I learned a lot that night at Mader’s. One of the things was that Jim Beam was probably the only guy who had a chance of getting the upper hand on Detective Williams. There is nothing like a little booze to loosen the tongue of a woman, among other things. Also, I didn’t know that Detective Williams could hold her bourbon as well as she did. I believe she finished off close to an entire bottle of Jim Beam by herself. I never saw her stagger on her numerous trips to the ladies room. Of course by the end of the night, I wasn’t able to see much of anything.
I had pumped her and Harry all evening for inside information on my three headless lady friends, Sally Hammonds and Kathryn Reilly and Jane Doe. While Harry and I sipped on a glass of Courvoisier V.S.O.P and Eloise was sipping on a glass of white wine and EJ was throwing back one more double bourbon, I asked her one more time why she wouldn’t allow me to stop by the office in the morning to confirm some information I heard on the street about Sally Hammonds. She rose out of her chair like the second coming of the Phoenix and pulled out her gun grabbing the lapels of my coat while overturning Eloise’s wine and what was left of her double Jim Beam, Harry and I were able to save our cognac, she yelled; “Max, I’m going to hit you so hard, your kids are going to be born dizzy if you don’t get out of my face.”
I don’t know why she was so upset. I am usually able to loosen tongues of most cops after plying them with enough drinks but with Emily it seemed like she just got surlier.
I was just glad she didn’t threaten harm to my organ that made having kids possible. Not that I am considering having any, but I would prefer to keep that organ safe from physical harm.
Gus came running over trying to assure surrounding customers that the nice lady wasn’t really going to shoot the poor guy sitting across the table from her.
After Harry was able to calm Detective Williams down, she threw back one last double bourbon before walking out with Harry into the cool night. I paid for our dinner and grabbed Eloise’s hand and left the restaurant to the stares of surrounding diners. I noticed the stammtisch Table was empty. Wonder why Val didn’t seat us there?
“Max, you may know ponies and you may know typewriting but you don’t know shit about people,” Eloise said as we strolled along to where I left my car.
“If you want to get information from Detective Williams, you have to treat her with respect and quit leering at her. My God Max, if your eyes were sex organs she would have been raped tonight. And I don’t like you looking at her like that either. Take me home Max.”
“Eloise, you know I have the utmost respect for you ladies. I just appreciate a fine looking woman like most men appreciate fine wine.”
I didn’t see the slap coming but it sure as hell brought me back to the present.
By the time I recovered my senses, or what I thought were my senses, Eloise was already opening the door and getting in the car.
I slept alone in the Nash that night.