out the truth that he professed to believe in.
5
But I felt that it couldn’t go on much longer. If I said 6
no that day, then my chances would be over. The bank 7
wouldn’t give a petty embezzler a break on the mortgage.
8
I couldn’t work.
9
“What do you plan to be doing down there in my 10
basement?” I asked.
11
“Reading, thinking. If I get the opportunity maybe I’ll 12
do some writing.”
13
“Nothing else?”
14
“Eat and sleep.” Bennet’s face was reposed and patient.
15
He even gave me a wan smile.
16
“What do you mean, if you get the opportunity? ”
17
“Many things depend on circumstance, Mr. Blakey.
18
Opportunities stem from these circumstances.”
19
I was beaten by this last interchange. Anniston Bennet 20
wanted to live the hermit’s life in a two-hundred-year-old 21
cellar. I needed the money. I tried to think about what my 22
mother would advise, but all I could come up with was a 23
sad face and a deep sigh, a beseeching look that said I 24
hoped I did right. Uncle Brent would have damned me 25
for either choice.
26
I wanted to say no, but instead I said, “Okay, Mr. Ben-S 27
net. Bring me your paper bag and we have a deal.”
R 28
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1
2
3
The white man handed me the bag and shook my hand 4
in the street in front of my house. Irene Littleneck 5
watched and smoked over our exchange.
6
“See you on July one,” Bennet said softly.
7
“You bet.”
8
Again he got into his turquoise Volkswagen, made a U-9
turn, and drove off. Irene met my eye from her porch 10
across the street. She probably wanted an explanation. I 11
had known her since I was a child — getting into mis-12
chief and having my ears twisted by her and her sister, 13
Chastity.
14
“How is Chastity, Miss Littleneck?” I hailed.
15
“Restin’,” the aged woman replied.
16
“Give her my best,” I said.
17
“Thank you,” Irene said, and she turned off the heavy 18
stare of accusation. A kind word about her family always 19
softened her punishing ways.
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27 S
28 R
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2
3
4
10
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
I answered the phone after it had been ringing for a C 14
very long time.
15
“Helah,” I said.
16
“Charles? Charles, are you awake?”
17
It was Monday morning and I was sprawled out on the 18
floor in front of the couch in the living room. My pillow 19
was a paper bag that held almost eight thousand dollars 20
on top of a brand-new boom box that I’d picked up in 21
East Hampton. Next to me was a half-empty bottle of 22
Courvoisier. A cognac high is the smoothest thing in the 23
world. Even the hangover is like being squeezed by a vel-24
vet vise.
25
“Ricky? Ricky, what time is it?”
26
“It’s afternoon, Charles. Afternoon.” As wild as Ricky S 27
thought he was, he was still a blue-collar man. The R 28
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thought of sleeping during daylight hours was sinful to 2
him.
3
“What you want, Ricky?”
4
“My mom got back home from her sister’s last night.”
5
“Yeah? Tell her hello for me,” I said. Ricky’s mother had 6
always been kind to me.
7
“Yeah, okay. But listen. Bethany wanna come over 8
tonight, you hear what I’m sayin’? She got a roommate 9
and I got my moms.”
10
“Doesn’t she have a room?” When I sat up, a spasm 11
went through my intestines. For a moment I thought I 12
was going to vomit right there on my money.
13
“Yeah, man, but the kinda lovin’ she spoons out is too 14
loud for a small apartment.” I could hear the greed in 15
Ricky’s voice. “Let us stay with you tonight? You know —
16
the same deal you used to make with Clarance.”
17
I saw a hawk through the window. She was stiff-winged 18
and wheeling round.
19
A huntress, I thought, honing in on her prey.
20
The thought chilled me, and I forgot for a moment or 21
two about Ricky on the other end of the line.
22
“You could keep the fifty you owe me,” he said.
23
“I got your fifty right here in my wallet, man.”
24
“Where you get that?”
25
I rose to my feet, holding the bag of money in my right 26
hand.
27 S
“Yeah, you two could stay,” I said. “I’ll even make you 28 R
dinner.”
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The Man in My Basement
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2
I spent the day taking care of business. I went to the bank 3
in Southampton and gave them four payments on the 4
mortgage, in cash. I paid ahead on the rest of my utilities 5
too. I bought groceries that would last a month or more.
6
That included six quarts of cheap bourbon — I didn’t 7
want to waste any more money on cognac. I also bought 8
paint, paintbrushes, tools, and every kind of cleaning liq-9
uid, brush, and rag. I bought three pairs of jeans, a pair of 10
Timberjack work boots, four checkered flannel shirts, 11
and a new toothbrush. I renewed my subscription to the 12
New York Times, partially because I thought Bennet 13
would want to read it, and bought four CDs of Thelo-14
nious Sphere Monk, whose music was the only thing in 15
the world that Brent and I both loved.
16
I went to the used bookstore in the Harbor and bought 17
fifteen sci-fi hardbacks. Mostly Philip K. Dick and Brian 18
Aldiss. I was digging in for the long haul. This was mainly 19
due to the fear that I’d waste all the money Bennet gave 20
me before I had taken care of business.
21
Brent used to say that money went through my fingers 22
like water down the drain. He wasn’t wrong. The first 23
thing I did when Bennet left was to go out and buy a 24
pure gold ring that I had seen in an antique store in 25
East Hampton. It was a slender thing with a pale green 26
stone for a setting. It was from India, Mrs. Canelli said. It S 27
was a woman’s ring and too small for me, but I wanted it R 28
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anyway. And once I had the money, I couldn’t help 2
myself.
3
My mother gave me my allowance every Saturday 4
morning, and I’d spend the rest of the day shopping for 5
candy and gifts for her.
6
“Don’t spend everything, baby,” she’d tell me. But her 7
eyes were alight whenever I’d bring out a bottle of per-8