Chapter Ten

Delmar White’s home was a two story walk up on the north side.  It was neat and tidy, standing firm against the spit of cold rain that threatened to be sleet.  Most of the other people who lived in this part of New York were at work or staying inside.  The street was almost eerily quiet, as Peabody parked in front.  Eve held back, letting her take primary.
A female droid let them in, invited them to sit in a pretty room full of little glass figurines.  The delicate glass animals were perched on various little shelves, and looked ready to leap off to their deaths on the parquet floors.  She went to a window and waited.
Oryina White was the size of the naval boat that had picked them up two days ago.  She sailed into the room wearing yards of polka dotted material and a sun hat.  “I can’t believe I have the famous Lieutenant Dallas and Detective Peabody in my home,” she sang out.  She got ahold of Peabody’s hand and pumped it.  Eve moved behind the sofa, pretended to look at a … penguin?  “I told Bitsy to bring in coffee.  Is this about Delmar?”
Peabody moved into her focus, and path, as the woman began to stalk around the sofa toward Dallas.  “Why would you say that, Mrs. White?”
“Because the man I hired to kill him had me transmit the rest of his fee last night. After eleven, actually.  Oh wonderful.  Here’s the coffee.”
Some days, it was just that easy, Peabody thought.

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Mavis picked the night club.  And since it was girls only, they took one of the extra-long limos.  A few friends turned into seven women on a quest for drunken abandon.  Which wasn’t really hard to find.
The club was called Foam, and featured, of course, foam.  Everyone was covered in pale pink mushy bubbles that continually flowed across the floors, being sucked into drains, then refreshed and poured out of vents.  Before they got all the way in the doors, the owner grabbed Mavis and convinced her to perform a song.  It didn’t take much, but Mavis held out for only two songs, then headed back to where everyone was relaxed onto bed-like platforms.  Alcohol flowed and everyone began to loosen up.
Eve swatted at Reo as the little blonde assistant prosecuting attorney tried to steal her apple martini.  Then gave up the glass when Reo pouted.  “You shouldn’t mix alcohol” she advised over the roar of music and voices.   It occurred to her that Reo surely knew that.  Then it occurred to her that she was getting drunk.   Mavis tumbled onto the bed and the glass went flying.  For some reason, that was very funny.
Louise grabbed for hands, and they all snaked onto the dance floor, hip high in foam.  The music had a heavy back beat, enhancing the two males singing on the stage, the band at their backs happily nude.  Lights flashed erratically, blinding then whirling, blinking and stabbing at the eyes.  Then they would flash to black light only.  Bodies crushed together on the floor, rubbing off each other as the bubbles lubricated everyone equally.  Trina tore her shirt off, leaving on a barely there bra.  She tried to get Nadine to join in, but the blonde reporter apparently wasn’t drunk enough.  Peabody was.  Reo joined in the general disrobing of the club goers.  Eve rolled her eyes, but kept her clothes in place.  Roarke had been pissed enough with her undercover role as an exotic dancer not that long ago.  No point in getting him really pissed.
And then the Navy rolled in.
It was chance, sheer chance that the men and women of the US Naval Cutter the Columbiana decided on Foam for their shore leave.  But it didn’t take long for them to spot Peabody who was dancing on top of a table.  And then Eve.  Knowing her duty, and having been around Roarke for so long she knew what he would do, Eve bought them all a drink.  Then another round.  Thank the sweet baby Jesus for credit cards, because there was like a hundred of them.  She didn’t mind using that stupid account Roarke had set up, since it seemed like the drinks were work related.  In some way.  She had another apple martini to help her get that thought choked down.  Things got loud and blurry after that.
It was almost dawn when Eve took the subway to the station three blocks from home.  The subway’s screen system was active.  Eve was treated to the nighttime and predawn gossip channels airing Mavis, Peabody, Nadine, Eve herself, and the others having a lively time with the sailors.  Eve winced at the vid of herself dancing between two drunken sailors.  It took quite a pep talk to convince herself to go home.  Ever.  Still, she managed to jog up to the house from the gate.  It took courage to go in the front doors.
And there he stood.  Her own personal ghoul.  The grim reaper of the house.  It didn’t lessen the effect that the fat cat sat waiting, too.
“How nice of you to come home, Lieutenant.  Should I be expecting any of the Sixth Fleet for breakfast?”  Ice would have frozen and broken into dusty glitters off his tone.
“Um” was Eve’s slick response.
“You seem to have lost the limousine,” he pointed out dryly.
“Ah” she added.  Damn.  Where had she left it?
“And your boots.”
Eve looked down.  She hadn’t noticed that before.  She only had socks on.  “God.”  She put her hands over her face.
“I believe you are scheduled for your shift to start in less than one hour, Lieutenant.  I would suggest you take a shower.  Otherwise your stench may alert any quarry to your presence.”  It was said with complete disgust.
She let out a groan and fled up the stairs.