Clint Faraday Collection C: Murder in Motion Collector's Edition by CD Moulton

Gloria, the salesgirl, introduced to
Clint as Henry Dickerson stood there like a statue and didn’t do
more than a very short nod.
    “ Oh,
yeah. The new asshole from Bastimentos,” Clint replied with a nod
as curt as Dickerson’s. “I see the people weren’t exaggerating when
they said he was an antisocial misfit SOB.
    “ Any of
that Williams Special A-F paint come in yet?” He ignored Dickerson.
He’d just wanted to see if he could recognize anything about him.
Gloria said it was supposed to be shipped Friday, which meant
Friday, but probably not this Friday. They laughed about
it.
    “ How in
hell...?! You think it’s funny that you can’t ever get anything on
time here?” Dickerson exploded. “Maybe you trash don’t care what
delays cost, but I DO! The fact you live like pigs and eat bananas
and rice might have something to do with your lack of concern for
the costs! I AM concerned! If you ever had a pot or window maybe
you’d learn some sense about it!”
    “ Money?
Here we go again!” Gloria said with a sly wink at Clint. “How much
it costs to live here where everything’s supposed to be so
cheap!
    “ Clint,
didn’t you get more than five million dollars for that Puerto
Armuelles thing?”
    Everyone knew how Clint always seemed to end
up with ridiculous sums by accident in his jobs. He built schools
and medical clinics for the Indios and so forth with the money.
    “ Something like that. I let Judi handle that kind of thing.
She’s good at seeing most of it isn’t stolen. I don’t give a happy
damn if it is.
    “ I’ll
drop in Friday afternoon to see if the A-F is in.”
    She said her goodbyes and innocently turned
to Dickerson. Clint heard him saying, “That bum has five million
dollars?” as he went out. He stopped just outside the door.
    “ Oh, no.
That’s just one thing. He has all that land on the Pacific and got
more than that on several things he did. He really hates having so
much and tries to find ways to make it make a difference for
people.”
    “ He’s a
fool! Money is security!”
    “ Oh,
bullshit! When the market drops or there’s a land bust, where is
the security?” Gloria replied reasonably. “Your bronze screws are
supposed to be on today’s truck from David. You paid extra so
they’ll be here. About four.”
    Clint went on, giggling to himself. He did
get a lot of money, but nothing like she made it sound. Dickerson
would ask a lot of questions about that bum who had a billion
dollars in the bank.
    He talked to the group at the Golden Grill
and to some others. They could have some fun. Then he went home. He
would go to Chiriqui Grande in the afternoon, then on to the
comarca, then would get back home in two days. Or three. Or
four.
     
    Super Rich Bums
    Clint tied to his deck and started hauling
things inside. Judi waved and said she just had to talk with the
mulitbillionaire philanthropist bum who lived next door. He waved
back and put his things inside, then went to her place.
    “ ...So!
You got the five plus million for the Puerto Armuelles thing and
were in a land deal out there, too. You had a hundred million or so
in that. That thing in Mali where you got the two million back for
the Indios sort of turned into two hundred million. We got carried
away and couldn’t stop. I told Manny about it so he was there at
the Lemon Grass with the family for dinner night before last. I was
there with Ben and Gene – he’s someone I have to tell you about! I
found someone I can really relate to!
    “ Anyhow,
Manny said you were good at ending up with money. You probably got
a billion or more from the treasure you found. He knew you started
building a huge hospital in some place.
    “ It was
comical! I thought he’d explode!
    “ I
couldn’t resist. I said, `Oh, yeah. Everybody knows Manny spent a
few hundred million bucks himself building the Isla San Cristobal
place and he was in on the school and clinic there with you, wasn’t
he?’ I batted my eyes and looked so