'You mean you want me to sell it for you?' Peter Marlowe gaped at him.
'Yes, sir. It's - well - I thought, you being a friend of the King like, you'd know - maybe you'd know how to go about it.'
'It's against orders to sell to the guards, both our orders and theirs.'
'Aw, come on, sir, you can trust me. Why, you and the King —'
'What about me and the King?'
'Nothing, sir,' said the sergeant cautiously. What's the matter with this bugger? Who's he trying to fool? 'I just thought you might help me. And my unit, of course.'
Peter Marlowe looked at the sergeant and at the pen and wondered why he had got so angry. After all, he had sold for the King - or at least, tried to sell for the King - and truthfully he was a friend of the King. And there was nothing wrong in that. If it wasn't for the King they would have never got the tree area. More likely he would be nursing a busted jaw, or at least a slapped face. So he should really uphold the reputation of the King. He did get you the coconuts.
'What do you want for it?'
The sergeant grinned. 'Well, it isn't a Parker, but it's got a gold nib,' and he unscrewed the top and showed it, 'so it should be worth something.
Maybe you could see what he'd give.'
'He'll want to know what you want for it. I'll ask him, but you set a price.'
'If you could get me sixty-five dollars, I'd be happy.'
'Is it worth that much?'
'I think so.'
The pen did have a gold nib and a fourteen carat mark, and as near as Peter Marlowe could judge it was genuine. Not like the other pen.
'Where'd you get it?'
'It's mine, sir. I've been keeping it against a rainy day. Been raining a lot recently.'
Peter Marlowe nodded briefly. He believed the man. 'All right, I'll see what I can do. You keep an eye on the men, and make sure there's a guard out.'
'Don't you worry, sir. The buggers won't bat a bleeding eyelid.'
Peter Marlowe found Torusumi leaning against a squat tree, heavy with a grasping vine. 'Tabe,' he said.
'Tabe.' Torusumi glanced at his Watch, and yawned. 'In an hour we can go. It's not time yet.' He took off his cap and wiped the sweat off his face and neck. 'This stinking heat and stinking island!'
'Yes.' Peter Marlowe tried to make the words sound important, as though it were the King speaking and not he: 'One of the men has a pen he wishes to sell. It occurred to me that thee, as a friend, might wish to buy it.'
'Astaghfaru'llah! Is it a Parka?'
'No.' Peter Marlowe brought out the pen and unscrewed the top and held the nib so it caught the sunlight. 'But it has a gold nib.'
Torusumi examined it. He was disappointed that it wasn't a Parker, but that would have been too much to expect. Certainly not on the airfield. A Parker would be handled by the King personally.
'It is not worth much,' he said.
'Of course. If thou dost not wish to consider it…' Peter Marlowe put the pen back in his pocket.
'I can consider it. Perhaps we can pass the hour, considering such a worthless item.' He shrugged. 'It would only be worth seventy-five dollars.'
Peter Marlowe was amazed that the first bid was so high. The sergeant can't have any idea of its value. God, I wish I knew how much it was really worth.
So they sat and haggled. Torusumi got angry and Peter Marlowe was firm and they settled on a hundred and twenty dollars and a pack of Kooas.
Torusumi got up and yawned again. 'It is time to go.' He smiled. 'The King is a good teacher. The next time I see him I will tell him how thou hast taken advantage of my friendship by driving such a hard bargain.' He shook his head with feigned serf-pity. 'Such a price for such a miserable pen! The King will surely laugh at me. Tell him, I beg thee, that I will be on guard in seven days from today, Perhaps he can find me a watch. A good one-this time!'
Peter Marlowe was content that he had safely made his first real transaction for what seemed to be a fair price. But he was in a quandary. If he gave all the money to the sergeant, the King would be very upset. That would ruin the price structure that the King had so carefully built. And Torusumi would certainly mention the pen and the amount to the King.
However, if he gave the sergeant only what he had asked and kept the rest, well that was cheating, wasn't it? Or was it good 'business'? In truth, the sergeant had asked for sixty-five, and that's what he should get. And Peter Marlowe did owe the King a lot of money.
He wished he'd never started the stupid business. Now he was caught in the trap of his own making. Trouble with you, Peter, is you've too big an idea of your own importance. If you'd said no to the sergeant you wouldn't be up the creek now. What are you going to do? Whatever you do is going to be wrong!
He strolled back slowly, pondering. The sergeant had already lined the men up, and took Peter aside expectantly, 'They're all ready, sir. An' I've checked the tools.' He low' ered his voice. 'Did he buy it?'
