Chapter 12: Lost Property
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"Just like last night," I said, "We're a scream together. Rogers and Sternwood, two stooges in search of a comedian." The giggles stopped dead, but she didn't mind the slap any more than last night. Probably all of her boyfriends and dominatrix got around to slapping her sooner or later. I could understand how they might. I sat down on the end of the black desk again. "You're name isn't Rogers," she said seriously. "It's Philip Marlowe. You're a private detective. Viv told me. She showed me your netsite." She smoothed the cheek I had slapped. She smiled at me, as if I was nice to be with. "Well, you do remember," I said. "And you came back to look for that hologram and the media and you couldn't get into the house. Didn't you?" Her chin ducked up and down. She worked the smile. I was having the eye put on me. I was being brought into line. I was going to yell "Yippee" in a minute and ask her to suck my cock. "The holo's gone," I said, "I looked last night, before I took you home. Probably Brody took it with him. You're not kidding me about Brody?" She shook her head earnestly. "It's a pushover," I said. "You don't have to give it another thought. Don't tell a soul you were here, last night or today. Not even Vivian. Just forget you were here. Leave it to Rogers." "Your name isn't -" she began, and then stopped and shook her head vigorously in agreement with what I had said or with what she had just thought of. Her eyes became narrow and almost black and as shallow as paint on a spaceship hull. She had had an idea. "I have to go home now," she said, as we had been having a cup of Chai. "Sure." I didn't move. She gave me another cute glance and went on towards the front door. She had her hand on the knob when we both heard a car coming. She looked up at me with questions in her eyes. I shrugged. The car stopped, right in front of the house. Terror twisted her face. There were steps and then the bell rang. Carmen stared back at me over her shoulder, her hand clutching the door knob, almost drooling with fear. The bell kept on ringing. Then the ringing stopped. A key feeped at the door and Carmen jumped away from it and stood frozen. The door swung open. A man stepped through it briskly and stopped dead, staring at us quietly, with complete composure.
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Part 2