I ain't seen many of them, and the ones I did fancied themselves as gunslingers. He didn't cause no trouble hereabouts. I'd have heard about it if he ...did." Where abouts did he find this dead man?" I ain't never been out there, but Grady said it was a day's ride north and maybe a little west of here. Grady came here from California and wanted to set up shop as a farmin' man. Paid for everything with gold dust. That young feller said he'd been shot in the head, right through his hat and that all. She crept out of the bed silently and looked at him, seeing his closed eyes and feeling more confidant about her decision. Lila wasted no time. She could dress on the side of the road or even in the yard, if she had to. She picked up her scattered clothing and cringed, she wouldnt be able to put on her torn shirt again, no matter where she was. She left the room like a shadow and tip toed down the stairs, not making a sound. Would he notice that she was gone? She hoped not. She reached the. ”“Do you need to stop at your hotel before the meeting?” the woman asked in an irritated voice. It wasn’t like any hotel in New York would let him check in before 2 p.m.“I don’t have a hotel,” Phil admitted.“You’ll never get one on short notice,” the woman told him.“Oh, I won’t need one,” Phil said. “I’m flying out to Los Angeles tonight. I only came here to meet with Mr. Balsam.”“We can stop at a travel plaza for you to change,” she decided. “It will be less hassle than you trying to get back. .. and what I did, but you still loved them. It not only threw my views on concubinage into doubt, but also my attitude toward men, which had effectively turned me into a practicing lesbian, even if I naturally enjoy both sexes. The way that you showed kindness to me, despite how I had acted toward you, cinched it for me. You were a good man and you deserved more respect.“And that’s what brings up my next idea or thought. Would you be opposed to taking on a third concubine? Namely me? I’d.