He didn’t say much when he came into the office, just took a seat as instructed. The gray haired man kept looking at Biff, as if expecting the private dick to recognize him, he gathered. So he asked to begin — to get it out of the way. “Do we know each other?”
Keith B., last name revealed only as an initial for more protection, covers himself by saying he gets that a lot. “Dextre,” he said in an actor type voice. “You know, the TV show about the serial killer. People say I look like him and I suppose I do.”
“Dextre,” says Biff back, realizing the connection now. “You *do* look like him.” Another mirror, Biff noted, although he didn’t understand it was one of himself as well. Dex-tre.
“Well what can I do you for?” His standard opening line, just used on Wanda a couple of hours earlier in the dream about the dream. Pink again, he knows now.
“I have an interesting case for you if you’re interested. Pyramid. Off the coast of a neighboring island. Revealed itself last April’s May. Portuguese navy sent in to investigate. Determined it was the top of an underwater volcano. But why perfectly square and aligned exactly to the cardinal directions? We’re talking north south east west. 90 meters on each side, 60 meters high. Fisherman found it on sonar. As I understand, ahem, you have your own mystery here just off your coast. A monster isn’t it?”
“A whale of a monster,” Biff found himself automatically responding, thinking about the print of the photo for the last time before nightfall.
“Maybe… they’re connected.”
That’s the hitch, Biff understood. As in jolt. He felt as if he’d been electrocuted a bit on the spot. Or attacked by gargoyles — something. His hair stood on end, head to foot. No reversing course now. He had to head into this case with a full foot of steam. Thar she blows! A case as big as Nantucket coupled with an accompanying super-cape. He intercoms Wanda — no, Berta — to bring in some coffee and donuts while they talk, sugar and caffeine taking them further than either could have anticipated. The 2 cases were one beneath it all!
(to be continued)
Sunklands 