Last Call at The Big Reveal

Just a month before, Diamond Tiara had shown less restraint while she sat at a table outside the Tasty Treat. She’d been wearing the same hat and coat, but puffed irritably on a cigarette, the ashtray at the table already filled with the remains of half a pack.

“You know, you’ll kill your palate like that.” A sandy yellow pegasus with a thick Manehattan accent touched down across from her and took a seat at the table. “Sorry I’m late, but a former client’s husband wanted to stop and chat about his divorce proceedings.”

“That bad, hmm?”

“Eh, he looks the worse for it.” He smirked and pulled out his own cigarettes, tapping one out of a battered pack.

“You’ll kill your palate like that,” Diamond observed dryly.

“Why do you think I asked you to meet me here?” He smirked and lit up. “I can still taste most of the food.”

“Fair enough.” She waited for him to settle in, and for the portly host to come out for their orders. Once he was gone, she looked at her lunch guest expectantly.

“So I’ve got good news and bad news for you, Miss Rich.” He used his wings to flip open his saddlebag, pulled out a plain business folder, and passed it to her. “Which do you want first?”

“Well, I’m assuming that you found her, and that she’s somewhere in Canterlot, since you asked me to meet you here.” Diamond flipped the folder open with her nose, and her breath hitched as she looked at the photos inside.

There she was. Silver Spoon, sometimes dressed in a light jacket, sometimes just wearing her pearls and glasses, other times dressed in a sweatshirt and some sort of tights.

Diamond looked through the pictures, her eyes focused like a laser on the grey-furred mare and the ponies she’d been interacting with. She could feel her pulse pounding through her head as she saw Silver chatting with somepony Diamond had never seen before. Saw her laughing at somepony’s stupid joke. When she saw a picture of Silver hugging some blue pegasus stallion, she made herself tear her eyes away, closing the folder and realizing that she’d missed everything her companion had said, and the arrival of their spicy lentil soup and his grass sandwich.

“I-I’m sorry, Mister Marelow, it’s… I haven’t seen her in a long time.” The private detective nodded, swallowing a bite of his sandwich and setting it back down.

“It’s okay, Miss Rich. I’ve seen worse; nopony’s dead at least. So, since you missed it, your ex is here, and I talked to her. She’s happy here.”

Diamond tasted her soup to cover for her rising temperature, fighting to focus on what he was saying through the throbbing in her ears.

“So what’s the bad news?” She asked him, grateful for the cook’s heavy hand with the curry and ginger as she wiped her eyes. The tears were actually already there because of the food, and the burn in her mouth and throat explained her constricting throat and choked voice.

“The bad news is, I can’t tell you anything more than that she is in Canterlot. And that she doesn’t really want to talk to you.”

“What do you mean, you can’t tell me anything more?” Diamond scowled, ignoring the hot soup as she leaned across the table. “I paid you to find out where -”

“You paid me to find out where one Silver Spoon lives, currently, and how she’s doing. What you didn’t pay me to do was to find out where a mare who was afraid of you ran off to.”

“What do you mean, afraid of me?” Diamond shouted at him. She stood from her seat and stabbed a hoof against her own chest. “She’s the one who hit me!”

“Miss Rich, if you don’t want to make a scene, I’d suggest you take your seat and lower your voice,” Marelow told her evenly. “It’s not busy here, but the host is at the door, and while I’m sure the ponies on the street would be fascinated by your love life, I’m also sure you don’t want to share it.” Diamond glared down at him, but took her seat again, picking up her soup and taking a long sip of the hot broth.

Maybe if she burned her voice out she could talk to the insufferable-

Diamond stopped herself, putting the bowl down and taking several deep breaths.

“I’m sorry, you’re right. I don’t especially want to share the details. But I never, never gave Silvy a reason to be scared of me.”

“No, you didn’t. Not that you thought was a reason. I’ve been hired a few times for a job like this, Miss Rich. I’m gonna give you the same advice I gave all of them, once I figured it out.”

“What?”

The pegasus sighed, finishing his sandwich and pulling a card out of his saddlebag. She took it from him and skimmed over it; a Doctor Open Mind.

“Don’t look for her. I know the guy on the card; he works with a lot of ponies who have problems like you an’ Silver Spoon did. Let Silver live her own life here. It’s like I told you; she’s happy here. She’s got a job she loves, good friends, a place in a nice part of town. Not fancy, but nice. You can go home, go back to your job, and move on. Get hold of the doc, let him help you work things through.”

Diamond looked at the card, taking two, three, four deep breaths. Of course he’d suggest that. Just like Mom had. Just like Daddy had.

“Did she really say she doesn’t want to talk to me? Or is that you trying to diagnose me for your friend?”

“Oh, she said it. I offered to deliver a letter for her, she had no interest in writing one. That’s when she had me promise not to tell you more about where she was. Miss Rich… I’m done with this job, as far as I’m concerned. And I’m gonna put the word out that Silver doesn’t want to be found. But she didn’t ask me for the pictures. And she didn’t say she won’t talk to you. You’ll have to be the one to reach out though, and I’ve already told you that I don’t think you should.” He picked up his soup, draining the rest of it easily.

“And given she was the one who hit you, maybe you should think about taking my advice, instead of trying to restart something that wasn’t good for either of you.”

“You can bill me for whatever I still owe you,” Diamond said coldly. “But I want that invoice itemized.”

“They always are, Miss Rich.” He tipped a hat he wasn’t wearing towards her as he stood up from the table. “You ever need somepony to get dirt on a competitor, call me. But I’ll stay out of your love life, if you don’t mind.” With that, he took off, flying away as the heavyset unicorn came out from the restaurant.

“Would you like something to drink, Miss? Or perhaps dessert? We have a fresh-”

“No, thank you.” She dropped a gem onto the table as she stood up and slipped the folder into her coat, leaving her half-eaten soup behind. “I have to catch the train back to Ponyville. Keep the change.”

“Ah, thank you, Miss! Have a nice day!” He called after her as she started the trip back to the station.

”Don’t think I didn’t notice you not asking me to come back soon,” she thought bitterly, quickly losing herself in the crowd.