“Your position is a little ambiguous,” Mr Braunberg conceded. “However, in the circumstances I don’t think we’ll need to fight over it. As Mr Ufferlitz’s executor, I’m willing to offer you, say, three thousand dollars, or half a week’s salary, in full settlement. That would save us both the expense of going to court over it and also a long delay in winding up the estate, and I don’t think the... er... party will suffer very much from it. Mr Ufferlitz’s assets, I believe, will be sufficient to take care of everything on this basis. If that’s satisfactory to you?”
“Fair enough,” said the Saint, who was a philosopher when there was no useful alternative.
Jack Groom leaned forward over his lantern jaw.
“You said that Mr Ufferlitz had no heirs, Mr Braunberg. Suppose some obscure relative should turn up and contest the will?”
“He’d be taken care of with the usual formula. There’s a standard clause in the will which provides that everyone not specifically named is specifically excluded and if they want to argue about it the estate can settle with them for one dollar.” The attorney put his fingertips together again. “Are there any further questions?”
There didn’t seem to be any.
“Very well, then. It may be a week or two before I can get your checks out, but I’ll take care of it as soon as I can. Thank you very much.”
He stood up and began to shovel the papers into his briefcase, an efficient business man with a lot of other things to attend to. With true professional discretion, he had not even said a word about the circumstances of Mr Ufferlitz’s departure from the ranks of mushroom Hollywood magnates. From his point of view as the executor of a will, the question was not involved. And Simon felt an inward quirk of sardonic amusement as he considered how rapidly and methodically a man’s material affairs could be wound up, the ideas and intrigues and ephemeral importances to which he had seemed so essential...
The telephone began to ring then in the outer office.
Kendricks and Lazaroff had a few words with Jack Groom on their way out, and Simon caught April Quest’s eye again and was moving towards her when Peggy Warden intercepted him.