The Floating Corpse

by James Walker

  “Ah! The notorious tramway! Is that still in operation? Can we take a ride on it?”

  Uncle Will made a wincing face. “It’s been a bit dicey of late. The engines are about burned out and the bolts that keep it together have loosened to a state that has kept us from letting anyone ride on it.”

  “I am surprised it lasted this long, as it has hauled many, many tons of material since I put it up six years ago. I have one more project I wish to complete then I will most likely dis-” A quizzical look came across his face and he looked at me sharply. “Why did you say ‘notorious’?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You said the ‘notorious Tramway’. Why did you refer to it like that?”

  Mentally, I slapped myself on the forehead. I knew better than to make a slip like that in front of my Uncle. He was the sharpest tool in the shed! I had one secret I meant to keep, lest it change our relationship, so I shrugged and thought up a story Johnny on the spot.

  “No reason, really,” I sputtered. “Dad told me about how scared he was to ride it. He said it was ‘harrowing’, I believe.”

  He gave me a look that said he didn’t quite believe me, but he was too polite to say so. I didn’t trust my wits enough to say anymore, so I just stared out over the river and found a distraction.

  “Look, Uncle Will!” I pointed to two shapes floating in the wind. “I think those are eagles!”

  William smiled indulgently, “You are absolutely correct, my boy! There is a mated pair that nests near here.”

  The eagle’s flight brought them much closer to the castle. It was incredible to see them fly by. At this height, we were level with them as they soared high above the river. Suddenly, one of them screeched then began a long- angled dive towards the water. I thought the bird was going to plunge right into the river when it suddenly flared its wings and stopped as its talons went into the water. With a few powerful flaps, it began to rise again, with something wiggling on the end of its talons. For a city boy, watching an eagle hunt was a real treat!

  William nodded. “The shad run has begun.”

  Surprised, I asked, “You can tell what kind of fish that was from here?” It was at least a hundred yards away and below us.

  He winked at me, “I have always been blessed with excellent eyesight. I can see farther than most.”

  ‘And you see everything!’ I thought to myself. My esteem for him went up another notch.

  He clapped me on the shoulder. “Come along, Collin. Let me show you some of the inside. Perhaps you’re ready for a cocktail.”

  “Lead on, Mac Duff!”

  We went in the same doors we had originally and Wiliam led me across the room and into the formal dining area. He gestured to a huge cupboard that filled on wall and said, “Help yourself.” Then he took a seat at the edge of a horseshoe shaped booth that surrounded the dining room table. He looked as smug as any of the cats that wandered around. William picked one up and set it in his lap, looking at me as if to say, ‘Get on with it’.

  The cupboard had a large mirrored back with and drawers and cabinets below. The shelf was alcohol free, so I checked the cabinets and drawers. Searching high and low as best I could without emptying the contents onto the floor, I couldn’t find any booze. There were no signs of liquor and I began to fear my uncle had joined the teetotalers. Though I had never known him to take more than a sip of wine or champagne, he was never opposed to spirits.

  I turned to him in confusion, and he waggled his eyebrows before setting the cat down and stepping over to the cupboard. He pushed in a spot and I heard a soft click and one of the panels on the mirrored back popped open. William slid it back to reveal rows of liquor and side racks of glasses.

  “Geez Louise Uncle Will! I thought you’d become a holy roller for prohibition or something!” I joked.

  “Quite the opposite, Collin. I’m a ‘holy roller’ for choice! But the day will come soon; mark my words, prohibition will pass!” He struck a noble pose, “And I, for one, shall never deny my guests their rightful pleasures!”

  Then he winked at me and touched the side of his nose, “That is why we must keep this little secret in the family.”

  I never felt closer to him than I did right then. I learned that sometimes respect and understanding were as thick as blood.

  Fortified with a Maker’s Mark, neat, we continued the tour of the inside. We went around the side of the staircase and down a hallway that led to a back room, which I would describe as an everyday dining room. There was an oblong table that could seat six, with two of the chairs tucked into the corners near the row of windows. The view wasn’t as spectacular as the one from the front of the house, but it was pleasant enough, with rolling hills that led to an estuary. There was an abundance of waterfowl that I pointed out to my Uncle.

  “Oh, yes. I’ve spent many a breakfast and lunch watching their antics. But you must come in the fall when the sparrows migrate. That is a sight to see!”

  ‘Oh, goody, goody!’ I thought to myself sarcastically. If I wanted to see a bunch of birds, I’d go to Central Park and feed the pigeons. From there we passed through an open room that had sideboards, filled with glass and china, and food locker, plus an enormous ice box. Then we entered the domain of Mrs. Woods. I was surprised at how small the kitchen was in relation to the Castle. It looked no bigger than one you’d find in a more modest home. I think it was even smaller than the galley on the Aunt Polly. Yet it had everything it needed to be functional and highly efficient, and even a small counter by the window with two stools. I could imagine, Mrs. Woods and Catty shelling peas or having a cup of coffee there.

  William pulled open a door on one side, to reveal a staircase going down into darkness. At the bottom, William flipped a switch and I got my first glimpse into his workshop. It was darker down here and a bit danker, giving it an eerie ambiance. The only natural light came from under a door that led to another room.

  A long wooden table, set against the stone foundation, dominated one wall. Upon it sat hundreds of small parts, wooden and metal, that were strewn across the top like the aftermath of an explosion. I couldn’t make heads or tails of what he was trying to put together.

  “What is all this stuff, Uncle Will?” I asked. “Are you trying to emulate Dr. Frankenstein down here?” I joked, referencing the book by Mary Shelly we both loved.

  He laughed. “Nothing so grandiose, my boy. It’s just the remains and failures of the window and door hardware manufacturing. You sometimes can only succeed by persevering many failures”. He laughed again, “It adds up when each door and window have their own unique, lock, latch, and closer.”

  “Each one is different?” I asked, awed by the amount of time he must have spent.

  He nodded, “I carved all the light switches also.”

  The more I thought about it and the size and scope of this place, the crazier it seemed. Most sane folk would have simply picked out a style and had a carpenter install them. It seemed like such a mundane thing to spend what must have been months on.

  “Jeepers!” was all I trusted myself to say.

  He shrugged. “A bit obsessive, I’ll grant you that, but it did help keep my mind off things this past year.”

  That, I could understand. I clicked my tongue, “Pop always said you were a whiz at set design.”

  The next room we went into was more of a storage area that sat below the main entrance. There I found my motorcycle, lined up next to William’s Indian Chief. I had forgotten I had left it out front.

  I shook my head. “Ozaki shouldn’t have gone to the trouble. He could have just told me to park it here.”

  “I must confess” William said, “It was me. I was afraid Ozaki would try to walk it down and spill it, so I hopped on and coasted in. I hope you don’t mind.”

  “Not at all, Uncle. The key was in it, you should have taken her for a spin.”

  “Ha!”, He said with a grin as he pulled open the bay door to the outside, “Have someone see me
on a Harley? Not on your Nellie!”

  We went up the little incline and went back into the Castle by way of the massive front doors. I was prepared to help William swing back one of the massive, carved oaken doors, but it was so well balance that he pulled it open with little effort.

  Once inside, he gave me the official tour of the library and study and we whiled away the rest of the afternoon as William pointed out various playbills he had mounted and told me funny stories about the cast and my father’s role in the productions. We hadn’t even noticed the sky darkening with the dusk until Ozaki showed up and announced that dinner would be served in an hour.

  William, surprised, took out his pocket watch and gave a low whistle. “By Jove, where has the time gone? Well, Collin, I guess we’ll have to cut the tour short for today. I wanted to take you to the upper reaches, but that would be better suited for the daytime.”

  “What about the conservatory? Do we have time to see that?” After reading my father’s description, it was the room I was most curious about.

  William clapped me on the shoulder. “How about we save that for after dinner? We could have our brandy and cigars in there.”

  My Uncle neither drank brandy nor smoked cigars, but I was up for the double duty.

  When I met him at the dining room table, precisely at eight, I was confused to see two place settings, at the other end of the table, deep into the booth where there was little room. Uncle Will was looking quite smug, so, I decided it was a good time to act confused.

  “Is Ozaki going to slide the food down to us?” I asked.

  William waggled his eyebrows then pulled the table out with one hand. It slid smoothly out on tracks, leaving us plenty of room to take our seats in the rear. We walked in and he gestured for me to sit in a spot across from him, and then slid the table back into place, putting the settings directly in front of us.

  I grinned, “That is the cat’s meow, Uncle.”

  He smiled. “It will be quite handy when I have a dinner party. Yet, tonight, let’s slide down to the head. That way Ozaki can serve us easier.”

  We each slid our settings down and Ozaki appeared, bearing our soup and a bottle of wine. William had just a splash in his glass, but Ozaki poured me a full measure.

  William didn’t touch his soup right away and I feared we might have to pray before we ate, but he raised his glass in salute and said, “Here’s to friends. Old and new.”

  “Hear, Hear” I replied.

  The meal was wonderful, both Uncle Will and I digging in with gusto. Aside from us, we were joined by eight or nine cats that materialized out of thin air. I had to laugh as Uncle Will fed them tid-bits off his plate then chided them for being gluttons. As far as I could tell, it was every cat for himself as he tossed the food onto the floor. Ozaki would shoo them away between courses, but they came right back after he returned to the kitchen.

  After dessert, William led me to the conservatory and opened the glass doors. With a flourish, he bowed me into the room. My excitement at seeing this spot-so aptly described by my father-made me grateful to still have my Uncle Will. It was like stepping into the tropics. The air was thick with moisture and I could see steam rising from vents on the floor. The waterfall cascaded in the corner, with a soothing sound of running water, collecting in a pool at its base. The room was filled with large and exotic plants, but I was only interested in one thing. Something my father had written about.

  I bee-lined it over to the edge of the pool and began talking loudly to my Uncle, who was shutting the door behind us. I kept my eyes on the stone shelf that surrounded the pool, but I still nearly jumped out of my skin when two frogs hopped out of the water-right in front of me, croaking to beat the band.

  I spied a small sugar bowl on a small café table next to me and I lifted the lid to find what I expected. It was half full of dead flies. I took a little pinch and sprinkled it over the frogs, which lapped them out of the air with their long tongues. I crowed with delight, feeling like I was six years old.

  “What are you doing, Collin?” I heard my Uncle ask behind me.

  “Just feeding the guard frogs”, I answered. I winced to myself as soon as I said it.

  “Have a seat Collin,” William said firmly.

  Feeling like I had gotten caught with my hand in the cookie jar, I stood and turned to see Ozaki, holding a bottle of brandy, a glass, and a cigar on a tray, standing next to my Uncle and looking suspiciously at me. I took a seat and the frogs began their chorus of croaks again. William bent over, pointed at each one, and then waved his hand.

  “Mike! Lena! That is enough, you little water pigs! Back in the water.” To my utter amazement and delight, they each did a twisting leap and dove back into the pool.

  William gave me a stern look, as Ozaki poured me a drink. “How much did your father record of his last visit?”

  I took a large swallow of the brandy. I didn’t want to lie, but I was leery of what his reaction might be to the truth.

  “What do you mean…record?” I asked, trying to sound innocent.

  He sighed and looked knowingly at his valet. Ozaki crossed his arms and gave me the evil eye. “None of your mealy mouth comments! Answer the question.”

  When I covered my lips with my glass to my lips, in another vain attempt to stall, William shook his head.

  “Collin, you were away at University between the time your father ended his visit with me and he boarded the Lusitania. Yet, you knew Mike and Lena were here and earlier today, you called it the ‘notorious Tramway’. Aside from those two slips, you were obviously underwhelmed by much of what you saw today-as if you knew about it already. Now, knowing your father, and his propensity to write down his experiences, I have to believe he left some account of his visit- which you have read! All I want to know is how much he described in his narrative.”

  I poured myself another drink and took my time lighting the cigar. I was stalling to try and decide how much I wanted to reveal but decided to throw caution to the wind. “All of it, I guess. From when you picked him up in New London until your last talk on the telephone before he left for England.”

  William groaned and slapped his forehead, but Ozaki laughed out loud. William gave him a sharp look and barked, “This is no laughing matter, Ozaki! Charles gave his word he would never speak of it.”

  Ozaki looked at him like he was the village idiot. “Correct! That he would never SPEAK of it!”

  William stared at him for a moment, and then half smiled. “I should have known better. He was the master of wording contracts.” He sighed theatrically, “Never did he promise not to write it down.”

  He looked down at me. “You must burn those papers as soon as you return home, young man. There will be dire consequences if that story ever comes to light.”

  I took a big pull on my stogie and blew it out in a long steady stream. I loved my Uncle dearly and didn’t want to go against his wishes, but he took one look in my eyes and knew that wasn’t going to happen.

  “You would never willingly destroy them. I suppose, if I were in your shoes, I would never do so. But you must understand the consequences, if the story ever got out.”

  “I’m not sure of your reasoning, Uncle Will. Surely, with all the people involved, not to mention a very public murder, the story is bound to come out one day, regardless of my silence.”

  “Ah!” He put a finger in the air, “You are making assumptions. Yes, there are many people who know parts of the story, but only a handful are in possession of ALL the facts. Aside from various government officials, only Rowan, myself, and your father knew the whole story.”

  “Besides the mastermind,” I reminded him, “who got away.”

  To my surprise, William poured himself a jot of brandy and took the seat across from me. Even Ozaki took a glass and sat on the stone ledge of the pond, next to his employer! They each took a small sip, and then William set his down and gave me a stern look. “I sincerely hope, now that you’re a major player in the
theater business, that you haven’t entertained the thought of publishing the story or turning it into a play!”

  The thought had crossed my mind, but it wasn’t the direction I wanted my life to go in. It occurred to me that, I might use it as leverage to that end, the last thing I wanted to do was black mail my Uncle! In the end, perhaps because of the strong drink, I plowed ahead with the real reason I came to see him.”

  “Well, Uncle Will, there is a way you could be sure that didn’t happen.”

  “How so?”

  Well…if you were to take over as president to the syndicate, you’d have control of all my father’s journals and ledgers. I’m willing to step aside, right here and now.”

  William and Ozaki looked at each other in shock that turned their attention to me- and burst out laughing.

  I wasn’t about to let that put me off. “What’s so funny? You’d be the perfect man for the job! You say you’re retired from the stage, but you still know the business from side to side and top to bottom, have more contacts than I’ll probably ever meet, and everyone loves you. You could build it into a business to rival the railroad people! In a few years, you could make enough money to build ten of these places-anywhere in the world!”

  William blinked and took another sip, “You are serious, aren’t you?”

  “Yes! Doggone it, Uncle Will. I’m only twenty-five years old. I don’t want to be chained to a desk the rest of my life. Reading reviews and shuffling papers is not my idea of a life! Maybe in ten years or so, when you retire for good, I can step up.”

  William smiled at me warmly and replied. “You blithering saphead! Do you think I built my home, out here in the boondocks of Connecticut, just so I could step back into the limelight? I have spent a good part of my life in the public eye and have seen every side of humanity. Aside from a select few persons, I prefer the company of my cats! And I have all the money I need.”

  “Excuse me, master saphead” Ozaki spoke up, “But when did you ever see your father chained to his desk?”