Tag: St. Dymphna
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All Guests Must Be Announced – Ch. 14
“Hold the elevator,” Gerry shouted as Carmen walked into the lobby. “Take your time. Slow down. Slow it down,” I said to her as she hurried toward the elevator, with a computer bag in one hand, and a bottle of sauvignon blanc in the other. “Thank you, love.” Carmen as she preferred to be called was…
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All Guests Must Be Announced – Ch. 13
The phone rang in the lobby as it often did. The traffic lulled, now that most of the tenants were home from work. The medical examiner had come and gone with what was left of Mr. Kranepool’s physical form. As they wheeled Kranepool out on the squeaky stretcher, the body zipped tightly in plastic with the sheet…
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All Guests Must Be Announced – Ch. 12
Murphy came into the lobby holding a large recycled brown paper bag, Russell was on his break, down in the locker room watching Heathers for the umpteenth time and eating pizza from a spot on first that wouldn’t last. Murphy had some other things to tend to but there was always something for him to do at the…
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All Guests Must Be Announced – Ch. 11
I left Gerry and Ichabod in the lobby and went downstairs to the locker room to get my toothbrush. Obsessive compulsive disorder hits everyone differently. I had more obsessions than I had compulsions. I don’t have tics or count things but I admit I paid close attention to numbers. I tended to seek out patterns. I probably washed…
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All Guests Must Be Announced – Ch. 10
Gerry showed up only an hour before his shift started. He had some luggage and a case of Budweiser cans. Ichabod was excited to see me and I petted him and scratched his face. Murphy was talking to the detectives who had left for some time and returned. They had more questions about Kranepool which Murphy obliged. I…
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All Guests Must Be Announced – Ch. 9
Detectives were in the lobby while Kranepool’s mangled physical form waited to be removed by the medical examiner. The elevator rang, I walked across the beautiful marble tiles and checked to see what floor had buzzed. The number 17 was indicated. Keith Hernandez wore number seventeen. In ‘86 he had 171 hits, 13 home runs, 83 runs batted…
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All Guests Must Be Announced – Ch. 8
Every building on the island of Manhattan had rodents and insects and needed some level of pest control. No matter how expensive or luxurious the apartment vermin dwelled within their walls. Bugs navigated through the plumbing and ventilation. It was likely pigeons used their water tank as a toilet. Every job, whether it’s on a construction site or…
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All Guests Must Be Announced – Ch. 5
The velvet blackout curtains were caspian blue, and drawn over the windows and the glass door that led you into the courtyard. Those curtains were almost never drawn, but today was an exception. Murphy and the responding EMS, a pair of paramedics, a man and a woman, thought it best to cover up the windows. Give the man…
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All Guests Must Be Announced – Ch. 4
The felt letter board in the lobby stood three feet tall, bordered by stainless steel. A thin pole and a round base, heavy but not fixed to the marble. It read, all guests must be announced. An important rule for some, a nuisance for others. I dreaded talking to anyone, in person or on the phone, and…
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All Guests Must Be Announced – Ch. 3
534 East 57th street, was a cooperative building, you didn’t own the apartment, but instead you were a shareholder in a corporation. A lovely prewar building designed by famed architect Emery Roth. 21 stories, 60 units, 2 elevators and a full-time doorman. Dogs and cats are allowed. Some ghosts. One stowaway. A modest amount of scandal. Blind eyes…
SEAN GABLER 