“I've got to see him,” she said. “Haven't you any idea where he'd be?”
“No, I don't know where he is.”
“Do you think he'll be late?”
I said, “I guess he usually is.”
She frowned at me and then she said, “I've got to see him. I'll wait a little while anyhow.” So we went back to the dining-room.
She kept her coat on and began to walk around the room looking at things but without paying much attention to them. I asked her if she wanted a drink and she said, “Yes,” sort of absent-minded, but when I started to get it for her she took hold of the lapel of my coat and said, “Listen,
Eddie, will you tell me something? Honest to God?”
I said, “Sure,” feeling kind of embarrassed looking in her face like that, “if I can.”
“Is Loney really in love with me?”
That was a tough one. I could feel my face getting redder and redder. I wished the door would open and Loney would come in. I wished a fire would break out or something.
She jerked my lapel. “Is he?” . I said, “I guess so. I guess he is, all right.”
“Don't you know?”
I said, “Sure, I know, but Loney don't ever talk to me about things like that. Honest, he don't.”
She bit her lip and turned her back on me. I was sweating. I spent as long a time as I could in the kitchen getting the whisky and things. When I went back in the dining-room she had sat down and was putting lip-stick on her mouth. I set the whisky down on the table beside her.
She smiled at me and said, “You're a nice boy, Eddie. I hope you win a million fights. When do you fight again?”
I had to laugh at that. I guess I had been going around thinking that everybody in the world knew I was going to fight Sailor Perelman that Saturday just because it was my first main event. I guess that is the way you get a swelled head. I said, “This Saturday.”
“That's fine,” she said, and looked at her wrist-watch. “Oh, why doesn't he come? I've got to be home before Jake gets there.” She jumped up. “Well, I can't wait any longer. I shouldn't have stayed this long. Will you tell Loney something for me?”
“Sure.”
“And not another soul?”
“Sure.”
She came around the table and took hold of my lapel again. “Well, listen. You tell him that somebody's been talking to Jake about—about us.. You tell him we've got to be careful, Jake'd kill both of us. You tell him I don't think Jake knows for sure yet, but we've got to be careful. Tell Loney not to phone me and to wait here till I phone him tomorrow afternoon. Will you tell him that?”
“Sure.”
“And don't let him do anything crazy.”
I said, “I won't.” I would have said anything to get it over with.
She said, “You're a nice boy, Eddie,” and kissed me on the mouth and went out of the house.
I did not go to the door with her. I looked at the whisky on the table and thought maybe I ought to take the first drink of my life, but instead I sat down and thought about Loney. Maybe I dozed off a little but I was awake when he came home and that was nearly two o'clock.
He was pretty tight. “What the hell are you doing up?” he said.
I told him about Mrs. Schiff and what she told me to tell him.
He stood there in his hat and overcoat until I had told it all, then he said, “That chiseling dago rat,” kind of half under his breath and his face began to get like it got when he was mad.
“And she said you mustn't do anything crazy.”
“Crazy?” He looked at me and kind of laughed. “No, I won't do anything crazy. How about you scramming off to bed?”
I said, “All right,” and went upstairs.
The next morning he was still in bed when I left for the gym and he had gone out before I got home. I waited supper for him until nearly seven o'clock and then ate it by myself. Susan was getting sore because it was going to be late before she got through. Maybe he stayed out all night but he looked all right when he came in Tubby's the next afternoon to watch me work out, and he was making jokes and kidding along with the fellows hanging around there just like he had nothing at all on his mind.
He waited for me to dress and we walked over home together. The only thing that was kind of funny, he asked me, “How do you feel, Kid?” That was kind of funny because he knew I always felt all right. I guess I never even had a cold all my life.
I said, “All right.”
“You're working good,” he said. “Take it easy tomorrow. You want to be rested up for this baby from Providence. Like that chiseling dago rat said, he's plenty tough and plenty smart.”
I said, “I guess he is. Loney, do you think Pete really tipped Big Jake off about —”
“Forget it,” he said. “Hell with 'em.” He poked my arm. “You got nothing to worry about but how you're going to be in there Saturday night.”
“I'll be all right.”
“Don't be too sure,” he said. “Maybe you'll be lucky to get a draw.”
I stopped still in the street, I was so surprised. Loney never talked like that about any of my fights before. He was always saying, “Don't worry about how tough this mug looks, just go in and knock him apart,” or something like that.
I said, “You mean—?”
He took hold of my arm to start me walking again. “Maybe I overmatched you this time, Kid. This sailor's pretty good. He can box and he hits a lot harder than anybody you been up against so far.”
“Oh, I'll be all right,” I said.
“Maybe,” he said, scowling straight ahead. “Listen, what do you think about what Pete said about you needing more boxing?”
“I don't know. I don't ever pay any attention much to what anybody says but you.”
“Well, what do you think about it now?” he asked. “Sure, I'd like to learn to box better, I guess.” He grinned at me without moving his lips much. “You're liable to get some fine lessons from this Sailor whether you want 'em or not. But no kidding, suppose I told you to box him instead of tearing in, would you do it? I mean for the experience, even if you didn't make much of a showing
that way.”
I said, “Don't I always fight the way you tell me?”
“Sure you do. But suppose it meant maybe losing this once but learning something?”
“I want to win, of course,” I said, “but I'll do anything you tell me. Do you want me to fight him that way?”
“I don't know,” he said. “We'll see.” Friday and Saturday I just loafed around. Friday I tried to find somebody to go out and shoot pheasants with but all I could find was Bob Kirby and I was tired of listening to him make the same jokes over and over, so I changed my mind and stayed home.
Loney came home for supper and I asked him what the odds were on our fight.
He said, “Even money. You got a lot of friends.”
“Are we betting?” I asked.
“Not yet. Maybe if the price gets better. I don't know.” I wished he had not been so afraid I was going to lose but I thought it might sound kind of conceited if I said anything about it, so I just went on eating.
We had a swell house that Saturday night. The armory was packed and we got a pretty good hand when we went in the ring. I felt fine and I guess Dick Cohen, who was going to be in my corner with Loney, felt fine too, because he looked like he was trying to keep from grinning. Only Loney looked kind of worried, not enough that you would notice it unless you knew him as well as I did, but I could notice it.
“I'm all right,” I told him. A lot of fighters say they feel uncomfortable waiting for their fight to start but I always feel fine.
