5
Six o’clock the following morning, Davis came bursting into my bedroom. I woke with a start, grabbed my gun from under my pillow, saw who it was, sank back.
“That’s the way guys meet with accidents,” I said crossly, rubbing my eyes. “What time is it?”
“I like that,” Davis snorted. “I’ve been slaving all through the night and come over here to show you how bright I am, and you talk of accidents.”
I yawned, lit a cigarette, sat up in bed.
“All right,” I said. “Shoot.”
He handed me a copy of the Morni ng Star.
“It’s all there,” he said proudly. “Careful how you handle it, the print ain’t dry yet. Howja like it ?” He sat on the foot of the bed, breathing heavily, his eyes alight with excitement. “Gawd knows what Killeano will do to the editor when he sees it. Gawd knows what the editor will do to me if he ever finds out Killeano never said a word of what I’ve said he said. But this is the way you wanted it, and you’ve got it that way.”
“My pal,” I said, and read the banner headlines:
CITY ADMINISTRATOR SWOOPS
NEW POLICE CHIEF’S LIGHTNING ATTACK ON ALIEN SMUGGLERS
Mysterious Motor-Launch Sunk by Gunfire
Late last night, Ed. Killeano, Paradise Palms’ City Administrator, in his new capacity of Chief of Police, struck a crippling blow at the Alien smuggling racket.
Too long has this notorious scandal openly flourished along the coast of our fair city. We, representing the citizens of Paradise Palms, are proud to be one of the first to congratulate the new Chief of Police for tackling this racket so courageously and with such speed. It should be remembered that the former Chief of Police made no attempt to suppress the smuggling racket, and it is all the more to Ed. Killeano’s credit that he has taken such prompt action when only being in office a few hours.
In an exclusive interview with the Morning Star, Killeano said that he was determined to clean up Paradise Palms once and for all. “Now I have taken over the job of Chief of Police,” he said, “I am showing no mercy to the racketeers hiding in our City. I am going to smoke them out. Let them be warned. I appeal to my supporters to return me to Office so that I can complete the task I have already begun. This is only a beginning.”
Acting on information from a secret source, the new Chief of Police ordered Coast Guards to seize a mysterious motor-launch operating off Pigeon Key. A desperate battle ensued, and the motor-launch was sunk, but not before some twelve Cuban nationals lost their lives… .
There was a lot more in this vein, photographs of the boat half in and half out of the water, of Killeano and the Coast Guards. It was a nice piece of work, and I told Davis so.
“But wait until Killeano sees it,” he said, scratching his head vigorously. “When he realizes how he’s been committed, he’ll have the shock of his life.”
“I guess he will,” I said, jumping out of bed. “And there isn’t a thing he can do about it. This is terrific propaganda for his election campaign. He daren’t deny he sold Gomez out: not even to Gomez. And if he did, Gomez wouldn’t believe him.”
I scrambled into my clothes.
“Where are you going at this ungodly hour?” Davis demanded. “I’ve never seen such an energetic guy. Me—I’m dead on my feet.”
“Hop into bed, then,” I said. “After that write-up I wouldn’t deny you anything. I have a date with Gomez.”
“Yeah?” Davis said, kicking off his shoes “Where do you think you’ll find him at this hour?”
“With Lois Spence,” I said, making for the door. “If he isn’t there, I can always look at the dame. She interests me.”
He took off his coat and stretched out on the bed. “She interests me too,” he said with a sigh. “But not with that Gomez thug hanging around. He cools my ardour.”
I took Tim’s Mercury convertible, drove out to Lexington Avenue. The night staff were still on duty, and I walked over to the hall porter’s cubby-hole.
“Hello, dad,” I said, smiling at the old boy. “Remember me?”
He remembered me all right. There’s nothing like a little folding money to impress your personality on anyone.
“Yes, sir, “he said, brightening up. “I remember you very well, sir.”
“I thought you would,” I said, and looked round to make sure no one was watching us. I produced a fifty-dollar bill, folded it slowly, giving him ample time to see it, then hid it in my hand.
His eyes started out of his head like organ stops
“Gomez with Miss Spence?” I asked casually.
He nodded. There was nothing casual about his nod.
“Both tucked up together with nothing between them but their dreams?” I went on.
“I wouldn’t know about their dreams, sir,” he said, shaking his head. “I don’t think I should want to know about them. Hut they’re up there all right.”
“That’s fine. I’d like to drop in and see them. Kind of surprise them,” I said, eyeing him “Would there be a pass-key to their room within reach?”
He stiffened. “I couldn’t do that, sir,” he said, shocked. “I’d lose my job.”
I looked at the row of keys hanging on hooks behind him.
“Now I wonder which it would be,” I said. “I’d pay fifty bucks for that information, providing you took a short walk after you’ve told me.”
He struggled with his finer feelings, but the fifty bucks made short work of them.
He turned, lifted a key from a hook, put it down on the counter.
“I’m sorry, sir,” he said. “I couldn’t do it. I have my job to consider.”
I slid him the fifty bucks.
“Okay, but you’d better stick to this,” I told him. “If you and I work together much longer, you’ll be buying your own apartment block.”
He snapped up the note, eased his collar, came out of his office.
“If you’ll pardon me,” he said, “I have to check on the mail deliveries.” He hurried across the lobby without looking back.
It didn’t take me longer than it’d take you to blink to pick up the pass-key. I walked over to the elevator, rode up to the fourth floor.
Apartment 466 was silent and in semi-darkness. I pulled my .38, held it in my fist. I had no intention of being jumped by Gomez.
I crossed the sitting-room, wandered into the bedroom.
Gomez and Lois Spence were in bed. He lay on his back; she on her side. Neither of them snored. Neither of them looked particularly attractive.
I sat on the edge of the bed, pinched Lois’s toes. She muttered in her sleep, turned, flung out a white arm, hit Gomez on his beaky nose. He cursed, threw her arm off, sat up. His eyes took me in, and he snapped awake. He didn’t move. The .38 must have looked pretty menacing from where he lay.
“Hello, sportsman,” I said, smiling at him. “How did you like your swim?”
He drew in a deep breath, relaxed back on his pillow. His eyes had that ferocious glare reserved for caged tigers, otherwise he kept surprisingly calm.
“You’ll do this once too often, Cain,” he said, not moving his lips. “What’s the idea?”
“No idea,” I said. “I blew in because I was curious to know how you liked your little dip last night.”
He studied me for a long moment. “I didn’t like it,” he said, at last.
“Something told me you wouldn’t,” I said, grinning. “I must be getting clairvoyant. Well, brother, what are you going to do about it?” Without taking my eyes off him, I pulled out the copy of the Morni ng Star a nd handed it to him. “Take a gander at that. Our Ed. has cut himself a nice slice of publicity at your expense, hasn’t he?”
One look at the headlines brought Gomez up on his elbow. He was wearing mauve and white pyjamas. They didn’t suit his sallow complexion. What with one thing and another, he looked like hell. I bet he felt that way too.
His sudden move uncovered Lois. She didn’t seem to have anything on. She grabbed the sheet back, muttered under her breath, turned over.
Not wishing her to miss the fun, I pinched her toes again.
“Cut that out!” she snapped angrily, opened her eyes. She looked at me, stiffened, clutched Gomez. He threw her off, and went on reading the newspaper.
“Hi, Tutz,” I said, smiling at her. “Don’t froth up your cold cream. Me and Juan are in conference.”
She sat up, remembered there were gentlemen present, dived under the bedclothes again.
“What the hell goes on?” she demanded in a voice thick with rage and fright.
“Shut up,” Gomez snarled, and went on reading.
“Chivalry in the twentieth century,” I said sadly. “Never mind. Relax, beautiful, and wait until the great man has read his paper.”
Lois lay back regarding Gomez with glittering, furious eyes.
He got through reading the newspaper, slung it down.
“The rat I” he said, clenching his fists, then remembering I was still with him, went on, “What do you want?”
“Ed. and I don’t get along either,” I said. “I thought you might feel like doing something about it.”
He stared at me for a moment, then lay back. “Such as what?”
“Are you crazy?” Lois demanded furiously. “Why do you let this heel sit on our bed like this? Hit him! Do something!”
Gomez, snarling, slapped her face, got out of bed. “Come into the other room where we can talk,” he said. “Women drive me nuts.”
I looked at the telephone by the bed, shook my head. “This blue-eyed twist might get ideas,” I said. “I’ll keep you both where I can watch you.”
Gomez jerked the extension plug from the wall, picked up the telephone and walked across the room.
“I want to talk,” he said. “She wants to fight. We’ll get nowhere if she’s in on the conversation.”
“I’ll make you pay for this!” Lois stormed. “You can’t talk to me like this, you—you gigolo!”
He stepped to the bed.
“Shut up!” he snarled.
“Well, come on,” I said impatiently. “If you want to talk, let’s talk.”
He glared at Lois for a moment, then joined me at the door. Lois started warming up the room with some fancy cursing, but we shut the door and left her to it.
Gomez sat down in an easy chair in the outer room. He ran his fingers through his long oily hair, eyed me the way a snake eyes its first meal after hibernation, said, “Just where do you figure in all this?”
“Killeano’s coming after you, buddy,” I said, lighting a cigarette. “He knows the only way he can get re-elected is to show the electors that he can handle boys like you. Flaggerty getting knocked off was a break for him. It’s given him a chance to show his power. He’s sold you out. He’ll sell all the other bright boys out too. But you can stop him, if you want to.”
“I can stop him all right,” Gomez said, clenching his fists. “And I don’t want any help or suggestions from you.”
“You boys always work the same way,” I said, shrugging. “You figure you’ll lay for Ed., and fill him full of hot metal. But you won’t get near him. He knows you’ll come gunning for him, and he’ll take precautions. I bet you don’t set eyes on him until after the election; then it’ll be too late.”
Gomez chewed his under-lip, frowning.
“Well, what’s your idea, then?”
“An easy way to fix Killeano would be to call at 46 Waterside between eleven-thirty and twelve tonight,” I said. “Maybe you didn’t know Ed. relaxed in that joint. He has a private room
in the basement, and his mob goes with him. I don’t suppose they’ll worry you much, will they?”
He brooded, then stood up. “If that’s all you can suggest,” he said, “you can beat it. And the next time you snoop into this apartment without being invited, you’ll be carried out feet first.”
“I’m scared,” I said, went to the door, opened it, paused. “If you did find Killeano in that cathouse, it’d look good in the press, wouldn’t it? Jed Davis would print all the dirt you gave him so long as you gave him proof. I can’t see Ed. being re-elected if that kind of news broke on the morning of the election, can you?”
“Get out,” he said.
I went.