Squeeze Me

“Anybody can get a Silver Alert, even on the mainland […]. Isn’t there a premium version for people like us? A Platinum Alert, something like that?”

Fay Alex makes this comment to Crosby regarding Kiki’s disappearance. Her words reveal how out of touch she is with real tragedy since no one ever goes missing in Palm Beach. The comment also indicates that even in the midst of a crisis affecting her best friend, she is preoccupied with status and preferential treatment.

“Angie had been summoned to Casa Bellicosa to unfasten a screech owl from the presidential pompadour, which the low-swooping raptor had mistaken for a road-kill fox.” 

This is a humorous description of a dream Angie is having. It suggests a real animosity from the animal kingdom toward the President, who is threatening wildlife habitat. It also foreshadows the genuine danger that will later be presented by a python invading the President’s home.

“It took a while for Crosby to adjust, but he advanced up the ranks due to an innate politeness, whiteness, and lack of a redneck accent. Since becoming chief, he’d also been well-served by an uncommon immunity to condescension.”

The reason that Crosby has remained the police chief for the pampered residents of Palm Beach is because he knows how to handle them. They are oblivious to their insulting attitude, and he develops the ability to become deaf to it as well. Despite his servility, Crosby faces being fired because the wealthy elite need a scapegoat for the python apocalypse.