08.31.2008 / EP. 35
A Tempting Proposal
Milly mulled over Lin’s suggestion that he “take out” Pam. It interested her that he wouldn’t take a small lateral step and talk openly. His reticence might stem from caution against eavesdropping, an episode of blackmail in his past, reluctance to confront necessity, an effort to tease or provoke, any number of things. Milly placed this wad firmly in her ruminant disposition for later chewing.
On the question itself, assuming that Lin was serious and not – for example – coat-trailing, Pam was Milly’s counterpart in so many ways that reflecting on her demise carried a strong sense of suicide. An intelligent woman, working alone, Pam had every reason to identify with Milly; the two of them were stronger together than separately. Each could offer advice, comfort, and practical assistance ranging from blue ribbon experts to strong-arm boys. They’d been victims of the same prejudice and insults, usually covert, and fought their way to the top by insulating themselves progressively against the need to consider others’ interests. It didn’t contradict this rational succession that both Pam and Milly served others as acolytes until they replaced their mentors or hopped onto faster rising escalators. The differences between them amounted to an image and its mirrored reflection.
As Milly roamed her assortment of taciturn mannequins, the thought occurred to her that, in many ways, these were ideal creatures set on earth to worship their maker. Never disrespectful, always obedient, her objects of clay or wood gave Milly inexpressible delight. They stood in her garden of Eden quite before the fall. Milly hoped that God was as pleased with her as she was with her dolls, but she doubted it. For one thing, God didn’t learn from mankind: why this wasn’t part of the divine plan Milly had never understood. She adored her dolls partly because of the important lessons they taught her. She hoped her thoughts didn’t denigrate God’s imagination or suggest that God must eventually scrap his creation and start again.
Pam knew the black market in drugs; she wouldn’t have broached the topic without, in advance, exploring the addicts’ subculture she’d enter with Resurrection and White Gold. Had already entered, for Pam’s foot was already firmly in the door if not shaking the ground. Pam meant to dominate and this required every advantage she could take, including knowledge and contacts. Milly would have to watch her cohorts carefully for unusual behaviour, confidence, indifference, aggression. Pam might be able to control herself, but her minions were less adept.
Admiring an early J.D. Kestner wooden-jointed doll in her glass case, Milly slid to the floor. She let her mind wander. Pam could take over Milly’s network, might have planned her opening gambit and be readying weaponry. The conversation with Milly was a diversion, intended to lull her vigilance. Pam knew the personalities in the drug trade, the types if not actual names and addresses. She understood when to appease, flatter, threaten, or use force. Very much like Lin, perhaps, Pam was a threat. Milly was a fool to hope otherwise.
The rows of aseptic dolls gazed back at Milly. Not a fleck of dust disturbed their surface. This was the army of women she’d summon against Pam. Nothing could go wrong: no ripple would disrupt the flow of drugs, no discontent upset her team. Milly would see to it. The ten per cent increase in sales was trivial and in progress. Everyone was happy. Even Lin couldn’t complain. Milly would pretend to be everyone’s friend, Lin and Pam and the voice, but prepare for slaughter if the need arose. She’d set one against the other. Should Milly strike first? She believed in prudence. Let others make enemies and show their hands. With drugs as in the doll market, there were plenty of competitors, but without them Milly would have no market. Competitors were a necessary evil. Milly would go into business with Pam and discover her weaknesses. Milly would foster Lin’s career and advise him to “take out” Pam. With Pam gone, Milly could take over and suggest that Lin mine for political gold while she controlled the drug trade. They’d specialize. It seemed to her a modest and reasonable proposal.
Milly, however, knew that nothing was straightforward. If she urged Lin to kill Pam, he’d distrust her forever. Lin delighted in the devious. His mind plotted and schemed and – not unlike Milly’s – never overlooked an opportunity to find fault. The trap Milly set for Pam on Monday, he’d expect her to lay for him Tuesday. It was safest to say no, and give as reason that the industry needed stability to keep the police at bay. Let Lin surmise what he wished, but Milly wouldn’t be a threat to him. Milly imagined the Kestner doll lifting the glass of her cage and congratulating her on her logic. The doll would hold Milly in her arms and console her. Milly slept again, exhausted, on the safe unwelcoming floor of the dolls’ room.
