jerry's way

by horace p sternwall

i am so glad i met you, corinne. you have changed my whole life, and for the better. and i am glad i met you, william. you haven’t just changed my life - you have given me a whole new one. corinne and william had been together for a whole year, and corinne had brought a chocolate cake to celebrate the occasion. she dd not know what william’s taste, if any, in cake was, as they both tended to watch their weight, but chocolate had seemed a safe choice, and the cake was a small one. suddenly there was a knock on the door. who can that be? william asked. i am not expecting anybody. i am never expecting anybody. well, said corinne, i will see about the coffee. and she turned and went into the little kitchen alcove of the apartment. william opened the door. two men stood in the doorway, a tall man in a brown coat, and a shorter man in a black coat. both coats looked a little heavy for the weather outside, which was quite pleasant. are you ralph mccarthy? the shorter man asked william. no, i am afraid you have the wrong apartment, william answered, if not the wrong address altogether. next you will tell us we have the wrong city, the taller man said. he wore thick glasses with black frames. you well might, for all i know, william answered with a polite smile, although he did not care for the fellow’s tone of voice. enough of this, the shorter man said. he took a small firearm out of the pocket of his heavy black coat, and shot william in the heart, killing him instantly. corinne rushed into the room. the two men looked annoyed to see her. i am sorry for the intrusion, miss, the shorter man said, but we had an assignment. and we only kill bad people, the taller man added. i don’t know how well you knew this character, but you are well rid of him. corinne looked down at william’s body. i knew hm for a whole year, she exclaimed, and it was the most wonderful year of my life. the two men backed into the hallway and closed the door behind them. they passed the elevator and started quickly walking down the three flights of stairs to the lobby. if i was on my own, i would have shot her too, the tall man said, as he took the thick glasses off and put them in his pocket. but you aren’t working for yourself, the shorter man said. we are working for jerry, and we do things his way. back in the apartment, corinne called the police.