairs to collect my two charges.
Daniel was ready and eager but Desdemona was still applying
makeup. I left her to it and brought the Jaguar around to the front
where Agent Greg Simpson was already waiting.
When Desdemona came down, I have to admit that she had
made an excellent job of making up her face. Her blisters could
only be seen when the light fell on her normally smooth young
skin. Otherwise she looked pert, pretty and certainly cute.
I sat alongside Greg who drove the car mainly because he wanted
to feel what it was like to drive a Jaguar but also because he knew
exactly where we were going which was more than I could say.
Desdemona and Daniel sat on the back seat and talked animatedly;
Desdemona about her experience in the forest in response to
Daniel s questions and Daniel about what one of his friends had
told him about going to a ballgame.
I kept my eyes open on everything that was happening around
us but nothing untoward occurred and we arrived at the ballgame
safely.
Daniel ate two hotdogs with sauerkraut and carried an enormous
container of popcorn around as he waited for me to pay for the
tickets. He kept Greg Simpson on the run the whole time as he
looked at everything and asked a thousand questions.
Desdemona stayed with me and clung to my arm possessively. I
bought the expensive tickets because the queue was shorter but it
also gave us really good seats.
We settled in with Greg explaining everything and anything to
Daniel as the boy s active mind hopped from one question to the
next.
Desdemona, still clinging to my arm, said to me privately under
the noise of the crowd.
 Freddie, you didn t really mean it when you said that you only
ever regarded me as a younger sister, did you? I ve seen you look at
me when I ve been naked and no brother would look at his sister
like that.
 Des, I did mean it. I m a young guy myself and I like looking a
naked girls but that doesn t mean that I am going to fall for them. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]