[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

Peg said,  He s not narcoleptic. And he doesn t have ver-
tigo. At least, I don t think he does.
The children nodded silently, trying to come up with an-
other possible explanation for a grown man losing conscious-
ness on a sissy ride.
 Maybe he s pretending, said the first boy, nudging Ray
with his sneaker.
The other kids said,  Yeah! and joined in with the prod-
ding of prostrate Ray.
Peg said,  Stop that! The kids were laughing now.  I m
calling a cop.
 No need, ma am, said a baritone voice.
The kids ran back to their parents on the Ferris wheel line.
Peg looked up at the voice. It was a cop. Middle-aged, sun-
glasses at dusk, stuffed into a cardboard-brown-colored uni-
form, fully loaded with hat, billy club, gun, walkie-talkie. He
was holding a corn dog in one hand. The other rested gently
on his holster.
She said,  Those children were harassing my friend.
 What do we have here? asked the cop, pointing at Ray
with his corn dog.
What to say? He d been drugged with prescription sedatives?
That might lead to more questions, which she didn t want to
answer. For all she knew, this country cop might haul her in to
his station house, and she d never see the light of day again. It d
be like Midnight Express, but not in Turkey. In Sunbridge.
Peg said,  He s drunk.
The cop  Officer A. M. Call, read the stitching on his
shirt pocket said,  This is a dry fair, ma am. If he s drunk, I ll
have to search you both and confiscate your alcohol. And give
you a fine. His gun hand reached behind to his back pocket.
He whipped out a mini-clipboard with silver hoops. The ticket
pad.
190 Valerie Frankel
 He s not drunk. I lied, said Peg.  He s a vertiginous nar-
coleptic.
 A what? asked the cop, getting a pen from his front shirt
pocket.
 He gets dizzy. And sleepy. Suddenly. Without cause.
 He s dizzy, said the cop.  And sleepy.
 Exactly. Without cause.
 I know the cause, said Officer Call.  He s drunk. Fine for
being publicly intoxicated at dry fair is four hundred dollars.
Corn dog propped in his mouth, he started filling out the
ticket form.
 He s not drunk! said Peg.  Test him! You ll see.
 If you want to contest this fine, you can take it up with the
county registrar in White River Junction. Call the number on
the ticket to schedule a hearing.
Peg said,  I can t help feeling like you re giving me an un-
usually high fine because I m from out of state. I ve heard that
this happens. You re trying to drive flatlanders out of the area
with trumped-up charges.
 That s an interesting theory, said Officer Call.  For shar-
ing it, I ll have to charge you with disorderly conduct. Fine of
two hundred dollars.
She turned toward the people on line at the Ferris wheel.
They were all watching and listening. Some seemed sympa-
thetic. But, for the most part, the Vermonters were grinning,
enjoying this part of the evening s entertainment.
This wasn t a fair. It was an unfair. This  officer should be
fired for extortion.
 You should be fired for extortion, said Peg, exercising her
constitutional right to free speech.  I m going to schedule a
hearing. And the judge is going to get an earful from me.
 That s nice. When you see Judge Call, tell her that her
nephew Artemis says hello, he said.  Name.
 Peg Silver, she spit.
 Address, he said.
The Girlfriend Curse 191
How to answer that one?  I have a farm in Manshire, but I
haven t moved in yet.
 Address where you re staying, he said.
 I m not sure of the exact address, she said, making this
process a difficult as possible for the bastard.
 Describe the place, said the cop.
 It s a big Federal on River Road in Manshire. Right before
the bridge into New Hampshire.
Officer Call stopped writing. He looked at her, and then at
Ray.  Linus Bester s? he asked.
 Yes, she said.
 Wait a minute, said the cop.  You re that topless girl I
turned the SuperLight on last week on the boat dock at
Dartmouth. And this fellow is the one who said I had no
balls.
 That was you? asked Peg.  Small valley.
 You have no idea, he said.  I didn t recognize you.
 I look a lot different with my clothes on?
The crowd laughed. Officer Call pointed his corn dog at
them. They stopped laughing.
He said,  Since you re a friend of Linus s, I ll let you off
this time. He ripped the tickets off his pad and put them in
his pocket. Officer Call ate the remainder of his corn dog in
one big bite. While chewing, he bent down and lifted Ray in
his arms, carrying him like a sleeping child toward the park-
ing lot. Peg hurried to keep up.
The cop said,  Where s your car?
 Mention the name Linus Bester and I get out of jail free?
she asked.
 That s right, said the officer.  Plus a police escort back to
Manshire.
Peg couldn t find her Subaru in the parking lot full of other
Subarus. She had to use her nifty remote to locate the car. Of-
ficer Call loaded Ray into the passenger side and buckled him
in. Peg got in the driver s side and followed the cop in her car
192 Valerie Frankel
as he walked toward his vehicle a blue Subaru with the
words  Manshire Sheriff painted in white. Then she followed
him back to the Federal.
They both pulled into the driveway. Out of his car window,
Officer Call said,  Need help getting him inside?
Peg said,  You ve done enough. Thank you.
 Tell Linus that Artemis says hello.
Peg nodded.  Tell me the truth, she said.  You were giving
me that trumped-up ticket just because I m from New York.
Sheriff Call said,  New York? I thought you were from New
Jersey. Then he drove off into the night.
New Jersey?
Peg had never been so insulted in all her life.
Chapter 24
x
| [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

  • zanotowane.pl
  • doc.pisz.pl
  • pdf.pisz.pl
  • annablack.xlx.pl
  •