A Flicker of Doubt - Tim Myers [42]
“We’ll see if that’s true when I get there,” she said. “Until then, Mr. Black.”
“Good-bye,” I said, but she’d already hung up. I wasn’t sure how I was going to handle Ruth Nash when she came to town, but the important thing was, if anybody could get through to Cyrus, it would be her. For the moment I was going to have to forget about my friend and hope things were okay until his sister could get there.
I glanced at the clock and realized I’d left Eve alone long enough. It was time to sell candles again.
Markum was outside the candleshop waiting for me when I showed up.
“Have you been waiting long?” I asked. “I didn’t realize we were going to meet this afternoon.”
“I had some time to kill, so I thought I’d come by. Do you have a minute?”
I looked through the bay window in front of At Wick’s End saw Eve watching us. “I’d really better get inside, but you’re welcome to come in.”
He shook his head. “No, thanks. That woman doesn’t like me, and she’s not afraid who knows it.”
I wanted to tell him he was being paranoid, but it just happened he was right. Eve had expressed a dislike for Markum and his way of life since the day I moved into River’s Edge. Still, the candleshop was mine to run, and if I wanted Markum there, that was all that counted.
“Come on in,” I said. “She won’t bite.”
“Listen, I don’t want to cause any friction between you two. What I’ve got can wait.”
I held the door open. “She needs to accept you, Markum; you’re a part of River’s Edge.”
He walked inside, though it was obvious he was reluctant to do it.
Eve stared at us both frostily, as if we’d brought a legion of germs in with us. “Sorry I took so long,” I said. “Markum and I need to talk.”
She refused to even acknowledge his presence. “I’m taking my dinner break now if you can spare me.”
Since there wasn’t a single soul in the candleshop besides the three of us, that didn’t look to be a problem. “That’s fine,” I said.
She grabbed her jacket and was gone in a heartbeat.
Markum grinned after the door closed behind her. “You’re right, there’s no tension there.”
“What exactly does she have against you?” I asked.
“She doesn’t approve of my lifestyle.”
I put my coat behind the counter and asked, “Why not? I’m surprised she even knows what you do.”
Markum laughed. “That’s what bugs her so much. She doesn’t have a clue how I make my living. All she knows is that I don’t make or sell anything, and that I have a lot of free time. The rest is in her imagination.”
“So do you think she’d approve if she knew more about your line of work?”
“Are you kidding? She’d probably try to have me evicted.”
“She wouldn’t have a prayer, not as long as I’m in charge.”
“Harrison, you know what I do isn’t exactly accepted by the population at large.”
“Do you steal things from their rightful owners?” I asked. “Do you cheat the innocent, or rob the rich? In other words, can you stand to look yourself in the mirror when you get up every morning?”
Markum pondered my question for nearly a minute, then said, “I never looked at it that way, but I follow a code of ethics in what I do, though it’s nothing that formal. I don’t cheat anybody who didn’t acquire what they got illegally or immorally, and I’m more interested in restitution than pure profit.”
“So we don’t have a problem,” I said, patting his shoulder.
The big man smiled broadly. “You’re good company, you know that? If my Russian deal ever goes through, I’m going to do my best to convince you to come along.”
“You never know, I might just take you up on it” I said. “Now what’s next?”
He frowned, then said, “I’m not sure. I wanted to discuss some kind of strategy with you before I go muddying up your trail. Have you had any luck on your own?”
I told him about speaking with Runion and his secretary. Markum whistled when he heard the news that Jeanie was going to keep an eye on things for us in the developer’s office. “How did you manage