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“Bye, Mr. Blakey. You come on back, okay?”
S 27
R 28
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Bennet was dressed when I returned. Seated in the red 15
chair, he wasn’t reading or doing anything else as far as I 16
could see.
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“Mr. Dodd-Blakey,” he said in greeting.
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“Mr. Bennet,” I replied.
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It was an acknowledgment, the beginning of an under-20
standing.
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I pulled the trunk up to his cell and sat.
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“What do you want?” I asked.
23
“To serve out my time. To pay my debt.”
24
“Pay who?”
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“Every minute I’m in here costs me something, 26
Charles. May I call you Charles?”
27 S
“It’s my name,” I said.
28 R
“My business relations are delicate, Charles. My atten-168
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The Man in My Basement
tion is needed sometimes within moments of certain 1
events. When my phone rings I’m supposed to answer. If 2