to be studying a white paver at his feet. "There's a small scratch," he said.
"Scratch? What scratch?" Maggie asked.
"There," Paul said. "Right there, in the top right corner. I wonder how that could have happened."
"Tell you what, Paul," I said, not joking at all, "I'll get a load of newspapers and we can pile them up over the scratch."
"Yeah, Mac, sure. You're a philistine. You've got a messy, unsophisticated soul. Come join the fun. Let's get this over with. I've got to get back to work."
"Jilly told me that was why you left Philadelphia and VioTech--you wanted to continue work on this project and they wanted you to stop."
"That's right."
"What's the project?" I asked, walking over a black-and-white geometrical carpet to stand by one of the large glass windows that looked out at the ocean.
"It's all about the fountain of youth. I'm developing a pill that will reverse the aging process."
"My God, Paul," Maggie said, nearly falling off the sofa, "that's just incredible! Why wouldn't they want you to continue on that? That would be worth not just a fortune, it would be worth the world."
Paul laughed at her. "Everyone bites big time on that one. Everyone wants youth back." He touched his receding hairline. "I'd rather come up with a pill to regrow hair myself."
"If Jean-Luc Picard on Star Trek is any indication, we still won't have a pill to grow hair even in the twenty-fourth century. You're out of luck, Paul."
"What are you really working on then, Paul?" I asked.
"Look, it's privileged information and it's really none of your business, either of you. It's got nothing to do with Jilly. Now please get off my back."
Maggie sat back down on the sofa and clicked her ballpoint pen. "I want to know what you and Jilly did last Tuesday night. Think back. It's dinnertime. Did you eat in or go out?"
"For God's sake, Maggie, why do you want to know what we did for dinner?"
"Did you eat in, Paul?" I asked, still standing in front of the window, my arms crossed over my chest.
"Yes, we did. We broiled halibut, squeezed on lemon. Jilly made garlic toast. I tossed a spinach salad. We ate. I had work to do after dinner. Jilly said she was going to drive around, nothing unusual in that. She loved driving the Porsche. She left here about nine o'clock."
"Rob Morrison said she went over the cliff at about midnight. That's three hours, Paul. That's an awfully long time to drive around."
"I went to work. I fell asleep at my desk, even left my computer on. If Jilly came back and left again, I wouldn't know. If she stayed out the full three hours, I wouldn't know that either. All I know is she left at nine." "What was her mood at dinner?" "Maggie, you know Jilly. She's never serious, always joking around. She told me a Viagra joke, I remember that."
"So what is it you're working on, Paul?" Maggie said. "You want to clone little Paul Bartletts?"
"No, Maggie, I wouldn't want to clone myself until I figure out how to regrow hair." He looked over at me. "Now you're a possibility. You've got good genes, Mac. The Germans would have approved of you, or the FBI. You interested?"
"So you put the FBI right in there with the Nazis, do you?" Why was he stonewalling? But how could a drug he was developing have anything to do with Jilly driving over a cliff?
Paul just shrugged. "Lots of parallels, as I see it."
I let it go, just shrugged. "Well, maybe I'll consider it three lifetimes from now if I turn real weird, but probably not. So you're saying that during dinner Jilly seemed perfectly normal?"
"Yes. She ate lightly. She wanted to lose five pounds."
Maggie said, "Was she taking any weight-loss pills?"
"Not that I know of. I'll check in the medicine cabinet and see what's there."
"Okay."
"Is it true you made love to Jilly every day, Paul?"
I'd swear that Paul turned red to his receding hairline. "What the hell kind of question is that, Mac? Why is that your business?"
"In February, Jilly told me about
"Scratch? What scratch?" Maggie asked.
"There," Paul said. "Right there, in the top right corner. I wonder how that could have happened."
"Tell you what, Paul," I said, not joking at all, "I'll get a load of newspapers and we can pile them up over the scratch."
"Yeah, Mac, sure. You're a philistine. You've got a messy, unsophisticated soul. Come join the fun. Let's get this over with. I've got to get back to work."
"Jilly told me that was why you left Philadelphia and VioTech--you wanted to continue work on this project and they wanted you to stop."
"That's right."
"What's the project?" I asked, walking over a black-and-white geometrical carpet to stand by one of the large glass windows that looked out at the ocean.
"It's all about the fountain of youth. I'm developing a pill that will reverse the aging process."
"My God, Paul," Maggie said, nearly falling off the sofa, "that's just incredible! Why wouldn't they want you to continue on that? That would be worth not just a fortune, it would be worth the world."
Paul laughed at her. "Everyone bites big time on that one. Everyone wants youth back." He touched his receding hairline. "I'd rather come up with a pill to regrow hair myself."
"If Jean-Luc Picard on Star Trek is any indication, we still won't have a pill to grow hair even in the twenty-fourth century. You're out of luck, Paul."
"What are you really working on then, Paul?" I asked.
"Look, it's privileged information and it's really none of your business, either of you. It's got nothing to do with Jilly. Now please get off my back."
Maggie sat back down on the sofa and clicked her ballpoint pen. "I want to know what you and Jilly did last Tuesday night. Think back. It's dinnertime. Did you eat in or go out?"
"For God's sake, Maggie, why do you want to know what we did for dinner?"
"Did you eat in, Paul?" I asked, still standing in front of the window, my arms crossed over my chest.
"Yes, we did. We broiled halibut, squeezed on lemon. Jilly made garlic toast. I tossed a spinach salad. We ate. I had work to do after dinner. Jilly said she was going to drive around, nothing unusual in that. She loved driving the Porsche. She left here about nine o'clock."
"Rob Morrison said she went over the cliff at about midnight. That's three hours, Paul. That's an awfully long time to drive around."
"I went to work. I fell asleep at my desk, even left my computer on. If Jilly came back and left again, I wouldn't know. If she stayed out the full three hours, I wouldn't know that either. All I know is she left at nine." "What was her mood at dinner?" "Maggie, you know Jilly. She's never serious, always joking around. She told me a Viagra joke, I remember that."
"So what is it you're working on, Paul?" Maggie said. "You want to clone little Paul Bartletts?"
"No, Maggie, I wouldn't want to clone myself until I figure out how to regrow hair." He looked over at me. "Now you're a possibility. You've got good genes, Mac. The Germans would have approved of you, or the FBI. You interested?"
"So you put the FBI right in there with the Nazis, do you?" Why was he stonewalling? But how could a drug he was developing have anything to do with Jilly driving over a cliff?
Paul just shrugged. "Lots of parallels, as I see it."
I let it go, just shrugged. "Well, maybe I'll consider it three lifetimes from now if I turn real weird, but probably not. So you're saying that during dinner Jilly seemed perfectly normal?"
"Yes. She ate lightly. She wanted to lose five pounds."
Maggie said, "Was she taking any weight-loss pills?"
"Not that I know of. I'll check in the medicine cabinet and see what's there."
"Okay."
"Is it true you made love to Jilly every day, Paul?"
I'd swear that Paul turned red to his receding hairline. "What the hell kind of question is that, Mac? Why is that your business?"
"In February, Jilly told me about
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