Hauling the body of her old man, I followed Mimi out toward the bottom of the cliffs behind Helmsley Mansion. We got to the spot where she wanted him buried and I proceeded to dig a hole while Mimi watched and waited. "Big and wide," she had instructed of the grave I was to dig.
As I dug deeper into the ground, I couldn't help but wonder if Mimi was up to something. She was quiet, silently watching me. What was she planning? A million ideas crossed my mind as I dug, but none of them seemed to work out. As I threw each shovelful of earth over my shoulder, I kept thinking to myself: what was she thinking out here behind the house at the bottom of the cliffs? It was still dark, the sun wouldn't be up for hours yet.
Then I had it all figured out. "Big and wide," she had said. I wasn't digging one grave, I was digging two. One for the old man and one for me. Mimi thought she had it all figured out. She killed the old man. She killed him and then made up some sob story with a plan to lay it on the first sucker she could find that night. She'd lure him home, give him a little persuasion to sweeten the deal, get him to dig the graves, and then as soon as his back was turned, BAM, she'd put a bullet through his head. No witnesses, no accomplices, just a grave, big and wide, with the bodies already inside. It all wrapped up pretty neatly.
But there was one little flaw in Mimi's plan. She had jumped into my car, and I was no sucker. I had to get out of there! She didn't have a gun, at least as far as I could tell; I could easily make a run for it.
I forced the shovel into the ground and dug out a good, hefty load of earth. Mimi was looking at me, but off-guard nonetheless. Quickly, I threw the load of dirt right into her face. She fell back onto the ground. "Sorry, baby." I jumped out of the hole and made a run for it.
***
Back at my apartment I washed up. I still hadn't been to sleep and it felt like the walls were closing in on me. A few times I grabbed the phone, ready to call the police to report Mimi and the dead body lying near the cliffs, but each time I couldn't help but think of her. The fear I had seen in her eyes, the way she begged for my help, her breasts, her soft, pouty lips wrapped sweetly around my cock. What was I doing? I placed the phone back onto the cradle, I had no proof that Mimi murdered that man. I wasn't even sure if she would've killed me. It was all in my head.
So maybe she didn't bump off her old man. Maybe she really did need my help after all. Maybe someone was after her. Who could tell?
In bed, my head raced with thoughts of Mimi. Her perfume, her desperation. She was an incredible woman, strong, confident and mysterious. She had been married to Lewis Helmsley, Public Enemy Number One. But a double cross by a crooked detective landed him in prison, where he currently resided, leaving Mimi all alone in that lonely mansion by the cliffs.
What was she doing now? Was she back inside the mansion? Was she out looking for another chump to help her, sucking his dick? I fell asleep with Mimi in my mind, the thought of my face buried in those soft, enormous breasts. Of Mimi sucking my dick, draining my balls dry.
***
The next morning, on my way out for a cup of coffee, my landlord, Mr. Katz, stopped me as I passed his desk.
"Oh! Mr. Barkley!" he called out. "A letter for you. I have a letter for you!"
"A letter?" I asked, lighting a cigarette.
"Yes, sir," he replied. "This morning when I came into the office, this letter was sitting on the front desk. It has your name on it."
He handed me an envelope. 'Mr. Bam Barkley' had been written on the front; a woman's handwriting. I opened the envelope to find a clean, crisp hundred dollar bill. No note or anything. Just a new one hundred dollar bill.
"Oh, look at that!" Mr. Katz exclaimed. "A hundred dollar bill! You are a very lucky man, Mr. Barkley."
I gave Mr. Katz a tight smile and a quick nod. I shoved the bill into my pocket and walked out of the apartment building into the late morning sun on the busy city street.
I knew it had to have been Mimi. One hundred dollars for my silence. This dame was smarter than I thought. I knew I needed to be careful, she already knew where I lived. She must have been watching me for a while now, knew just where to find me. It was no accident last night on Derby Boulevard, no coincidence that she jumped into my car. I needed to find her.
***
I drove back up the coast, along that windy road leading up to Helmsley Mansion. There was a coffee shop just up a bit further and I knew I'd be able to get a good look at the house as I drove past it. Sure enough, as I got closer to the house I could make out two police cars parked out front. I didn't see any officers, and I didn't see Mimi, so I drove on.
I ordered a coffee and a newspaper when I sat down at the counter of the coffee shop. It was a little joint that didn't seem like it saw much in the way of customers. Just an old man tending the front counter and a young girl sweeping the floor.
"Hey, pops," I asked the old man as I waited for my coffee. "So what's going down at the old Helmsley place? I think I spotted a couple cop cars parked out front as I drove past."
The old man paused. "Oh, I don't reckon I know anything about that."
The young girl behind me spoke up. "It's that Helmsley woman. She's gone missing."
I turned around to face her. She was a young woman, maybe eighteen or nineteen years old. Beautiful. Brown hair, piercing eyes, and a face that told the story of a young, bright girl eager to get of that dirty little coffee shop and make a name for herself. The shop dress she wore hugged her body tightly, her breasts squeezed inside her top. I was smitten.
The old man spoke up. "Now, Pamela, we don't go around airing other people's dirty laundry."
"But pa, that's what the officer said when he was in here earlier," she replied. "I think it's best that we discuss the affair. Besides, you never know, maybe this guy here knows something about it."
"Hogwash." The old man waved his daughter off and walked into the back.
"So, the Helmsley woman is missing?" I asked Pamela.
She stood there staring at me with those piercing eyes, fidgeting with her broom. "That's what the officer said. He also said something about a murder."
I feigned surprise. "A murder?"
She flashed a mischievous smile. "Yeah, that's what he said." She paused. "But, maybe my pa is right. Maybe I shouldn't be airing other people's dirty laundry. Who are you anyway?"
I shook my head. "Nobody. Just a guy."
"Are you with the paper?" She perked up.