"That's... an awfully complicated metaphor," says Billy, sliding his King diagonally back and away from its threatened position. "Kind of reminds me a lot Sam Spade and his Flitcraft Parable. From Maltese Falcon. You ever read the book? It's an entirely different kind of metaphor, but... similar. In that they are long, and colorful."
He chuckles briefly.
"I try to avoid such things, except when I pick up the client wanting something 'authentic'. If acting like a gumshoe from the talkies gets me an extra thousand dollars for expenses? I'll suffer for the art."