Not completely, you understand. There were a few details to iron out, my alibi and setting him up and so on, But I knew they'd come to me.
Mrs. Summers glanced at me as we went back up the aisle together. "Well, young man. You're looking very happy."
"I'm glad you let me come with you," I said. "It's done me a lot of good."
They stopped at the door to shake hands with the minister, and she introduced me. I told him his sermon had been very inspiring… which it was. I'd doped out the plan forJake while he was spieling.
We started on out to the car, she and I walking together and the sheriff trailing along behind.
"I was wondering, Mr. Big-Oh, I think I'll call you, Carl. If you don't mind."
"I wish you would," I said. "What were you wondering, Mrs. Summers?"
"I was going to ask you if-" We'd reached the curb, and she turned and motioned impatiently. "Oh, do come on, Bill. You're slower than molasses injanuary. I was about to ask Carl to come home to dinner with us."
"Yeah?" he said. "How come? I mean-uh-you were?"
Her mouth tightened. Untightened. I think she ws just about to open up on him when he headed her off.
"Well, fine, great!" He clapped me on the back. "Tickled to death to have you, son. Meant to ask you myself."
He hadn't meant to. He didn't even halfway like the idea. He could take me to church, sure. But to take me into his home- pal up with me-when there was any kind of a chance that I might mean trouble.
There was something about me that bothered him. There was something he wasn't quite satisfied about.
"Thanks very much," I said. "I don't think I'd better today. They're expecting me at the house, and I've got a lot of things to get ready for school and-and all."
"Uh-huh. Sure," he nodded. "Well, if you can't make it, you can't… guess we'll have to eat by ourselves, Bessie."
"You," she said. "I'll swear, Bill Summers, I-I-!"
"Now, what'd I do? I asked him, didn't I? You heard him say he couldn't come. Didn't I"-he turned to me-"Didn't you say you couldn't come?"
"Hush. You're impossible. Utterly impossible… Carl, I'd ask you to let us drive you home, but I imagine His Highness would find some way to keep you from accepting."
"Now, I wouldn't neither! Heck, I-why'd I do a thing like that?"
"Why do you do anything, pray tell?"
It was getting embarrassing. I put a stop to it. I said I honestly couldn't take dinner with them today-maybe some other time-but I would appreciate a ride home.
Neither of them said anything until we reached the house. Then, while I was thanking them and saying good morning, he squinted at the coupe pulled in at the gutter.
"Hey," he frowned, "that's Doc Dodson's car, ain't it? You got some sick folks here, son?"
"Not that I know of," I said. "I left the house before anyone was up this morning."
"Must be someone sick. Doc wouldn't be payin' no social calls on the Winroys. Wonder who it could be?"
"Why don't you go in and ask?" Mrs. Summers glared at him. "Shake hands with all of them. Call them all by their first names. Ask about their families. Never mind about me, or how I-"
He jammed the car into gear, cutting her off. "I'm goin', ain't I? Doggone it, can't you see I'm goin'?… son, I'm-I-"
I hopped out fast. He drove off, the engine roaring, and I went up the walk and into the house.
Fay met me in the hall. She was breathless. The reddishbrown eyes blazed with fear against the dead white of her face. I looked past her, into the dining room.
Ruth was in there. Ruth and Kendall and Jake and a potbellied, bald-headed little guy I knew was a doctor. Jake was sprawled on the floor on his back, and the doctor was stooped down over him, holding a stethoscope to his chest.
Fay whispered to me, her lips barely moving.
"His wine. Poisoned. Doped. Did you-?"
13
I pushed past her, flipping my fist against her groin. Goddammit, of course she was scared, but she didn't need to hang a sign on me. She followed me into the dining room and stood beside me. I moved away from her, over between Kendall and Ruth.
Jake's eyes were closed. He was mumbling, rolling his head from side to side. The doc leaned back, letting the stethoscope swing free, and frowned down at him.
He picked upJake's wrist and felt the pulse. He let the hand drop back to the floor.
"Hold still," he said curtly.
"… Slee-py… s-so-" Jake kept on rolling his head, breathing in great shuddering breaths "… S-save me… l-lookit… w-wine-"
"Stop that! Stop it this minute!" The doctor gripped him by the head with one hand. "Hold still!"
Jake held still. He had to. The way the doc was gripping him, he might have got his scalp peeled off.
The doctor pulled back first one eyelid, then, the other. He stood up, brushing at the knees of his pants, and nodded to Kendall.
"You tell me how this happened, Phil?"
"Why, yes, Doc." Kendall took the pipe out of his mouth. "I don't know as I can add anything to what Mrs. Winroy-"
"Mrs. Winroy was somewhat excited. You tell me."
"Well, let's see. She and I-Mrs. Winroy and I-were in the living room, reading the Sunday papers, and Miss Dome was in the kitchen preparing dinner. Isn't that right, Ruth?"
"Y-yes, sir."
"Never mind all that. Just the essentials." The doctor glanced impatiently at his watch. "I can't spend all morning on-on-You heard Winroy coming down the stairs, making plenty of noise about it. Go on."
"I got up. We both got up, I believe. We supposed that- uh-he was just-"
"Drunk. Go on."
"We went out into the hall and he staggered past us, mumbling that he'd been doped-that the wine had been doped, or something of the kind. His speech was very unclear. He came into the dining room and collapsed, and we-Mrs. Winroy-called-"
"He was carrying the wine bottle with him, eh? Very carefully corked?" The loctor's face was flushed; the red seemed to go clear up into his eyes. "Let me see it again."
Kendall took the bottle from the table and handed itto him. He sniffed it, tasted it, took a man-size swallow of it. He brushed his mouth sourly, glancing at Fay.
"He take sleeping pills? How many-how often?"
"I-I don't k-know, doctor."
"Know how many he has? Whether any great number is missing?"
"No, I-" Fay shook her head "-I brought him some back from the city, but I don't know how many he had-"