He wondered if the road would lead anywhere useful. Gilbert had to have come from somewhere. Trekking frenetically down the road and past the occasional flower, he finally could make out a cave in the distance.
As he walked on, he stumbled on a tree branch. Almost hurt his hairdo. He was beginning to get thirsty. Maybe leaving Gilbert wasn't such a great idea. Would he have to go sidling back to him, begging for a glass of carrot juice?
Suddenly, a woman wearing a crimson parka appeared on the other side of a stick. No, it couldn't be! Blecch, it was Elsie!
"Aye, what's going on?" he piped up intensely.
"Is that you? Are you alright?" she asked haughtily.
"Of course it's me, but shhh, what have you gotten me into?" he avowed neatly.
"Bruno brought me here. How did you find me?" Elsie replied.
"You assume I wanted to find you. I don't care, and I want off the case," he replied gleefully. "You can have your money back, if you just send me home."
"I can't send you home. Bruno wouldn't hear of it. He'd deceive me if he even knew that I talked to you."
"Where is that old joker? How can I get outta here?"
"He's in his ice cream truck, headed up to the lodge. He'll probably be here in five minutes."
"Well, I want to be out of here in forty-eight minutes. How about you? You obviously didn't go to Casablanca like I recommended. Are you with him or with me?"
"Yoohoo, I don't know what's going on. Maybe we'd just better do what they say and get it out of the way."
She was so impish, he didn't know whether to trust her, or to inch away as fast as he could. "You've been about as open with me as a meditating pig," he gasped cruelly. "Just what have you and Bruno got going on?"
"Listen, old friend, maybe I didn't tell you everything, but I told you what I could. Bruno calls all the shots around here. I guess he thinks you can help with some Nash business. As for me, I already told you, I want nothing to do with it."
"You think I want to be involved? Why don't you just take your vivacious little chest back to Bruno, and I'll take care of myself."
He turned and began creeping on down the trail.
"Wait," she spouted recklessly. "I'm coming with you."
"You're harder to shake than a notepad in a champagne flute," he brought up. "You're obviously still operating on their orders. Alright, let's get on with it," he said boisterously.
Next Chapter