Ace Atkins - Devil’s garden

Louderback continued to run down the list of charges, his eyes skimming the papers before him, and then casually and with little anticipation sentenced the Chinaman to be hung. The gavel was swift and hard and final, and the Chinaman was led away, dead-eyed and emotionless, and tossed into the arms of a big fat deputy who yanked him into a back doorway and disappeared.

“For rice?” Roscoe whispered to McNab. Roscoe loosened the tie at his throat.

Louderback called the next order of business, the people of San Francisco versus Roscoe Conkling Arbuckle, charged with the manslaughter of Virginia Rappe. McNab stood and nodded to Roscoe and walked through the short swinging doors and launched his crocodile briefcase on a waiting table as if he were a dog pissing on a rock to mark his territory. Arbuckle and McNab stood before the judge with Brady and weasel-faced U’Ren beside them, shoulder to shoulder. Words were spoken, legal motions made, and with all of ’em standing there Brady said the prosecution objected to several witnesses added to the list.

“Which ones?” said Louderback.

“Where do we start?” Brady asked. “This hotel detective, Glennon. He was recently released from his position due to dereliction of duty. And these so-called character witnesses from the south who serve no other purpose than to blacken the dead girl’s character.”

Big Gavin McNab stood with his arms folded across his sizable chest. He shuffled his feet and rubbed a hand over his gray bristly head, never looking over at Judge Brady, only seeming to wait for Brady to take a damn breath so he could speak.

“Mr. Glennon has exceptional information on the girl’s condition and statements made before she died,” McNab said.

“He is a disgruntled ex-employee of the St. Francis,” Brady said.

“Since you’ve chosen not to produce Mrs. Delmont, we have no other course.”

“Where did you hear that?” Brady said, turning to the larger man. His face reddened. “Where did you hear that?”

“Well, are you?”

“Of course.”

McNab smiled. “We’re so pleased.”

“I will take this all under advisement, gentlemen,” Louderback said, shuffling papers from a large file. “Shall we start? We have a long day ahead of us.”

“There is one other matter, Judge,” McNab said. His voice, deep and weathered and melodious. “The girls.”

“Who?” Louderback asked.

“Miss Prevon-Prevost and Miss Blake,” McNab said. “The district attorney’s office has spirited the women away, giving us no chance for interviews. I understand these young women are being held against their will in some secret location. Since these girls are some of the few witnesses to the party, we should have every chance to talk to them. Or perhaps Mr. Brady is aware of a separate school of law?”

Brady’s face was crimson.

“Mr. McNab will have every opportunity to speak to the young ladies.

They are being looked after for their own protection.”

“Under armed guard,” McNab said.

“That’s simply a lie. A rotten lie.”

McNab cracked a smile. “Two guards with the San Francisco Police Department.”

Brady turned to U’Ren and U’Ren looked away. The exchange wasn’t lost on McNab, who couldn’t help but smile.

“Their changing statement of what occurred in that hotel is troubling,” McNab said. “It’s almost as if the girls were being coerced.”

“May I remind Mr. McNab I do not bow to his social position in this city and I resent his implications that I diddle with the law,” Brady said. “I am the district attorney of this county and will prosecute this case the way I see fit.”

Roscoe looked up to the judge on the bench. Judge Louderback looked at his watch and stifled a yawn. “I will take this under advisement. Shall we begin?”

Roscoe just stood there staring at the bored judge, curious and incredulous, but felt McNab’s big paw on his arm leading him back to their table. Roscoe opened his mouth, too confused to speak, Louderback tilting his head and knitting his brow.

IT WAS DINNERTIME at the Calistoga Hotel and Phil and Sam sat at a corner table not far from a stone hearth with thick logs blazing, red wine in their glasses and hot rolls between them. Sam helped himself to another glass as an old woman set down a plate of pork chops with mashed potatoes. The hotel, a big, ramshackle wooden number, reminded him of some places he’d been in Montana, places left over from another century, a world away from streetcars and movie houses and airplanes. The wine was good and felt warm in his chest. He wondered if the baths and all that mud didn’t have some kind of effect on his condition. He felt better than he had since before the war.

“Don’t worry,” Phil said. “They’ll be here. Would you pass the butter?”

“Maybe Zey met someone else.”

“You wanna bet? She’s crazy about me. After we take care of matters at hand, I let her wear the hat.”

“You’re kidding.”

“She loves it,” Phil said. “Sometimes she wears it while we’re taking care of the business, riding me like I’m a horse.”

“Yee-haw.”

“You think I’m crazy ’cause I said these girls are trouble. You don’t know about women trouble. Look at you. You’re married and have a kid. It’s easier that way. You know what to expect every day. You got a beautiful wife, Sam. That counts for a lot. I’d love to have something like that. A man knows where he stands. When did you know it was good with Jose? You know, for keeps?”

“I had to make a choice.”

“How’d you know?”

“It was the right thing.”

“Do you ever stop thinking about women? That’d be the hardest part for me.”

Sam cut into his pork chops and took a bite. He took a sip of wine and just looked over at Phil. The younger, larger man smiled back, a slight grin on his face. His eyes then cut over to the tall front doors and watched as the two now-famous showgirls entered. They handed their coats to a crinkle-faced old woman who hobbled after them. They passed by the table, Phil smiling up at Zey and Zey smiling back at Phil, and they found a spot by the warm fire. It was all dark and very cozy in the room. Hearth fire, kerosene lamps on the tables.

“You met that Blake girl once, right?”

“I did.”

“Kinda screwy.”

“Kinda.”

Sam finished off half the plate and pushed it away. Phil finished his and asked for some more potatoes. They were already onto a thick slab of apple pie topped with melted cheese with a pot of coffee between them when the girls joined them. Zey was all smiles and giggles and huddled up close to Phil. Alice sat down next to Sam, who drank his coffee and smiled over at her as she said, “Craig Kennedy.”

Phil looked to Sam and Sam shrugged.

The old woman was chatting away with the two cops who’d joined her. They were Irish lunkheads, beat cops, who would squint over at the table and then back to Ma Murphy. Probably jealous the girls were talking to some other men. Zey swung her arm over Phil’s shoulder.

“How’d you shake loose?” Phil asked.

“We said you were a couple salesmen we met at the springs,” Alice said.

“They can’t say no to us. I said we were getting bored. They don’t like it when we’re bored.”

“Good to see you, Zey,” Sam said from across the table.

She acted like she didn’t remember him and played with Phil Haultain’s ear.

Alice smiled over at Sam and Sam pulled two cigarettes from the Fatima pack and offered one to Alice. Alice said, “Thank God,” telling him that Ma Murphy wouldn’t let them smoke or drink and the whole thing had been murder on her nerves. She wore a black dress with a fur collar, maybe rabbit but not mink. Her makeup was lighter than he remembered it, and she was prettier without all the red paint on her lips and cheeks.