I began to feel sorry for myself.And then the first of several telephone calls interrupted my already troubled existence. One of the credit card compa...ies had found me; I put them off, but when the third call came for me, my parents suggested that I move to the basement.Eventually they found out who was calling. "How bad is it, Cliff?" they wanted to know."In numbers, or the toll it's taking on my stomach? Are you asking how much I'm in debt, or how near I am to taking my own life?"Dad and Mom. " He grinned at her slip, and for thefirst time since she had arrived, Tiffany gave a smile of her own. Atleast he was being polite, even if he had just been fondling her like apiece of merchandise.Somewhat to her surprise, he kept his hands off her from that point on,as they sat, drank champagne and chatted. Tiffany found herself relaxingas they talked about current events and the latest films and tv shows.Mr Harper even made her laugh from time to time - something that shecouldn't remember. "I expect you to sit here and let me do what I do best," I said."Which is?" De-clawing lions," I said.Brandon looked at me wordlessly."All right," I said to Bernard as we walked away. "First off, we're gonna set some ground rules down. I don't know what it is that makes you hostile to everything, but for the next ten minutes, you keep it in check or I walk away. It's Friday lunch; I'll be done with you in a few hours, and you're wrong if you think I won't break rules to be done with you sooner.. "But I'm going to enjoy it until that happens."I waved at the waitress for the bill. "That's as good a plan as any," I said.When we left the restaurant, traffic had died down, and getting around in the city was easier. For that reason I asked if she wanted to do any sightseeing. We basically drove east until we got to the Mississippi River, using the big, silver arch St. Louis is known for as our guide. The Arch itself was pretty impressive. It looked too sleek and too thin to go that high up.