W is for Wasted (Kinsey Millhone 23)

“Yes, ma’am,” he said as he turned to me.

I held up the bulb. “Is there any way I can exchange this for a hundred-watt?”

“Let me check.”

He disappeared into the back office and emerged moments later with a replacement. “This is a sixty. It’s the best I can do. Management calculated we could save twenty-five dollars a year using forties.”

“Oh wow. Good news.”

I returned to my room and as I let myself in, I caught sight of the phone on the bedside table. The incoming-message light blinked its merry dot of red. I figured it was Big Rat with the information I needed, so I settled on the edge of the bed and made sure I had a pen and a fresh index card at the ready before I picked up the handset and pressed 0. A really nice automated lady told me that I had one message. “First message,” said she.

It was Henry, sounding distressed. “Kinsey, it’s Henry. I’ve been trying to reach you, but I haven’t wanted to leave a message because I don’t want to worry you unnecessarily. I have bad news about your friend Felix. He’s in the hospital in critical condition. If you’ll give me a call, I’ll tell you as much as I know.”

The call must have come in during the few minutes I was gone.

I punched in the Santa Teresa area code and Henry’s number. The line was busy. I waited a minute and dialed again. Still busy. I schooled myself to be patient, giving him sufficient time to complete the call he was on. The third time I tried, the number rang twice and he picked up.

“Henry, it’s me, Kinsey. What’s going on?”

“Well, I’m so glad to hear your voice. I’m sorry for the scare, but I thought I should let you know as soon as I could. Dandy showed up at noon. He was looking for you, of course, but I told him you were out of town. He said Pearl left a message for him at the shelter. She was calling from St. Terry’s emergency room. Felix had been picked up by ambulance and he was already on his way to surgery by the time Dandy got back to her.”

“What happened?”

“He was jumped by a bunch of thugs and beaten half to death.”

I closed my eyes, picturing the Boggarts laying into Felix with fists and kicks. “How badly is he hurt?”

I reached over and turned on the lamp, forgetting the bulb was lying on the bed beside me.

“His skull was fractured and they broke both his legs. Damage to his kidneys and spleen, probably brain damage as well. This happened outside the bicycle-rental place on lower State Street. Luckily, the owner put a stop to it, but not fast enough.”

“That sounds bad.” This had to be retaliation for Felix and Pearl’s tearing apart the Boggarts’ camp. Still, it seemed harsh. I angled the sixty-watt bulb into the socket and turned it gingerly so the threads would catch. Light bloomed.

Henry went on. “Dandy was on his way to the hospital, so I offered him a ride. Harbor House had given him a bus pass, but it seemed absurd for him to try getting there by public transportation.”

“Where’s Pearl?”

“She’s still at the hospital as far as I know. She keeps saying this is all her fault. That’s about as much as anyone can get out of her. She’s close to collapse.”

“He’s going to be okay, though, isn’t he?”

“The doctors won’t say. It’s one of those wait-and-see situations. At least for the next few hours.”

“This is awful. I feel sick.” I flashed on a quick succession of images. Most of them involving Pearl. Felix did whatever she did, but he wasn’t the instigator. I’d known better myself, even at the time, and I hadn’t raised enough of a fuss to head her off. It was a dumb idea and I’d gone along with it, which made me as guilty as she was. Why so savage a response to what amounted to a load of mischief? “Did someone call the police?”

“Pearl intends to file charges, but so far she’s been sticking close to Felix’s side. She says she knows who they are.”

“Did she actually see the attack?”

“No, but she swears it’s those bums who live at a hobo camp near the bird refuge.”

“She can’t swear to something she didn’t witness firsthand.”

“You’d have to talk to her about that. Meanwhile, they have Felix in a medically induced coma, hoping the swelling in his brain will subside. That’s the crux of it for now.”

“Have you seen him?”

“They don’t allow visitors in ICU. I was able to peer in briefly, but there wasn’t much to see. Pearl’s claiming he’s her brother, so she’s been with him since he came out of the recovery room. Dandy and I hung out for a while and then I came home. Between calls, I left that message for you but didn’t expect to hear back so soon.”