“Look,” Brenda said, “I’ve been to bed with rattlesnakes and I’ve been to bed with skunks and I’ve been to bed with mongrel dogs, but I have never been to bed with Arthur McDougall. Okay?”
“I have a few more questions, Miss Conrad?—”
“You can take your questions and shove them!” And she stamped off, back to the tennis court, never looking back.
It was actually a rather graceful exit. Her sense of timing again.
The waiter came over. “Who gets the gin and tonic?” he asked.
* * *
Walking back to the Holiday Inn, I asked Perkins, “What made you ask her about an affair?”
“Just a guess,” he said mildly. “I learned a long time ago that even when movie people don’t particularly respect or admire or like each other, they are often fornicating nonetheless. So I asked.”
“Satisfied with her answer?”
“No,” Perkins said, and he didn’t elaborate.
By now it was eight thirty in the morning, but the sun was up, and it was very hot. I asked Perkins if he wanted to go out to the location.
“In an hour,” he said. “First I have to check on the pictures.”
“Pictures?”
He didn’t answer. He went directly to the reception desk, where there was a large manila envelope waiting for him, marked “PHOTOS DO NOT BEND.” The return address was the police department, City of Tucson.
“I am going to my room now,” Perkins said.
“Mind if I come along?”
“If you wish.”
“I have some calls to make first. I’ll see you there.”
“That will be fine,” Perkins said, adjusting his tie.
* * *
I called Appelbaum.
“It is a sensation,” Appelbaum said. “It is a phenomenon. You can’t believe the distributors.”
“What about them?”
“Every theater owner in America has called in the last twenty-four hours. They all want to book.”
“BookBloodrock?”
“Hell yes.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Haven’t you been reading the papers? Every paper in the country is saying that Clete Williams murdered McDougall. The distributors smell a hit in this one. It’s a bigger scandal thanThe Getaway.”
I was beginning to understand Appelbaum better. He washopingthat Clete was the murderer. It would be terrific for business.
“Have you seen the trades?” Appelbaum asked.
