After Midnight

of my five thousand dollars in small bills. None of which did much to soften my impact with the stairs.

I slammed down hard on top of the pack, mashing my breasts, pounding my ribcage and belly, knocking my wind out.

From the sound of things, I instantly pulverized the pretzels.

From the feel of things, a corner of Murphy’s novel tried to punch its way through the gouge in my stomach.

I let out a cry of pain.

A split second after impact, I began skidding down the stairs feet first, knees bumping, thighs scraping, arms being pummeled as they hugged the pack.

The first thing I heard from Elroy was a gasp of, “Oh, dear me!” Then I heard him charging up the stairs below me.

Suddenly, he grabbed the backs of my legs, clamping down hard on them and stopping me.

“I’ve got you,” he gasped. “Don’t worry.”

“Thanks.”

“Are you all right?”

“Fine. I’m fine.”

“Just don’t move.”

I had little intention of moving—at least until I could breathe again and the pain subsided. Even after that, I wouldn’t be able to move until he let go of my legs. He had a firm grip. And his hands were way up there, almost high enough to touch my butt.

“Don’t get fresh,” I told him.

“Ha ha, very funny.”

“I guess I should’ve…let you carry the pack.”

“I’m not one to rub it in.”

Oh, sure you are.

“But I did rather expect something of this sort,” he added.

I should’ve expected it. I’d had so many falls lately, I was starting to feel like a river.

With Elroy still holding me, I pulled my arms out from under the pack. They seemed to work okay. I placed both hands on a stair to brace myself, then said, “Why don’t you sort of ease off my legs, and I’ll try to get up?”

“Be careful,” he warned.

“Get ready to grab me again, just in case.”

When he let go, I pushed at the stair, raising myself off the pack. But suddenly I started to slip.

I gasped.

Elroy grabbed me by the hips.

But I only slipped an inch or two before my knees settled onto a lower stair, stopping me.

“There,” I said.

“Okay?”

“I’ll be fine now. But I can’t get up till you’re out of the way.”

“Okay.”

A true gentleman, he let go of my hips without giving me so much as a squeeze or a pat, and descended the stairs. I got to my feet. With a hand on the railing, I turned halfway around and smiled down at him. “Thanks for catching me,” I said.

“Glad to be of service, ma’am.”

“See you in a while.”

“Are you sure you won’t be needing me again?”

“I’ll be all right. I’m not due for another fall until about sixthirty or seven.”

He laughed. “You fall a lot, do you?”

“Lately. I need to start being more careful.” With that, I turned away, climbed up to my pack, bent over it, and lifted it by the straps. It came swinging back and bumped gently against my thighs.

I stayed on my feet.

At the top of the stairs, I set it down, opened its flap, and took out my purse.

Elroy stood at the foot of the stairs and watched me.

“Go on over to the pool,” I said. “I’ll be down in a couple of minutes.”

“Are you sure you wouldn’t like to invite me up?”

“Don’t make a pest of yourself, Elroy.”

“You can’t blame a fellow for trying.”

“Don’t count on it.”

With a smirk on his face, he winked an eye, pointed a finger at me, and said, “Later.”

Which would’ve been truly cool coming from Paul Newman or John Travolta. Coming from Elroy, it was sort of sad and funny, but mostly annoying.

As he swiveled around and started swaggering toward the pool, I took the keys out of my purse. I unlocked the door, opened it, then picked up my pack and went in.

I made sure the door was locked.

Then I hauled the pack over to my closet, pushed my way through some hanging clothes, and set it down on the floor. There, it was basically out of sight. You could only spot it by squatting down low and peering in under the clothes. You couldn’t spot it that way, either, after I’d shut the closet door.

Good enough.

I wasn’t trying to hide the stuff from Sherlock Holmes. My only concern, just then, was Elroy.

Not that I had any intention of allowing him into my room. You can’t be too careful, though. Elroy might seem harmless and easy to control, but guys like that will sometimes go nuts on you. I wanted my pack to be out of sight—out of mind—in case he flipped out and came barging in.

Or in case I went nuts and brought him in, myself.

Fat chance.

With the pack nicely hidden, I spent a minute or two inspecting my latest injuries. I found minor scrapes on my arms, shins and knees, but no new damage anywhere else—not even where the corner of Murphy’s book had jabbed me in the belly. Nothing needed treatment.

I decided against changing any of my clothes.

In the bathroom, I took a few minutes to “freshen up.” Which means I washed, brushed my hair and dabbed on a bit of Tropical Nights perfume.

I wouldn’t be needing my purse, so I stuck it away inside a dresser drawer.

With nothing except my key case, I stepped outside. Elroy waved at me from a lounger beside the pool. I waved back, then made sure the door was locked before I started down the stairs.

I reached the bottom, still standing.

Elroy got to his feet as I walked over to him.

“Ready for the Happy Hour?” I asked.

“The sun’s well over the yardarm,” he said.

“Let’s go in and concoct something. And I’ll see what I can do about finding a couple of nice, thick steaks for dinner.”

The sliding glass doors were all locked from inside, so I led Elroy around to the front of the house. Along the way, I kept watch for any telltale signs of Tony.

Everything looked fine.

I unlocked the front door and entered the house. Elroy stepped in after me. I shut the door.

The house felt hot and stuffy.

It was very silent.

I’d left all the curtains shut, so the rooms were filled with murky, yellow light.

“Hang on a second,” I whispered. “I’ll turn on the air conditioning.”

As if nervous about being here, Elroy stayed in the foyer and looked around while I hurried down the hall to