Read Online BUtterfield 8 by John O'Hara - Free Book Online Page A

myself have spent twenty-two years in the teaching profession, and you have been here how long? Two years? Well, six years. What’s six years against hundreds? Do you think even your own people would take your word against mine? Dr. Stein, for instance. Do you think he would believe you rather than me? Mr. Pollack at The Bee. Do you think he would believe you, risk his standing in this community where there are mighty few of your people, to side with you in an attack on me with a story that has no foundation in fact? Mr. Abrams, I could thrash you within an inch of your life for coming to me with this accusation. The only thing that prevents me from doing that is that I am a father myself. I think we’ve said enough about this. Your daughter is your problem. My job is to see that she is given an education, but my job begins at nine in the morning and ends at three in the afternoon.” The Abramses. They probably were in New York, at least they took their daughter out of school and sold out their store shortly after the two fathers had their conversation. Abrams. A lot of Abramses in New York.
    B. C. D. E. F. G. H. Think of all the people in this city, the money the telephone company must make. All those people, all with their problems. B. Buckley. Brown. Brown with an e on the end. Barnes. Barnard. Brace. Butterfield. Brunner! Gloria knew someone named Brunner. Dr. Reddington found the number and gave it to the operator.
    He heard the signal of the number being rung, and then the practiced voice: “What number did you call, please? . . . I’m sorry, sir, that telephone has been dis-con-nec-ted.”
    He replaced the transmitter. This was a hunch. He looked up the address and memorized it, and went downstairs and took a taxi to the address. He told the driver to wait at the corner of Hudson Street and the driver gave him a good look and said he would.
    Dr. Reddington walked down the street, following a girl with a large package under her arm. Any other time she might have interested him, but not today. She was just the back of a girl with a good figure, from what he could see, carrying a bundle. Then to his dismay she turned in at the number he sought, and he had to walk on without stopping; and he thought of the taxi driver, who would be looking at him and wondering why he had passed the number. All confused he turned around and went back to the taxi and they left the neighborhood and drove back to the hotel in the sunshine.
     • • • 
    “This is terribly nice of you,” said Gloria.
    “Oh, that’s all right,” said Miss Day.
    “Thanks a lot, Norma,” said Eddie Brunner.
    “Oh, I don’t mind a bit. I know how it is,” said Miss Day. “You’d roast in that mink coat today.”
    “Eddie, you look out the window a minute,” said Gloria.
    “Oh! You really did need these,” said Miss Day when Gloria took off her coat. “I’m glad I had them. Usually on Sunday my extra things are at the cleaners’. I didn’t think to bring a slip.”
    “I won’t need one with this skirt. This is a marvelous suit. Where did you get it?”
    “Russek’s. Were you playing strip poker?”
    “It looks that way, doesn’t it? Yes, I was, in a way. That is, we were shooting crap and I was ’way ahead at one time and then my luck changed, and when I offered to bet my dress the men took me up and of course I didn’t think they’d hold me to it and it wasn’t the men that held me to it, it was the girls on the party. Fine friends I have. It made me very angry and I left.”
    “Are you going to school in New York?”
    “No, I live here, but I couldn’t go home looking like this. My family—they won’t even allow me to smoke. All right, Eddie.”
    “Looks better on you than it does on me,” said Norma.
    “I wouldn’t say that,” said Eddie.
    “I wouldn’t either,” said Gloria, “but Eddie never says anything to make me get conceited. We’ve known each other such a long time.”
    “Eddie, I thought you went