Miss
Eastlake didn't hire me, not really; she... Miss
Eastlake didn't hire me, not really; she took me
inWhen I came here she wasn't like this, Edgar
She was bright, she was funny, she was haughty,
flirty, capricious, demanding - she could hector
me or humor me out of a blue mood if she chose to,
and she often chose to
459
"She was smokinAnother woman would have given in
completely to the wheelchair by nowShe
hauls her hundred and eighty up on that walker and
plods around this air-conditioned museum, the
courtyard outsideshe even used to enjoy
target-shooting, sometimes with one of her
father's old handguns, more often with that
harpoon pistol, because it's got less kickAnd
because she says she likes the soundYou see her
with that thing, and she really does look like the
Bride of the Godfather
"That's how I first saw her," I
replica rolex said
"I took to her right away, and I've come to love
herJulia used to call me mi companeroI think
of that often when I'm with Miss EastlakeShe's
mi companera, mi amigaShe helped me find my
heart when I thought my heart was gone
"I'd say you struck lucky
"Maybe sí, maybe noTell you this, it's going to
be hard to leave herWhat's she gonna do when a
new person shows up? A new person won't know about
how she likes to have her coffee at the end of the
boardwalk in the morningor about pretending to
throw that fucking cookie-tin in the goldfish
460
pondand she won't be able to explain, because
she's headed into the fog for good now
He turned to me, looking haggard and more than a
little frantic
"I'll write everything down, that's what I'll do -
our whole routineAnd you'll
see that the new
gucci men wallet caretaker keeps to itWon't you,
Edgar? I mean, you like her, too, don't you? You
wouldn't want to see her hurtAnd Jack! Maybe he
could pitch in a littleI know it's wrong to ask,
but-"
A new thought struck himHe got to his feet and
stared out at the waterThe
skin was so tight on his cheekbones that it shone
His hair hung over his ears in clumps, badly
needing a wash
"If I die - and I could, I could go out in a wink
just like Senor Brown - you'll have to take over
here until the estate can find a new live-inIt
won't be much of a hardship, you can paint right
out hereThe light's great, isn't it? The light's
terrific!"
He was starting to scare me"Wireman-"
461
He whirled around and now his eyes were blazing,
the left one seemingly through a net of blood
"Promise, Edgar! We need a plan! If we
chanel jewelry don't have
one, they'll cart her away and put her in a home
and she'll be dead in a month! In a week! I know
it! So promise!"
I thought he might be rightAnd I thought that if
I wasn't able to take some of the pressure off his
boiler, he was apt to have another seizure right
in front of meThen I said, "You
may end up living a lot longer than you think,
WiremanBut I'll write everything down anyway
iii
He once more offered me the Palacio golf cart for
the return trip to Big PinkI told him I'd be
fine walking, but I wouldn't mind having a glass
of juice before setting out
Now I enjoy fresh-squeezed Florida oj as much as
anyone, but I confess to having an ulterior motive
that particular morningHe left me in the little
462
receiving room at the beach end of El Palacio's
glassed-in center
gucci bag silver hallHe used this room as an
office, although how a man who couldn't read for
more than five minutes at a stretch could deal
with correspondence was beyond meI guessed - and
this touched me - that Elizabeth might have helped
him, and quite a lot, before her own condition
began to worsen
Coming in for breakfast, I had glanced into this
room and spied a certain gray folder lying on the
closed lid of a laptop for which Wireman probably
had little use these daysI flipped it open now
and took one of the three X-rays
"Big glass or little glass?" Wireman called from
the kitchen, startling me so badly that I almost
dropped the sheet in my hand
"Medium's fine!" I called backI tucked the X-ray
film into my collection pouch and flipped the
folder closed againFive minutes later I was
trudging back up the
925 tiffany and co. jewelry b