Granquist laughed. She got up and went to Kells and put her arms around his body. She didn’t say anything, just looked at him and laughed.
The wide, wild look went out of his eyes slowly. He smiled. He said: “What makes you think it’s worth that much?”
Then he put her arms away gently and went to the table and poured two drinks.
Chapter Three
At about six-forty Kells dropped Granquist at her apartment house on the corner of Wilcox and Yucca.
“Meet you in an hour at the Derby.”
She said: “Oke — adios.”
Kells drove up Wilcox to Cahuenga, up Cahuenga to Iris, turned up the short curving slope to Cullen’s house. The garage doors were open, he drove the car in and then went up and rang the bell. No one answered. He went back down and closed the garage doors and walked down to Cahuenga, down Cahuenga to Franklin.
He stood on the corner a little while and then went into a delicatessen and called a Hempstead number. The line was busy, he waited a few minutes, called again, said: “Hello, Ruth... Swell... Listen: I’m going to be very busy tonight — I’ve got about a half-hour... You come out and walk up to Las Palmas, and if you’re, sure you’re not tailed come up Las Palmas to Franklin... If you’re not absolutely sure take a walk or something... I’ll give you a ring late... Yeah...”
He went out and walked over Franklin to Las Palmas. He walked back and forth between Las Palmas and Highland for ten minutes and then walked down the west side of Las Palmas to Hollywood Boulevard. He didn’t see anything of Ruth Perry.