“He wanted to get the body cut up and taken away from his house. He wanted to get your identity established with me as quickly as possible, otherwise the fact that the body, when found, could have proved that it couldn’t have been yours from a doctor’s evidence of time of death. First, you had to see me, then I was to be held up for a day or so, to give him time to set the stage the way he wanted. To hold me up, he planted Chang on me. You didn’t know this. He got his Cubans to take Chang along and put him in my office, hoping that the cops would come up and hold me for questioning. I beat him to it. Found out where the Cubans came from, got there, killed them before they could get rid of one of the hands and arms of the Lindsay dame. By slipping up like that, he made a complete mess of things. That’s the way it went, isn’t it?”
Glorie sat limply in the chair. She said, “Yes, that’s right. It was a mad idea, but Harry was so scared he’d have done anything I told him to. I hadn’t much time to make plans, but I thought it was an opportunity to get Carlos. I shook Harry down for ten grand. I gave you six, because I knew then that you’d follow up the case. I forged the letter giving you the necessary clues and then, when your secretary took me to the hotel, I waited my opportunity and ran away. That was the end of Marian Daley. I went back to Key West with Harry, and waited for you to come. Thayler had told the Cubans to leave the body and the clothes at the Grand Central in a trunk. We were going to give you a tip so that you could have found them. I left that to Harry, but he messed it.”
Fenner lay back in his chair and stared at the ceiling. “It was cock-eyed,” he said. “If you’d’ve come to see me and told me about Carlos, I’d have gone for him just the same. A guy who handles people the way he did deserves all he gets.” Glorie sat up very straight.
“You talk as if he’s dead,” she said. Fenner looked at her.
“He’s dead all right. You’re lucky. Seems like you’ve always managed to find a sucker to do your dirty work. Anyway, it was nice to see him go.”
Glorie drew in a long shuddering breath. She started to say something, but Fenner interrupted. “The guy who killed Lindsay’s daughter is dead. You’re still my client. The Lindsay business is for the cops to work out. Maybe they’ll find out about Thayler. Maybe they’ll even get a line on you, but I’m not helping them. As far as I’m concerned, I’m through. You can link up with Noolen and go with him as fast as you like. I don’t like you, baby, an’ I don’t like Noolen. I’ll be glad to get back home. Whatever happens to you means nothing to me. You can be sure something will happen to you. A jane with your outlook can’t last long. I’ll leave it like that.”
He got up and wandered to the door, then, without looking back, he went out of the room.
Noolen was standing in the hall, staring up, as he walked down the stairs. He didn’t even bother to look at him. Out in the street he took a deep breath, pulled at his nose thoughtfully, then set off at a fast pace in the direction of the Airport.